2. IT STARTED WITH A PD SESSION AT NCTE &
NWP ANNUAL MEETING, NOVEMBER 2013….
1. Concept of remix
2. “Hacking the Notebook”
3. Using paper/flat circuits to
“highlight” ideas

3. HOW TO “ILLUMINATE”
GATSBY?
What thinking or skill do I want to “illuminate” with
the circuitry activities and work?

4. REMIXING A PROJECT…
AND A NOVEL
•The Great Gatsby
• Light symbolism
• Dark conflict/ characters
• Usual methods of teaching
• Yes, an analysis
•Making it PBL
• Let there be… light?
• Let’s illuminate what we think is
important
• Mentor texts changed:
Tesla/Edison, direct/alternating
current, types of illumination
• Reasons we illuminate anything

5. ILLUMINATING OUR THINKING
• Remix materials
• Remix workshops
• Remix prior knowledge acquisition
• Goal: to learn about electricity in a
nontraditional way, so we can use
circuitry in a nontraditional way, so we
can learn about the power of literature
and writing… in a nontraditional way
REMIX: making new meaning out of existing
learning; not about curriculum; about experience

6. THE REMIX APPROACH
MATERIALS WORKSHOPS PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

7. THE REMIX APPROACH
PRODUCTS
COLLABORATIVE
WORK ACTUAL TASKS

8. OUR WORK

9. MIXING WITH THE TRUE AND
USEFUL? TESLA AND EDISON.

10. THE PROJECT:
ILLUMINATE A TRUTH OR CONFLICT
FROM GATSBY USING ACTUAL LIGHT.

11. THE PROJECT:
ILLUMINATE A TRUTH OR CONFLICT
FROM GATSBY USING ACTUAL LIGHT.

12. THE PROJECT:
ILLUMINATE A TRUTH OR CONFLICT
FROM GATSBY USING ACTUAL LIGHT.

13. CRITICAL THINKING. LITERARY ELEMENTS.
AUTHOR’S TECHNIQUES. LIFE TRUTHS.
REAL, AUTHENTIC LEARNING. AND MAKING.

14. “
”
WE ARE CONNECTING
THEORY TO PRACTICE IN AN
AUTHENTIC, CREATIVE WAY.

15. THEIR INNOVATION
SURPASSED MY IMAGINATION.
THE LEARNING WAS
MEANINGFUL, LASTING,
AND COMPLEX.
“A truth about life I would illuminate would be the fact that trust is
fragile and loyalty is a blessing.”
“Wealth blocks Gatsby’s view of his true emotions, tricking him
into thinking he’s happy.”
“It’s not that bad things happen to good people…it’s that bad
things happen in general. Lives begin and suddenly end. What
we want to do with our lives, our plans, mean nothing to other
people as we continue to try to reach a higher level of success.”

16. THEIR WORDS.
“I learned through this project that I
knew more about circuits than I
thought. I was able to reteach the
subject of circuits to a whole table
group. I was proud of myself.”
“I learned more about
currents/electricity in this class than
in any science class. I think it was
the different approach.”
“A lot of us had the same theme but
expressed it in such different ways.”
“I liked that it really made me think bigger than
the classroom and that what I learned is A)
cool and B) actually applicable. I feel like we
get too wrapped up in one subject at school
and don’t take time to integrate others, so this
was a nice change.”
“I learned how to make a simple circuit. I
learned craft vocabulary like ‘apoxy.’ I learned
time management, the importance of planning
ahead, and following through with those plans.
I also learned the importance of understanding
metaphors, similes, and symbolism because it
can make a difference in the ‘truth’ you see.”

18. TRYING IT WITH OTHERS

19. TRYING IT WITH OTHERS

20. RESOURCES
• SIMPLE RULES IN COMPLEX SYSTEMS: HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=25BYDK70-VG
• HTTP://WWW.HSDINSTITUTE.ORG
• HTTP://WWW.ADAPTIVEACTION.ORG
• HTTP://WWW.HSDINEDUCATION.WORDPRESS.COM
• HTTP://WIKI.HSDINSTITUTE.ORG/
• EOYANG, G. & HOLLADAY, R. (2013). ADAPTIVE ACTION: LEVERAGING UNCERTAINTY IN YOUR ORGANIZATION. CALIFORNIA.
STANFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS.
• PATTERSON, L., HOLLADAY, R., AND EOYANG, G. (2013). RADICAL RULES FOR SCHOOLS: ADAPTIVE ACTION FOR COMPLEX
CHANGE. CIRCLE PINES, MN: HUMAN SYSTEMS DYNAMICS INSTITUTE.
• PAUL OH’S “MAKE. WRITE. REMIX. SHARE.” BLOG ON EDUTOPIA
• TCTELA WINTER 2013 NEWSLETTER, TEXAS VOICES, P. 19 – “WHAT THE HECK IS A HACKJAM?”
• JIE QI’S SITES: HTTP://SIMONETTI.MEDIA.MIT.EDU/~JIEQI/ AND HTTP://TECHNOLOJIE.COM/
• PHOTOS EITHER COURTESY OF MOLLY ADAMS OR FOTER.COM/PUBLIC DOMAIN.
• HTTP://EDUCATORINNOVATOR.ORG/ AND HTTP://CONNECTEDEDUCATORS.ORG/
• CIRCUITRY HELP? CHECK OUT THESE BOOKS! GETTING STARTED IN ELECTRONICS AND MAKE: ELECTRONICS
• MENTAL FLOSS ARTICLE ABOUT TESLA AND EDISON
• 21ST CENTURY NOTEBOOKING: NEXMAP RESOURCES, GOOGLE+ COMMUNITY, CHAD SANSING’S HACK YOUR NOTEBOOK
KIT, JIE QI’S PROTOTYPE AND INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEOS