I miss my kids. A lot. One thing I miss a ton is their creativity.
Whenever we have a less-structured minute in class, such as when some students finish an assignment early, many students choose to draw. They love the Sketchbook iPad app. Over the course of the year, I’ve seen many students improve their drawing skills. And, if allowing them to draw in class means they’re more likely to bring their iPad charged to school every day, then I’m all for it!
The best thing ever is when students gift me one of their drawings to hang up in my room! Their art immediately goes up on the wall or on a cabinet. If it’s a digital drawing, then I’ll email (with a pretty please) one of two staff members who have access to the color printer and ask them to print out the drawing.
A while back, I saw someone post a picture of an area in their classroom that they called the classroom “fridge.” (I can’t remember who you are! If someone finds the source, please send them or the post my way so I can give credit!) I love this idea, and it’s been on my list of things to do for over a year. Now I will have to wait until we can physically go back to schools–I already have the perfect place picked out.
On our weekly check-in Form, some of my students have mentioned cool art projects they are working on. I wanted to provide a digital outlet for my students to share their artwork with our class. So, I created a Digital Fridge using Padlet! The linked example is filled with contributions from teacher friends–feel free to contribute something!
In my Digital Fridge, I required all posts to be approved (Settings > Require Approval). This allows me to make sure a student does not misuse our Padlet. Plus, submitting a post for approval means students know I am looking at their artwork and hanging it up by clicking approve. So far, I have approved every post that contains an attached picture (I had a couple where the student must have started, then forgotten to upload anything), including one of a stick figure. One incredibly quiet student has posted multiple drawings; it’s incredible to see them so willing to share online!
If you want to use this idea, simply click the “remake” button on the top right corner. Then, share the link with your students through your online platform (Google Classroom, class website, email, or other LMS). Don’t have a Padlet account yet? Use this referral link and we both get a free extra Padlet!
What cool submissions have you received on your Digital Fridge? Share in the comments below!
Mari Venturino 