I've been spending some time thinking about some additional things that I would like to add to my class (like some signs around the room), but I have mentioned to the kids that I would create a tournament for their favorite games.
I've spent some time planning it and checking for feedback on gamefaqs to see what others think. I have finally come up with a tournament format and style for the students. Introducing VSC math's very first Christmas tournament!
I know that the students will really appreciate this and I'd like to see the level of motivation they have upon hearing this. The only downside is that they must have all gold tokens from now until the beginning of the tournament in order to enter, and I am gunning for 16 players.
The fewer the number of players, the easier it is to run. The more players there are, the better the class is going. I still have to come up with a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prize for both tournaments though. Maybe I should get the students their own Amiibos?
Showing posts with label GSB. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GSB. Show all posts
Monday, December 1, 2014
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Tokens Update!
I haven't spoken about these in a while. I wanted to share that this system is still running strong about 2 months into the school year. That's awesome! One thing that I have noticed....It seems as though if the entire class manages to get gold (i.e. 603).................................(for the most part) it stays that way. They have been like this for the past month and a half. It's like if an entire class is able to get 4 gold tokens weeks in a row, every group will repeat the same level of effort and collaboration for this to happen again.
I mention this because a student in 604 made an interesting observation, and mentioned today "Mr. E, everyone is starting to get gold now!" And he's right, as this is the 2nd week in a row in which that entire class has earned 4 golds. This class has seriously upped their game as of late. What I love about this class the most is their effort. While they are certainly not mathematically as strong as 603, their level of effort and participation with each lesson is certainly #1. They are so strong in MP #1, work together, and are focused on learning. That makes 2 out of 4 of my classes "all gold". There others are still a mix.
Note: I have changed the VSC Math Gold pencil prize to anime. I bring my laptop to the classroom and hook it up to the smartboard and have students watch Naruto and/or other cartoons. Seems to be a much more wanted prize so far!
I mention this because a student in 604 made an interesting observation, and mentioned today "Mr. E, everyone is starting to get gold now!" And he's right, as this is the 2nd week in a row in which that entire class has earned 4 golds. This class has seriously upped their game as of late. What I love about this class the most is their effort. While they are certainly not mathematically as strong as 603, their level of effort and participation with each lesson is certainly #1. They are so strong in MP #1, work together, and are focused on learning. That makes 2 out of 4 of my classes "all gold". There others are still a mix.
Note: I have changed the VSC Math Gold pencil prize to anime. I bring my laptop to the classroom and hook it up to the smartboard and have students watch Naruto and/or other cartoons. Seems to be a much more wanted prize so far!
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Gold Mystery Photos & Prize - Week 3
This week, I decided to give things a little break with Super Mario 3D World and I brought in Mario Kart 8. A few of the students were excited to try this title as some have never played it before, and I think they were a bit tired of SM3DW. We had a blast!
I think this will be a new favorite! I'm waiting until the 21st for the new Smash Bros. for Wii U releases.
Friday, October 3, 2014
The Golden Mystery Prize - Week 2
Congratulations to class 603 for beating the first boss and making it to world 2!
Congratulations to the NEW groups that earned 4 tokens to play this week!
Congratulations to the NEW groups that earned 4 tokens to play this week!
Let's continue to earn gold tokens to make progress in Super Mario 3D World!
Going Once...Going Twice....Not Sold...
For some weird reason, VSC Math Gold and Silver pencils are NOT a popular choice for rewards! It's almost as if students don't care about the fact that they will be the only ones with these pencils (because nobody else has chosen them), nor the fact that they say something cool, nor the fact that there's only ONE way to get each pencil!
Shouldn't they feel empowered? Shouldn't they feel excited? In students' minds, getting a chance to play the Wii U is the ultimate prize. I don't have a degree in marketing, so I have to find a way to sell these other prizes. Literally NO group has chosen these pencils! I have been using them myself...I'm sure they feel under-appreciated.
In fact, the most popular prizes in VSC Math are:
Gold Tier - Wii U/SM3DW
Silver Tier - Lunch with Mr. E (Just naming the prize, I promise I'm not that vain...)
Bronze Tier - Fruit snacks (well, there's only one other prize in this tier to be fair)
Shouldn't they feel empowered? Shouldn't they feel excited? In students' minds, getting a chance to play the Wii U is the ultimate prize. I don't have a degree in marketing, so I have to find a way to sell these other prizes. Literally NO group has chosen these pencils! I have been using them myself...I'm sure they feel under-appreciated.
In fact, the most popular prizes in VSC Math are:
Gold Tier - Wii U/SM3DW
Silver Tier - Lunch with Mr. E (Just naming the prize, I promise I'm not that vain...)
