Learner Description - a multicultural group of 12 regular education students and 8 special education students

Overview - The students will receive whole class instruction while receiving background information on The Revolutionary War. The students will then brainstorm possible topics to research in depth and create projects that will incorporate various technological tools. Such tools that may be used are the scanner, digital/video camera, iBook, the Internet, etc. Specific places, people, and events are the categories students can choose from when deciding on a topic to further explore. Each project will be created by a heterogeneous group. In the end, these groups will provide the class with a presentation and provide the teacher with a group-created rubric designed for their unique project, that can be used as a form of assessment.

What will be taught? How will it be taught? What will students do and learn?

Include the problem, issue, or question that will frame the unit. Probably easiest to write after the unit has been created.

A social studies research project was implemented for the Revolutionary War from 1775-1792. The students received background information with direct instruction and guided reading. By reading from the class textbook, the students were able to get an overview of the cause and effects of the war, as well as heroes of the war, specific battles, and events. The main strategy used for this project was the Engaged Learning approach. The students were able to determine the category to research, means of assessment, the end product, and form their own cooperative learning groups. Here is an overview of what took place before each group began their research project:

1. reading for background information

2. KWL- brainstorm

3. determine categories to research

a. timeline of events

b. people or heroes

c. countries involved

d. causes of the war

e. battles and events of the war

f. treaties

g. effects of the war

4. select categories to research

a. choose top five most important categories to research

b. create cooperative learning groups

5. determine types of resources

* (minimum of three different resources)

a. text book

b. Internet or Curriculum Links*

c. encyclopedias*

d. books*

e. magazines

f. videos

6. assessment/rubrics

a. writing

b. presentation

c. project

7. performance assessment

Options:

a. Hyperstudio

b. Apple Works Presentation

c. ABC book

d. poster or bulletin board display

e. role play

f. other

The students were provided with a calendar indicating specific due dates. This allowed the students to plan ahead and allowed the teachers to take this opportunity to check for progress. The entire project took approximately one month. Here is the timeline for the project:

1. research and note taking: 7 days

2. first written draft: 3 days

3. revision: 2 days

4. final draft typed with the bibliography: 3-4 days

5. time to work on the actual project: 14 days

6. presentation: 2 days

Class time was also used to create rubrics for their projects such as a writing rubric, project rubric, and a presentation rubric. Our district technology coordinator assisted in creating a Hyperstudio rubric for a majority of the cooperative learning groups. The fifth group decided to make a poster and model for their final project. For a more in depth look at assessment, please look at the rubrics.

Hyperstudio Project Topics:

-Abigail Adams

-Patrick Henry

-Battle of Yorktown

-Treaty of Paris

Poster and Model Project:

-Battle of Lexington and Concord

Each group wrote a five paragraph expository essay, put together a bibliography, created a project, and then presented it to the class.

Rationale - Purpose for the unit as a whole. The WHY questions.

Why would you teach this unit?

The Revolutionary War is part of the fifth grade social studies curriculum and it also part of the state goals. In addition to this, this was a major turning point of our American history which later allowed the Americans to form a new government, independent from Great Britain.

Why would this qualify as an Engaged Learning unit?

The students played a large role in creating, implementing, and assessing their group project, while the teachers played the role of the facilitator. Each heterogeneous group were responsible for their learning and collaborated with each other to meet a common goal. In addition to this, many technological tools were introduced to the class and then was utilized in their final project.

Why is technology an important component of this unit?

Four out of the five groups choose to use Hyperstudio, an electronic presentation program, to present their research. They displayed their project on a television monitor to share with their classmates. The fifth group chose to make a poster board and model. Both groups used the following tools to assist them in creating their end product:

a. scanner

b. iBooks and desktop computers

c. Internet

d. online card catalogs

e. copy machines

f. VCR

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

This project is authentic because the students created the entire project. They chose their research topic, their cooperative learning group, the project itself, and created several rubrics as means of assessment. In addition to this, they had the opportunity to change the calendar with periodic due dates, when it was needed. In order to accomplish their goal(s), the group had to work as a team and solve any problems that arose. If the group had difficulty solving any issues, the teacher played the role of the mediator. Last but not least, the students were able to demonstrate their knowledge and be proud of the end product.

Goals - Content, Cognitive and Social - The WHAT questions

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

KNOWLEDGE:

a. timeline of events

b. people or heroes

c. countries involved

d. causes of the war

e. battles and events of the war

f. treaties

g. effects of the war

h. how the war impacts today

SKILLS AND ATTITUDES:

a. research skills

b. bibliography format

c. writing skills and process

d. technology skills and use

e. team work

f. collaborative skills

g. organizational skills

h. long term planning

i. public speaking skills

j. problem solving

k. self-confidence

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

STATE AND NATIONAL STANDARDS

ENGLISH/ LANGUAGE ARTS

-State Goal 1: Read with understanding and fluency.

-State Goal 3: Write to communicate for a variety of purposes.

-State Goal 4: Listen and speak effectively in a variety of situations.

-State Goal 5: Use the language arts to aquire, assess, and communicate information.

SOCIAL SCIENCE

-State Goal 16: Understand events, trends, individuals and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the United States, and other nations.

-State Goal 17: Understand world geography and the effects of geography on society, with the emphasis on the United States.

FINE ARTS:

-State Goal 26: Through creating and performing, understand how works of art are produced.

