Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Try @AdobeExpress for Quick and Insightful Exit Tickets #AdobeEduCreative

One of the things that teachers are often asked to do is come up with exit ticket ideas so the teacher has a better understanding of what students know. I think one sentence responses to questions do not really showcase whether a students knows something or not. Giving students time in class to actually create something that demonstrates what they have learned based on what was covered is more valuable. We use Seesaw in our Middle School and having students post their exit tickets there makes the most sense. For teachers who do not have access to that, other LMSs will work as well. If it comes down to it, the students can just how the teacher the completed exit ticket. Creating using Adobe Express is one of the easiest ways to have students generate exit tickets far beyond the scrap paper responses. Here are some examples across different classes. 

1. ELA: One-Sentence Summary

In an English Language Arts class, 6th graders can use Adobe Express to create a one-sentence summary of the day's reading. They can choose a background and text style that reflects the theme of the story or article they read, encouraging them to think critically about the essence of the text.

Example: After reading a chapter of "Charlotte's Web" in class, student Mia uses Adobe Express to create a one-sentence summary. She chooses a background with a barn and spider web and writes, "Wilbur the pig forms a unique friendship with a clever spider named Charlotte." This captures the central theme of the chapter and shows Mia's understanding of the story's main elements.


2. Social Studies: Today's Top Lesson Takeaway

For a 7th-grade social studies class, students can use Adobe Express to design a 'Top Takeaway' poster. This could involve summarizing the most important fact or concept they learned about a historical event or figure discussed that day.

Example: In a lesson about Ancient Egypt, student Alex designs a 'Top Takeaway' poster on Adobe Express. He summarizes, "The Nile River was crucial to Ancient Egyptian civilization for agriculture and trade." Alex chooses imagery like pyramids and the Nile River to visually support his summary.

3. Science: Concept Visualization

In an 8th-grade science class, students can demonstrate their understanding of a scientific concept (like the water cycle or photosynthesis) by creating a simple visual representation using Adobe Express. This encourages them to distill complex ideas into basic, understandable components.

Example: Learning about ecosystems, student Sara creates a simple diagram on Adobe Express to illustrate a food chain in a forest ecosystem. She uses icons of a sun, plants, a rabbit, and a fox, and arranges them to show the energy flow. This demonstrates her understanding of how energy moves through an ecosystem.

4. Math: Real-World Application Example

After a math lesson, 6th graders can use Adobe Express to depict a real-world application of the concept they learned, like fractions or algebra. They can create a visual example, such as dividing a pizza into fractions or calculating change while shopping.

Example: After a class on fractions, student Jake uses Adobe Express to depict how fractions are used in slicing pizza. He creates an image showing a a pizza with one slice partially removed. He notes that this would be 1/8 of the pizza. Another example of what the fraction would look like if 3 slices were taken. 

Adobe Express provides a quick, creative, and effective way for middle school students to demonstrate their understanding through exit tickets. These activities not only assess comprehension but also encourage students to engage with the material in a meaningful way. By incorporating such tools into everyday learning, educators can enhance the classroom experience and foster a deeper connection with the subject matter. Let's embrace the power of technology to make learning more dynamic and assessments more insightful. 

Hugs and High Fives!

Monday, January 15, 2024

Igniting Social Studies Lessons with Creativity #SSChat #EdChat #AdobeEduCreative

Hey there, fellow educators! If you're searching for a fun and engaging way to spice up your social studies lessons, look no further than Adobe Express! This user-friendly tool offers a creative spark to your classroom activities, making history and geography lessons more exciting than ever. Let's dive into two fantastic ways to use Adobe Express in your social studies classroom.

1. Create Digital Timelines:

History comes alive when you turn it into an interactive journey through time. Adobe Express' 'Poster' feature allows you to create stunning timelines. Here's how:

  • Choose a historical event or a period you want to teach.
  • Have students research and gather information about key moments, people, and dates.
  • Use Adobe Express' 'Poster' feature to create a series of pages, each representing a different event or date.
  • Add images, videos, and text to each page to provide a comprehensive overview.
  • Encourage students to include their own commentary or analysis.
  • Share the interactive timeline with the class, allowing them to explore and learn at their own pace.
Here are a couple of examples. If the students add video to the pages, they would be able to download the entire project as a video and the timeline could play for class.

2. Visual Essays:

Bring the power of visual storytelling into your social studies classroom with Adobe Express' 'Video' feature. This is perfect for exploring complex topics like world cultures, geopolitics, and historical events:

  • Assign a topic or let students choose their own social studies theme.
  • Have them conduct research and gather visual content such as images and video clips.
  • Utilize Adobe Express' 'Video' feature to create a visually stunning essay.
  • Encourage students to include narration, text overlays, and transitions to convey their message effectively.
  • Share the visual essays in class, promoting discussion and critical thinking about the topic.

Here is an example.

Click to watch the video!

Incorporating Adobe Express into your social studies classroom not only enhances engagement but also equips your students with valuable digital skills. It encourages creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration while making learning more enjoyable.

So there you have it, two exciting ways to ignite your social studies classroom with Adobe Express! With this tool, you can turn history into an adventure and complex topics into captivating visual essays. Get ready to inspire your students and watch their enthusiasm for social studies soar!

Hugs and High Fives,

The Nerdy Teacher

Monday, January 8, 2024

Bringing Poetry to Life! #MakerEd #AdobeEduCreative

One of the things that I have been excited about is the fact that you can bring so many things to life using Adobe Express. My design students have been having a blast using Animate from Audio and the Animation feature on images to make them fade in, zoom out, bounce around, spin, etc. The options to create movement has really engaged those students who are not as excited with static image creation. 

Another teacher in the middle school started a literary journal elective class this trimester and students will be in charge of putting together the submissions from the student body. I thought it would be a nice project for students to create visual representations of poems they love and submit it to The Shield. Here is a brief overview of the lesson. 

1. Students will select 4 poems that are short enough to fit into the poster space available. 

2. Students will create four posters. Two posters will be static images and two posters will be animated in some way. Audio can be added as well. 

3. Students will submit all four posters to Seesaw. 

4. Students will choose one of their static posters to be submitted to The Shield. 

I thought this would be a nice assignment for students who wanted to express some creativity, but are not quite ready to showcase their own poetry. Here are two examples I created for the students. 



For the video, I needed to use audio from Pixabay for the rain and birds and then I had to combine them in Garageband because Express does not let you stack audio or it does, but I couldn't figure it out. If you know how, let me know in the comments! This was a fun project for me and I know the students will love it when they dive in. If you have any thoughts or comments, leave them below!

Hugs and High Fives, 

The Nerdy Teacher