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Students create a community cookbook of family recipes and stories behind them.

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Cool collection of projects from KIS school around how to use art to connect community and spread messages around hygiene. https://trello.com/b/Zjmh04rE/kis-ideas-2020.

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Students learn the science behind pandemic transmission and then design, sew, stitch, market and create personalized face masks. (use Sketchup, Adobe and Canva to create designs)

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Simulate Model United Nations Conference on reducing spread of CoVid. (Use Zoom for conference, Google Docs, or OneNote to collaborate).

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Students will act as medical scientists in research and communicating information to the general public to encourage them to develop health eating plans to improve their immunity and assist them to recover from viral infections faster.

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How can engineering, health, and band students explore musical instrument aerosols to avoid or reduce health risks for instrumentalists through the innovation of PPE during COVID-19?
Health, band, and engineering students will collaborate to design an instrument shield for the health and safety of every band student. The health students will be studying and focusing on the spread and transmission of diseases. They will look at how aerosols produced by musical instruments affect the transmission of disease. The band students will describe each of their instruments and how aerosols are released from certain parts of the instrument. The engineering students will use the engineering design process to create protective personal equipment prototypes for each instrument. The students will work together to test their inventions of PPE using different materials that will be produced using technology such as a 3D Laser Printer, a 3D Printer, and CAD drawings.

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Using Loom/ Screencastify fir Immune system presentations

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Using Loom/ Screencastify fir Immune system presentations

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Students can work on a project to create a video on how the human body’s defence system works when infected by the corona 🦠. They share this with the class & it works as a good collaborative learning mechanism. Relevant to Topics 6.3 & 11.1( IB Biology) & Topic 10( IGCSE Bio)

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Students all over the world write or co-write articles around CoVid, Social Justice and other important issues and share them in a student curated website.

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Come up with a way to help people to stop touching their faces. This is one of the main issues in contracting the virus.

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How can you use your knowledge of exponential functions and computer programming to find a solution to "flatten the curve"? What R-value would allow sustainability for NHS? What measures can be implemented to help achieve this?

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Designing layouts of restaurant tables and plexiglass table deviders to optimize social grouping  during meals.

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Interpretive dance of the lockdown and revival of a community

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Interpretive dance of the lockdown and revival of a community

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Students create podcasts using garageband or similar that address how they are coping with covid. Cast pods on FB, Youtube,ect

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A lot of elementary students have struggled with social and emotional health during this tough time. This project asks students to use the design process to create 'play therapy' toys for their younger peers to be used in the play therapy rooms being built by the district.

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Students create infographics to post in important locations etc. to spread awareness of the need for good hygiene practices.

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Students generate design solutions to hlep facilitate or create connection times/events/ experience to connect with other student & teachers who are not on-site.

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学生 Students help to teach non-Mandarin speaking teachers how to say and/or write the language, and get help in short tutorials.

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Book club world literature on pandemic - Role play

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Book club world literature on pandemic - Role play

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Think of ways to reduce the use of single use plastics in quarantine and prepare a proposal for the local government

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Letters to the community etc. To encourage mask use, hand washing

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Students design an indoor growing chamber or container garden to promote and challenge their school/local/feeder school/community to a grow challenge.  This promotes a sense of community during physically distant winters, the positive mental health benefits of growing/taking care of plants and working towards healthy eating and food insecurity.

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Produce songs related to the impact of the pandemic

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Cover song contest

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Interview a friend or family member about the wisdom they would share and then write a monologue that honors their wisdom. Gather performances to make an evening that celebrates wise words.

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Make a note of the elderly in your neighborhood, especially if they are not able to drive and/or have no family and give them a "hands up". Assist with raking, shoveling, shopping, getting them out for a walk, share a meal with them, etc

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Produce giving boxes for non-perishable food or personal care items and place them randomly around your town.

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FREE COVID-19 & Me Collaborative Class Book

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FREE COVID-19 & Me Collaborative Class Book

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Teachers automatically collect student's experiences & perspectives into a digital book online for 1 year & print on demand. Or students create their own collaborative books with their family $10 online for 1 year, 2 hours speech-to-text, 200 contributors.

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7B finished book 7K finished book
Blakehurst High School's Year 7 English Enrichment teachers Bahia Malas and Kerry-Anne Faria, have students using FamilyBookform's technology to easily create their 'Coronavirus & Me' Collaborative Class Book as part of their three phase enrichment project. This project is being delivered using the Project-Based Learning pedagogy, which allows students to develop their 4Cs as well as their literacy skills.

