LEGO-Inspired Minifig Portraits Using Google Draw Tools

I like to teach my students about Google Drawing tools because it's an often overlooked app in the suite of Google tools that I think has so many great uses! You've probably seen my Google Draw "Doodle Yourself" blog post in the past. That lesson is by far my favorite, but I have another lesson that I use with 6th grade students - not quite as advanced - but just as fun! We explore and practice using Google Draw tools to create custom LEGO-inspired minifig portraits.

It's a fun way to get to know a class, because they can customize their clothing and accessories to reflect their personal interests. These digital artworks look really cool printed out, and grouped together on a board, like these:

The minifig shape is iconic, easily recognizable, and universally loved. I have yet to come across a student who wasn't excited to create a project that involved LEGO in some way. I love that students can build their figures in a variety of ways, and get as detailed as they want. You can see the wide range of ideas in the photo above.

The way I teach this project is to use a Google Slides file that is shared by the entire class. Then, each student gets one slide with a minifig template as a background image. They can then build their figure by "coloring in" via layering shapes on top of the template. I like to use a Slides file because I can "lock" the background image down, and students can see what their classmates are doing and collaborate and share as needed. But you could also make these exclusively in Draw, too. Draw and Slides have the same tools, so by using the drawing tools on one, you are also learning the other.

Do you want to do this project with your class, too? Well, I'm sharing my Slides template with you today so that you can make your own copy and try it out in class!

Get your own copy of my minifig template HERE!

I've also made a YouTube video that introduces the project and goes over basic Google Draw functions and tools for getting started. You can check that out here:

If you do this lesson with your class (or even just on your own for fun), I'd love to see the results! Consider sharing with me or tagging me on Instagram or Twitter so I can check them out! 

- Mrs L.

Tips For Creating a Good Tweet

Recently, my district has begun to leverage social media to help showcase positive aspects of our students, schools, community, and teachers. That’s awesome! Yeah, it’s a little tardy to the party, but at least they made it.

One thing I’ve noticed across several districts is that they love to post about professional development. Stuff like:

"Look at this special guest talking to us about assessment and data!"
"Check out our math teachers working on common core!"
"Hey, here’s some administrators watching a Powerpoint at the district office!"

(Not a tweet from my district; faces have been blurred to protect the identities of the innocent)

Typically, these kinds of tweets are accompanied by a photo from the back of a room, showcasing adults sitting at tables. They might be looking up at a screen (so you get that back-of-the-head view), or you might see them in profile looking at each other. Most importantly, neither the text nor the image makes it look the least bit exciting or engaging:

(Not a tweet from my district; faces have been blurred to protect the identities of the innocent)

Argh. The sheer fact that you tweeted it out does not make it GOOD!

So, I thought I’d share some tips for how to increase the quality of your tweets:

1. Showcase who is there, and how much FUN you are having. Do you have a guest speaker? Take a selfie with them (like here!), or have a teacher give the ol’ thumbs up and pose with him or her. Don’t just stand there with a neutral expression - make it look like you’re having a good time! 
2. Or, highlight a detail of something actually HAPPENING. Did people get up and walk around? Did you create collaborative charts or posters? Were there high-fives? Laughter? Did you have a book discussion? Take a close-up picture of one of those things, and talk about a specific detail, rather than an umbrella-like generic tweet. 
3. Another option is to create a whole collage of photos to show the variety of happenings during your professional development sessions, as in this really nice tweet below: 





(Not my tweet; check out the variety of activities being showcased!)



4. Tag people in your tweets! Include the handles of people featured, or guests present. This increases the likelihood that your tweet will be shared and liked, and therefore gain a wider audience. 
5. Share something that you learned. A useful take-away or tip for the people who see your tweet is always nice. They couldn’t be there, but they can still share in the goodness. 
6. Hashtags! Use them. Hopefully, your district has a common hashtag for use, or even a building level hashtag, but be sure to include broader hashtags, too, like #edtech or #makerspace. Not sure what to use? Here’s a whole list of hashtag ideas in this blog post.





Not my tweet; I assure you this girl is just as happy underneath the smiley emoji! Isn't that the kind of attitude you want to advertise in your organization? 


As a general rule of thumb, before you post an image to social media, step back, take a look at your image, and ask yourself:


"Does this look like a picture of somewhere I'd want to be?"
"Is this an image that I'd like to know more about?"

...and if the answer is no, re-take that picture before publishing it to social media!  


- Mrs. L.