This semester, we have all been working hard on numerous inquiry projects. Among the projects not yet displayed on my blog, the Gallery Walk Inquiry poster presentation has become a project that I am quite proud of. I researched the “Building Thinking Classrooms” model as proposed by Dr. Peter Liljedahl, the same math researcher that presented the card trick videos.


As such, I wanted to find a way that I could, not only keep the information of the poster for my future career, but also bring my poster in as an “artifact of learning” for my exit interview. Given that I did not want to drag around my 36″ x 48″ poster, I decided to draw on my affinity for digital formatting. This also gave me an excuse to explore Apple Keynote as well as Microsoft Powerpoint, both of which I have (surprisingly) never used before!

My original poster highlights some of the findings for implementing the “Building Thinking Classrooms” model in the classroom with Peek-a-boo flaps that explain each step with sketch-notes. Therefore, I wanted to ensure that my digital rendition of this poster demonstrated the same ability. I used a non-linear approach to bounce through the slides much like a website interface. When you click on each section of the poster, you are redirected to a new slide that either zooms into a clearer view of the material, or surprises you with new information that was “hidden” under the hexagon flaps. This is done by “linking” images, shapes and text to other slides in the presentation. After each new linked slide I duplicated the original interface to immediately follow. This forces the user to return to the main poster and then choose a new link and repeat the process once again. In hindsight, this non-linear pathway is similar to the choose-your-own-adventure style that is highlighted in Twine!

The following is a screen cast demonstrating the non-linear path. I’ve gone through everything fairly quick, but feel free to pause and have a read. Alternatively, I have attached both the Keynote file (original output) and the powerpoint file (seamlessly converted) if you have any interest in this non-traditional classroom model!

Gallery Walk – Building Thinking Classrooms
Gallery Walk – Building Thinking Classrooms ppt