Call me a fool ... go ahead. As I worked through this course on Project Based Learning, one of the lessons asked us to add "research tools" to the PBL unit planner we have been working on. And I dimly thought to myself, "Research Tools? . . . What are those?". When I took a moment and thought about how I ask my students to do their research, I just think about google. Sure, I may start them out with a few sound resources to get them going, but once they start generating their own questions, I just unleash them on "The Google". Simple. They're in 6th grade (I'm laughing pretentiously at my naive 1-day-ago self). So you can imagine my surprise when I browsed through the
EdTech Team Online Google+ Community to see what kinds of research tools others had been posting.
There, before my own eyes, was a wondrous list of tools. Some I had used before, and some that were new to me. But the embarrassing and interesting thing is there was not a single one of them which I had ever considered a "research tool". Why not? I have no idea. I just always thought of these as magnificent tools for specific jobs.
Thanks to my awesome colleagues in the cohort for posting such awesome resources. Do you have those moments, where you just feel your mind opening, and suddenly perspectives you've always had are now changing? And you feel really dumb? That was me. Why have I never thought about these resources like that before? Why have I never thought about teaching my students to use them as tools - available to them for a variety of tasks that may come their way, as they see fit?
I was able to compose myself and pull together a few of my own favorite tools that I would put in my newly discovered category of awesome things:
My best and most important learning from this was to reconsider my own concept of "The Tool belt". A couple years ago I made this AWESOME tool belt for my classroom. See it here?
And I would add all of the math concepts we were learning throughout the year - I would add them to those little belt loops, and describe to the students how they need to know how to use all of the tools in their tool belt, so that when they called to a job (in this case, a new and unfamiliar math problem), they would know just how to use their tools to get the job done. Pretty awesome, huh? I love my tool belt. Except now ---- move over tool belt of 2015, here comes the new and improve tool belt of 2016! How about those tools in the belt are a little more versatile? Able to be used for bigger (and more relevant) problems . . . TRANSdisciplinary problems. Research tools? YES! Collaboration tools? YES! Communication tools? YES! Wow --- I can improve on this tool belt so much with my new thinking! And I will! On Monday morning. I love learning new things!
What else should students have in their tool belts?
tool belt made with icons from www.nounproject.com - screwdriver by useiconic.com - pliers by nikki rodriguez - hammer by edward boatman - belt by andres ruales - nerd by oliviu stoian
Cool stuff! I just used Choosito! to find info on Syrian refugees for my PBL on responding to terrorism. Thanks for sharing your tool with me!
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