What if your smart kid or student could make a piece of paper stand up?
Well, in my classroom, a toddler was able to do just that, and with a bonus! He was able to make it run!
paper caterpillar is my latest innovation in teaching a lesson. With a unique feature, I’m sure educators around the world would be amazed, as the fun and enthusiasm of the learners have been part of the reasons for innovating the learning resource. i started with Word game cards, snake and ladder, idea generation game cards for story idea brainstorming purposes, Vocab-u-larry for the development of understanding, and now Paper Caterpillar to visualize the learning outcome.
Where did I get the idea?
Fed up with the usual boring handing out of student grades, test scores or marks or whatever, I was fumbling for an authentic, concrete and creative learning mastery outcome. I looked at the stack of paper in front of me after a term exam and asked myself, “How could I make this more exciting for the kids? Is there a way to present this score in a more creative, fun, and authentic way?” ?
AHA time
I saw a caterpillar crawling towards my desk, moving towards the pile of papers. I looked at his paws, counted them… then an idea occurred to me, at that time and place.
I made some doodles on a piece of paper, so as not to forget the wisdom gained from the unusual encounter with a humble caterpillar.
The Paper Caterpillar is born!
During the night I was busy materializing in Word the idea I had in mind. Impression. Cut. Resize Print. Cut.
The next morning, I was eager as a beaver to try my innovation. Ask my students to answer the ten item quiz, tell them to open the folded CR or correct answer column, tell them to fold down if the answer is correct and up if not. Then have them place their paper caterpillar stand on their desk. Some were able to do it and were ecstatic with their work.
Change of terminologies
Getting the perfect score is no longer getting a score of one hundred. It’s making a paper caterpillar: all legs or just bald.
The one that made a paper caterpillar run instead of stop? Well, there was a fan on his desk!
Pupils are not only having fun and having fun answering short quizzes or something like that, but they are also eager to find out how their mastery affects their paper caterpillar, whether they can make it stick or not.
The next time they get a chance to take the quiz, they know that mastery of the lesson, honesty, and everyone else are important ingredients in a fun-filled, creative, and authentic learning environment.