Carla+Smith

Carla Smith's Unit Plan

Lesson Title: Collaborative Sharing Related Lessons: PBL introduction – Persuasive solutions and Digital Storytelling Unit: Persuasive writing for an authentic audience Grade Level: 7/8 Resource Language Arts

**Goals**: Content Standards (Ohio Department of Education, 2009)
 * Write a persuasive piece that states a clear position, includes relevant information and offers compelling evidence in the form of facts and details.
 * Clarify ideas for writing assignments by using graphics or other organizers.
 * Use revision strategies to improve the style, variety of sentence structure, clarity of the controlling idea, logic, effectiveness of word choice and transitions between paragraphs, passages or ideas.
 * Edit to improve sentence fluency, grammar and usage.
 * Apply tools to judge the quality of writing.
 * Prepare writing for publication that is legible, follows an appropriate format and uses techniques such as electronic resources and graphics.

ISTE NETS-S (2008)
 * Creativity and innovation
 * Communication and collaboration
 * Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Digital citizenship
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Technology operations and concepts

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Objectives: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Students will work collaboratively via their group wiki page and create, revise, and edit the page sharing the information they have located in their research. All communication will be conducted within the wiki and students will be expected to demonstrate appropriate digital citizenship. Students will “(a) collaboratively determine what they know and need to know, (b) individually research content and/or conduct scientific tests, (c) communicate the research results among themselves, (d) collectively determine a solution to their problem” (Hmelo-Silver as cited in Belland, Glazewski, & Ertmer, 2009).

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**Action**: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Before Class Preparation: Teacher will reserve computer lab time for working on the wiki. Students will have had a previous lesson on using wikis and the digital citizenship that coincides with this medium.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">During Class:
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(5-8 minutes) Students will be reminded of the previous lesson they had on using wikis and how they are beneficial to collaboration. They will also be reminded that all work is tracked and their participation will be graded based on their contributions.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(3-5 minutes) Students will review their assigned roles and the importance of each role. The roles will be: discussion leader (1-2 students), scribe, and task organizer (Belland, Glazewski, & Ertmer, 2009). Policies for reflection on a daily basis will also be discussed as this is an essential part of the learning process (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Reflection will take place on a daily basis in the form of journals where students will write: What worked today?, What didn’t work today?, What do I need to accomplish tomorrow?, and What concerns do I have?. **Can you elaborate a little on what each student will be doing within each role? If one student is the scribe, does that me that he/she is the only one writing on the wiki? Then I'm just not sure when students will be doing the reflecting in their journals? After they work on the wiki? -Sarah**
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(15-25 minutes) Students will begin working on their wiki by writing their problem statement and making any desired changes to the appearance of their wiki page. (Their time will be limited to complete this part of the task as they would spend an infinite amount of time palying with the appearance features if they were allowed.) **I know what you mean! Sometimes they would rather spend more time on how it looks than what content they've included!**
 * 4) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(120 minutes?-time will be adjusted depending on student needs and progress) Students will compile the information into specific pages as decided on by the group. Communication in real time can be conducted using the chat feature of our networked computers. Some suggested pages will include: Home page to explain the problem and hook the reader, Research page to show the reader why this is a problem, Solution page to show the reader your proposed solution and why it will work. Students will use the KWL chart they created at []. and the graphic organizer they created at []. to guide their creations. **Will you be assigning students to work on specific pages? Can only one student write on each page at a time? -Sarah**
 * 5) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Students will frequently check the wiki for persuasive technique, grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choice, etc. and edit and revise as needed.
 * 6) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(5-8 minutes at the end of each class period) Students will reflect on their progress by creating a journal on word processing software and saving it to their network drive. Students will write: What worked today?, What didn’t work today?, What do I need to accomplish tomorrow?, and What concerns do I have?. This reflection is an essential part of the learning process and allows the teacher to see any problems as they arise (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). **Ok, now I understand the journal part. How much writing do you think the kids should do to answer each part of your reflective prompt? -Sarah**

