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Granite School District > Educational Technology > Blog > Student Spotlights

Student Spotlights

Granite District Battle of the Books 2016-2017 Competition Winners

On April 13, 2017, over 50 student teams from 18 different elementary schools in Granite School District converged on Gearld Wright Elementary for the first annual Granite District Battle of the Books competition.  Student teams went head-to-head in this “Family Feud”-style game, in which their knowledge of the 15 books on the official 2016-2017 reading lists was put to the test.

We congratulate all of the students who read and participated in the battles, whether in their school or at the district competition. We thank all of the media clerks, teachers, administrators, parent volunteers, and others who tirelessly supported this program and inspired our students to find excitement in reading.

Check out the winners of our 2016-2017 competitions!

3rd-4th Grade Winners


2017 Battle of the Books 3rd-4th Grade Bracket
2017 Battle of the Books 3rd-4th Grade Bracket

5th-6th Grade Winners


2017 Battle of the Books 5th-6th Grade Bracket
2017 Battle of the Books 5th-6th Grade Bracket

2017-2018 Battle of the Books Competition

Any who are interested in learning how their school can participate in next year’s Battle of the Books program are invited to one of two informational meetings which will be held on Friday, May 12, 2017, at your choice of 12:00-12:30 PM and 2:00-2:30 PM. These meetings will be held at the Educational Technology Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) at 5300 West Cherrywood Lane, West Valley City, UT 84120.

2017-2018 Battle of the Books Informational Meeting - 1
2017-2018 Battle of the Books Informational Meeting - 2

If you have any questions about Battle of the Books, please contact Nikki Gregerson, District Elementary Library Supervisor in the Educational Technology department.

Student Spotlight: Video Projects for Refugee Students, Oakridge Elementary

The 6th Grade students at Oakridge Elementary have been working with their teachers in Project Based Learning. The focus of their projects has primarily been around how we can support refugee students in our area. With the support of their teachers Krystal Bowen, BJ Nelson, and Laurel Myers, students researched areas of need and then created videos that would support a student’s transition to our school. This allowed them not only to explore new cultures but also utilize new technologies such as screen casting, video editing and voice-overs.

Here are examples of their work, produced and shared using Adobe Spark. Click on a screenshot to view the video.

Fire Drills Student Production - Screenshot
Fire Drills
How to Use a Computer Student Production - Screenshot
How to Use a Computer
The Asking Questions Song - Student Production - Screenshot
The Asking Questions Song
Fire Drill Procedures - Student Production - Screenshot
Fire Drill Procedures

Spotlight Author: Melissa White, School Technology Specialist at Oakridge Elementary and Valley Crest Elementary.

Video: Kindergartners and Chromebooks

Teresa Bruin, one of our district educational technology team leaders, recently brought Chromebooks to kindergarten classes at Hunter Elementary for students to try. The goal was to see how easily the young students could work with the Chromebooks in various hardware configurations (touch screen, trackpad, large mouse, or small mouse.) She recorded this rough video, which shows just how quickly the kindergartners learned to use the devices and how excited they were about their success.

Upcoming Event: Granite Battle of the Books | April 13, 2017

Join us for our very first annual Granite School District Battle of the Books!

April 13, 2017 | Thursday | 5:00 PM
Gearld Wright Elementary School
6760 West 3100 South, West Valley City, UT 84128
[Read more…] about Upcoming Event: Granite Battle of the Books | April 13, 2017

Spotlight: First Graders and the 4 Cs with Breakout EDU

In this spotlight video, first grade students at Bennion Elementary work with school technology specialist Amber Palmer to solve critical thinking puzzles as part of a Breakout EDU activity. The video also highlights the centrality of the Four Cs of 21st Century Learning (Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity) to our teaching and learning practices in educational technology.   [Read more…] about Spotlight: First Graders and the 4 Cs with Breakout EDU

Highlights from Granite’s FIRST LEGO League 2017 Qualifying Tournament

Granite School District welcomed 28 FIRST LEGO League teams to the 3rd GSD sponsored qualifying tournament on Saturday January 28th at Granger High School. Students participated in robot games, showed off their ability to work collaboratively on a problem, explained to engineers how they designed and built their robot, and presented a solution in the form of a product or service to enhance the relationship between animals and humans.

