Final ProjectJordan Kamer

I) Instructional Unit/Final Project Overview

Title of Unit: The American Revolution

Theme: The American Revolution Trading Card Game

Grade Level/Student Population Type: 6th Grade - General Education

Number of Sessions: 9

Overview of the Unit:

Students will be learning about the American Civil War. They will start off with an introduction and overview of the civil war. From there they will begin forming an outline for the unit project which is a trading card game. The card game will consist of 10 cards: 2 faction, 2 president, 2 general, 2 battle and 2 speech cards. The students will spend the first day researching these topics using textbooks in class. They will spend the next 2 days researching using the internet. They will spend the next day learning how to use photoshop to create their cards. The next 2 days will be spent creating the cards. The final 2 days will be spent presenting.

A) What is the theme of your project?

The American Civil War.

B) State the standards to which your theme is aligned (refer to actual sections of real documents)

Social Studies Standards: Standard 1 (History of the United States)

Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States.

The Arts: Standard 1: (Creating, Performing, and Participating in the Arts)

Students will actively engage in the processes that constitute creation and performance in the arts (dance, music, theatre, and visual arts) and participate in various roles in the arts.

C) Describe the “Learning Product” your students will create and through the creation of which they will learn the content and skills you’ve identified as a goal.

Students will create trading cards focused around the factions, presidents, generals, battles and speeches that occurred during the American Civil War. They will be using photoshop, or a similar piece of software to create their cards, so they will be able to print out extra copies of

their cards. When the assignment is over it is my intent that students print out a set of their cards and then I will photocopy sets for each of their classmates. Different students will choose different generals, battles and speeches to the best of their ability. So, eventually students will have a combined set of cards of around 100 unique cards detailing the Civil War to refer back to. The president and faction cards will be the same for everyone, but other than that students will have 6 mostly unique cards with some cross-overs. With a class of 25-35 students that is a potential for as many as 210 unique cards. Many will overlap, so 100 unique cards seems realistic and much more manageable.

D) What Social Studies content and/or skills will they learn from your project?

Students will research various battles, generals and leaders of the American Civil War and create cards based on these. They can make "president/general" cards for people and can make "battle" cards for battles. They can also make "speech" cards for important speeches of the time period, as well as "faction" cards for both the Union and Confederacy. They will learn how to research and gather important details about history.

E) What Arts content and/or skills will they learn from your project?

They will learn how to use photoshop to create unique images.

F) How might you determine if the students learn what you’ve intended them to?

It will be pretty clear based on their project what students have learned. Each student will have to submit 10 cards. Each card will be detailed and contain information about important battles, people and speeches made during the American Civil War. They will present their cards to the class and explain them as well. They will need to make:

- 2 Faction Cards- 2 President Cards- 2 Speeches Cards- 2 General Cards- 2 Battle Cards

II) Flow Chart

III) Mock Student Work Sample

IV) Defend your project as Project-Based Learning

1. Students identify what to learn, how to learn it, and how to demonstrate what they’ve learned (as far as is practical for age, grade level, and student population type) – Teacher sets general goals and parameters, etc.

My students will identify what they will be learning and determine how they will learn it. I set up the parameters of learning about the American Civil War and set the criteria of creating cards about 2 factions, 2 presidents, 2 generals, 2 battles and 2 speeches. The students will go about doing their own research to determine this information and to create the cards themselves. I am not giving them websites to find the information. I am giving them the criteria and unleashing them to go find the answers and create the project.

2. Students work independently and/or in small collaborative groups

Students will work independently when doing this project. They will each be responsible for the same criteria, but will all submit some degree of varying work.

3. Students learn facts and skills IN ORDER TO CREATE their project’s PRODUCT and or PERFORMANCE creates a need to know essential content and skills. Typical projects (and most instruction) begin by presenting students with knowledge and concepts and then, once learned, give them the opportunity to apply them. PBL begins with the vision of an end product or presentation which requires learning specific knowledge and concepts, thus creating a context and reason to learn and understand the information and concepts.

My first lesson will consist of me teaching students about the American Civil War. It will be a basic overview of the civil war, why it happened and who the major players were. This will get students interested and will give them a foundation for the project. It will also stimulate interest in the topic.

My second lesson will be teaching students how to use photo editing software such as photoshop. This will teach them the skills they need to create their project's product.

4. Students create a product or performance that is “Authentic”, that is, it serves a real purpose and is presented to a real audience

The project is authentic and serves a real purpose. The cards they make will be used as study cards to help them review for a test and to learn information about the American Civil War. They will also present their cards to their classmates and share and discuss them.

5. Students receive feedback:a) from their peers as they are working on their product and include the feedback as part of their revision process, andb) from their audience, which may help them evaluate the success and impact of their work

As students are working on their project in class they will have opportunities to share their work with classmates. This will give them an idea of where they need to go with their project. Whether

the information is visually appealing or important will be determined by their peers. This will help them edit their project to make it more successful. They will also receive feedback from their audience of peers when they present which will help them evaluate the success and impact of their work.

