Boosting Students’ Self-Confidence: Jenny Hermann and Rea Francisco
Jenny Hermann
Throughout the school year, teachers have come up with unique ways to enhance their lesson plans. To strengthen her students’ understanding of course material, Jenny Hermann, aka The Herminator, knew exactly which platform to utilize — Legends of Learning: “I use Legends to compliment my lessons. The students will always have a live assignment to go to, and the relevant games will stay up throughout the entire lesson. I also use them to preview our next unit. The students go to Legends as soon as they turn in their work! If they come in and see me in my cape……they know it’s going to be a “Legendary” Day!!!”
As a fourth-grade science teacher, The Herminator highly values cultivating a space where students can build a sense of self-achievement. Aiming to help her students grasp and remember complex science topics, The Herminator puts Legends of Learning to use: “My kids were having a hard time with the concept of “balance” in the ecosystem. It is a hard concept for them to see how each action in a food web affects the big picture. [After] I introduced [students] to the game DNAtion, they began to [see] their species dying” and started to understand the concept of “balance in the ecosystem. In fact, “it was a “lightbulb” moment for them! As their understanding grew, so did their excitement and competitive spirits!”
Thank you, The Herminator, for fostering a student-centered learning environment!
Rea Francisco
This unprecedented school year encouraged Rea Francisco, AKA Queen Dragon, to uncover exactly which factors boost a student’s enthusiasm to learn new concepts. Understanding that her students needed to feel motivated and inspired when learning complex science concepts, she specifically sought out learning resources that could serve as a catalyst for meaningful participation and discussion in class. As a middle school science teacher, Queen Dragon implemented an incentive system using Legends of Learning to encourage student buy-in: “We do fun Friday and that is the culminating activity for the week’s lesson. The top scorer gets…treats (lollipops of their choice), additional…participation points, and their name…placed [on] the Legends of Learning scoreboard. I get [approximately] 90% participation.” Moreover, the data dashboards in Legends of Learning allow Queen Dragon to easily “monitor the students’ engagement”.
Before permitting students to dive into the platform, Queen Dragon wanted to be sure that her future scientists were being provided with a holistic resource that actively addressed course material. After previewing the student experience in Legends of Learning, Queen Dragon was confident that she had found a tool that encourages students to deeply engage in their own learning process: “As a teacher, when I tried it, I really enjoyed it. There is a sense of ownership. The good thing…[also]…is that it works great…both [virtually] and in person! I even made a video of me discussing how cool it is to learn and have fun at the same time, right after I attended a short workshop online!”
Queen Dragon, we are appreciative of all you do to build a positive classroom community.
