Online Hui #3

Today was supposed to be our third KPMG Hui. Due to Covid19, we couldn't meet face to face but we were lucky enough to meet all together online.

What did we do in our MIT Online Hui Meets?

We spoke about how we are going in Lockdown, what our classes look like, and then we went ahead and got into pairs (my group had three). In these groups, we had to explain what our projects actually were, what our goal outcome was, and what we were doing in the classroom. Then we had to report back to the big group and share what our buddies' topics were. It was good that we did this exercise because we were able to listen to our colleagues about what their projects are about, and someone else was able to explain what they were doing.

My Project

What was working?

Since the last KPMG Hui and Cook Islands trip, I have been trying to make more of an effort to work on my project. I made a Google Slides that the children will use to put their screenshots of the formulated sheets on. My learners knew how to access the sheets easily, and when I would get some of them to do it in front of me, they would be able to explain their working out. I now need to encourage them to show their working out when they are writing down their answers in their books. To make it a bit more fun, I turned the sheets into a game as well. When we play around the world, I'll use questions from these sheets. Children started to catch on so they would go and practice by using the sheets.

What wasn’t working?

We had a busy two weeks of Math Whizz observations. Chris and Ross came in to teach my learners how to use Math Whizz properly, and all of the different features that are on there. My learners have really gotten into it, making it a little bit hard for me when I ask them to focus on the formulated sheets. It is great that they are getting more excited about Maths, so maybe I need to think about how I can bring that same excitement into my project. Going into Covid made it harder to see that they were actually using my tool. I can't really see what they are doing unless they use the Formulated Sheets Google Slides.

What can you do/have you done in Lockdown?

I have made more Google Formulated Sheets. I even taught my family (who aren't the greatest at using Google) how to make these specific sheets so that they can help me make more resources. This also helps with when we are making a tutorial video for those who want to make one. I know that if I can teach my family who don't have a clue, then I can make a video teaching others. Not only How-To videos for teachers that want to make this tool, but also How-To videos for students that might want to access them. I also had Google Meeting with Matt and Rebecca. This meeting made me feel a lot better about where I am situated in terms of the project and what I can do going forward. Rebecca and I are also in talks about our website. Because it is a collaborative site, we need to discuss what it will look like, how the tools are going to be shared, and what information will be shared on the site. The site is now made through the Manaiakalani Domain, we are just discussing the finer details.

Has lockdown affected your project?

When we went into Remote Learning, my project wasn't affected too much. It is actually a great time for me to focus more on the things that I need to finish on my To-Do list, as well as get more resources made. It can be quite difficult finding time to make these tools, so I have had heaps of time to make some. I am also going to be using these Sheets as a focus in my Google Meets with my class. I will focus on the Number Strand, keeping the Number Knowledge sheets that I have created as a resource to help the practice with strategies that they are still struggling with. I hope to record these meetings so that I have evidence of how I use my tool in my classroom.