Mini challenges

[Sandy Shutey]

I was not a fan of the challenge last summer and actually worried about how my students would take to them.  After today and watching a mini challenge, my concern is no longer there.   They enjoyed it immensely and had as much fun as I did watching it.  I did not know there was an extreme underwater basket weaving sport or that wrestling allegators could be so entertaining.
  I really underestimated my groups this year and this brought their groups much closer together.

[Tracy Greeley-Adams]

Video taping.
I found video taping the mini challenge really helped.  I had a stop watch and showed it on the tape at the conclusion inorder to re-emphasize to the students how long time can be.  This really helped with the amount of work they put forth for the final challege as per time and work since they knew it was going to be taped and the entire class was going to vote on the best (Our local McDonalds donated gift certificates for the prize) Yeah! yeah yeah I know fast food, not a big fan.. will try for healthier food next time!

[Donna Wolz]

My students are just doing their mini-challenges. They will write them today & share them tomorrow. I'm not very happy with most of the ones I have seen. How did you get them to understand what was expected of them? I have done several (just spur of the moment) for the classes & they say "Oh, now I get it." But then when they write something down, it's like they didn't hear a word of my example. Any suggestions?

[Tracy Greeley-Adams]

oh believe me the mini challenge was not very good.  but it was a great learning experience for the main challenge.  I have shown sport bloopers and spoke about a voice over.  It wasnt till after the mini challenge did my students realize how hard it is to make it exciting.  I had one group who did real well who kind of pushed the other groups to excell later on.  Once they saw how the other groups were doing (and watched themselves on video) they really knew what they had to work on.  I would do the same voice over for each class speaking about a kick for the extra point in football and gave it many physics principles and enthusiasm which demonstrated more to the students what i was looking for.  but believe me there was a dramatic improvement from the mini challenge.  Plus it helped bring the number of physics principles up from 3 to 10 after they wanted to drop the number of points the entertaining category originially.  Thank goodness!

Hope this helps.

[Sandy Shutey]

I think I got lucky cause my kids seemed to know exactly what I wanted when I told the to write it as a sports caster and then change it all to the physics terms.

[Donna Wolz]

As my classes did the mini-chllanges they definitely saw that making it exciting was HARD! They thought I was so wrong when I told them that would be hard. A couple of groups have a definite grasp on what is expected of them. Most of the others are clueless. I have been telling them since Day 1 to write a sportscast & then go back & stick in the physics. Some of them think that because they use the word gravity or force or something  over & over that they each will be counted as a term. Some of them can't figure out how to do a sportscast even though I have played sportscasts for them in class & most of them watch sports. I think the REAL problem is they simply don't want to think. They want someone else to tell them what to write. I'm not going to lose sleep over it. Since we did the mini-challenges, I have had quite a few come to me with their ideas just to get a feel for how they are doing. Some have good ideas for making them entertaining & some are going to do obscure sports. The ones who don't try to do anything until the last second can't be helped. Overall, the kids are enjoying the class.

[jnoon]

HI,

Your comments on the "mini-challenges" are really interesting--can anyone give my some examples (or attachments, even) describing the mini-challenges that they have used?

I have not had so much success introducing the challenge at the beginning of the unit, as it seems we do not really "deal" with it until the end.

Thanks,
Jessica

[Dan Wood]

Dear Jessica, We just finished the mini challenge for Chapter 5.  Although the mini challenge for Chapter 1 was fairly successful for us, the mini challenge where kids invented and played stringed instruments was a riot and generated lots of interest in the study of sound.  We also showed The Blue Men group to prepare them to light and sound shows.  My students felt they enjoyed this mini challenge over the first one they did for Chapter One.  Like all challenges you give the kids, it's important to give them some "ownership" of the evaluation rubric you create for each challenge.  I also have the students help evaluate each challenge, then students average out the scores for their group's challenge or mini challenge.  Kids really are much harder on themselves when evaluating other projects or challenges.  The mini challenge for chapter one were very simple and I thought very successful.  Kids got really involved with acting out various sports and explaining the physics.  One of the best ones was a team that demonstrated how shoes were important in bobsleding.  Again, the students help design the rubric for their dramatic presentations.  Don't be disappointed with your first challenge.  They really do get better with experience, creativity, as their understanding of physics gets better.  Hang in there.  Dan Wood

[Tracy Greeley-Adams]

I agree in the owership of the rubric.  The first year I did active physics I used the rubrics provided by the book.  Last year and this year I had the students pick out point values etc for the rubric.  I feel the ownership really helped them work on the project since they knew that is what they were graded on (truely the meaning of everything) as well as it is what they wanted.  IT has really really helped.  I also have students critique they own group work with a copy of the rubric before I do.  They are harder on themselves then I am usually ( of course you have some that will try and give themselves all 100% ).  I also have them grade evaluate group members on participation.  This really seems to help with the complaining of he didnt do anything etc.  (absence is a huge problem in my district so they evalutate each day they work on the challenge as well.  for those students who are in school everyday it helps boost their grade for participation.  I will try and post my rubric and group evalutation from this year when I get on my school computer. 
I also showed Stomp before mini chapter challenge to help give ideas on music from original sources (since my students always want originality as one of the critiera in the rubric)

Hope this give a little more emphasis on how ownership of rubric can help you class.  Just to give you an understanding of my students.  I work in a school with 18% graduation rate.  yeah i know really bad.  Mostly from attendance.  Every little thing I can do to get them to come to school and participate while they are here I try and do.  this has helped.  I have kids who will come to school for my class then leave (yeah working on them staying all day).   Anyway just dont want you to think I have this great group of kids who want to be there and excell all the time.  I struggle every day to get students to participate. (of course some more then others.. but who doesnt have that). 
Tracy