Getting to Know Your Students: Back to School Activity Ideas with Keynote Shapes

Many teachers may remember the brilliant "All About Me" project shared on the Apple Teacher Learning Center.

In it, students use the Shapes Library in Keynote in creative ways to share all about themselves.

This is a wonderfully simple and adaptable activity for those first days back to school.

Below I have shared some additional prompts for a similar "Getting to Know You" activity.

You can download the Keynote file (for Mac or iPad) and adapt it even further here:
Getting to Know Students- Shape Collages_blank template for Keynote

Or see some finished examples for additional inspiration.

How do you plan to use and customize the incredible Shapes Library in Keynote to get to know your students this school year?

Challenge Based Learning: the momentum continues

What a summer for Challenge Based Learning!

In June during ISTE in Chicago, Challenge Based Learning celebrated its 10th anniversary with an event sponsored by Digital Promise and supported by Apple. The celebration was well attended, and stories were shared from the past decade of this important educational movement.

Photo credits for above photos: Dimitri Moore, Digital Promise Global

During the event, as stories were shared by Karen Cator, Katie Morrow, Marco Antonio Torres, Kayla Canario (Beardon Middle School), Mike Hoffman (Crane Elementary), and Mark Nichols, a new challenge was issued to all of us.

Big Idea: Community

Essential Question: How can we have a positive impact on our communities while learning?

Challenge: Create a positive and measurable change in your community!

Learn more at: https://cbl.digitalpromise.org/2018/06/25/big-idea-community/

How can we as ADEs and the greater education communities that we work with, continue the forward momentum? According to Marco Torres, we need to "CBL the crap out of everything you do. Be RELENTLESSLY curious, ask more “what if?” questions, and share broadly how you’re figuring things out."

Simple.

Photo credits for above photos: Dimitri Moore, Digital Promise Global

In July the WorldWide Apple Distinguished Educators Institute was held in Austin, TX. Challenge Based Learning played a pervasive role in ADE projects and collaborative creativity being put into action.

Shout to @afonso_sales Loved your Showcase. So great to see CBL being shared at Institute! #ade2018 #everyonecancreate #appleEDUchat #CBLworld #challengebasedlearning pic.twitter.com/pYQW81uRw5

— Adele Brice (@adelebrice) July 18, 2018

#everyonecancreate a project about collecting examples of CBL projects @AppleEDU #ade2018 #appleEDUchat #ade18 #elementsoflearning #cblworld #clips pic.twitter.com/CFMxBxPAH1

— Jason Milner-ADE (@JasonM_2) July 18, 2018

Midweek an impromptu "Expert Lab" was set up and ADEs were encouraged via Twitter to drop by and discuss CBL. Another great turnout ensued. Adam Brice​ led a sharing session and general discussion on infusing Challenges in our work as educators. Several ADE projects have already been publicly posted that incorporate CBL and aim to help it grow.

So, what's next? 

How can we support each other on the CBL Journey? As always, there exists a growing collection of resources available on challengebasedlearning.org. Case in point, this recent CBL Challenge centered on 360° Media Production.​ But what is missing? What do you and your students need to launch the school year with a Challenge or use the CBL Framework to guide deeper, more impactful learning for your greater learning community?

Please join in the conversation. 

What are you currently (or planning on) doing? What do you have to share from past CBL experiences? And what do you need to continue to take action and make a difference through Challenge Based Learning?

Let's continue the CBL momentum for another decade and beyond!