The project involved 60 students working asynchronously at home, talking with their families about how the Coronavirus has affected their lives, especially in their first year of high school.

Students accessed a 'template page' sent by the teachers and articulated their feelings and thoughts, with photos, to create their chapter of the Collaborative Class Book and capture the essence of all their COVID-19 experiences. Even the School's Principal contributed a chapter.

Students' feedback so far is overwhelmingly positive with the majority enjoying the ease of using the template page, with clear instructions and photo uploads, and the ability to log on and off and work at their own pace.

Students can share their content to enrich synchronous online classes, to discuss their various contributions and collaboratively edit the text to ensure the book is a polished product because "it is documenting history and will be a valuable primary record." The students recognise, appreciate and value what this project is adding to them as individuals, their school and community. Blakehurst High School and their enrichment teachers are providing them with this opportunity that allows them to see themselves as global citizens who can leave an impact on the world.

Teachers surveyed students: "What do you see as the value of documenting your COVID-19 experiences in the form of a book?"
"I see the value of documenting my COVID-19 experiences in the form of a book as it tells others what happened and how people coped during that time." "It's easy to write in and it gives us a chance to express our feelings about things that we might have issues with." "Our contributions and documents of our experiences as a class, are going to make history! The value of adding our own experiences as a class, and snippets of our own personal life throughout this crisis of Covid-19 itself, is a fantastic way to collaborate our thoughts into one, meaningful book." "Something valuable about this whole experience is that I know in the future, our generation is going to be a primary source for all historians documenting this pandemic......So if you think about it documenting our experience will be valuable to others in the future." "When we grow up or this virus is stopped then everyone will read this book and be in awe because we have gone through a global pandemic." "I find it fun and interesting because you get to experience a new way of writing and that we are the only year to write about COVID-19." "Something that I personally like about Bookform is that it can allow our whole class to contribute and actually write a book together. Also that it allows us to add pictures like they would be set out in an actual book." "After the pandemic is over, people can look back and read our COVID-19 experiences to learn about what it was like for a student entering highschool for the first time and being disrupted by a global pandemic."
Bahia Malas, English teacher, Year 8 Adviser & Professional Experience Coordinator said, 'When we first proposed this project to our senior executives, they were enthusiastic and supported us in making it a reality for our students just like the parents were, for which we are thankful. I will be presenting our case study at EduTech Asia in Singapore with the aim of inspiring and supporting other educators, no matter what context they are in, to use innovative pedagogy, which will engage students in meaningful and authentic ways. I'm so proud that our students are contributing, not only to future-focused education and learning, but to historical records of this unusual time as well. Our students are so excited to leave their mark on the world by creating a published book and are motivated to be better writers because their work will be valuable to many people."

Kerry-Anne Faria, English/History teacher, Year 7 Adviser & Professional Experience Coordinator said "I'm so proud of how our students in 7B and 7K have taken this challenge on board and even though we've made significant changes to what our project was originally going to look like because of the Covid-19 pandemic, students have taken this in their stride and are excited to continue to move forward with this project. One of the elements that students have expressed most enjoyment about is the fact that their experiences will be heard by future generations in this 'historical primary source', much like the other books that they have studied in history."

Many teachers around the world have had to quickly learn new technologies, change their lessons for online delivery, and struggle with the myriad of difficulties associated with scared, disengaged, and unmotivated students.

Instead of reinventing the wheel, Blakehurst High School's enrichment teachers are being innovative by using the FamilyBookform technology which already adheres to pedagogy, privacy & synchronous/asynchronous learning, so they can quickly implement valuable learning solutions for their students and families. Furthermore, the technology produces valuable books that can be graded, included in student's portfolios for reflection & higher education applications, and shared with their whole community.

The FamilyBookform technology is an evolution of the Google Doc as a writing tool, instead of a blank page, a 'template page' scaffolds students to interview & collect original content, using speech-to-text & collaboration with others, to automatically create printable digital books.
Example Projects:
Collaborative Class Book: A Class of Students build a book together.

The Family Recipe Book: A student collects their favourite food & stories into a personalised book.

Granddad's Memoir: A student interviews a family member or everyone to create a Memoir or Family Book.

Community Service: Students go into their community to collect & save oral histories.

Teachers signup free and create a Class book, thereafter it's $10 per book, hosted online for 1 year, 2 hours speech-to-text, 300 contributors, download audio files & PDF to print-on-demand.

Contact: office@familybookform.com

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7B finished book 7K finished book Blakehurst High School's Year 7 English Enrichment teachers Bahia Malas and Kerry-Anne Faria, have students using FamilyBookform's technology to easily create their 'Coronavirus & Me' Collaborative Class Book as part of their three phase enrichment project.

