Blendspace

BlendspaceThe Flipped Classroom, Differentiation and Higher Level Thinking

What is Blendspace?Blendspace (formerly Edcanvas) is a browser based tool that allows the user to gather a variety of multimedia into one presentation. It can be used for the flipped classroom, differentiating content, student projects/student created content etc.

So what?As CESI members, you've probably seen this technology used before, and have probably used it yourself. The aim of this presentation is to up the ante - to explore differentiation, higher level thinking, inquiry based learning and the flipped classroom.

Differentiation and the Flipped ClassroomOne of the main benefits of Blendspace is its usefulness in the flipped classroom. A variety of multimedia, text, photos, videos, podcasts/music etc. can be included in one space where students can navigate a lesson prior to entering the classroom. Blendspace is also particularly useful for differentiating lessons. A wide variety of materials can be included in each lesson therefore catering to a wide variety of student abilities and learning styles.

How it Works

How it Works

IdeasIf you use a blog, Twitter or Edmodo to share work as a class, you can easily create different Blendspaces that will cater to the needs of different groups of students. Your Blendspaces can be assembled as a cohesive flipped classroom lesson plan. You can provide students with instructions and a caption in each "space". You might consider using your Blendspaces (teacher or student created) as part of a jigsaw activity. This technology has the potential to not only be engaging, but extremely utilitarian in terms of time saving.

Sample Lesson

The PossibilitiesThis technology is user friendly and simple, yet it offers endless possibilities. While it is easy to upload media from YouTube, Flickr and Google Images, specific teacher created content could prove highly useful.

The PossibilitiesMy ambition is to use this technology with LC students in order to brainstorm exam questions. Instead of giving a sample essay, why not provide the essay question and use a variety of multimedia to inspire ideas for the essay? Instead of wasting time predicting exam questions, why not create a blank presentation rife with different ideas and allow students to decipher the exam question based on it? Keep in mind the former name of "Edcanvas", this tool is a blank canvas that can be used to inspire critical thinking, save previous classroom time, and engage students effectively!