Explain Everything

What an amazing science lab! Students were to observe live specimens of three micro-organisms and then create their scientific drawings in their science notebooks. Specimens weren't going to arrive in time so I found clips on YouTube of each. They toggled between the clips and the Explain Everything app. The only instructions that they got from me was that they needed at least four observable traits associated with each specimen. The results were spectacular. 

Students had never used the app before but immediately discovered typing their text rather than using the stylus to write. They added color. They even saw what their peers were doing and went back to revise their own work, wanting to make theirs as high-quality as their classmates. 

The drawings themselves were superior to anything else my students had created in science labs so far, but it was the voice component of the app that put the assignment over the edge. Once they discovered it, students began to describe their observations, recording their ideas on the same page as their drawings. The integration of language standards with the science standards made this activity one of the most memorable of the year!