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Many Uses for Pear Deck

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Pear Deck is a tool I have been using in my classroom for over 5 years now. It is consistently the #1 tool my students say helps their learning in our classroom. So, I'd just like to give a brief overview of the different ways we deploy Pear Deck for Google Slides in our classroom. Instructor Paced Notes This is probably the most traditional use of Pear Deck. Essentially having a lecture session built in Google Slides with Pear Deck interactions built in. This has been wonderful this year when I have a mix of students who are in person and virtual. All learners get a chance to interact and be heard by the teacher and their voice can be shared with the class.  While this might seem straight forward, there are some best practices to keep in mind. Start out with a question to preview content or tap into prior knowledge.This can be a good check to see what the class and individual students already know about a topic. It is also provides an opportunity use their words to help guide def
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Class Portfolios 2020

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As I reflect on the past school year, I just wanted to share out a couple of the final class portfolios my students made using Google Sites to share out and document the current iteration. Although this semester was altered by the COVID-19 Pandemic, students were still able to complete the portfolio process. 

Physics Portfolio

The Portfolio created by my physics students has several key pages
  • Home
  • Passions
  • Learner Profile
  • Unit Pages
But I think it would be best if we just let Morgan introduce her portfolio.

Passion Page

On the passion page, students describe themselves in 4 different categories with the help of YouTube videos they embed.
  1. Hope & Dreams
  2. Favorites in Media
  3. Hobbies
  4. What I Like to Make
Click the Image to Access Morgan's Passions Page


Learner Profile

The learner page consists of 2 major elements.
  1. The Learner Profile developed by Barbara Bray and Kathleen McClaskey in which learners apply a UDL Lens to identify their strengths, challenges and preferences as a learner. This is completed in the first days of the class and is updated during the course
  2. At the end of the course, students identify 3 strengths as a learner and provide evidence to back it up.
Click the Image to Access Morgan's Learner Profile Page


Unit Pages

At the end of each unit, students provide evidence of mastery for 4 different Next Generation Science Practices for work completed within the unit. In the page below, Morgan has embedded evidence from her Google Drive. This process is super easy in Google Sites.
Click the Image to Access Morgan's Motion Unit Page


AP Physics Portfolio

We revisit the portfolio in Physics at the end of each unit. In AP Physics, the portfolio is worked on at the end of each term (we are on the block schedule so each term is a quarter). Much of the portfolio is the same in terms of the Passions and Learner Profile Pages. But rather than unit pages, students set up science standards pages based on AP Science Practices. Students provide a piece of evidence related to each practice at the end of each term. 
Below, Vera will explain her portfolio.


Click the Image to Access Vera's Portfolio

The videos you watched above were created by students using Flipgrid which works very nicely with Google Sites. As Google Sites continues to add new functionality, the ability for students to customize and make truly beautiful portfolios continues to grow. I look forward to what the summer will bring and what our next iteration will look like. 
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