Dodecahedron-Palooza!

     I LOVE math. I love the rules, the formulas, the exactness. I also appreciate the fun that can be had when math is combined with other subjects! Geometry was a challenging topic for me in high school- after all, who cares about proofs... ha ha. BUT, I love working with shapes. I am a hands-on learner. Hence, when I started designing resources, I fell in love with the idea of turning 3D geometric shapes into objects that helped students excel in other areas of learning- like writing, reading, art, and the like. 

     It has been so fun over the past two years to make about 13 different dodecahedron projects for my students. Do I use all of them every year? Nope. But I have an arsenal of them from which I can pull.

     Why all this information you ask? Well, I am pleased as punch to tell you that I am offering my bundle for an even LOWER price than you see on the picture below. 

     Yup, that right- that $32.99 already represents a 20% discount. But for the next 11 days, you can get all nine of these projects below for 43% OFF! 

Remember- the $32.99 is currently $23.99 for the next 11 days!!!!!!

Don't just take my word for it! Here are blog posts that SHOW and TELL all about these projects!

http://teachingbythesea.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-most-amazing-dodecahedron-book.html

http://teachesthirdingeorgia.blogspot.com/2013/05/closing-out-school-yearwith-some-fun.html

http://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2013/01/100th-day-3d-style.htmlhttp://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-12-sides-to-great-school-year.htmlhttp://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2013/01/100th-day-3d-style.htmlhttp://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2012/12/book-reports-as-you-never-seen-before.htmlhttp://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2012/12/deck-halls-with-dodecahedrons.htmlhttp://educatorslife.blogspot.com/2012/08/getting-to-know-you-in-3-d.html

If you are like me and want your students to experience math concepts with their hands, then you will love this resource. Click HERE to check it out (or on the picture above)! 

Rock on my friends!

-Mr. Hughes

The 12 Sides to a Great School Year!

I like to do things a little differently. Most people like to make memory booklets, writing assignments, or other more traditional formats to help their students remember the school year. Not me, people. Not me.

I wanted something that would be spectacular and eye-catching. Setting to work, I came up with a project that would require my 60 writing students to really think back over their year and make an effort to recall ALL the aspects of their learning.

I decided to ask students questions like: "What are three pieces of advice would you give to next year's class?" I like how this forces students to think about what they did well, and where they had struggles.

Not only did they enjoy reflecting on the year, they had a blast reliving our field trip, and many other silly and serious events that had happened over the past year. It wasn't a silent work time by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a learning-loud experience.

As you can see, the kids made their pieces colorful and and informative!

Then we began the assembling stage. That was an event. But 6 staplers and 30 minutes later, we had nearly all 60 dodecahedrons completed! Phew!

I love the display that is hanging in my room. To hang them, I used my mini-clothespin and hooked them to a long string that winds around my classroom. They are going to be awesome for our academic fair tonight. WAHOO!

If you would like to take a peek at this kit, you can click HERE.

Enjoy your day and Happy End-of-the-Year!!!

Cheers!

-Mr. Hughes

100th Day of School 3-D Style

If you have been following this blog for any amount of time (or my TpT/Teachers Notebook Stores) then you know that I LOVE to make dodecahedron projects for my students to complete. They LOVE the engaging, simple assignments which they then turn into that geometrical wonder, the Dodecahedron.

With Hundreds day coming up, I knew that I wanted to make a kit for that. I got to wondering what I could would work well as the 12 mini-assignments. I wanted them to be fun, but I also wanted them to have meaning and not just all be coloring or "silly".

I pulled out my 100th Day file folder that was over flowing and skimmed and scanned the contents. I was pleased to find several ideas that sparked my creativity and I set to work. When I finished, I knew that I needed a test group. I mean, these activities were activities that I had been using for years, and I loved them. But I had never combined them in this fashion. Well... the 4th grade teacher graciously offered to be the test driver. I turned the kit over to her and this is what happened:

I always love the look of a completed dodecahedron. The students never tire of seeing them come to life in front of the their very eyes. These are going to make a very amazing 100th day display in the school. The 4th grade teacher has spent the last several days letting the students work on them as time allowed. 

Wahoo! Another fun resource ready to share.

Cheers!
-MrHughes :0)


If you are interested in learning more, you can check it out HERE in my TpT Shop or HERE in my Teachers Notebook Shop.

I also wanted to share some of my other dodecahedron kits that are currently available.

Book Reports As You Never Seen Before!

If you are like me, I am always looking for new and interactive ways to make book reports/literature responses (what ever name you call them) more engaging for my students.

This is the very reason that I created my Book Report Menu Kit. It provides a way for students to have choice EVERY month/quarter (the kit provides a format for both).

