Overview -

In this unit students will be placed into cooperative groups based on their favorite books read in their reading classes.  In their groups they are to create an imovie or power point presentation describing the characters in their book. (see Appendix A) By doing this students will learn how to form simple sentences in Spanish using adjectives to describe people or things.  In Spanish adjective agreement and placement is very important.

Rationale -

Why would you teach this unit?

This unit is taught because it is part of the Spanish curriculum.  By teaching this unit in this way, students become active learners and teachers.  Students are motivated and enthusiastic about the information learned and shared.  As a cooperative group they make the decisions about their imovie and what they want to share.  By picking this unit, I am intergrading my curriculum with the 7th grades literature program. 

Why would this qualify as an Engaged Learning unit?

Why is technology an important component of this unit?

Technology is a very important component of this unit because students will be using digital video cameras and the computer to create their imovies and power point presentations,

Why is this project authentic/meaningful, and challenging for students?

This project is authentic and meaningful to the students because there is a clear connection made to their 7th grade literature program.  It gives the learners more of an investment in their learning and it gives them an opportunity to showcase what they have learned to other students.  Giving them this responsibility makes it an authentic experience for them.

Goals - Content, Cognitive and Social

What new attributes (knowledge, skills, attitudes) do you expect students to gain?

*The use of technology to enhance presentations

*Group interaction

*Social Skills

*Writing, listening, and communication skills in Spanish

What school, district, state and national standards/benchmarks are addressed?

Foreign Language Learning Standards

Goal 28 Communication

28.B.1a    Respond to and ask simple questions with prompts.

28.D.1a    Copy/write words, phrases and simple sentences,

28.D.2a    Write on familiar topics using appropriate grammar, punctuation, and capitalization.

28.D.2b    Present a simple written or oral report on

              familiar topics.

28.D.2c    Present an original production (e.g., TV

              commercials, ads, skits, songs) using known

              vocabulary and grammatical structures.

Learning Activities

As a cooperative group students will write up a skit in Spanish describing their book or the characters found in their book.  This should be done in an entertaining way,

In their skit they need to include stage direction and props needed for filming. 

They need to use the computer to create an imovie using English sub-titles. 

Student Assessment

What are my scoring characteristics?

Students are scored on the quality of the quantity of their information gained and on the presentations given as required by the scoring rubrics prepared.  There are two separate grades given one for the written work and one for the presentation.  I want my students to correctly communicate in Spanish descriptive adjectives. 

Regular group meetings took place for reflection and planning.

Students evaluated their participation, preparation, and performance on this project by completing a PMI chart.

What will indicate that students are novices, practitioners, or experts?

The student's presentations will indicate status or mastery.

How will I measure and communicate student progress on the goals?

Students will evaluate their participation, preparation, and performance on this project by completing self-evaluation sheets.  Communication between the teacher and student will be ongoing throughout the unit.  Teachers will regularly conference with students to assess and set goals.

Management

What resources will you need to do this unit?

For this unit I needed digital cameras and computers with imovie software on them.  You need enough computers for each group taping and four digital cameras.

How will the room(s) be arranged.

The 7th grade classrooms and hallway were used for taping, because they didn't have classes at that time.  I also prearranged the use of the teacher's lounge and conference room.  I signed up the use of the computer lab for editing of movies.

Unit Evaluation

What was effective?

*The use of the imovie program to create projects and subtitles

*Allowing student to form groups based on personal interests

*Access to the technology in our school

*Giving control to the students in planning of their skit

*Including students in the evaluation process allowed for clear understanding of expectations ahead of time.

*Showcasing their work during the 7th grade Academy Awards

What wasn't effective?

*Not having enough digital videos available for filming

*Lack of cameras created a scheduling nightmare

What will I do differently next time?

*Try to get hold of more cameras to use during filming

*Schedule imovie tutorial before project begins.

Appendix A

Y El Ganador Es…..

Power Point or imovie Presentation

You are to prepare a video skit or power point presentation using the descriptive vocabulary you have learned in Spanish class to be played during the 7th grade Academy Awards.  You are to follow these instructions:

1.   You will work in a group of 3-4 people

Groups will be created based on your favorite books.

2.   You need to have a title to begin your presentation.

3.   Your group is to cooperate together to write an original skit in Spanish.

You need to include the main characters in your skit

Tell us about:

   What your characters are like?

   What do they like or dislike doing?

4.   Make your presentation interesting and creative.

5.   You need to include English sub-titles in your movie.

Your script must include:

a.    a minimum of 5 lines of dialog in Spanish for each person

b.    stage directions for action (these may be in English)

c.    a list of props needed for filming (these may be in English)

*must be neat, in ink, or on the computer!

You may include humor, intrigue, drama… but you must include a variety of

descriptive adjectives.

You will receive two grades on this project:  1) a grade on your written script: 

content, creativity, use of vocab, grammar and spelling and 2) a grade on your 

presentation; memory, pronunciation fluency, use of action and props, overall

dramatic effect.