Anderson School District Two's Gifted and Talented Program Presents
Balloons Over Broadway
Project Overview
Project Overview
Gifted and Talented students from Belton, Honea Path, and Wright Elementary Schools undertook a large project during the 2021 holiday season! Using the book Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet as inspiration, students recreated the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route to scale in their classrooms, with each classroom tile representing 1/10 (or 0.1) mile . Students then created balloons to travel the path, and coded Ozobots to perform a series of actions related to the parade (e.g. nitro burst, pause, and cruise). After compiling a host of research on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the balloons that have been featured in the parade over the years, students either re-created classics or created their own masterpieces that highlighted a specific decade using Crayola Model Magic (AFTER realizing the original attempt with air-dry clay produced figures that were too fragile and had too much mass for the Ozobots to support-- a connection to force/motion). The "balloons" were attached to an Ozobot and students watched as they paraded around their classroom along the scaled Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route.
Gifted and Talented students from Belton, Honea Path, and Wright Elementary Schools undertook a large project during the 2021 holiday season! Using the book Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet as inspiration, students recreated the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route to scale in their classrooms, with each classroom tile representing 1/10 (or 0.1) mile . Students then created balloons to travel the path, and coded Ozobots to perform a series of actions related to the parade (e.g. nitro burst, pause, and cruise). After compiling a host of research on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the balloons that have been featured in the parade over the years, students either re-created classics or created their own masterpieces that highlighted a specific decade using Crayola Model Magic (AFTER realizing the original attempt with air-dry clay produced figures that were too fragile and had too much mass for the Ozobots to support-- a connection to force/motion). The "balloons" were attached to an Ozobot and students watched as they paraded around their classroom along the scaled Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route.
Students also reviewed several examples of commentary from previous Macy's Day Parades using teacher-shared links, charted effective and precise language including rich vocabulary, puns, alliteration, etc. and used those examples to write a commentary for their balloon. Using WeVideo, they took an image of their balloon, used green screen technology to make it appear in the parade, and narrated the video using the commentary they wrote. Students also added titles, crowd noise, and music to bring it to life!
Students also reviewed several examples of commentary from previous Macy's Day Parades using teacher-shared links, charted effective and precise language including rich vocabulary, puns, alliteration, etc. and used those examples to write a commentary for their balloon. Using WeVideo, they took an image of their balloon, used green screen technology to make it appear in the parade, and narrated the video using the commentary they wrote. Students also added titles, crowd noise, and music to bring it to life!
Adding another layer to their work, students applied their newly gained knowledge by creating a digital game to teach others about the parade. Other student created an interactive Google MyMap where site visitors can view pictures of fan-favorite balloons with GT students right there in the crowd! This "screen magic" was accomplished through the use of Remove.bg and Google Drawings. Site visitors can also learn a few fun facts about some of the historical Macy's Day Parade balloons!
Adding another layer to their work, students applied their newly gained knowledge by creating a digital game to teach others about the parade. Other student created an interactive Google MyMap where site visitors can view pictures of fan-favorite balloons with GT students right there in the crowd! This "screen magic" was accomplished through the use of Remove.bg and Google Drawings. Site visitors can also learn a few fun facts about some of the historical Macy's Day Parade balloons!
Please click the school names below to explore this site and see the students' hard work over the past few weeks! If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to Gifted and Talented teacher, Tara Ramsey (tramsey@asd2.org) or District Instructional Coach, Beth Dabney (mdabney@asd2.org).
Please click the school names below to explore this site and see the students' hard work over the past few weeks! If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to Gifted and Talented teacher, Tara Ramsey (tramsey@asd2.org) or District Instructional Coach, Beth Dabney (mdabney@asd2.org).
