The 6 Cs are a huge focus in my district. I am always looking for ways to incorporate them into lessons and activities. A few months ago I came across Betsy Potash’s blog posts on Spark Creativity about Hexagonal Thinking. I thought, “Perfect! This will be a great way to incorporate the 6 Cs. The students can use critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and a little creativity!”
Flash forward to now. It was time for me to start planning what my students will be doing for our first week back to school. One of the activities I decided to so was Hexagonal Thinking. I went back Betsy’s blog post and found a fun idea for using it during the first week.
Hexagon Topics
On some of the hexagons you write the skills and standards the students will be learning in the class during the year. On other hexagons you write ELA things people do out in the real world. This helps the kids to see the connections between what they will be learning in your class and how it applies to them outside of school.
Making Hexagons
There are a few ways to make Hexagons. One way is make the shape in a computer program like Word, PowerPoint, Google Docs, or Google Slides. The you can print them off. There is also a website HookED SOLO Hexagon Generator that will create the hexagons with the topics typed on them. You can create them in Canva or any other digital graphic design program.
I am going to link Betsy’s blog posts about Hexagonal Thinking below so you can get more information and ideas on how to use it. I am also listing her podcast episodes that correspon to the blog posts. She also has several posts and videos on her Instagram page about Hexagonal Thinking.
Links
The Spark Creativity Teacher Podcast: Episodes 87, 127, 128, 129
Instagram: @nowsparkcreativity