6. The product/performance is saved, archived, and “published” (or disseminated/distributed)

The product they create will be copied and distributed to all classmates so that the entire class can use the cards to study for an upcoming unit test.

7. The student product/performance has an expressive or artistic dimension to it.

The card game is innately expressive and artistic. It allows for artistic freedom in designing the cards any way the students sees fit.

8. Students make significant use of technology in doing their project

Students will be using a computer to research their information and will use a program such as photoshop to create their product.

9. The experience of working on the project includes a reflective, “Constructivist” dimension

Students will express what they learned through the project by filling out a questionnaire. This will show me that all students really learned from this project and that the project was effective.

10. requires inquiry to learn and/or create something new. Not all learning has to be based on inquiry, but some should. And this inquiry should lead students to construct something new – an idea, an interpretation, a new way of displaying what they have learned.

Students will be able to create something new based on their learning. They will take the research and images they find and use it to create an entirely new item in the form of a trading card. They can make each card unique and change features between them.

11. requires critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and various forms of communication. Students need to do much more than remember information—they need to use higher-order thinking skills. They also have to learn to work as a team and contribute to a group effort. They must listen to others and make their own ideas clear when speaking, be able to read a variety of material, write or otherwise express themselves in various modes, and make effective presentations. These skills, competencies and habits of mind are often known as "21st Century Skills". For more info: http://www.bie.org/about/21st_century_skills

Students will constantly be communicating to assist each other in learning how to use the required software, research and creation of their projects. Though it is an independent project I

will encourage students to consult and work with each other before asking me for help. In this way they will be able to learn from each other and create amazing projects. They will meet all the requirements of the 21st century skills by listening to others when they ask for help and when they get feedback, they will make their own ideas clear when speaking when they present to the class, they will read a variety of material when they do online research, they will express themselves in various modes by expressing themselves with technology, artistically through photoshop and will write the notes on the cards and they will make effective presentations at the end of class when they present their project.

12. is organized around an open-ended Driving Question or Challenge. These focus students’ work and deepen their learning by centering on significant issues, debates, questions and/or problems. The question or challenge is directly related to the product or performance.

The unit will be centered around a theme of the students picking how they want to shape their project. There will be only two main challenges which will be to research and create cards for: 2 factions, 2 presidents, 2 generals, 2 battles and 2 speeches and to stick to the American Civil War.

V) Unit (Final Project) Implementation Plan

Session 1:

a) My first lesson will consist of me teaching students about the American Civil War. It will be a basic overview of the civil war, why it happened and who the major players were. This will get students interested and will give them a foundation for the project. It will also stimulate interest in the topic.

b) Students will be listening to the lesson. I will give them a handout detailing the trading card project. I will give them the last 10 minutes of class to begin outlining their project.

c) I will be lecturing to my students about an overview and introduction of the American Civil War. I will hand out the project guidelines and answer any questions students may have.

d) Students will not be producing anything this session. They will be introduced to the project and have time to ask questions about it. d) It is a 42 minute session. The first 20 minutes will be an overview and introduction to the American Civil War. I will then hand out the project. The next 10 minutes will be reading the project out loud. The next 12 minutes will be answering questions about the project.

e) Students will be seated in groups of 4. The handout will be distributed by me to the students. There will be no work to put away on the first day.

f) I will not be assessing students this period since it is just an introduction to the unit.

Session 2:

Students will begin to produce an outline of their project that will include which leaders, battles, speeches, etc they will be choosing.

a) Students will begin by making an outline of their project. They will select which generals, battles and speeches they want to research. I will come around the room and approve their choices. They will then begin researching these choices using the textbook.

b) Students will begin by making an outline of their project. They will select which generals, battles and speeches they want to research. I will come around the room and approve their choices. They will then begin researching these choices using the textbook.

c) I will be answering any questions students may have about the project. I will go around the room approving outlines and choices students make about which people/battles/speeches they want to research.

d) Students will produce an outline of their project. They will begin to write down research about their chosen people/battles/speeches.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 10 minutes will be explaining that students will be spending the period creating an outline of their project. They will then begin research in the textbook. The next 5 minutes will be reserved for questions and answers. The remaining time will be spent creating an outline, having it approved by me and doing research.

e) Students will sit in groups of 4. They will have their textbooks stacked in the center of their desks and will use them during the lesson. They will put the textbooks back in the center of the desk at the end of class and will take their outlines and research home with them. They will bring them back in at the start of the next class.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students work productively the whole time and give each other feedback.

Session 3:

a) This will be the first session in the computer lab. Students will begin online research in the computer lab this period. b) Students will begin online research in the computer lab this period.

c) I will be walking around the room making sure students are working efficiently and doing proper research. I will assist students with any questions.

d) Students will produce their typed research this session.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 10 minutes will be spent explaining that we will be doing online research today and giving tips for using google to find appropriate sources. We will then spend the next 5 minutes distributing computers. The remainder of the time will be spent researching and putting away the laptops when they are done.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. There will be 2 computer monitors distributing the laptops to each row. The work will be saved to their assigned computer for the next use and they will be told to back up their work on a USB flash drive. They can log onto their computer and resume where they left off in the next session. Students can ask each other for help and me for help as well.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students work productively the whole time and research efficiently.

