Columbian Exchange Art Gallery Walk

A few weeks ago, we covered the Columbian Exchange in Obertopia.  It would be very easy to just tell students what it is, or to show them a picture or short movie.  However, for a more meaningful activity, we turned to the Art Gallery Walk.

Students were given two days to create a visual depiction answering these two questions:
1. What was the Columbian Exchange
2. Why was it a big deal?

They were also told at the end of two days that we would have an art gallery walk.  Students would walk around and peruse the work of all the other students.  Then they would be allowed to vote for their favorite (and they could not vote for their own).

Students worked harder than I have seen them work all year!  It was so sweet and quite impressive.  Once we were ready for the art gallery walk, students cleared their desks of everything except their poster.  We put 5 minutes on the timer and students were not allowed to vote during those 5 minutes. Their only purpose was to walk around while studying, reading, and viewing the thirty-something illustrations.  When the timer went off, students were allowed to vote for their favorite.  They voted by putting a piece of paper (with their name on it) on top of their favorite poster.  Votes were tallied, and each class had 3 winners.  3rd place got to pick 1 prize out of the Obertopian Treasure Box, 2nd place picked 2, and 1st place got to pick 3 prizes while also receiving a special Obertopian Champ trophy. 

Below you will find the overall winners from each class:

My favorite aspects of this activity are:

• the competition (keep it friendly!)
• the respect students gain for their peers' abilities
• how students have to look at 30+ different interpretations of the chosen concept, giving us the opportunity to deepen understanding

I definitely recommend art gallery walks for the middle school classroom.  You could use it in any subject and with many different concepts.  

Quick advice: Try to cultivate a high level of respect in your room during the year before attempting the Art Gallery Walk.  During the walk, be quick to stomp out any negative comments.  I usually tell students that if I hear anything that sounds even remotely negative coming from their mouth, then they will be immediately disqualified from the competition.  I also give the entire class a pep talk prior to the walk.  I tell them how proud I am for their hard work and dedication to the assignment.  I tell them they should be proud of themselves based on their hard work and not on how many votes they receive.

Try it out in your own class and tell me how it goes!  Thanks for reading!   

"I think we all need a pep talk..."

A few weeks ago, at a faculty meeting, they closed our gathering with this inspirational video.  I immediately felt a sense of purpose and hope.  That might sound a little idealistic, but I don't care.  Watch the video below and see what I mean...



Hey.  How ya feeling?  Well, I hope you're feeling awesome.  Isn't this what life is all about?  Isn't this something we can all aspire to?  Regardless of religious or political beliefs, the message of this video can bind us together to reach for one goal: To make the world more awesome.

I showed this video to all of my classes the day after that faculty meeting.  In one class, a student said, "That is the best youtube video I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot of youtube videos."  In another class, I flipped the lights on to find one student wiping tears from her eyes.  As I passed out some papers and walked by her desk, I asked her if she was okay.  She replied, "I just am so happy that a little kid understands what it's all about, especially when there are so many adults that don't even get it."  It blessed my heart when they continued talking about it days afterward.

We are a team.

"This is your time.  This is my time.  This is our time.  Let's get out there."

#awesomeyear
#maketheworldmoreawesome
#likeaboss

Food Prep - Breakfast and Lunches for a Week

My husband and I have been fooling ourselves.  We thought a majority of our food choices were good ones.  But one night, as we were chowing down on Zaxby's (oh my gosh-cheddar bites!!!), we realized that most of our food choices were awful!  The tip of the iceberg came last week.  My husband told me he had stopped at a gas station for breakfast.  His meal? A Red Bull and a Snickers bar.  "A snickers bar?!?!" I asked incredulously.  "It was an almond one-it had a lot of protein." he replied.

So now I'm determined to lead us into a healthier diet.  This post is dedicated to this week, which I hope will signal a lifestyle change for the Oberkoflers.  

