How to use Xbox kinect in the middle school classroom

I made this video showcasing my work using Xbox in the classroom

It showcases the project that I did with the Xbox Kinect and the three games

• Xbox Kinect Adventures
• Just Dance 4
• Star Wars Kinect

This lesson came about is an improvement from last semester when I solely did data collection with my students when they danced to a select set of songs in Just Dance 4.

My students dancing in Just Dance 4

This time by collaborating with my Math teacher, I only collected the age and their scores - but at least get three dances in.

ISpreadsheet screen cap of dance data

I also knew that I wanted to use the XBox Kinect with my students for years, so I would need to change up the games. The 8th graders played the Kinect Adventures game. It had five different mini games and the kids had fun with the variety and getting active. Each student had to play three different mini games and we averaged their scores.

My 7th graders were my largest class, so they needed to play Just Dance 4 due to the fact I could get four players playing at once. My first round I let the kids pick whatever dance they wanted. Unfortunately the game takes a long time to get picked and it seems you need quite the precision to click. The second round was VS. matches, where they would get a partner and team up to battle each other. The third round I just put the game into Non-stop shuffle due to the fact I only had four days total. It was tough getting everyone's score in the last day, so it took a lot of team work and unfortunately too many kids were just goofing off.

My 6th graders were the smallest and I knew they would appreciate my Star Wars Kinect game. The first round was dancing, the second round was their time on Podracing and the third was Rancor Rampage. They had the most amount of fun playing the Rancor game, what twelve year old wouldn't enjoy smashing buildings and eating Stormtroopers?

While the few students were playing, the other kids had to document the scores in iSpreadsheet. The scores would then be sent to my Math teacher for an upcoming collaborative project in his class. My students will also analyze the averages of those scores and create something that summarizes their data and create some programming in Hopscotch.

 

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Just Dance 4 Dance off Experiment at Black Water Middle

I was trying to utilize physical activity, Math and video games in my class - so I decided to let my students collect data w/ iSpreadsheet, dance with the school's new Kinect system and eventually analyze this data for a future infographic.  Here is a sample video of our findings:

My students also collected data from their classmates based on student age, player color (meaning, where the student was standing where they played), sex and score. The plan for next semester is to create an infographic that showcases the analysis of the data that will be preformed by the BWMS Math classes.

Here is a spreadsheet from each of the classes:

8-2

 

7-1

6-1

7-2

6-2

 

How to Teach Rhythm Movement & Pattern w/ @Xbox Kinect & #JustDance3 #lessonplan #artsed #gbl

As a wrap up of a week long project on the principles of design: rhythm and movement, I wanted my students to see the connection to other areas of the arts curriculum, reward them for their hard work and prepare them for a upcoming video game / art project using Gamestar Mechanic.

Having a hard time viewing the video at school? Check out the downloaded file off of Animoto:

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I must say though, I was REALLY pleased with the overall project with my students. They spent all week working on their "traditional" Rhythm and Movement projects (which you can download and modify the Google Doc lesson plans below) and I wanted to give rewards to the Top 3 in each class: Face me in a dance off to Just Dance 3

See the full gallery on Posterous

We had fun dancing all day in class, but probably what amazed me the most was the sheer number of students actually coming up and thanking me for bringing in the Xbox Kinect and telling me how much fun they had today. 

See the full gallery on Posterous

I think this just really shows the potential of learning with video games, instead of just making them as sole pieces of entertainment. If the teacher is willing to stretch their imagination to combine student interest with classroom content  - the possibilities can be endless.

Just_Dance_3_in_the_classroom_035.MP4 Watch on Posterous

If you want to make your OWN video games with your students, check out my lesson plan on Gamestar Mechanic here

BWMS 8th grade Candyland Prom

Listed below is a video that I created utilizing Picasa and royalty free music. A small select group of 8th graders created a variety of decorations for the 8th grade prom this year, which had it's primary influence from the classic board game, "Candyland" and Katy Perry's video of "California Girls." 

I was very proud of the work that they came up with, especially how they were able to turn a cafeteria into a candy filled wonderland. The kids really enjoyed it too, as you can tell how decked out they were for the evening.

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