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Memes in the Classroom

Memes are everywhere today in our culture - sometimes humorous, sometimes educational, sometimes philosophical or political. Memes are ideas, behaviors, or styles that spread from person to person within a culture often via the Internet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme). They have become mainstream - a dominant trend in our culture.

During a recent professional learning community, teachers were introduced to the idea of using memes in the classroom - created by both them and their students. These teachers knew a lot about memes but we wanted them to start thinking about different ways to use them for student presentations, sharing thoughts and ideas, or to show learning and understanding of concepts.

6 Ways to Learn Through Memes:
http://bergman-udl.blogspot.com/2017/01/6-ways-to-learn-through-memes.html

5 Ways to Use Memes with Students:
https://www.iste.org/explore/articleDetail?articleid=858

The time really was two-fold though. We also wanted to introduce them to the Mark-Up tools in the Photos app on the iPads. Students and teachers can create memes or mark up images right in the photos app. No need to download another app or access an online tool!

We looked at some student create memes, such as this math meme project video:

The teachers were provided project instructions for creating a meme. Using the instructions sheet, they worked independently to explore ideas and create their own meme: Meme Project Instructions

The instructions included the link to this online article about how to use the Mark Up tools in the Photos app on their iPads.

Annotating Images on the iPad:
http://classtechtips.com/2017/01/07/annotate-images-ipad/ 

Teachers were encouraged to use images they had taken with their iPad camera or downloaded from websites such as Pexels or Photos for Class to ensure they were copyright friendly.

Teacher created memes were upload and shared on this Padlet wall.
Meme Padlet: https://padlet.com/ssallee/ja1xxw0f4ica

A great learner driven activity that has sparked a variety of classroom activities and projects!


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