Step 1 - Breakfast
 We are going to do hard-boiled eggs and smoothies for breakfast.

Eggs
I found a great, easy way to make a lot of hard boiled eggs on Pinterest.  Put the eggs in a muffin tin.  Put the tin into a cold oven and set it for 325º for 35 minutes.  

Don't forget to get a bowl of ice water ready!

When you take them out, some might be a little speckled.  This is normal.

Transfer them to the ice water bath to stop the cooking.

Let them sit in the water for about 10 minutes, then store in the fridge.  I usually don't peel until I'm ready to eat.

Smoothies
The smoothies are good because they are very thick and it takes a while to drink them.  You are halfway to lunch before you finish it!  Again, I found a recipe on Pinterest.  I modified it a little bit, so here is my recipe:

Once blended, we put it in a plastic travel cup with a straw.  These can be made the night before and placed in the fridge.

I use plain Greek yogurt, publix Greenwise vanilla protein powder, and I will add a bit of milk or coconut water to dilute when it's too thick.  To save yourself some time, grind up the oats beforehand so it's a powder.  It will blend easier.  Also, stay away from raspberries and blackberries unless you can deal with the seeds.  They do not blend up in the smoothie (unless you have an amazing fancy blender).  I stick with strawberries usually, but blueberries would probably be awesome, too.  When my bananas are starting to ripen a bit too much, I cut them up and freeze them.  This will make it easier to add the banana.  Woot!

Step 2 - Lunches
Since we both wake up early to go to work (5:45 AM) and have to leave asap, we don't have much time to pack a lunch in the morning.  The best way to make sure we pack something good is to prepare ahead of time.  This week, we're going to have chicken, broccoli, and black beans with rice for lunch.

I found this website with recipe for making chicken breast ahead of time, and it is awesome!  The only change I made was I add a little bit of chicken broth to the baking dish before adding the spices.

9 chicken breasts into the baking dish.
They can be squished in, but should only be in one layer.
This great baking dish is from IKEA and I love it!

Added chicken broth, but not enough to submerge the chicken completely.  I still wanted to add spices.

Garlic powder, seasoned salt, and pepper.

Ready to go into the oven!  Oven should be pre-heated to 375º.

Cook chicken for 1 hour.

While I was waiting for the chicken to cook, I decided to pre-cut some veggies for this wonderful recipe.  SO GOOD!  I'm going to make it for dinner this week, so why not get the prep work out of the way?

This is my grandmother's recipe.  When I make it, I do 2 cans of tomato soup instead of 1 and add 1 can of water.  I also add way more green pepper and celery.  When it's done cooking, I will also add salt to taste.  I usually use celery salt.

Pre-chopping the onion

Pre-chop the green pepper and put it in with the onion.

Pre-chop the celery and... You know.

Then store the veggies until you make your yummy goulash!!



OH the chicken breast is done!  As mentioned on this website (the one I got the recipe from) let the chicken rest for about 15 minutes before you cut it up.

Once it has rested, begin cutting it up.  This is how I cut it:

After cutting, I followed the recipe and put it back into the pan to stir it with the liquid.

And here is a finished lunch, ready to go into the fridge.  The chicken with steamed broccoli and some yummy black beans with rice.  BB&R recipe below.

Black Beans & Rice recipe (borrowed and modified from this site)

·       1 teaspoonolive oil

·       1 onion,chopped

·       2 clovesminced garlic

·       1 or 2 cups of cooked white rice

·       1 can lowsodium, low fat vegetable broth

·       1 teaspoonground cumin

·       1 can Rotel

·       2 cans blackbeans, drained

Directions

1. In a stockpot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 4 minutes. Add the rice and stir for 2 minutes.
2. Add the vegetable broth, bring to a boil, cover and set heat to low.   Cook for 10 minutes.  Add the spices, Rotel, and black beans.  Cook for another 10-15 minutes on low (or until heated through), stirring every minute or so.