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Students investigated the true meaning of happiness. Then they wrote some tips to be happy according  to human nature (we study human nature in Anthropology) and then created a short video with their tips.

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It was a project started by Christine Anderson.
If art is a manifestation of the times, what is a situation (that has its origins in the misinterpretation of human nature) that you would like to manifest from these COVID- times?
They created a peace of art and displayed it in a site

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Have students interview family members and write a virtual class cookbook with pictures and family stories... everyone’s thinking about food these days! Research regional influences and compare/contrast ingredients and preparations. Every has to prepare  a recipe, this all becomes a part of the book....

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Children design a set of activities for them to do independently at home when their care-takers are working. Part of the project involves learning about Covid through podcasts and comic books, and creating their own.  Integration of design (science/engineering), ELA (speaking and listening, information writing of how to do/play the activities) and math (to time activities to make sure they can be done longer than 30 minutes independently).

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As we all begin this extended time at home with our families, we know that care-givers and teachers of young children are looking for meaningful learning experiences.
Project Based Learning (PBL) offers both care-givers and children a unique opportunity to create opportunities for independent learning. Projects are connected to real world problems, giving young children agency to make an impact in their communities.
We have designed this project, entitled "Home Base," with that in mind, and we look forward to seeing and hearing about your work. We encourage you to share photos of your work on our Facebook page, Early Childhood Project Based Learning.

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As we all begin this extended time at home with our families, we know that care-givers and teachers of young children are looking for meaningful learning experiences. Project Based Learning (PBL) offers both care-givers and children a unique opportunity to create opportunities for independent learning.

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DQ: How do we help ourselves, peers, and teachers stay healthy during lockdowns and restrictions?
Science connection: How does physical and mental health help maintain homeostasis?
Public Products:
Present an action plan to the District Wellness Committee
Virtual newsletter (In Slides)for students in the district
Organize a virtual walkathon

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Students will ask the question “How can we teach others that all jobs are important in a community?” They will go on virtual field trips to learn about professions and then make a digital ABC book to tell others about how jobs are important.

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How about something like, "How can we, as students, help educate our community to support optimal immune system health?"    It seems that students and people everywhere feel sort of powerless against this virus, yet there ARE things we can do to increase the potential of overcoming the viral challenge. I am envisioning student groups working on: healthy food choices, what to avoid? mental health, physical fitness, etc.? Perhaps creating community Public Service Announcements?

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Driving Question: "How can we design an app that will help people in our community slow the spread of CoVid 19?"

In the STEM Week Challenge for grades 9-12, Partners in Health asks high school students to think creatively about one of the greatest STEM challenges of our generation – COVID-19. Students explore the many challenges individuals may be facing in quarantine and develop original apps to help slow the viral spread in their communities.

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Students design and create the concept, meals, and layout for food trucks to serve the community during CoVid.

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Revival of California Road Trip Project 

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Revival of California Road Trip Project 

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Using geography, mapping, CA history, CA regions, and some science, students plan a 'socially distanced' safe road trip in California and build a website to communicate different options.

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As sound engineers, students create life foley sounds for movies, TV, and video projects using household items.

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DO NOT break glass or china or ceramic plates
DO NOT hammer anything, hurt, pinch or punch any animal or person.
DO NOT put myself or my equipment (Chromebook) in a dangerous place or a place where damage may occur. Dangerous places include roads, streets, rooftops, stovetops, on on any wheeled things, etc.

BE SAFE!! ​

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DO NOT break glass or china or ceramic platesDO NOT hammer anything, hurt, pinch or punch any animal or person.DO NOT put myself or my equipment (Chromebook) in a dangerous place or a place where damage may occur. Dangerous places include roads, streets, rooftops, stovetops, on on any wheeled things, etc.

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PPE is becoming more important than ever due to the coronavirus pandemic. Give the students some spaces to discover their skills by recreating the PPE using newspaper or recycle materials. This project aims to expose the students the importance of PPE especially to the health workers and to enhance their abilities in recreating something by using different materials.

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Pack a paper bag full of random design materials (paper clips, sticky tack, legos, etc.) and complete design challenges. Or, pack a bag full of materials for 'lab a day' activities. See example...

