3D Printing Come to RMS

As an introduction to their sculpture unit, Art 7/8 and Art 1 students experimented with using the emerging technology of 3D printing to create miniature sculptures.  They learned how 3D printing is being used in not only in art, but in science and medicine as well.  Students used Tinkercad, a 3D modeling software to create original sculpture designs.  They worked in the computer lab for 2 days creating their designs in early March.  It took a team of teachers two weeks to print the finished sculptures.  Thanks to Linda Kay and Robin Young for their help in bringing this cool experience to our art department!

~ Mrs. Duvall

MinecraftEdu in 8th Grade Science

As part of a unit on the earth's surface and topographical maps, 8th grade students came to the computer lab where they worked as a team to create a virtual topographical map in MinecraftEDU.   They were first given a mountain that they were to mark each elevation pint using different color blocks.   Once completed the class identified steep and gentle slopes as well as made predictions about erosion.   Next they were challenged to build a mountain up based on the lines given.   This proved to be a bit more challenging to work collaboratively and problem solve to complete the task.    

Sharing the Information!

The teachers at Ridgeview are getting creative in how they are sharing information and resources with students.  Recently in the United States History classes the teachers created a Thinglink that explained the famous engraving of the Boston Massacre and helped students explore the events leading up to and following this historic event.

In our Next Generation Digital Classroom  Ms. Raph and Mrs. Allen are grouping resources using Blendspace to allow students to work through the websites at their own pace and at the same time sharpen their math skills.

Mr. Clark's World Cultures classes are exploring Europe with the help of Symbaloo - an easy way to visually organize the links they will need to learn the material.

Students Review the Bill of Rights

Students in Mrs. Collins, Mr. Jasman, Mr. Tong and Ms. Webster's class are getting familiar with the first ten amendments as they research how they have impacted various court cases over the years.  After completing some research they were to write 2 letters to the editor expressing both sides of the court case related to the amendment they have chosen.  


Students also expressed their opinions of various uses of the first amendment through the use of polling software, Socrative.   Students chose to agree or disagree with statements and then as a class discussed the results of the class versus results given to the American population.  The discussion allowed for students to critically think through the First Amendment and their thoughts about how it should be and is being applied to American life.

Reviewing for 8th Grade Science STAAR

8th Grade Students went online to review for the upcoming STAAR Science test.  Using materials chosen for them to address high stakes TEKS students interacted with the science concepts and got to clear up misconceptions the weeks before the Science Test.  

Math Loves Technology!

Sixth grade students started off the new year by diving into Think Through Math.  "Think Through Math is a Web-based solution that provides adaptive math instruction for students in grades 3 through Algebra 1. Developed by teachers and technologists to help students prepare for rigorous Common Core and TEKSstandards and assessments, " (http://www.thinkthroughmath.com/)


Seventh grade math spent much time in the fall semester using technology to review and practice math concepts with  various websites for math practice for students including Think Through Math, SumDog, and math-play.com. The students also used online quizzing software like Socrative for formative and sumative assessments.   Mr. Ritchie says "My students love using technology! I think it is the future of education. My students use an online educational software called Think Through Math. It is a self paced software that only lets you move on as fast as your knowledge will let you. There are also incentives for the students to be successful. That is an added bonus. "

Eighth Grade student have also spent time on Think Through Math to reinforce skills, especially in the Algebra and Geometry classes.  These students are taking the STAAR 8th Grad Math exam as well as the Algebra and Geometry End of Course Exams, so this program allows students to review math concepts that were covered in previous years.

8th Grade Science Gets Moving

Students in 8th grade are getting hands on time with motion detectors and vernier probes this week to create motion graphs by mapping the motion of other students moving at various speeds and paths.  This is part of their study of Force and Motion as they learn to differentiate between speed velocity and acceleration.

What if You Designed the Next Hunger Games?

8th grade students were asked to write a persuasive letter based on their class novel study of the Hunger Games.  They used Google Docs to write the letter, which allowed the teachers to check on their progress and leave comments on how to improve their writing as they were working on the project.  They also created a muttation, a suggested combination of two animals to be added to the next installment of the Hunger Games for the Capital.   Students used PowerPoint to combine photos of animals into a new creature and then created an online multimedia presentation about their mutation using Smore.


