Activity #6

Sociology Unit 1 Quizlet Set

I have used something similar to tagxedo in my course before, but tagxedo had a lot more options than the word cloud site I used.  I was nice to have the ability to make it so quickly and on the fly.  I have run into situations where there is a lag in production (such as needing to have the cloud emailed or some other software to download.)  One of the great things I have done in class is having the students send my their thoughts on an upcoming topic, like a KLW of sorts.  It is great to see what students think about a topic before learning anything about it and then creating a word cloud to analyze.  I ask students which assumptions do they make the most, which ones do they make the least.  It is a great way to see how much students think alike.
I have been meaning to get around to making a quizlet set but never really took the plunge.  It was nice to have a reason to make one.  I was apprehensive about making one because I thought it would be time consuming, yet making a set on quizlet is super easy.  You don't even have to type in the definition to words you chose.  The site offers to fill it in for you!  How awesome is that?  Tons of students use quizlet at MVHS, especially those in AP courses.  This coming fall I want to really integrate the site into the course by having students construct sets of flashcards that the class can use.  Maybe I will have each student assigned to a particular unit and then, by the end of the course--right when students are getting ready to study for the AP Test, there will be a ready made set of terms for everyone.