Go on back to Aimee Orr's Project Outline

Revolution?  Constitution?  Says Who?

General Information:

• Teacher's name: Aimee Orr

   

• Contact info: aimeeorr@gmail.com, orr_a@4j.lane.edu

   

• Title: classroom teacher

• Grade Level(s): 7th & 8th grades

   

• Content Area: Language Arts, Social Studies, Computers (this project is for the first two, block class)

   

• Time line: approximately 2-3 weeks

   

   

Standards (What do you want students to know and be able to do? What knowledge, skills, strategies do you expect students to gain?):

• Content Standards:

      SS.08.HS.01 Represent and interpret data and chronological relationships from history, using timelines and narratives.

      SS.08.HS.01.02 Compare and contrast historical interpretations.

  SS.08.HS.02 Distinguish between cause and effect relationships and events that happen or occur concurrently or sequentially.

      SS.08.HS.04 Evaluate data within the context it was created, testing its reliability, credibility, and bias.

      SS.08.HS.06.01 Identify and understand the issues and events that were addressed at the Constitutional Convention.

   

• NETS*S Standards (21st C. Skills):   Taken from PDF link to NETSforStudentStandards 

  1. Creativity and Innovation. 
     • Students create original works as a means of personal or group expression
  2. Communication and Collaboration
     • Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively; interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.
  3. Research and Information Fluency
  4. Digital Citizenship
  5. Tech Operations and Concepts

Overview:

3-week unit (depending on resources, interest, and 1st time implementation) on United States revolution (brief overview and reasons for) and Continental Congress, finishing with a group project presenting group's opinion on and bolstering evidence for/against either Revolution OR Bill of Rights/Constitution ratification.  (Argumentative essay in different formats.)  Project can be a pamphlet, a newspaper, a TV show (Crossfire, Meet the Press, McLaughlin Group), a podcast 'radio show,' or another, teacher-approved multimedia project.  (Per Lehmann, there is nothing wrong with crayons and posterboard; it should be approved first, though.)  Standard "book learning" and material framework can be accessed from websites such as this one; [this looks like a great project to adopt/adapt] other targets include Unit Vocabulary; timeline familiarity from 1745--1789 (important dates, people);

Essential Questions (What essential question or learning are you addressing? What would students care or want to know about the topic? What are some questions or activities you can use to get students thinking about the topic or to generate interest about the topic? What questions can you ask students to help them focus on important aspects of the topic?): 

 What were some of the driving factors for the Revolutionary War? Perhaps more fundamentally (per Essential Questions): Are there common driving factors behind any citizen revolt, regardless of time period or geography? (would open up comparison to other revolutions, current unrest.)

Why was there controversy surrounding the war and, later, the ratification of the Constitution?

How would a person's ethnicity, class, and gender determine their attitudes toward the war and the Constitution's ratification?  Construct arguments from either side of either debate and defend both positions.

Assessment Plan (What will students do or produce to illustrate their learning? What can students do to generate new knowledge? How will you assess how students are progressing (formative assessment)? How will you assess what they produce or do?):

We will work with the text and shape the unit partially with the two (or more?) chapters dealing with the revolution and the Constitutional Convention.  Vocabulary quiz will deal with cumulative (and oft-repeated, continually used) vocabulary of revolution and rebuilding of a country.  Short assignments might deal with POV (Boston Massacre; What Would You Do? activity on different roles and different political opinions) and scaffolded argument (eg: 1 paragraph of reasons FOR a viewpoint); final project will make up at least 1/2 of grade, Ultimately assessment should show students understand factors that led to revolt, and show ability to analyze whether the war could have been avoided or not (synthesis of arguments of the colonies voting for and against revolution). I think that's what you're saying, just clarifying.

Resources (What do you need in order to carry out this project? Think: Human resources, material resources, technologies. How does technology support students learning? What technology tools and resources—online student tools, research sites, student handouts, tools, tutorials, templates, assessment rubrics, etc—help elucidate or explain the content or allow students to interact with the content?):

TECH RESOURCES: 32 computers, optimally, or a computer lab; worst case scenario, eight computers would do for eight groups of four.  Computers would need internet access and iMovie, GarageBand.   Digital videocamera(s) and camera(s). 

Instructional Plan

• Preparation (What student needs, interests, and prior learning are a foundation for this lesson? How can you find out if students have this foundation? What difficulties might students have?)

  • Each student needs a Google Account for access to Gmail, Blogger, and Google Docs.  Plan to spend at least two or three days familiarizing students with preliminary tools BEFORE the unit begins (will extend unit time by 3-5 days, depending on resources, fluency, etc.).  Use of "cascading" helpful for those students who already have familiarity with tools, particularly in groups. good

  • Password warnings and protection--very important to stress before work begins; cyberbullying ID?  No sharing passwords, even with teacher; can share with parent. Simply put, on-task behavior is expected and any mischief that interferes with the learning of others will not be tolerated.
  • Parental involvement and permission: awareness of online work, permission for Google Account, explanation of tools used for projects I'm going to forward you an email I sent to Brian about Google Sites. It might work well for you for organizing these shared docs, etc.
  • Students' interest is (to make a gross generalization) generally piqued and enhanced by the use of online tools.  In my limited experience, they have a natural aptitude for tools, and engagement is enhanced while self-management increases. Yep but the drawback is the 'attractive nuisance' aspect-- class management for purpose-driven behavior is key. Though my boss disparaged my use of pencil and paper and books as a punishment, when you remove a laptop from one student, the others become almost psychotically on-task to avoid the same fate.  I've found that. Ah, I agree with you. It's a natural consequence.

   

• Management (How and where will your students work? Classroom, lab, groups, etc?):

  •     Classroom
    • group setup and tables
  • Use of COWS
    •  one per student depending on work (research; writing; planning; collaboration)

       

  • Computer Lab (if COWS unavailable or not working)
    • Individual work and research, collaboration
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• Instruction and Activities (What instructional practices will you use with this lesson? How will your learning environment support these activities? What is your role? What are the students' roles in the lesson? How can the technology support your teaching? What engaged and worthwhile learning activities and tasks will your students complete? How will they build knowledge and skills?):

      KWL chart, modified in Google Document; each student completes, saves under individual name, shares with teacher for possible input into the course I'll be curious to know how this turns out (serves as a great pretest)

      First assignment in groups: think-pair-share, homework; complete "How Much Do We Know?" (or think we know). Might be fun to have them code their sense of certainty with some kinds of mark... one, two, three, stars for degrees of certainty? Makes it ok to sort-of know. document here by opening it as Google Document and re-saving (or by sharing document with group and instructor)

• Differentiation (How will you differentiate content and process to accommodate various learning styles and abilities? How will you help students learn independently and with others? How will you provide extensions and opportunities for enrichment?  What assistive technologies will you need to provide?):

  What is your thinking here?

Closure and Reflection: (What lessons did you learn? What can you do better next time?  What went well and why?  What did not go well and why? How would you approach this project differently?  Ideas from the NCRTEC lesson plan:

• In what ways was this project effective?

• What evidence do you have for your conclusion?

• How would you change this project for teaching it again?

• What did you observe your students doing and learning?

• Did your students find the project meaningful and worth completing?

   

  This looks great. I recommend you review your project plan with your colleagues. They will have ideas for you, and you for them. Being a newbie teacher it's great to establish the practice of peer review before you're hard wired and decide you don't have the need! I look forward to hearing how your project goes-- and what you're up to next.