As a teacher librarian, flipping our instruction has been made easy with ResearchReady, by Imagine Easy Solutions. This is a remarkable tool! There are pre-made courses easily customizable to adapt to every co-teaching opportunity. You can also write your own courses about anything you want to teach the kids. Videos, pictures, documents, etc., can be added to any page for instruction. The student management section makes organizing classes a snap. Viewing student performance gives immediate formative data to pinpoint students who need more help. This component is priceless and Imagine Easy has created an effortless way to construct meaningful assessments.
This year, to introduce new information or review skills they had been working on, my middle school students were asked to complete the online courses before beginning their projects. They would login and complete the coursework at home or at school. They were able to work at their own pace giving them the ability to spend more time on skills that were unfamiliar to them. These courses promoted more confidence, excellence and independence in the research process. I also wrote courses specific to our library like how-to use EasyBib, how-to use our databases, and what Career Day was all about for our 8th graders.
ResearchReady is geared for middle and high schools, but is worth a look by anyone interested in flipping their instruction.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Amy Kauth
Maple School
Northbrook/Glenview School District 30
Mediapprentice blog http://blog.d30.me/mediapprentice/