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Katie Martin | Informed by Research, Inspired by Practice

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This week I watched Matt, my husband who is a chemistry teacher, guide 50 10th graders through a lab to make gummy bears from our kitchen assisted by our 12-year-old daughter and gummy bear making expert. Students are not only watching the lab, they are doing it themselves in each of their homes. In the coming weeks, they will blow up mentos, create batteries, make red cabbage pH indicators, among many other experiments. Each day throughout the semester students will engage in a lab as a class to experiment with chemical reactions and then reflect on the process and what they learned from the experiment in their digital notebook. Through these are seemingly simple and fun experiments students will about acids and bases, oxidation, heat transfer, chemical bonding and so much more.

A sample of a student's digital notebook.

The Power of Project-Based Learning

Matt has been teaching virtually since mid-March and like many teachers he has been planning daily assignments, looking for ways to engage learners, and staring at black squares. Frequently adjusting timelines, lighting the load, and doing what he could to cater to students' needs. Still, they were disconnected, distracted, and doing what they could to get by. Distance learning was not just hard for his students, it was hard on him. The lack of connection, the lack of purpose, felt like they were all just going through the motions.

Understanding the power of project-based learning to motivate his students (check out his soap company here), this semester he decided to try a new approach in distance learning. He shifted from a lesson a day to a lab a day. Listing out all of the chemistry labs that he could think of that students could do safely in their homes, he identified all the ingredients necessary and started ordering the supplies.

He unboxed and sorted all the things and enlisted our family to make 50 lab kits for his students including over 100 separate ingredients from sugar to thermometers to gummy bear molds. Overall it took about $50 per student and a few extra hours over the course of the week to put the supplies together, which filled grocery bags to the brim. As we measured citric acid and counted mentos, my kids were asking questions about each of the labs and what the chemical reactions would teach students and I learned a few things myself. We were all willing to help because it is a cool project and we felt like we were doing something worthwhile for Matt and his students.

A Sense of Purpose

49 out of 50 10th graders and their families showed up to pick up their supplies and the 50th came to the house to pick it up a few days later. This was a perfect opportunity to meet each student face to face and connect with them and their families. He was able to go over the supplies, answer questions and problem solve together. Matt has pointed out that he couldn't get 100% participation to go on a fun field trip last year. It spoke volumes that in the middle of the pandemic with students living 30 minutes or more from school across multiple zip codes and dealing with many family hardships that they found a way to get to school when it mattered to them. Although I think this is a cool project and students are going to learn a lot, I believe the power of this project provides is the connection and sense of purpose that many students and adults alike have been searching for in the midst of the pandemic.

Ready for the Pick up

Doing Work that Matters, Matters

Despite the awareness of students' diminished sense of belonging and lack of engagement in distance learning and hybrid environments, many feel compelled to push forward to ensure they are covering content. Many have shared fears about covering content because students will be tested this year. Yet, if we are really focused on students learning and performing, we can't neglect their wellbeing. First and foremost because people matter more than their test scores. But if that is not enough, we also have to recognize that if students aren't connected to their teachers, one another, and the work they are doing, we won't have the conditions where learning is likely.

Whether you are in a building or teaching students from a distance, this is an opportunity to focus on learning that matters. The recommendations from high school students in this video remind us that if we want students to engage, we need to think deeply about how to prioritize 1:1 connections, build relationships with students, and ensure that the work we are asking students to do is meaningful, not just busywork.

Almost a year into the pandemic, we are tired and have experienced so much loss. Many are weary and I believe what we need is more purpose, not more busy work. In the book, Crossing the Unknown Seas, this passage highlights the power of purpose and joy in our work and daily lives.

"You know that the antidote to exhaustion is not necessarily rest?"

"The antidote to exhaustion is wholeheartedness."

The tendency is to just do less, lower the bar instead of thinking about how to do things differently. Matt's renewed energy and his students' enthusiasm are a reminder that now more than ever, we all need to connect with others to engage, learn, and grow, and find ways to do work that matters and create opportunities to experience "wholeheartedness."

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How a Sense of Purpose Reignited Engagement for Students and Their Teacher Alike

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Each day throughout the semester students will engage in a lab as a class to experiment with chemical reactions and then reflect on the process and what they learned from the experiment in their digital notebook. Through these are seemingly simple and fun experiments students will about acids and bases, oxidation, heat transfer, chemical bonding and so much more.

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Students provide advice for e-learning to peers across the world on time management and wellness. Driving Question: How can we we help increase the effectiveness of e-learning for peers across the world? (Use Canva or Prezi to compile tips/ create infographics).

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Amazingly Simple Graphic Design Software - Canva

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Amazingly Simple Graphic Design Software - Canva

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Use the recent Mars Exploration 4K Video to design, pitch and propose where the next space station should be built. Bring in Nasa Engineers and Astronauts to act as evaluators.