Here are a few student samples of their muttations:

• Sharkodile
• Skishes
• Wooian
• Kangrilla

Reviewing for the American Revolution

In Mr. Tong's class students are learning to review by making their own Quizlet set of cards that includes images of the famous people or events.  Students then can use these sets to prepare for the upcoming test on any device that has internet access.

Here are a few sample sets from  students:  http://quizlet.com/_gap52

http://quizlet.com/_ig8im

Historical Figures of the American Revolution meet Quizlet

8th grade History students are preparing for their upcoming test by creating Quizlet sets of the famous people they are learning about.  Students took notes over the important people of the time period and then use the program to make sets of flashcards that can be used to study in various games on the website.   

Google Apps for Education is now available to Students!

During the month of September students were introduced to their new RRISD google account.  Students now can use this account to email staff members, access Google Drive to create and store documents as well as other apps from the Chrome Education store.   All the students came into the Lab and worked with Mrs. Young to log into their accounts, learn about their email, and to set up folders to help keep their Google drive organized.  They shared the folders for each class with the teacher who teaches the class so they can turn in assignments that way.

To access their account students need to go to:  https://accounts.google.com

Enter in their email address:  s######@student.roundrockisd.org   (###### = their student ID number)
Password:  Is the same they use for the computers at school.

Teachers and students will be exploring these new accounts this year and learning new ways to collaborate and create.

8th Grade Civil War Infographic

To Kill a Mockingbird

Students in Ms. Salazar's 8th grade Language Arts classes are reading "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.  She offered extra credit opportunities for the students, and one of their options was to use smore.com to advertise anything about Maycomb, Alabama, as it is portrayed and described in the novel.  Here are two samples made using the website smore.com.

Reviewing "To Kill a Mocking Bird"

Ms. Salazar's students reviewed their knowledge of the book "To Kill a Mockingbird" by answering questions in teams about the book using Socrative.  Ms. Salazar used the results to remind students of important details of the novel and gave them opportunities to tell what they thought certain details might be important as the story develops.  Students were thoroughly engaged with the activity and are ready to continue in their student of this classic novel.

Geometry Gets Flipped!

Students in Mrs. Rutherford's class get to take her home with them through the videos she creates and posts online.   Her YouTube Channel is full of instructional videos that explain the concepts they are learning in class.  She has also found videos from the textbook site to help supplement the instruction. She sends out the link to the videos and reminders to watch through Remind101.   Students watch the videos and take notes before they come to class and then spend class time clarifying what they do not understand and working through problems with their teacher there to help answer questions.

Here is a sample video Mrs. Rutherford posted for her students:

Students Get Graphic with Infographics

8th grade students have been studying the American Civil War is social studies classes.  Recently they were assigned to represent the information they were learning in the form of an infographic.  A technique that takes information and presents in a one page graphic format usually shared online.  Students used PowerPoint and the tools provided with the program to create their infographic.  Teachers reported that all went well and were pleased with the outcomes.  Student samples will be coming soon!

Math Review Gets Interactive

Students in Mrs. Rutherford's math classes reviewed for the upcoming Math STAAR exam with the help of the Turning Points Student clickers.  Students were able to read the question, solve it and then send in their answers through the clickers.   Mrs. Rutherford then showed the results of how the class did and explained which answer was right and why.  This gave students a chance to seek clarification on math skills they did not understand and showed Mrs. Rutherford what concepts the students needed more help with.  

Mrs. Collins' Classes Make Smores!

Students in Mrs. Collin's US History class are sharing what they know about Andrew Jackson by creating smores that explain if Jackson was a "hero" or a "villain."  Students are using class notes and DBQ resources to make their case as well as searching the internet for images and movies that help make their point.   Final products will be shared when available.  Several other history classes will be completing this project as well in the coming weeks.

Students in Motion

Students in Mr. Alexander's class are learning about velocity  Venier Motion Sensors.  Students were taught to use the motion detectors and then mapped various motions included walking at various speeds and riding a bicyle.  The results were mapped on the Go Motion devices and were later analyzed by the students in class.

Making Connections in US History

Students in Mrs. Collins, Mrs. Koch, Ms. Sphar, Ms. Webster and Mr. Jasman's classes used technology to research a "Seed of Democracy" and then constructed a paper slide video to explain how that seed played into the Constitution and how we run our country today.   Paper slides were recorded with Flip cameras and then viewed by the entire class so they could learn from each other and review they Constitution.

View Student Projects