Digital Breakout of the Regions of the United States

Lesson Summary

We love the idea of escape rooms, where you have to work together as a team to solve various clues to try and breakout of a room. In fact, recently, we have noticed digital breakouts being used as a fun and innovative way to review material, so we thought it would be a great hands on lesson to have our students create their own “escape rooms” in a digital form. Our students really enjoy learning about geography, so we decided to have them create a web-based digital breakout on the five regions of the United States. In groups of 2 or 3, students created the breakouts in a Google Site. They then came up with a clues for each region of the United States using various forms of digital media. The clues were then used to unlock and crack the codes. The digital breakouts were shared with a 5th grade class in another school in the county. They completed a survey after finishing the digital breakouts and our students analyzed the survey data by making graphs and writing about the survey responses on what they can do to make their breakouts better in the future.

TIPC Ratings

Research & Information Fluency

Rating:Approaching – Explanation: Teachers model strategies to guide student investigation on what digital media to use to search information on their regions. Students then applied their search techniques demonstrated by the teachers, using the modeled research sites to gather information for the Regions of the United States. They constructed questions to help guide research as well as assembled and organized their information to address authentic tasks into their google site.

Communication & Collaboration

Rating: Ideal – Explanation: Teachers facilitated and formatively assessed authentic task where students were engaged in meaningful communication and purposeful collaboration. Teachers showed different communication methods and digital tools using a different tool for each clue in the digital breakout. (Slideshow, video, receipt maker, jigsaw puzzle maker, map image.) Teachers designed this project to help promote collaboration within the classroom working in small groups as well as encouraged students to switch roles in their small groups of who would take the lead on the project each day. Students used appropriate digital tools to facilitate collaboration using Google Sites, Google Forms, Google Presentation, which all allow for sharing options and students working collaboratively and at the same time. Finally, students shared their digital breakouts with 5th grade students in another school. Those students then filled out a google survey on their experience. Our students then analyzed the data by making graphs and reflected on the feedback by writing about what they can do to make their breakouts better in the future.

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Rating: Ideal – Explanation: Teachers helped to facilitate authentic tasks with the students to ensure they were engaged in meaningful questioning, critical thinking and problem solving. Teachers facilitated which digital tools to use, designed instruction to promote student engagement to come up with questions based on each Region of the United States. Students had to generate and respond to purposeful questions that they came up with based on each Region of the United States and justify their decision-making to ensure each question had an answer found in each specific digital tool to unlock the code. Students collaborated with peers outside of their school by sharing their digital breakouts with 5th grade students in another school. Those students then filled out a google survey on their experience. Our students then analyzed the data by making graphs and reflected on the feedback by writing about what they can do to make their breakouts better in the future.

Creativity & Innovation

Rating: Approaching – Explanation: Teachers helped to model strategic risk taking, creativity, and craftsmanship to develop digital breakouts. Teachers designed opportunities for students to research the Regions of the United States, communicate and collaborate with their teams in developing each part of the digital breakout, and apply critical thinking skills to come up with questions and answers for each Region of the United States in their digital breakout. Students created meaningful, original digital breakouts within the assignment parameters based on the digital breakout project rubric.