Heroes+-+Stephanie+Schene

__ Introduction __ This project addresses two instructional units based on heroes. Second- and fifth-grade students will personally define the word “hero,” identify a living hero of their choice, interview the individual and create a product that introduces their hero. Both levels can also participate in a follow-up program with an adult family member that will both showcase the student work and provide a side-by-side experience where the student passes on technological skills to the adult.

__ Information Skill __ The primary information literacy standard targeted is #1, “Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge” (__Standards for the 21st-Century Learner__, American Association of School Librarians (AASL)). The specific skills are as follows:

· 1.1.2 – Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning. · 1.1.3 – Develop and refine a range of questions to frame the search for new understanding. · 1.1.4 – Find, evaluate, and select appropriate sources to answer questions. · 1.2.1 – Demonstrate creativity by using multiple resources and formats. · 3.1.4 – Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess. · 3.4.2 – Assess the quality and effectiveness of the learning product.

Students will use prior knowledge and experiences when they brainstorm, list and select a hero for their project. Second-grade students will develop interview questions together as a group; fifth-grade students will brainstorm questions as a group but select/develop questions individually. Students will brainstorm potential sources to interview and select one. Second grade students will present their information in Power Point format. Fifth grade students will have a choice of presenting their information in either Power Point or ComicView format. Student products will be shared with an adult family member at a school-wide technology night and students will help the adults create their own Power Point. Students at both grade levels will conduct a post-project self-evaluation.

__ Standards __ This project addresses the following Indiana Academic Standards for English/Language Arts for second grade:

· 2.2.8 – Follow two-step written instructions. · 2.3.6 – Recognize the difference between fantasy and reality. · 2.5.6 – Write for different purposes and to a specific audience or person. · 2.6.7 – Capitalize all proper nouns (words that name persons, places or things), words at the beginning of sentences and greetings, months and days of the week, and titles (Dr., Mr., Mrs., Miss) and initials of people. · 2.7.3 – Paraphrase (restate in own words) information that has been shared orally by others. · 2.7.7 - Tell experiences in a logical order (chronological order, order of importance, spatial order).

This project addresses the following Indiana academic standards for English/Language Arts for fifth grade:

· 5.4.11 – Use logical organizational structures for providing information in writing, such as chronological order, cause and effect, similarity and difference, and stating and supporting a hypothesis with data. · 5.5.6 – Write for different purposes (information, persuasion, description) and to a specific audience or person, adjusting tone and style as appropriate. · 5.6.6 – Use correct capitalization. · 5.7.1 – Ask questions that seek information not already discussed. · 5.7.2 - Interpret a speaker’s verbal and nonverbal messages, purposes and perspectives.

Students move from novice to expert through these projects by learning to first brainstorm ideas and limit them as a group, then in the later project to do this as an individual. Second-grade students will interview from a specific list of questions; fifth-grade students will create, select and limit interview questions on their own. In the second-grade project, students will use recently-learned Power Point skills to present their interview information. Fifth-grade students have a choice of presenting their information via Power Point (with an expectation that higher-level functions of the program will be used) or ComicView, a program taught in the fifth-grade computer curriculum. Students will demonstrate appropriate levels of mastery of capitalization in their products for their respective grade levels.

__ Audience __

The student population of this project consists of two classrooms – one of 24 second-grade students, one of 27 fifth-grade students. The school population is approximately 720, kindergarten through fifth grade. The school is located in a suburban area of a large metropolitan city of approximately one million people. The school has a poverty rate of 82%, and receives Title I funding, as does its district. The population is primarily white, with 32% Hispanic, 5% African-American and 1% other. The “other” represents students of Korean, Chinese, Zambian, Indian and Pacific-Island heritage.

