Second grade recently finished a PBL, The Ups and Downs of Landforms. We decided to try the Padlet app for our KWL chart. At this point the kids had been put into different landform groups (mountains, fresh water, ect.). The teacher had already created a Padlet account (we found it easier to do this on a computer). We then created a QR code that the kids could scan using QR Reader. This took them straight to the “What I Want to Know About Landforms” Padlet page. The kids were shown, on the SmartBoard, how to tap the page to create a box. They were instructed to write their first name on the top line and their question on the second line.
All of a sudden, one of the kids noticed that their post was already showing up on the SmartBoard. The whole class immediately stopped and stared. It was a powerful moment for them to see their thoughts and questions appearing in real time. This seemed to inspire them to think deeper. It also took away the time that is wasted watching the teacher
turn her back to the class and write the student’s questions on a large piece of paper.
After this activity was completed, the teacher went into her Padlet account and arranged the questions according to the
landform. The class referred back to this Padlet page during the research phase of the project and then again at the end of the project. This allowed them to see how many of their questions they answered in their final product. This is definitely an app that we’ll use, across the grades, for anything that requires an immediate response.
(see upcoming post for more details, including the planning form for The Ups and Downs of Landforms)