Learning Activities - The activities required to achieve the goals.

LEARNING ACTIVITIES:

1. background information

2. KWL and brainstorming research topics

3. creating rubrics

4. research and note-taking

5. writing, editing, and proofreading

6. technology lessons

7. group meetings, discussions, and project time

8. on-going assessment in conjunction with periodic due dates

9. presentations

The How questions.

Student Assessment- Enables student and teacher to measure student's attainment of goals.

Each group was given a calendar with periodic due dates. These due dates allowed the students to plan ahead as well as give teachers the opportunity to measure each groups' progress. Daily interaction with each group also allowed the teachers to monitor their progress and/or concerns. Group meetings with the teachers are as follows:

a. quality and quantity of resources

b. notes

c. first written draft and bibliography

d. second written draft and bibliography

e. final essay typed and bibliography

f. Hyperstudio Projects: minimum of three cards due each week

g. Poster and Model Project: biweekly check-ups for progress

h. writing rubric

i. project rubrics (Hyperstudio, Poster, and Model)

j. presentation rubric

What are my scoring characteristics? (What do I want to measure? What is an important outcome of this unit?)

(see rubrics)

It is important that students successfully complete their projects and effectively communicate with their peers throughout this process. Their presentation is also a very important part of this project because this is where each group and individual must demonstrate their knowledge of the subject. Incorporating technology within their project was also an integral part of this project.

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

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

(see Student Assessment)

How can students be involved in establishing goals and criteria for the assessment?

The class assisted in creating due dates for their project and created the criteria for each assessment piece. More specifically, they created the writing, project, and presentation rubrics.

How will the assessments be implemented to ensure that they are generative? Seamless and ongoing? Equitable for all students? An authentic task?

Students created several rubrics to be implemented in their project.

How will students demonstrate their knowledge and skills? (Observations, portfolios, projects, performances, oral reports, paper-&-pencil activities, journals, checklists, student self-assessment, student peer assessment, etc.)

a. quality and quantity of resources

b. notes

c. first written draft and bibliography

d. second written draft and bibliography

e. final essay typed and bibliography

f. Hyperstudio Projects: minimum of three cards due each week

g. Poster and Model Project: biweekly check-ups for progress

h. writing rubric

i. project rubrics (Hyperstudio, Poster, and Model)

j. presentation rubric

k. daily observation

Resources - What resources will you need to do this unit?

a. social studies text book and study guides

b. encyclopedias

c. computers and iBooks

d. scanner

e. Internet

f. television monitor

g. VCR

h. copy machine

i. on-line card catalog

j. Ink jet printer and laser color printer

k. Hyperstudio program

l. Apple Works word processing program

m. student resource books

n. student school supplies

Consider all forms - human, technological, community-based, school-based and traditional.

Management

How will you manage student work individually and in groups?

INDIVIDUAL:

Each student was responsible for their own:

a. resources.

b. notes.

c. paragraph(s) of the essay.

d. bibliography.

e. part of the project based upon agreement of the group.

f. participation of their group presentation.

Predetermined dates were used to monitor each students' progress in these areas.

GROUP:

Each group must partake in their portion of the above mentioned

criteria and put together successfully as one project. Frequent conferences or contact with each group was a significant part in group management.

How will the room(s) be arranged.

Two classrooms were used for this Engaged Learning project. The primary room was used for research, writing, and implementation of the project. The second classroom was used as an extension of the primary classroom, when there was a lack of computers available. Each group designated their own work area and continued to use this area throughout the entire unit.

Where will equipment and materials be located to promote maximum use?

iBooks were reserved for the students' use and borrowed from the library. It was located in the front of the classroom. Desktop computers are located in the corner of the room that was easily accessible to the students. A set of encyclopedias was located on book shelves that are within their reach. The scanner was located on a table away from the students' work area.

Where will students need to work and how can they be accommodated?

Most of the students worked in the primary classroom. When and if the classroom became overcrowded or there were limited resources, students were able to use the second classroom or the school library. When these two or three classrooms were occupied, some groups worked in other fifth grade classrooms to complete their project.

How will students with special needs be helped?

Students with special needs needed help with organization, writing, and reading. They also required frequent check-ups and daily monitoring.

In many cases, resources had to be provided. These students needed assistance in finding the main ideas as well as rephrasing or rewording passages and sentences. Students with low reading levels were given simpler resources that basically outlined the main ideas. Writing was another area that needed support. In one particular case, dictation was necessary for the goal to be accomplished.

Unit Evaluation

What will I need to do, be aware of, and/or gather while teaching the unit in order to answer these questions:

What was effective?

Providing the students with a calendar was one of the most effective parts of the Engaged Learning Project. Students were able to plan ahead and prepare for the next assignment. This kept the students organized and aware of expectations. The other most effective part of the project was the brainstorming. This gave the class the opportunity to take part in creating their project. They took ownership for their learning and made important decisions that would make an impact on their final project.

What wasn't effective?

Originally, two separate classes were to be combined to do this project. However, several students in the self-contained class refused to participate, with the exception of two students who were already mainstreamed into the regular education social studies class. iBooks also made class time more complicated and frustrating due to iBook problems.

What will I do differently next time?

Students may have been more engaged if they had the opportunity to work with students from a different class. So next time, combining full classes will be a priority.