Magnifying glass over a finger print
Assessment, Collaboration, Mobile

Digital scavenger hunts for building class community

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.74″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”]

Scavenger hunts are a great way to get your students working together for a common goal.  This is a wonderful way for them to bond as a class or to gel as a group project team.   These types of hunts can be used for assessment as well but I want to focus mainly on team and community building.

For interaction, successful group work, and/or great discussion to occur in your class there needs to be trust.  Students need to trust the instructor but more importantly, they need to trust their classmates.  This trust is what allows the students to speak their minds, voice their opinions, or contradict an instructor or a classmate.  Without this all you get is superficiality.

While building trust within a classroom is another topic in and of itself, the first step to establishing this type of environment is to get the students familiar with one another and to have them experience working as a team.  A scavenger hunt is a fun way to do this.

Check out Goose Chase scavenger hunt creator.  First, a special shout out to Melissa Negreiros from Philip Simmons Elementary who introduced me to this application.  It’s a free (mostly) digital scavenger hunt application and here are the details:

  • Free
    • Regular account allows for 3 groups in a hunt and one hunt at a time.
    • Educator account allows for 5 groups in a hunt and one hunt at a time.
    • Educator paid is <$50/yr.
  • Online
  • Built-in list of possible activities from which to choose
  • Can create your own activities customized to your students, organization, or content
  • Can set a duration for the hunt
  • Can easily invite students with a class code, no accounts required
  • Can password protect it

[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.18.8″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”rgba(12,113,195,0.45)” background_color_gradient_end=”#ffffff” border_radii=”on|8px|8px|8px|8px” border_width_top=”1px” border_width_right=”1px” border_width_bottom=”1px” border_width_left=”1px”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.18.8″][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.18.8″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_image src=”https://tlt.cofc.edu/files/2019/03/pic3-1q144o7.png” _builder_version=”3.18.8″ custom_padding=”|||15px”][/et_pb_image][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.18.8″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.18.8″]

Uses:

  • Group community building
  • Class community building
  • Icebreakers
  • Content assessment
  • Field trip engagement
  • Brain break
  • Learn about campus resources

[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.18.8″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.18.8″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.18.8″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_button url_new_window=”on” button_text=”Check out Goose Chase Today!” _builder_version=”3.18.8″ button_url=”https://www.goosechase.com/edu/”][/et_pb_button][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]

Real Time Board
Collaboration, Productivity, Research, TLT, Web 2.0

Online Collaboration with RealTimeBoard

Does this scenario seem familiar?   You’re in the midst of a team project.  One day you realize that you’ve been playing phone tag with one colleague for a week; another colleague keeps emailing Word documents; while the rest of the team is trying to work in Google Docs.  No one is communicating well and collaboration is slow.  What can you do?

Real Time Board to the rescue!

RealTimeBoard is an online collaborative workspace that features an infinite digital whiteboard.  In addition to typing and writing on the whiteboard, teams can add post-it notes, images, videos, documents, spreadsheets, Google Drive files and more. RealTimeBoard also provides a variety of templates, including timelines, Gantt charts, storyboards, calendars, and SWOT analysis grids.  Because it’s an online tool, all collaborators can access your shared board on any device at any time.  Boards can also be exported as image files or PDF.

Real Time Board for collaborative planning, notetaking, and brainstorming

The folks at RealTimeBoard have kindly granted educators free access to their premium features plus unlimited collaborators!  So it’s a perfect tool for research projects and to use with your students.  Request your account by providing your college email address.

Use digital sticky notes with Real Time Board

Uses: Any form of collaboration, such as brainstorming, concept mapping, storyboarding, planning, etc.

Price: Free for educators

Platform: Online

More information: realtimeboard.com