Session 4:

a) Students will continue researching and finish their research this period.

b) Students will continue researching and finish their research this period.

c) I will walk around the room assisting students.

d) Students will finish their research and have it typed up in note-form. They can fill in their outline when their research is done. d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that we will be continuing online research today and review tips for using google to find appropriate sources. We will then spend the next 5 minutes distributing computers. The remainder of the time will be spent researching and putting away the laptops when they are done.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. There will be 2 computer monitors distributing the laptops to each row. The work will be saved to their assigned computer for the next use and they will be told to back up their work on a USB flash drive. They can log onto their computer and resume where they left off in the next session. Students can ask each other for help and me for help as well.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students work productively the whole time and research efficiently.

Session 5:

a) I will teach students how to use the basics of photoshop in this session. They will have an opportunity to mimic what I do on the smart board themselves to learn how to create their cards.

b) They will have an opportunity to mimic what I do on the smart board themselves to learn how to create their cards.

c) I will teach students how to use the basics of photoshop in this session. I will answer students' questions about photoshop.

d) Students will produce sample trading cards. They will learn how to use photoshop to accomplish this.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that we will be learning how to use photoshop to produce trading cards. We will then spend the next 5 minutes distributing computers. The remainder of the time will be spent learning how to use photoshop and putting away the laptops when they are done.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. There will be 2 computer monitors distributing the laptops to each row. The work will be saved to their assigned computer for the next use and they will be told to back up their work on a USB flash drive. They can log onto their computer and resume where they left off in the next session. Students can ask each other for help and me for help as well.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students give feedback to each other. I will also assess how well students communicate with each other. I will see if students assist each other in learning the program.

Session 6:

a) Students will have the period to begin creating their trading cards.

b) Students will have the period to begin creating their trading cards using the skills they learnt the previous session.

c) I will be walking around the room answering questions and helping students use photoshop to create their cards.

d) The students will begin creating their trading cards during this session.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that we will be using photoshop to produce trading cards. We will then spend the next 5 minutes distributing computers. The remainder of the time will be spent using photoshop to create trading cards and putting away the laptops when they are done.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. There will be 2 computer monitors distributing the laptops to each row. The work will be saved to their assigned computer for the next use and they will be told to back up their work on a USB flash drive. They can log onto their computer and resume where they left off in the next session. Students can ask each other for help and me for help as well.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students give feedback to each other. I will also assess how well students communicate with each other.

Session 7:

a) Students will have the period to finish creating their trading cards.

b) Students will have the period to finish creating their trading cards using the skills they learnt the previous session.

c) I will be walking around the room answering questions and helping students use photoshop to create their cards.

d) The students will finish creating their trading cards during this session.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that they will be continuing to use photoshop to produce trading cards. We will then spend the next 5 minutes distributing computers. The remainder of the time will be spent using photoshop to create trading cards and putting away the laptops when they are done.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. There will be 2 computer monitors distributing the laptops to each row. The work will be saved to their assigned computer for the next use and they will be told to back up their work on a USB flash drive. They can log onto their computer and resume where they left off in the next session. Students can ask each other for help and me for help as well.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students give feedback to each other. I will also assess how well students communicate with each other.

Session 8:

a) Students will present their cards to each other this session. Each student will come to the front of the class and share their work with a brief explanation of the cards.

b) Students will present their cards to each other this session. Each student will come to the front of the class and share their work with a brief explanation of the cards. Students will give feedback to their peers.

c) I will be observing the students' presentations and critiquing them.

d) Students will share their work with their peers this session and give and receive feedback.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that they will be presenting their trading cards. The remainder of the time will be spent by students presenting and giving and receiving feedback on their work.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. They will be called up one at a time to share work and will give and receive feedback. Their work will be collected after they present.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students give feedback. I will also assess how well students who present do their presentation. This will consist of how they communicate the information and how they demonstrate the work that their project consists of.

Session 9:

a) Students will finish presenting their cards to each other this session. Each student will come to the front of the class and share their work with a brief explanation of the cards. I will also distribute copies of each student's cards to everyone in the class.

b) Students will finish presenting their cards to each other this session. Each student will come to the front of the class and share their work with a brief explanation of the cards. Students will give feedback to their peers.

c) I will be observing the students' presentations and critiquing them.

d) Students will share their work with their peers this session and give and receive feedback.

d) The session will be 42 minutes. The first 5 minutes will be spent explaining that they will be continuing to present their trading cards. The remainder of the time will be spent by students presenting and giving and receiving feedback on their work.

e) The students will be seated 4 to a table. They will be called up one at a time to share work and will give and receive feedback. Their work will be collected after they present.

f) I will assess students by seeing if students give feedback. I will also assess how well students who present do their presentation. This will consist of how they communicate the information and how they demonstrate the work that their project consists of.