In that kit there is an option for "Other" where the students can design their own project. I have had some pretty amazing projects submitted over the years under the "other" section. This got me to thinking about a fun idea that I have been kicking around in my head for some time.

What if I turned one of my popular dodecahedron kits into a book report format. Hmmmm....
How would my students react to having to do 12 mini-projects (these are 6th graders mind you).

Would it be too much (dare I say it) WORK (heaven forbid)?
Overwhelming?
Take too long?
Too cheesy?
Too cutesy?

Undeterred by the prospect of critical feedback (my students are none to shy on sharing their feelings about projects/assignments- they are 6th graders after all!) I started putting together ideas on paper.

This spurred me into action and thus my Book Report Dodecahedron Kit was born. Creating it was the "easy" part. Now to get my students to buy into it.

Well, let me tell you.

We had just completed my Christmas Dodecahedron Project and I thought for sure they would balk at having to do another dodecahedron... boy was I wrong.

I am not sure what magical power a dodecahedron has, but my students never seem to tire of them. This was the 4th one we have made this year and they were still excited. Here a few shots of my kiddo working on them:

 I loved that they had to do a lot of little projects that didn't, according to them, feel overwhelming. I will say that it took about 3-4 days of 45-60 minutes each day to complete. This was the week for before winter break so there was flexibility, but, if it were to be sent home, I would totally have sent it home in small chunks, or used it as a "read-aloud time" work on project, or both. Another thought I had was to have them work on it throughout reading their book. That way it is spread out over the month and very easy to do.

Now... keeping track of all the pieces might be a different story, but I also thought about having them turn in each circle as it is completed. That way I could grade each piece at a time, and then I wouldn't be left with a HUGE pile of dodecahedrons to try and grade after presentations. That part I REALLY like!

 One of my favorite parts is having them hang around the room/hallway. They are just eye-catching, and I find that students are always under them trying to see/read what they say.

When I have sent home my dodecahedrons in the past, I just sent a note saying that if a parent wanted to keep it for a memory book, to simply remove the staples/carefully separate each tab and then you have a "booklet" of 12 circles. Easy Peasy.

Wahoo! Another successful project!

I hope this post will inspire YOU to try something new and brave in this new year. Give you and your students a NEW BEGINNING!

Good Luck and Happy New Year!

-MrHughes

P.S. If you are interested in looking at my book Report Dodecahedron Kit, click HERE or on the picture below:

Deck the Halls (with Dodecahedrons!)

Greetings Dear Friends,

I wanted to share with you what my 6th graders have been up to the last couple of days. I love using dodecahedrons in my classroom. The students never tire of them and they are such an amazing mathematical wonder to look at.
The holidays seem to be a vacuum on my academic attempts. I really need  my students to do some reading, writing, art, and math in a fun holiday format, and not get bored with "writing" and "reading", etc.
I put my mind to work and tweaked a few of my Holiday projects and came up with something that I feel is pretty special.

Here are few picture of my kiddos working on the individual assignments.

The students do many various activities. Here a student is rough-drafting a letter to Santa. The students must use persuasive writing and follow a specific format for the letter. My 6th graders rolled their eyes when I said "Letter to Santa", but found the actual assignment was much more challenging than they expected! TAKE THAT 6th GRADERS! HA! Just kidding. I was glad to see them a little worried about making it work.

SHOPPING TRIP!

Students get to go on a shopping spree and buy gifts for their family and friends. They decide in advance the amount of money they have (reasonable or crazy amount) and then use actual catalogs and flyers to find gifts. The math and reading involved (not to mention all the non-fiction reading skills practiced) are lost on them, but NOT ME! WAHOO!

This is one of my favorite activities. Not only do my students GET to read a classic piece of literature, they then must summarize the story in 10 boxes exactly- USING PICTURES! Everyone thought this would be a piece of cake, but they quickly found that it was much more challenging than they expected. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! (I use A Visit From St. Nicholas by Clement C. Moore, but I made it possible to use ANY poem/story that I want to in the future. There is even a space for the title and author on the circle!

WISHING STRAIGHT AHEAD!

Students get to choose their Top 5 Wishes for Christmas. Some of my students did reasonable items and some took creative license and asked for some pretty outrageous things. I love the minds of 6th graders. They make life exciting everyday, and by exciting, I mean CRAZY! 

Here is the snow globe scene. I have been amazed at the creativity of my students. Of course, they never cease to amaze me. You can also see a finished dodecahedron in this picture. They are pretty amazing when they are done. I am so excited to get our finished up so I can hang them from the ceiling in the hallway and dazzle all the other students in the school.

Update: Here is a picture with some of the dodecahedrons hanging.

What fun activities do YOU do with your students?

Cheers!

-MrHughes

P.S.

If you want to try this activity, you can see a picture of the kit below.

Click HERE if you would like learn more.