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**Monitor**: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Assessment: Daily journals will be used to determine formative learning progress. Teacher will reflect daily and record notes for next work session as well as needed changes or modification (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). Wiki will be evaluated dialy and commented on by teacher. Participation grades will be determined by contributions to wiki and active participation in discussions. **Will you be using a rubric? I sometimes have one student only contribute a few things, but they're great. Then I have other students who participate a lot, but there really isn't any quality behind it. -Sarah**

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Accommodations: All students in the class are on IEPs which will be followed to accommodate their learning. Other accommodations will be determined as needed.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**Evaluation**: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Student and teacher reflections will be compiled for reference (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). Changes will be enlisted as needed to accommodate the individual learning needs of the diverse population. Reflection journals will be saved to help in planning for the next lesson. Final products will become part of the student’s portfolio.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">References

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Belland, B., Glazewski, K., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Inclusion and problem-based learning: Roles of students in a mixed-ability group. Research in Middle Level Education Online, 32(9), 1-19. Retrieved from Education Research Complete database.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National educational technology standards and performance indicators for students. Retrieved from: []

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Spotlight on Technology: Problem-Based Learning, Part 1. Baltimore: Author.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ohio Department of Education (2009), Academic content standards, Columbus, OH: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Author. Retrieved from []

Lesson Title: PBL introduction – Persuasive solutions Related Lessons: Collaborative Sharing and Digital Storytelling Unit: Persuasive writing for an authentic audience Grade Level: 7/8 Resource Language Arts

**Goals:** Content Standards (Ohio Department of Education, 2009)
 * Write a persuasive piece that states a clear position, includes relevant information and offers compelling evidence in the form of facts and details.
 * Clarify ideas for writing assignments by using graphics or other organizers.
 * Use revision strategies to improve the style, variety of sentence structure, clarity of the controlling idea, logic, effectiveness of word choice and transitions between paragraphs, passages or ideas.
 * Edit to improve sentence fluency, grammar and usage.
 * Apply tools to judge the quality of writing.
 * Prepare writing for publication that is legible, follows an appropriate format and uses techniques such as electronic resources and graphics.

ISTE NETS-S (2008)
 * Creativity and innovation
 * Communication and collaboration
 * Research and information fluency
 * Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making

Objectives: Students will brainstorm problems that affect their lives or those of people in their community. They will then divide into groups to develop solutions for the stated problems. Students will “(a) collaboratively determine what they know and need to know, (b) individually research content and/or conduct scientific tests, (c) communicate the research results among themselves, (d) collectively determine a solution to their problem” (Hmelo-Silver as cited in Belland, Glazewski, & Ertmer, 2009).

**Action:** Before Class Preparation: Teacher will reserve computer lab time for research. Example problems will be prepared in case students need inspiration. The video “Kids Represent Their Work Through Tech” ([]) will be prepeared for the intoduction lesson.