Winning trophies were: [Read more…] about Highlights from Granite’s FIRST LEGO League 2017 Qualifying Tournament

Upcoming Event: Granite’s FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournament

On January 28, 2017, student teams from schools throughout Granite School District will compete in our annual FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournament at Granger High School. Twenty-five elementary and junior high schools are fielding thirty teams for this tournament.

From the FIRST website,

FIRST LEGO League . . . immerses kids in real-world science and technology challenges. Teams of kids ages 9 to 14 are challenged to design their own solution to current scientific problems, then build LEGO robots that perform autonomous “missions.” In the process, they develop valuable life skills and discover exciting career possibilities in science and technology. They even discover that they, too, can make positive contributions to society.

Karen Tinsley, school technology specialist at Stansbury Elementary and coach of a FIRST LEGO League team, recorded the Robot Game in action at a recent scrimmage at her school, shared above. [Read more…] about Upcoming Event: Granite’s FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournament

Teacher Spotlight: Jayanne Unander, Pleasant Green Elementary

Jayanne Unander is the school technology specialist at Pleasant Green Elementary. In this spotlight video we see her introducing Ozobots to students in the school’s coding club. For this activity students use tablet apps such as OzoGroove and OzoDraw to interact with the ozobots, learning fundamentals of computer coding in the process.

In addition to her work with students and teachers at Pleasant Green Elementary, Jayanne is also a developer and trainer in our district’s Educational Technology Endorsement Program.

Spotlight Creator: Kristen Johnson, Granite District Educational Technology Specialist

Hour of Code at Farnsworth Elementary and Woodstock Elementary

Students at Farnsworth Elementary and Woodstock Elementary recently tried out computer programming by participating in Hour of Code activities. In this video a few of these students share their work and their thoughts about the coding activities with Joell Wilkins, school technology specialist.

Hour of Code is a worldwide initiative to introduce young people to the basics of coding and computer science through 1-hour coding activities. These activities are especially promoted during Computer Science Education Week (December 5-11, 2016) but can be done at any time throughout the year. If you are interested in hosting an Hour of Code event, these how-to guides provide assistance for activities ranging from school-wide events to at-home family coding activities.

Because of the overwhelming variety of beginning coding activities available at Code.org, Ms. Wilkins selected a few of the activities and curated them in a clickable slideshow for her students, from which they could choose a grade appropriate activity.

Hour of Code Grades 3-5 Menu

If you host a coding activity please share it with us! You can leave a comment below or share pictures via social media including Twitter or Instagram, using the hashtags #gsdedtech and #HourOfCode.

Spotlight video created by Joell Wilkins, School Technology Specialist at Farnsworth Elementary and Woodstock Elementary.

Introducing Granite’s Battle of the Books

2016-17 Granite Battle of the Books Logo

Beginning in the 2016-17 school year, Granite School District’s elementary library media program is sponsoring a Battle of the Books reading incentive program. Students at participating schools will be challenged to read as many books as possible from the book list assigned to their grade level. Participating students will form into teams to engage in a “Family Feud” style competition at the school level, testing their knowledge of the books. Winning school teams will move on to a district-wide battle. So far, 15 elementary schools have committed to field teams and participate in the battle.

More details are forthcoming, and the following page will serve as the main location for updated information and resources: https://www.granitemedia.org/granite-battle-of-the-books/. If you wish to get your school involved or have any other questions, please contact Nikki Gregerson, Granite School District’s Elementary Library Media Specialist.

Here are the 2016-2017 reading lists:

2016-2017 3rd-4th Grade Reading List

2016-17 Battle of the Books 3rd-4th Grade Reading List
2016-17 Battle of the Books 3rd-4th Grade Reading List

2016-2017 5th-6th Grade Reading List

2016-17 Battle of the Books 5th-6th Reading List
2016-17 Battle of the Books 5th-6th Reading List