__ Collaboration __ There will be three-way collaboration on this project, involving the classroom teachers, the media specialist and the computer skills teacher. Responsibilities are as follows:

· Classroom teachers – Will present hero unit instruction prior to the unit (second grade – community and national heroes; fifth grade – heroes in literature and media); will work with the media specialist and computer skills teacher to develop a timeline for all activities; will work with the media specialist and computer skills teacher to develop rubric-based assessments for the project; will keep students on target with assigned activities and monitor progress; will meet periodically with the media specialist and computer skills teacher to evaluate progress and make any necessary adjustments to expectations, activities or evaluative tools; will act as contact for any questions raised by parents/guardians regarding project expectations or activities; will participate in post-project evaluation with media specialist and computer skills teacher. · Media specialist – Will provide print and online resources related to heroes for use by the classroom teachers during unit instruction; will meet with classroom teachers and computer skills teacher as needed/requested for project support; will meet with students as scheduled to provide support in brainstorming, question development and limitation, information organization and presentation; will provide assistance during technology night with parent activity; will lead post-project evaluation activity with students; will lead post-project evaluation activity with classroom teachers and computer skills teacher. · Computer skills teacher – Will provide instruction in basic Power Point skills for second-grade students; will provide instruction in advanced Power Point skills for fifth-grade students; will introduce and provide instruction in ComicView skills for fifth-grade students; will provide ongoing support for students as they progress on their projects; will participate in post-project evaluation with media specialist and classroom teachers.

__ Overview – Second Grade __

Students will read a passage in their basal reading book about community helpers and heroes. The classroom teacher or media specialist will read one or more of the following picture books aloud to the class: __Max__, __The Firekeeper's Son__ and __Fritz and the Beautiful Horses__ (see __Sources and Materials__ section). This will be followed by a discussion of what qualities make a person a hero. Students will individually brainstorm and create a list of heroes in their lives. As a class, students will develop questions that could be asked of a hero to document their heroic qualities and any related story. Students will interview their selected hero and record required information on a pre-designed form. Students will use this information to construct a Power Point product that will tell why the person is a hero and document their story. Students will organize information into logical order and use correct capitalization in the finished product. During an evening technology program, students will demonstrate their Power Point to an adult family member, and assist that family member in constructing his or her own Power Point about a personal hero. Students will participate in both a discussion and a rubric-based self-evaluation of the project.

__ Overview – Fifth Grade __

Students will read __Great Heroes__, a graphic compilation including stories from King Arthur, Don Quixote, Arthur Conan Doyle; __The Drummer Boy of Vicksburg__; and the picture book __America’s White Table__ (see __Sources and Materials__ section). This will be followed by large- and small-group discussions of what qualities make a person a hero. Graphic organizers will be used to document heroic qualities. Students will brainstorm and individually create a list of personal heroes, then select one available locally to interview. As a class, students will review interviewing and questioning techniques. Students will develop a list of interview questions. Students will interview the selected individual in person, via email or other electronic means (e.g., Skype) and record information to answer their questions. Students will review advanced Power Point and ComicView skills previously taught in computer skills class. Students will choose either Power Point or ComicView and create a presentation of their hero and their heroic qualities. Students will organize information into logical order and use correct capitalization in the finished product. During an evening technology program, students will demonstrate their product to an adult family member, and assist that family member in constructing his or her own Power Point or ComicView presentation about a personal hero. Students will participate in both a discussion and a rubric-based self-evaluation of the project.

__ Teacher Materials – Second Grade __

Lesson Plan for Heroes Discussion and Brainstorming Activity:

Materials needed: SMART/white/chalk/flipchart board visible to all students; paper and pencil for each student

1. Remind students of basal story read on previous day, and ask for volunteers to restate the plot of the story. 2. Write the word “hero” on a board where all can see it. Circle the word to make the center of a graphic organizer web. Ask students what makes a person a hero, and add their info to the web as it is provided. 3. Ask students to close their eyes and think of at least one person they know who they consider a hero. Be sure to give students enough time to really think this over. When time is up, ask students to write the person’s name or draw a quick picture of the person on a piece of paper. 4. Ask students to turn to their shoulder partners and share the name of their hero and the connection they have to them (family member, neighbor, etc.). They may also give a brief explanation of why the person is considered a hero. 5. Ask students to think and add to their list of heroes – they must have at least three. 6. As a class, brainstorm what questions students would like to ask their heroes. Record questions on the board, visible to students. Summarize questions into categories, if possible. Keep this list for use when completing the student Interview Guide for the next activity. 7. As an overnight home activity, ask students to think about the people on their heroes list, and choose one to interview for their project. Students should make a star on their list next to the person they choose. During the next day, they will begin working on a document to help them organize their information as the project progresses (see __Learner Materials__).

