Are Boom cards appropriate for middle schoolers?
I first tried Boom Cards in my middle school science classroom during the pandemic. We were teaching via Zoom (ugh – I hate to even think of those days!) and I was struggling with engagement (weren’t we all?). I remember asking all of my teacher friends how they were managing, and most of my elementary school teacher friends gushed over Boom Cards but none of my middle school or high school teacher friends had ever heard of them. Primary teachers in particular thought Boom Cards were great, so I kind of forgot about them for a while – after all, middle schoolers and primary students are different animals altogether.
But I continued to be frustrated with trying to engage my students and finally gave Boom Cards a try. (Here’s the blog post I wrote back in May of 2020 when I first starting using Boom Cards).
I was quickly a convert. My students are no longer passive recipients of information but active participants in their own learning. They eagerly explored the digital decks, experimenting with concepts, and gaining immediate feedback on their responses. The self-paced nature of Boom Cards allowed each student to work at their own speed, promoting individualized learning and ensuring that no one fell behind.
What are Boom Cards?
Boom Cards are a digital tool that provides interactive learning experiences with instant feedback. These digital task cards are designed to be self-paced, making them ideal for classrooms, homeschooling, and independent study. By incorporating multimedia elements, such as videos, images, and audio clips, Boom Cards offer an immersive and captivating learning environment. (Here’s a blog post I wrote a few weeks ago outlining all of the ways you can use Boom Cards in middle school science!)
Try a free set
Don’t take my word for it. I’m sharing my plate tectonics Boom Cards deck with you for free. If your students are like mine, memorizing the vocabulary of plate tectonics is challenging. This deck of Boom Cards helps a lot. Here’s what it covers:
- Types of boundaries with examples
- Types of stress on rocks and effects
- Types of faults
- Layers of the Earth
- Pangaea
- Alfred Wegener
You don’t need a membership to use these Boom Cards, but a membership allows you to keep track of individual students’ progress. You can save 10% on a membership if you use my affiliate link here.
If you’re already on the Boom Card bandwagon, drop a comment here so we can share ideas!