Hyperdocs are incredibly versatile and collaborative. They allow educators to harness the variety of resources available on the web to engage students on a particular topic. Instead of either a top-down lecture to deliver information or a completely open-ended assignment to research a specific topic on the web, a hyperdoc guides students to discover various resources on their own terms. They give educators a way to introduce students to a topic but draw out the student’s learning experience and center on their own curiosity.
They also allow for teachers to see drafts of kids’ work along the way and correct course as needed or forge ahead if the kids really get it.
Some of the original creators of hyperdocs shared that their students (5th graders, mind you) were so enthralled with some of their materials that they couldn’t wait to do more of the same (Highfill, L., Hilton, K., and Landis, S 2017). That is entirely just because of the hyperdoc format, but it does have something to do with it.
It’s also a self-paced lesson that allows teachers to check-in with students at different intervals. It allows for individualization for reading levels that is less obvious.
In a virtual setting, especially with new students you don’t know well, it could be hard to tell if they’re really getting the learning objectives and if they’re clearly not, figuring out what the barriers are.
I really love this virtual field trip to the San Diego Zoo hyperdoc. I’m already a huge fan of the Panda Cam from the Smithsonian National Zoo in D.C. and I just think this is a super fun way to let students engage with readily available content that they will enjoy and learn something new. The presentation step at the end is also a great way to turn the students into junior content creators.
Personally, I would use hyperdocs to give students shared experiences of read-alouds or exploring a topic from multiple museums or national parks. There is so much great content out there and this is a way to beautifully organize it and engage students with it.
The ability to follow student work and give immediate feedback along the way is one of my favorite aspects of hyperdocs. Especially during virtual learning. I also like that you can track student progress to help support those who may be falling behind. I like your idea of you would use hyperdocs for read alouds and museum/zoo topics.