__ Teacher Materials – Fifth Grade __

Lesson Plan for Heroes Discussion and Brainstorming Activity:

Materials needed: SMART/white/chalk/flipchart board visible to all students; paper and pencil for each student; large postable sheets of paper (flipchart size)

1. Briefly recap materials read in the heroes unit – __Great Heroes__, __The Drummer Boy of Vicksburg__ and __America’s White Table__. 2. Ask students to take a few minutes and think about the heroic qualities shown in each piece of literature. 3. Ask students to create a graphic organizer on their own paper listing heroic qualities shown in the literature. They may choose their own style of organizer. 4. Students gather in their quads (groups of four students) and create a combined list of heroic qualities from their graphic organizers. Each quad records its list on a postable sheet of paper. 5. Quads orally share their lists with the rest of the class via a chosen speaker, and post their list where it can be seen by class members. 6. When all lists have been posted, ask students to note what qualities were shared by multiple lists, what qualities were infrequently listed, and infer why this occurred. Do heroic qualities change over time, and if so, why? Do heroes exist at all times in history? What about the present? 7. Ask students to take a few minutes and reflect on who they consider heroes in their own lives. Ask them to make a list of at least five living persons. 8. For the next day, ask students to review their list and select one person to interview for the project.

__ Learner Materials – Second Grade __

To keep information in one place and easily accessible, students will fill out a Project Planner. The person selected as their hero is listed at the top of the form by name, with space to explain the choice. There are three questions which will be copied by the student from a list provided by the teacher. This list will be distilled from the class-developed list. The box below each question provides space for written notes or drawings documenting answers given during the interview. This information will be then be organized by the student and used to create a Power Point presentation. There is additional space after the last question for student use, if desired or needed. A rubric is provided to evaluate the planning and interviewing portion of the project.



__ Learner Materials – Fifth Grade __ Students will use a graphic organizer shell to document characteristics of heroes in the literature read for this unit. They will identify one hero from each title and record heroic qualities for each hero. They will also use a rubric to evaluate their own contribution to the small group work.



__ Student Performance __

Students at both levels will be evaluated on their final product, either a Power Point or ComicView presentation. Students will be evaluated specifically on the following:

Second Grade (Power Point only): · Planning materials have been completed and submitted (Project Planner and Rubric for Planning and Interviewing) · Power Point presentation completed on time. · Power Point presentation contains all required items (introductory slide with name and picture of person interviewed; slide with explanation for choosing person interviewed; three slides containing information from interview questions; conclusion slide). · Power Point presentation information has been organized in a logical manner. · Capitalization has been used correctly throughout Power Point presentation.

Fifth Grade (Power Point or ComicView): · Planning materials have been completed and submitted (Graphic Organizer - Heroes and Self-Evaluation Rubric – Small Group Participation and Contribution). · Power Point or ComicView presentation completed on time. · Presentation contains all required items (introductory slide/frame with name and picture of person interviewed; slide/frame with explanation for choosing person interviewed; five slides/frames with information from interview questions; conclusion frame/slide and at least one advanced Power Point function evident in presentation). Advanced functions include (1) insertion of music or video files, or (2) auto-run and slide timing. · Presentation information has been organized in a logical manner. · Capitalization has bemused correctly throughout the presentation.

Checklists will be used to evaluate student presentations. Conferencing will be held with each student throughout the project to ensure students are progressing and that any additional support is supplied. A final conference will be held after the technology night, for student self-evaluation and communication of teacher evaluation. The classroom teacher may choose to evaluate the project on additional factors, depending on what other skills may be incorporated. The computer skills teacher may choose to evaluate the project as well, based upon the computer skills curriculum.



