Guest Post by Rachelle Dene Poth
Kickstart the Year with Buncee!
We have used Buncee for years in all of my classes and it is a tool that I highly recommend that educators check out. I have been able to provide opportunities for my students to engage in more authentic and meaningful learning, to be creative and to drive their learning experience. One of the things that I love the most about Buncee is that it can be used in so many different ways, not only for instruction in our classrooms but also in life. I have used Buncee to create cards for family and friends, personal business cards, graphics for Twitter chats and webinars, quote graphics for my books, invitations, and more. When I decide to use digital tools in my classroom, I want students to practice the content while developing skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity that can be transferred to their future. In using digital tools like Buncee, my hope is that they will see the value in these learning tools for other classes, for personal use, and will share them with family too. The possibilities are endless for what students can create with Buncee.
What is Buncee?
It is a multimedia creation tool that offers something for everyone! There are more than 35,000 choices available in the media library with options to add audio, video and more. There are animations, emojis, shapes, stickers, 3D objects and a drawing tool too! Teachers can choose from the many ideas in the Buncee Ideas Lab that work well for any time of the year and there are a ton of ideas for icebreakers to build relationships that are so important. When we can leverage technology to help us feel that sense of connection and community, then that’s where we can start.
Here are a few ideas for starting the new school year:
- About Me: Buncee has different templates available for creating an “About Me” or it is always fun to create one from scratch. Why not have students create a Buncee to introduce themselves to you and to their classmates. Share all of their Buncees on a Buncee Board.
- Meet the Teacher: Buncee has a great template for teachers to introduce themselves, record a video, include links and other graphics so that students and their families can get to know them. Choose an About Me or Meet the Teacher of Faculty Page.
- Lessons: Buncee is a great way to teach a lesson and create more meaningful ways for students to engage with the content. With Buncee you can add links, record a video or audio, upload your own images or documents and have everything ready to go in one place. If we find ourselves having to transition between in-person and distance learning, we won’t have to take too much time to come up with materials that we need. It will definitely be a great resource for students and it’s a great way to keep us learning and growing as educators. I’ve used it in my STEAM class to teach about digital citizenship and then have students create their own Buncee, or to teach a verb lesson in Spanish.
10 Activities To Try Next!
1. Create a virtual classroom or bookshelf
2. Make an interactive book
3. Create a timeline
4. Design a digital business card
5. Explain steps in a process or teach a lesson
6. Interview a classmate
7. Book summary
8. Design classroom signs
9. Create study aids
10. Recreate a moment from history, personal experience, or make a future prediction
Be sure to check Buncee out today. Explore the thousands of templates or start creating from scratch. Buncee integrates with Microsoft Teams and Google Classroom and has Immersive Reader. Check out some of the recordings from their recent Creative Beginnings event with ideas for everyone.
Sign up for one of my weekly webinars and explore the great resources available for educators and students!
About the Author
Rachelle Dene Poth is an edtech consultant, presenter, attorney, author, and teacher. Rachelle teaches Spanish and STEAM: What’s nExT in Emerging Technology at Riverview Junior Senior High School in Oakmont, PA. Rachelle has a Juris Doctor degree from Duquesne University School of Law and a Master’s in Instructional Technology. She is a Consultant and Speaker, owner of ThriveinEDU LLC Consulting. She is an ISTE Certified Educator and currently serves as the past -president of the ISTE Teacher Education Network and on the Leadership team of the Mobile Learning Network. At ISTE19, she received the Making IT Happen Award and a Presidential Gold Award for volunteer service to education. She is also a Buncee Ambassador, Nearpod PioNear and Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert.
Rachelle is the author of four books, ‘In Other Words: Quotes That Push Our Thinking,” “Unconventional Ways to Thrive in EDU” (EduMatch) and “The Future is Now: Looking Back to Move Ahead,” Rachelle Dene’s latest book is with ISTE “Chart A New Course: A Guide to Teaching Essential Skills for Tomorrow’s World.” Rachelle is a blogger for Getting Smart, Defined Learning, District Administration, NEO LMS, and the STEM Informer with Newsweek.
Follow Rachelle on Twitter @Rdene915 and on Instagram @Rdene915. Rachelle has a podcast, ThriveinEDU https://anchor.fm/rdene915.