Big Huge Labs

While attending the Presidential Timeline Institute at the Nixon Library last week, I learned about several websites that can help students create fun and interesting projects to display what they know. One of these was Big Huge Labs. There are tons of games and activities, but the three that I found most useful for a high school class were the Motivator, Magazine and Movie Poster apps.

The Motivator allows students to add pictures and text to create a motivational poster. It is an easy way to assess student learning, as are all of these apps. I also plan to use it as an anticipatory set for a unit or maybe a daily warm up. Here is an example that I created.

The Magazine allows students to create a magazine cover with headlines, date and price. Here is one I created to give you an idea of how to use it.

The Movie Poster is very similar, only one is promoting a movie about a particular topic. It takes some critical thinking to decide the title, leading actors, producers, etc.

I plan on trying these in my classroom this year. I think the students will have fun with it! They can be used in any of the social sciences and even for current events. I love programs that are adaptable to a wide range of topics and subjects.