Monday, March 24, 2014

Lesson Planning and Assignments with Pinterest




I know I've mentioned Pinterest just a few times before.  For example, I think it's a Homeschooling Essential. You can read about why by clicking on the banner.

Pinterest - a homeschooling essential


But today I want to share how I discovered a new way to use Pinterest -- for assigning work to Luke!

We are creating our own US History program, weaving together several programs because I haven't found any one program that provides the depth of study that I want him to have.  We have also merged the history side of his program with literature, and are studying both American authors and novels, poetry, short stories, etc. that are either written by authors during the period we are studying, or by modern writers looking back.  Pinterest has been a huge help in creating our unit studies.

First, I have each era divided onto its own Pinterest board.  They're all titled "Homeschooling US History" but then subtitled by era:


The boards are divided by era, and then I have them in chronologic order, so that I can find the current and flanking units easily.

Notice at the end the pin is titled "Philadephia's Yellow Fever..."  Next to it is my personal board with pins regarding the 1793 Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic.  This particular unit was a crossover history-and-literature,  with the novel Fever/1793 by Laurie Halse Andersen as the spine.  We explored the history of Fairmount Park and the Philadelphia Water Works as part of our historical study.   However, this differently-titled board is a group board.  It contains Luke's assignments.

Up until recently, I would pin a video or journal article that I wanted him to use for an assignment and write the title in his planner, but then he would have to consult me to find out where it was online.  Finally, I realized -- if he had the link, he could do it independently, but I needed it to be simpler than writing the entire URL, so I created him his own Pinboard!  I set him up with a Pinterest account, and set up a group board.  When I am searching for what I want to use in our study, I pin it to my board.  This way, I can pre-screen for appropriateness and accuracy.



Then, when I make the final assignment, I repin it to a second board, and invite him to post on that board.  He can then access the assignments without needing me to find them for him, or googling the title and hoping he finds the same link I did. 


Plus, if he was to find something that he thought went with it (another installment of a video I may have missed, or a "for more information, go to..."), he can pin it himself, and I can then check it out, again without having to make sure the other person finds the same link.

I definitely would only use this with an older student -- middle school and up.  But it's a great way to  teach a new way of researching and documenting, and foster guided yet independent study!





This post is part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew Carnival - see how others homeschool using Pinterest!
Homeschooling with Pinterest

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9 comments:

  1. My two aren't old enough for this yet but what an amazing idea! I'll definitely have to keep this in mind once they get older :) By the way, I love that you're covering topics like the Yellow Fever Epidemic! History has always been my favorite subject and I want to share that with my own children but it just doesn't seem like public schools today cover enough of it in depth.

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  2. ProverbialHomemakerMarch 25, 2014 at 12:09 PM

    What a great way of organizing your school pins. I wonder if I can set up an account specifically for lesson plan posts?

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  3. I love Pinterest for a wide variety of reasons but never have I really thought of lesson plans... Go girl!!

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  4. How very clever! I never would have thought to use Pinterest for helping with homeschooling!

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  5. Meg @ Adventures with JudeMarch 26, 2014 at 8:24 AM

    I'm not sure what the rules are for having multiple accounts, but if there aren't any, I don't see why not? (And then they don't get lost in the clutter of everything else -- I have to admit, I'm a bit envious of Luke's wide-open screen! lol)

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  6. Meg @ Adventures with JudeMarch 26, 2014 at 8:29 AM

    I hadn't either -- until I got tired of hearing "But I don't have the link..." and having to stop what I was doing so he could keep going! No more excuses! ;)

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  7. What a great idea!

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  8. Fantastic idea. Thanks for sharing with #smallvictoriessunday last week. I hope you link up again this week, the linky is now live! Pinterest is my way to organize recipes for now but I see how it could be really useful for homeschooling. Pinning and sharing!

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  9. A great idea! And I agree about Pinterest. A homeschooling essential for sure.

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