Module+2

=Pairing and Sharing from Previous Module= With any luck, you now have a blog and you have created a link to your blog in the table on the Teachers' Show and Tell page. Create a posting and share your publication that you created from the last Module.

Step 1: Create a new post on the blog you created. Step 2: Title your new posting, "Why Use Projects in the Classroom". Step 3: Attach your publication to your blog posting as an attachment. Exactly how to attach a file will depend on the specific blog you used. You may wish to consult the help file for your blog. Step 4: Visit another teachers blog and comment on their publication.
 * Here's How to Share Your Publication on a Blog**

=Planning My Unit=

Activity 1: Addressing Standards
In a project-based, student-centered learning environment, students show they are meeting standars through products and performances. These demonstrations of learning complement traditional standards-based tests and quizzes. Instead of just recalling information, studetns apply new knowledge in meaningful ways to solve engaging problems. Projects ask students to use knowledge to convince others that they really understand material that quizzes and short answer tests only suggest they understand (Wiggins, 1998). In this era of accountability and performance, projects must be built around standards to ensure that students learn appropriate content and skills. Some teachers see projects as diversions, end-of-unit activities, or extensions after students complete assignments, lectures, and tests. In standards-based projects, studetns delve deeply into the content and apply their learning to real-world experiences. Teachers organize their instruction around questions that connect student interests to curriculum standards.

Identify the state standards that lend themselves to a project approach. Alabama teachers are fortunate to have the //**Alabama Learning Exchange**// //**(ALEX)**// online resource to assist them in finding lessons and Internet content that correlates to their state standards.
 * Identify Your State Standards**

Step 1: Navigate to [|http://www.alex.state.al.us] and click on "Courses of Study"

Step 2: Identify standards that have a real-world base and deal with complex issues. These topics make the best projects. Example: "Why does ice melt?" would not make as good a project as "Why are the polar icecaps melting?"

Step 3: Copy and paste any standard(s) you wish to explore into the unit plan template you saved in Module 1. Focus on content standards for now. We can add technology and other subject area standards later. Optional: You may wish to explore some of the ALEX, Thinkfinity, and NASA lesson plans that are linked to the standards within the ALEX Web site. These are great resources for finding Internet content and ideas for your project.

Step 4: From the standards you choose, write observable, verifiable objectives that describe specifically what the students must know and be able to do by the end of the unit. Record these in the appropriate section of your unit plan template.

Activity 2: Developing Curriculum-Framing Questions to Engage Students
Asking intriguing Curriculum-Framing questions is an effective way to encourage students to think deeply and to provide them with a meaningful context for learning. When students encounter questions that they are truly interested in answering, they become engaged in learning. When questions help students see connections between subject matter and their own lives, learning becomes meaningful. You can help your students become more motivated and self-directed by asking the right questions. But what are the right questions? Step 1: View the presentation on Curriculum-Framing Questions This file can be accessed on the Resource CD-ROM -- Curriculum-Framing Questions folder.

Step 2: View sample CFQs

Step 3: Writing good Curriculum-Framing Questions takes time and practice. Some teachers find the process easier if they start with the big idea (Essential Question) and work their way down to more topic-specific ideas (Unit Questions) and finally, the facts (Content Questions). Other teachers say that the opposite approach works better for them. Whichever approach you choose, here are some tips to remember:

-**Why is this important?** //Choose a topic and Essential question that will captivate student interest.// -**What do you want your students to remember for a long time?** //Five years from now, what question will still be important?// -**Make the question relevant (personal) to the students. Give them an authentic (real-world) role.** //Example: crime scene investigators.// -**Brainstorm your questions first, you will have plenty of time to revise.** //Trying to develop the perfect question can be very frustrating!//

Step 4: Create your first draft of Curriculum-Framing Questions. You may record them on Module 2.09 or directly to your unit plan template. Make sure your Essential question is very broad in nature, encompassing several units or even subject areas. Your Unit questions should all answer some aspect of the Essential question but be more specific in nature. Both Essential and Unit questions should be open-ended and require higher-order thinking to answer.

Activity 3: Considering Multiple Methods of Assessment
Assessment isn't always about generating a grade. Shocking, I know! Good projects are designed with assessment in mind from the beginning. In fact, the assessment pieces will aid the student in the creation of the products and determine what is important from what is of lesser importance. To "design with the end in mind" can be accredited to Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe and ultimately to Stephen Covey. This is not a new idea but we seldom see it in practice in America's classrooms. Assessment needs to be both formative and summative. It needs to be on-going and varied.

Step 1: Navigate to http://www.intel.com/education/assessingprojects Step 2: Click "Enter" then "Assessment Strategies" Step 3: Explore the "Gauging Student Needs" resources. Click on the links to sample assessments. Download any that you might wish to incorporate into your unit. Repeat with the other four sections. Step 4: Using ideas you collected from Step 3, create an Assessment Timeline by adding assessment pieces to Module 2.17 or typing directly into your unit template.
 * Exploring Assessment Strategies**

Activity 4: Creating an Assessment to Gauge Student Needs
During this activity you will create a presentation to assess your studetns' prior knowledge about some content in your unit. You may also want to introduce your unit's Curriculum-Framing questions to get a reading on your students' current thinking. This information will assist you as you further develop your unit.

Video
Don't think this is important? Check out this [|video from the George Lucus Foundation].

Step 1: Navigate to http://www.intel.com/education/designprojects Click "ENTER" Step 2: Click on Instructional Strategies and then "Prior Knowledge" Step 3: Review the information and sample presentations.
 * Viewing Sample Assessment Presentations**

Step 1: Open Microsoft PowerPoint Step 2: __Create an assessment to gauge students' needs__ similar to the samples you viewed in the previous activity.
 * Creating Your Assessment**

Activity 5: Reflecting on My Learning
Step 1: Add your Essential and Unit Question(s) to your blog. Make sure to include the topic of your project. Using the //Curriculum-Framing Questions Rubic// as a guide, comment on at least 2 other classmates' questions. Where appropriate, please use the 3-2-1 method. Ask three questions--State two things you like--Offer one suggestion for improvement Step 2: Create another posting labeled, "Gaugiing Students' Prior Knowledge" and upload your assessment presentation from Activity 4 as an attachment. View and comment on at least two other classmates' assessment presentations. Don't be afraid to offer genuine, positive criticism.

Summary of Tasks for Module 2
⁹ Copy and Paste State standards from ALEX to your unit plan template. Write student objectives and add to unit plan. ⁹ Write first draft of Curriculum-Framing Questions and post to blog. Comment on classmates' blogs. ⁹ Create an assessment presentation to gauge students' prior needs and post to your blog. Comment on classmates' blogs.