Bronze Tier - Fruit snacks (well, there's only one other prize in this tier to be fair)
Friday, September 19, 2014
The Golden Mystery Prize
When I look back, I am happy that I made the prizes set up more like an MMORPG/RPG. It's very interesting that students (even those who were mostly in silver tier) chose the mystery prizes more than the known prizes. I know that a few of the students have checked out the blog and have gotten a sneak peek at what the mystery prizes are, but they seem to have kept the secret to themselves.
These prizes gave an element of excitement to the rewards because students have to spend an entire week just to figure out what the prize is. The golden mystery prize was the Wii U. I spent about 500USD yesterday purchasing a Wii U, the game, 3 wireless pro controllers, and tax. My efforts have not gone to waste (and neither have theirs).
What I like the most about games like SM3DW is that the experience is
different every time. The reason why a game like SSBM is so fun is that despite
having the same characters and the same stages and the same moves, there are so many items that provide for a different experience
almost every time. Have you ever eaten the same thing over and over and over and over and over again? (I have, which is why I added an extra two "over"s to emphasize my point). You literally cannot eat it anymore.
But there are so many worlds to explore in SM3DW and students have to work together to complete levels and progress in the game. Just look at the first video. What I liked the most about this was not only the collaboration aspect, but students took turns and were able to share the controller and the gamepad without any quarreling. We are off to a great start for the new year! I have created a system that inspires students to feel good about themselves and the EFFORT and hard work they have put into my class. It's not about being smart or being the best at math. It's about working as a team, being responsible for your actions, and trying your best.
These prizes gave an element of excitement to the rewards because students have to spend an entire week just to figure out what the prize is. The golden mystery prize was the Wii U. I spent about 500USD yesterday purchasing a Wii U, the game, 3 wireless pro controllers, and tax. My efforts have not gone to waste (and neither have theirs).
But there are so many worlds to explore in SM3DW and students have to work together to complete levels and progress in the game. Just look at the first video. What I liked the most about this was not only the collaboration aspect, but students took turns and were able to share the controller and the gamepad without any quarreling. We are off to a great start for the new year! I have created a system that inspires students to feel good about themselves and the EFFORT and hard work they have put into my class. It's not about being smart or being the best at math. It's about working as a team, being responsible for your actions, and trying your best.
Thursday, September 18, 2014
The Success of VSC Math Recognition
Success!
The first day of VSC Math recognition was a success. The plan I laid out from an earlier post worked:
1) Spend the first 5 minutes of class by having students cash in their tokens and recording the prizes.
2) Hand out any tangible prizes at the end of class, and keep record of intangible prizes for later.
3) Prizes that require students to come upstairs are either scheduled (and upheld) or take place during lunch on Thursday.
The key thing is that this reward system is manageable. There was only 1 issue:
I have 3/4 classes before lunch, so 1 class was left out today because I do not have them before lunch. The only fix I can think of is going to the class they're in during my prep and completing this survey, but this is obviously not going to work.
This class will have to get their rewards (the ones require students to come upstairs for lunch) on Friday. This is fine. When mail starts, that class will have double the rewards on the same day, so I think it balances out nicely. The fact that this system is manageable means that I can move onto mail (something far easier to manage) without revising, but most importantly I will give this system a little bit more time to settle in first before moving to mail.
The first day of VSC Math recognition was a success. The plan I laid out from an earlier post worked:
1) Spend the first 5 minutes of class by having students cash in their tokens and recording the prizes.
2) Hand out any tangible prizes at the end of class, and keep record of intangible prizes for later.
3) Prizes that require students to come upstairs are either scheduled (and upheld) or take place during lunch on Thursday.
The key thing is that this reward system is manageable. There was only 1 issue:
I have 3/4 classes before lunch, so 1 class was left out today because I do not have them before lunch. The only fix I can think of is going to the class they're in during my prep and completing this survey, but this is obviously not going to work.
This class will have to get their rewards (the ones require students to come upstairs for lunch) on Friday. This is fine. When mail starts, that class will have double the rewards on the same day, so I think it balances out nicely. The fact that this system is manageable means that I can move onto mail (something far easier to manage) without revising, but most importantly I will give this system a little bit more time to settle in first before moving to mail.
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Introducing: The Official VSC Math Tokens
I came up short spending a lot of time trying to find a site that will sell me personalized/engraved coins for my reward system. I needed Gold/Silver/Bronze coins that I'd keep in a treasure box that students would redeem later in the week. Unfortunately it's simply too expensive in addition to being a process that takes plenty of time (meaning I would have to push back the start date for my rewards by perhaps a month).
Courtesy of the Social Studies teacher for giving me the brilliant idea of creating custom dollars instead (really, I thought of this but I can be far too stubborn sometimes). I have created:
Courtesy of the Social Studies teacher for giving me the brilliant idea of creating custom dollars instead (really, I thought of this but I can be far too stubborn sometimes). I have created:
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