DIY - Breakout Edu

I am always on the lookout for new and exciting things to present to the students and teachers in my school (and my daughter's school).  They don't always have to do with technology, but they do always have to do with new ways to learn and present materials.

This weekend at the Google Summit I will be presenting about the newest tool I have been researching this spring called a 'Breakout Box.'  This is new for me for a variety of reasons.  The first reason is it has been a long time since I have presented to a large adult audience.  While it is easy for me to get up in front of students and teach, presenting to peers seem to always be a different animal for me.  While my nerves may get the best of me inside, I won't let it show on the outside, and know once I get started I should be ok.  It will help to have a co-presenter as well. What is going to make this presentation easier is I am so excited about one of the tools I will be presenting.

The breakout box is the newest thing I've found to use in the classroom.  It's basically a mystery room in a box.  Where you use clues to solve mysteries (or in this case unlock locks.)  The benefits are many.  For the teacher this resource is able to be customized, used with any age group (including adults for PD), with any subject and with any number of students.  For the students it teaches them teamwork and collaboration, to think outside the box, higher order thinking skills, time management as well as other classroom benefits all while being fun.  I have even written my own breakout game which is the game I will use this weekend at the conference.

As they say 'here goes nothing!'