Mindmaps or how to create chaos in harmony

Hello again!

How are you? Have you already created a comic? Don't be shy and share your creations! Education is sharing 😛 I've come back to talk about chaos (my right neuron) in harmony (my left neuron).  I love when both of them combine in a perfect way! 

I've got visual memory, I mean, I remember better when I see a display for example, that when I listen to a song. For this reason today I bring you a mind map. A mind map is a visual map that allows you to see a lot of information at a glance. It's amazing, isn't it? Let me explain better.

I am going to use MindMeister; it's an app with a lot of possibilities: you can create a map with links, documents, you can present the slideshow, share it with you colleagues and convert it into Word, PowerPoint and so on. Impress? Not yet? Wait for my mind map, please 😏. (It would be better if the free options were wider, but for the first time, it's ok. I will discover other apps in the future.)

I would like to introduce my students in a very special project: Scotland.  I know that it's a country full of surprises and it worths to discover it (I lived there 10 months, so, I know what I'm talking about). This project lasts whatever your want. This means that when you start with projects, the best thing is start with a short project, in this way you can realize if the project works for your students and for you (the self evaluation is an important step in education, don't forget it!). 

I will include this project in the English subject; there are cross-curricular links with PE, maths, but the main focus is on the English language. Each  teacher can adapt the main topic to his/her own aims. My general objectives for this project are:

• To discover the United Kingdom and more specifically, Scotland.
• To raise students motivation in the Scottish culture.
• To practise the past tenses.
• To be able to summarize a story in a video.
• To be able to express themselves in different languages.
• To pronounce specific words in the proper way.

I divided the project in 7 different steps; the main idea is that each student "tastes" all the different stages. This is a brief summary about what you are going to discover in each step:

• Geography: the students will learn where Scotland is, which countries form the United Kingdom and what the Ben Nevis is. The assessment will consist in the comparison of Scotland and the students' country in an infographic.
• History: from the Vikings in Scotland we jump to Mary Queen of Scots: the most important queen in Scotland and the one who fought for the independence. The students will be assessed through different games. 
• Language: in Scotland, there are two languages: English and Scottish. The students will practice the pronunciation of the English language. They will need it for the final surprise 😁
• Culture: have you tried haggis? And shortbread? The students will discover the different traditional meals that Scots have got. The assessment will be to record a video cooking in the school's kitchen. Besides Saint Andrews is the patron of Scotland, a video will show them who Saint Andrews was. 
• Curiosities: the legend of Loch Ness Monster and how the Scottish men dressed years ago, there are two topics that students will enjoy. This can be linked to arts. 
• Films: the film Brave will explain the different clans that existed in Scotland. There is a legend called The Story of the Giant's Causeway that will show the students why the coast of Scotland and Ireland have wonderful stones like these

 

• Final surprise: I think, and this is my personal opinion, that every project has to have got a final surprise; and this project has got a wonderful one. Do you know anything about Erasmus+? Me neither until one year ago, but I am a very proactive body with two neurons that want to innovate more and more. On the mind map you have a short video about the project Erasmus+ KA2. Could you imagine how it would be to travel with your students to Scotland (or anyplace in the UK) as the end of the project? It would be absolutely A M A Z I N G.

I really like teaching through culture, there are a lot of interesting things and curiosities that can attract our students, for this reason I chose Scotland. Each step has got its own assessment, but the best assessment for this project would be the trip to Scotland. If the students know that they are going to put in practice everything that they've learned, they are going to be brilliant in the lessons and their personal motivation is going to be on Ben Nevis pick.      

I hope you enjoy and like this project!

TwoTwo

PS, the two photos that appeared in this post were taken by me one year ago 😉