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Contact:  csloan@wyckoffschools.org

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Web 2.0 Tools Unit

Catherine Sloan – Science Lesson Plan Ideas for Sixth Grade Science

Amazing Animals

The goal of this lesson: to produce a slide show using the Voice Thread website on an animal of their choice. They will present their animal and their research using the tools available through Voice Threads (video, image, voice downloading, doodling)

In sixth grade science, students study animals and how they relate to their environments. In this lesson, students will take a tour of the San Diego Zoo and listen to podcasts by zoo keepers of the different animals living in the zoo. The website http://www.sandiegozoo.org/podcast/index.html

Students will be divided into teams of two to three and will select an animal to research from a list.

Then it will be time to write down questions they want to know about a particular animal; is it on the endangered list; where is its natural habitat; what are its feeding habits. Students will write down questions they want answered and also questions their peers may ask after the presentation.

Once the questions are formed, the students will access the San Diego Zoo website and their podcasts. They will use the podcasts to learn about their animals from experts. They can also use the website to find out other information on their animals.

Once the research is done, the students will begin to map out a storyboard consisting of 8-10 slides which answer their questions.

If you do not know what a storyboard is, go to http://www.e-learningguru.com/articles/art2_5.htm for an explanation of the process.

Then go to http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/lessons/storyboarding/orga.html

and you will find a template for creating your storyboard. Using the storyboard according to Channel 13 Online will afford the students ways to:

Remember: the storyboard is a script of a screen-by-screen description of what students will see, hear, and do when running the program.

Finally, when the storyboard is completed and approved, your team will decide what images to use in the final production. You will be using a site called ed.voice thread which is a secure collaborative network designed for K-12 schools. Only students can use this site and with it they can create a program using any type of media – voice, movies, images including images from the web, text, webcam and doodling (drawing.)

After your storyboard is completed, you will work with Voicethreads

http://ed.voicethread.com/#q to create your presentation. There are examples of many types of student work on the website. Try to use a variety of types of media as outlined in Voicethreads. Use the audio, the text, the doodling, video and images. Images may be copies from the web.

Your final product of "Amazing Animals" will be presented to the class.

Assessment will be as follows:

25 pts Depth of Research

15 pts Creating the storyboard

50 pts Use of elements in “Voicethreads” website

10 pts Collaboration with partner

Finally, let’s evaluate our experiences. Go to http://my-ecoach.com/online/webresourcelist.php?rlid=4992 and log on to our blog called “Amazing Animals” and tell us what you thought of the project; what you learned; what you would do differently. It doesn’t have to be long and you may enter it with your partner.

A WebQuest for 6th Grade – Language Arts

Designed by Catherine Sloan

csloan@wyckoffschools.org

Introduction |  Task |  Process |  Evaluation|  Conclusion |  Credits | 

Introduction 

Have you ever read the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz and wondered how he came up with the idea for Alex Rider? What about the Clique series written by Lisi Harrison – did you think she may have experienced similar things in school to inspire her to write her stories?

Louis Sachar wrote a book with an amusing title – There’s a Boy in the Girl’s Bathroom. Did he write the title after he wrote the book to catch your imagination or did the title come first?

Margaret Peterson Haddix has had great success with the Shadow Children series beginning with her first book – Among the Hidden. Was she influenced by other societies where the number of children per family is controlled by the state as in the People’s Republic of China?

We all have read wonderful books which have moved us into the realm of young adult literature. I’m sure as you have read these books, you have had many questions as to why the author followed a certain plot line or introduced specific characters. Now is your chance to think of your favorite young adult books and find answers to your questions.

Task 

Your group has been given $5,000 from the Parent­Teacher Organization for the purpose of 

bringing an author to the school for the day. Because the day of the author’s visit has been set,  you must submit a list of four authors, ranking them in the order of your

team’s preferences.  Author one would be your first choice and author four would be your

last choice.  The authors must be a living young adult writer. Since you have $5,000 to

work with, travel expenses and the author’s fee or honorarium would be covered. The list will then be presented and defended to the class who will be acting for the PTO.  Your

presentation will take the form of a PowerPoint show in which the class, acting for the PTO, will not only hear your reasons and criteria for ranking these authors but see a visual representation of your rankings.   After all presentations are made, the class will vote on one author to invite to the school.

Process 

1. The class will be divided into groups of four.  Each team member will have a specific 

responsibility.  

2. The Editor will assemble the group and will discuss authors the team members would like to propose for the project. Then the group will brainstorm and come up with criteria upon which they will base their rankings. What does the school require in an author visit and will a particular author deliver on the criteria listed. Ideas to consider but not limited to in compiling your rankings are:

This is a beginning list of questions you can research about each author but brainstorm and come up with other requirements you are looking for. Remember, you are deciding on a author for the entire school – not just for yourself.

3. Once the your criteria has been established, then the researcher will assign each member of the team a specific list of questions which need to be answered before a decision can be made. Each member will take on one author from the author list first established.

Resources which can be used in exploring authors can be any of the following:

Websites

http://www.ipl.org/div/askauthor/

http://www.bookspot.com/youngadultfeature.htm

http://teenreads.com/authors/index.asp

http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/biochildhome.htm

http://contemporarylit.about.com/

http://www.bettendorflibrary.com/teen/authors.htm

http://streetcat.bnkst.edu/html/childauthor.html

http://www.yabookscentral.com/

Books

(found in the media center)

100 More Popular Young Adult Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies

By Bernard A. Drew

Published by Libraries Unlimited, 2002

The Junior Book of Authors

by Stanley Jasspon Kunitz (Editor) multi volumes

Make notes that are sufficiently detailed that you can

explain your findings to your group and how will the research on the author fitss the criteria your group has set. Be sure to copy down websites which can be used in the Power Point presentation.

The editor will convene a meeting of the group once the research on each author has been completed. The students will present their findings and after a discussion, a vote will be taken in order to put the authors in the ranking. More than one vote may have to be taken. The marketing director will then use her/his skills to direct the group into looking at authors and which authors will be well received by the PTO.

After the four authors have been ranked, the graphic designer will begin to design a short Power Point presentation on their findings. All group members will contribute to this presentation based on their research.

When the Power Point show is complete, all group members will take part in the presentation. The editor will coordinate the roles of each member during the presentation.

Evaluation (score by points)

Conclusion

Now that you have researched young adult authors, ranked them and presented your findings in a Power Point presentation, will you now look at authors differently than you did before this project? Why did some authors stand out over others? Did their writing influence the way you ranked the authors or were there other factors involved. When the class voted for one author, do you think the right decision was made? How might you have changed something in your presentation to change the outcome of the vote? Writing is a serious and rewarding profession. Has this project influenced you in any way to consider writing as a career? Jot down a few thoughts on this webquest and what you thought you took from it.

Credits

WebQuest Design Patterns by Bernie Dodge, San Diego State University

at http://webquest.sdsu.edu/designpatterns/all.htm

Ms. Sloan's Webquest

last updated August 9, 2007