Baamboozle Tutorial

 Baamboozle is a website that allows you to create interactive games with students. You can even find a bunch of premade games on many different subjects, it's kind of like Kahoot! The set up is a little bit different, you can still present it whole class and have students working in different teams to figure out the answer. Something I found really cool about Baamboozle is that it also gives the option to study the questions and see it as a slideshow. It also has an option where you can use answer the questions as a quiz so it can be a fun way to do checks for understandings/quick assessments when you want to gauge student understanding. You can insert your own pictures and GIF's, it's a cute website!

Step 1: Search up Baamboozle on your preferred search engine, it looks like this 

Step 2: Click on the button that says join for free, then make your free account. There is also a paid version that gives you more options when using Baamboozle, the plan is $4.99 if you subscribe for a year and $7.99 if you do a monthly plan 

Step 3: It will send you a link to verify your email. After that, you are in and able to see all the games. There are also games in different languages that could be helpful for MLL's! 

Step 4: You can either play a game, study it (answers and questions are given as flash cards), or use it as a slideshow as seen below. When you click on the game there is also a preview, I clicked on a Halloween themed game that was to help MLL's with certain terms. It's nice to see a preview because you can always click out if it's not for you.

When you click play, there is only one game option for the free version, it is fun, just not themed

After you select the game/theme, you can choose the amount of teams, grid size, power ups/themes. AND you can choose if you want students to take it as a quiz, a game with questions and power ups, or a simpler version of the questions with power ups.

Step 5: After you select your preferences, choose questions at random or based off of what the teams would like. And put a ✅or a ☒ based off of their answer! The website will count the points. 

Step 6 (kinda): If you would rather make your own game, go to where it says My Library and press games. The website will guide you if it is your first time creating a game. You can also find anything you previously made or find specific collections you made. 

These are two tutorials I liked that were on YouTube, the second one is more in depth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-A_7kIRVZI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n_UNedTaj4

Brainstorming Part 2

 I may be overthinking, but I have two options now for my final project...

1. My original plan of creating something that can help me be more organized with scaffolding for MLL's who I typically translate for. 

2. My project in the action research course I took before this one was to begin weekly communication with my homeroom families. This would be so families have more detailed information on their student not just academically, but also socially and any growths in general. Communication would be concise so it doesn't feel like it is just redundant information. This is something I did towards the end of the year, but I would like to see how it can play out for the full year and how it can impact the students' motivation. (leaning more towards this)

So for my project: 

Step 1: Pick a topic

Step 2: Write down what my beliefs are and how this aligns to my belief, especially with my beliefs on how students learn

Step 3: Find out the media I will be using

Step 4: Design the project

Step 5: Write the narrative and make edits as needed for time

Step 6: Make the presentation

Me this weekend

Final Project Brainstorming

 During my time as an educator I have worked with both 1st grade and 3rd grade students. Many of the students I teach are level 1-3 MLL's who speak Spanish as their first language. I mostly pull small groups of students who have lower grades when we are teaching math, and many of the students that I pull are MLL's. During my time with the students, I learned that they all understand different academic terms in Spanish and it can make it easier for them when I repeat or restate directions in Spanish after they have been said in English and vice verse. Spanish is my first language so it has never been a too much of a struggle for me to translate on the spot, but I want to find a more efficient way of doing this. I teach CGI solo for my homeroom class as well as math for the entire 3rd grade with my co-teacher. I have never directly planned or implemented my translations when I am solo planning or planning with my co-teacher. But I think that it could be helpful if I try to be more organized with this. It is also important to note that I do not work at a dual language school. So my intention is also not to have students rely on translations, especially since they may not be receiving them when they move on to the next grade. Unfortunately, state testing and other assessments are also not given to them in their preferred language, so my goal is to use translations as more of a scaffold for students. 

There are many English/Spanish cognates that can also be helpful with creating something digitally. As someone who tries not to use AI and does not really want her students to use it. I came up with two ways that I can better translate during math while also using a digital tool to help. I am thinking I can create a bilingual glossary for students. This can have frequently used terms, specific math terms/attributes, and also sentence starter examples to increase MLL participation in class. I can also create anchor charts digitally that have different symbols in both English and Spanish for students. I am honestly still thinking about different ways I can implement this in class. But this is what is in my mind so far. I'm hoping that this weekend will give me more time to think up new ideas as well.