Here are some possible teaching and learning experiences, if you know of others please blog about them. Please note that this page will be regularly updated with new ideas.
- Focus: To enable students to guide and shape the unit of work
- Task: To brainstorm with students using the tool ‘wallwisher’ . Students write their ‘wonderings’ about Mary MacKillop, share as a class and group common wonderings together. Use these wonderings to shape the unit of work.
- Resource: wallwisher
- Class example of task: Mary MacKillop Wall
- Focus: For students to demonstrate their knowledge and understandings of Mary MacKillop
- Task: Students use ‘walls’ in wallwisher to demonstrate their knowledge and understandings of Mary MacKillop. Students respond to the following questions:
- WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE LIFE OF MARY MACKILLOP?
- WHAT DO YOU THINK INSPIRED OR DROVE MARY MACKILLOP?
- WHAT OBSTACLES OR CHALLENGES DID MARY MACKILLOP HAVE TO OVERCOME?
- WHAT WERE MARY’S MOST POWERFUL ACTIONS?
- Resources: wallwisher
- Class example of task: Links to walls: WALL 1 WALL 2 WALL 3 WALL 4
Subsidiary Question 1: Who Was Mary?
Task 1: View BTN clip and record 2 new things which you have learnt about Mary MacKillop.
Task 2: Visit an interactive learning object. Use the information you gather to create a brochure on Mary MacKillop. Complete the brochure online.
Task 3: Visit the Blessed Mary MacKillop Website, focus on the section of GROWTH. View the website and then write a diary entry from the perspective of Mary MacKillop during this time in her life.
Task 4: Visit a site which focuses on artworks of Mary MacKillop. Which artwork do you believe best represents Mary and her qualities? Write a support statement detailing which qualities of Mary MacKillop are present and why you have chosen that particular work of art.
Subsidiary Question 2: What were Mary’s greatest achievements and what challenges did she have to overcome?
Task 1: Students brainstorm challenges which they have faced during their lives and create a mindmap.
Task 2: Students visit Blessed Mary MacKillop website and focus on the ‘CHALLENGE’ section. Students work their way through the website and then respond by writing diary entries through the eyes of Mary MacKillop, particularly focusing on the challenges that she faced. Students share diary entries.
Task 3: Students form learning teams and rotate through a series of ‘stations’ to unpack the life of Mary MacKillop by using De bono’s 6 Thinking Hats Strategy. (Click on the link for an explanation of the strategy.)
Task 4: Students in pairs or individually use the online software xtranormal to create short clips to share their understandings of Mary MacKillop thus far. (Students need an account for this site, but is is free and a simple process to sign up) We will be posting our xtranormal clips on the blog ASAP.