During Class: <span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Carla's response to comments - Based on recommendations and comments I have decided to make the following changes: <span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Prior to class: students will be given the homework assignment to brainstorm ideas for change and to post ideas to the class blog. This will allow time for preparation of comments by teacher. The in class discussion will be just that, a discussion of the topics suggested. Students will be assigned roles based on their personal strengths and the group dynamics. Each role will be graded based on participation which will factor into the final grade for each individual on the project. The final choice for topics will be decided upon by the group as a whole with some persuasion by the teacher. My class is a resource class and the maximum number of students is 12 so the groups will certainly be as indicated.
 * 1) ====== (8-10 minutes) Students will be introduced to PBL through the video video “Kids Represent Their Work Through Tech” ([]) after which a discussion of PBL will answer any questions about the process. **//(I love that you show this video, great hook to start the lesson)--James//** ======
 * 2) (10-15 minutes) Students will begin discussion //**(Can this be down using a computer program or Wiki?) --James**//and brainstorming session to determine problems they are interested in solving. Some examples could be given if students are struggling to start: need for a new elementary building, need for recreation areas for student in the community, problems within the school, etc. Since students determine the problems for which they will be finding solutions, they will be relavant to their lives and they may even be directly affected by the potential outcomes. **I think it's fine if you just have the brianstorm together for 10-15 minutes if you're going to be doing it during the class period without using technology - sometimes it's just easier to talk with the kids. If you wanted to have them brainstorm before the class started, maybe you could assign this on a wiki the previous night. That way, they could look at the group's wiki and discuss it during class. Sarah**
 * 3) (5-8 minutes) Problem ideas will be narrowed down to the 3 most important issues as voted on by the class. Students will be assigned to participate in one of the 3 groups. Each group will have 3-4 members who will have assigned roles.
 * 4) (6-10 minutes) Students will be assigned roles and discuss the importnace of each role. The roles will be: discussion leader (1-2 students), scribe, and task organizer (Belland, Glazewski, & Ertmer, 2009). Policies for reflection on a daily basis will also be discussed as this is an essential part of the learning process (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). Reflection will take place on a daily basis in the form of exit cards where students will write: What worked today?, What didn’t work today?, What do I need to accomplish tomorrow?, and What concerns do I have?. **Do you know how you will decide which student gets which role? Will you be monitoring and grading each role differently? Sarah**
 * 5) (30-45 minutes) Students will begin the first task of researching their problem as a group on the computer. They will complete a KWL chart using the computer and this link []. When completed, the chart will be printed and may be added to later. **//(Great technology integration here!) --James//**
 * 6) (15-20 minutes) Students will develop a proposed solution to the problem and begin their persuasive argument by completing the graphic organizer **//(can they create their own organizer on Inspiration or something similar)--James//**located here []. Students will fill in all sections of the chart and later use it to develop their persuasive argument.
 * How much will you be a part of deciding the topics that will finally be chosen and researched? Are your classes really that small that you have three groups of three-four students?!? I'm jealous! Sarah**

**Monitor**: Assessment: Daily exit cards will be used to determine formative learning progress. Teacher will reflect daily and record notes for next work session as well as needed changes or modification (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). KWL chart and Persuasive Planner will be printed and assessed by groups.

Accommodations: All students in the class are on IEPs which will be followed to accommodate their learning. Other accommodations will be determined as needed. **Do you have any specific ideas about alternate activities? Do you already know the students you will be working with? Sarah**
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">﻿Sarah-I do not know the students yet so the alternate activities will depend directly on their individual needs. **

**Evaluation:** Student and teacher reflections will be compiled for reference (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). Recommendations for next lessons and units will be noted and applied. **How will students be reflecting? Will they complete a survey or write a reflection? Sarah**

References
 * Without actually having a specific problem in mind, this seems like a broad lesson. What will you do if a group cannot find any research materials on the internet? Do you have any ideas the students can fall back on if they need support? Do you think this might work better spread out over two days? I know for my students, they sometimes need a lot more time to think of a problem and then more time to research and think of solutions. Sarah**
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">﻿Sarah - Reflections will be completed daily with exit cards and will be saved for evaluation. I do have some specific problems to suggest to students should they have trouble brainstorming. If a group cannot find any research materials online which is quite possible due to the local direction of the problems we are looking at. I have in mind a plan for conducting interviews and researching locally with those involved in the problem. Much of the decisions will be made after studednts have decided on the problems. The lesson will certainly span more than one day. Our class periods are only 42 minutes long so several opportunities will be present for reflection and evaluation. I expect this to take my students almost a full week. **

Belland, B., Glazewski, K., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Inclusion and problem-based learning: Roles of students in a mixed-ability group. //Research in Middle Level Education Online//, //32//(9), 1-19. Retrieved from Education Research Complete database. Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National educational technology standards and performance indicators for students. Retrieved from: []

"Kids Represent Their Work Through Tech." 19 January 2004. Online video clip. // Edutopia //. Retrieved from [].

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Spotlight on Technology: Problem-Based Learning, Part 1. Baltimore: Author.

Ohio Department of Education (2009), //Academic content standards//, Columbus, OH: Author. Retrieved from []