Implementation of ‘ The Brain Challenges’ (SOI-TR-50)

I implemented this Learning Scenario (LS) to 7th-grade students with the participation of 20 students, aged  13.  I chose this scenario for implementation because it was relevant to the Science lesson curriculum of 7th-grade students which explores the topic of the human brain.

Discovering the human brain

The Science Curriculum of 7th-grade students includes these aims under the theme “Our Brain”, such as:
– identifying the units of the human brain like cells and parts of the brain;
– functions of the lobes of the brain;
– differences between women and men brains.

Besides the curriculum, I also founded the theme quite interesting and helpful for the students. (teaching brain disorders and tips for a healthy brain).

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How was the LS implemented?

The implementation of this LS took 3 hours. As an introduction to the lesson, I showed a brain poster to the students so they easily predicted what would be the main idea of our collaborative work.
I created 4 teams (each team included 5 students) and a team manager responsible for the communication with the teacher were chosen. We talked about the aims of the lesson together and the students created the activity products in a collaborative approach.

Introduction to Europeana and assignment of the students about the topic

The students had no prior knowledge about the Europeana portal. So I gave them basic instructions about the portal. I showed students how to browse and reach information on Europeana. After that, I wrote the important links from the LS on the board and asked students to make a presentation about these topics; human brain, cells and parts of the brain, the function of the lobes and the differences between women and men brains.

In this process, they cooperate with each other. Some students browsed for information on Europeana, while others searched for information on the internet (using other sources of information). They do it using tablets and smartboards.

Demonstration

Students combined the resources collected from both internet searches and Europeana portal. Then, they created online presentations using web 2.0 tools. Besides presentations, they also prepared online posters including tips for a healthy brain.

Assessment

Finally, the students prepared questionnaires which aimed to evaluate their knowledge of brain disorders.
After the presentations, the peers evaluated themselves by playing a Kahoot game. (The students wrote their own questions together and I chose the questions which would be displayed on the game). The winner team were rewarded with simple stationary equipment.

Reflection

It was a really different experience for my students in a Science lesson because for the first time they used a different source of information, Europeana.

The learning process was both educative and funny. Students like to join lesson when technology is present. They liked to make researches on the internet using tablets.

For the first time, they developed their own content during the learning process. They have never prepared online materials. (presentations, posters, questionnaires, games) before. With this LS, they had the chance to create even in a science lesson. The students were really impressed and entertained with the implementation of this LS.

In my opinion, this LS is student-centred learning because they expressed themselves and engaged learning process actively, the teacher only guided them through the learning process.
Students guided the lesson and evaluated each other. This is a very interesting educational scenario for teachers to create independent responsible learners.

Did you find this story of implementation interesting? Why don’t you read about the related learning scenario?

Brain Challenges created by Maria Antónia Brandão

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Do you want to discover more stories of implementation? Click here.

The featured image used to illustrate this article belongs to the public domain. Click here to find it.