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__ Student Models or Products __

Below is a Power Point created for the second grade hero project. Double-click on the slide to play the presentation.

Below is a Power Point created for the fifth grade hero project. Double-click on the slide to play the presentation. One slide includes an embedded sound.



__ Feedback __

The success of this lesson will be determined in the following ways:

· Second-grade students will achieve a “happy face” in at least two of the three evaluated areas on the Rubric for Planning and Interviewing. · Second-grade students will successfully complete eight out of 10 items on the Checklist for Second Grade Power Point Presentation. · At least 75% of second-grade students will participate in the evening technology program with at least one adult family member. · Fifth-grade students will achieve at least seven of nine points on the Self-Evaluation Rubric – Small Group Participation and Contribution. · Fifth-grade students will successfully complete eight out of 10 items on the Checklist for Fifth Grade Power Point / ComicView Presentation. · At least 75% of fifth-grade students will participate in the evening technology program with at least one adult family member. · The media specialist, classroom teacher and computer skills teacher will meet after completion of the project to review student performance and evaluate the overall project.

Students at both grade levels will be evaluated on deliverables for their projects. Second grade students will be limited to a Power Point presentation with basic functions (text and display manipulation, object insertion, slide creation). Second grade will be learning introductory interviewing skills, beginning with topic identification and limitation. Fifth grade students are provided a higher scaffolding, with a choice between newly-taught advanced functions in Power Point (e.g., sound/video insertion, timing and slide advancement) or the recently introduced ComicView storyboard software. Fifth grade students are also expected to do more question development and brainstorming independently and in small groups, rather than in the more directed environment used in second grade. Fifth graders also have wider opportunities for data collection, as they are encouraged to use email, SKYPE and other means of communication with their selected hero, while second grade is restricted to local contact.

The final feedback step is the most important – the collaborative team must sit down after the project and review all aspects of it together. The goal is to determine if the project met expectations on all levels, including the community aspect of the technology night presentations, and if the project is worth repeating. Each member needs to examine the products and results from his or her own professional perspective and offer constructive observations. Ideally, the group will decide the project is a worthwhile one, and plan any tweaking or adapting to be incorporated into the next time it is used.

__ Lesson Comparison __ Although the general expectations for the lessons at both levels are the same (topic identification, interviewing skills, brainstorming, organization of data, creation of a published product, self-evaluation), the level of mastery differs.

· Second grade students have just been formally introduced to Power Point. Their skills are basic and many are new to the text and object concepts used. By the time a student reaches fifth grade, Power Point has been used for many projects. Computer skills class instruction has provided gradual introduction of advanced Power Point functions, one of which students are required to display if they choose Power Point as their presentation vehicle. This allows students to continue to learn and practice more complex functions, building their presentation and graphic display skills (AASL Standards/Skills 1.2.1 – Demonstrate creativity by using multiple resources and formats, and 3.1.4 – Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess.). In addition, capitalization is chosen as a language arts skill to focus on in the project. At the second grade level, capitalization has been previously introduced and practiced, so a moderate level of mastery is expected to be seen on the Power Point products. The issue, however, is that because students are creating non-standard products (not the usual composition or sentence), correct capitalization is often a struggle. In addition, the quirks of text software sometimes require students to recheck proper capitalization to ensure words have not been changed by software settings. At the fifth grade, however, mastery of the type of capitalization required by this project is expected, both grammatically and in terms of software use. There is no expectation of unusual or tricky items to capitalize, so students are expected to demonstrate mastery on their presentations (Indiana Academic Standards for English/Language Arts 2.6.7 – Capitalize all proper nouns (words that name persons, places or things), words at the beginning of sentences and greetings, months and days of the week, and titles (Dr., Mr., Mrs., Miss) and initials of people, and 5.6.6 – Use correct capitalization.).

· The interviewing process is one which teaches information inquiry skills in a number of ways. The preparation involves topic identification, brainstorming for sources, brainstorming and limiting of questions to be asked, the collection of information during the interview, and the distillation of the information for use in the project. Second graders are provided with a directed activity set, which steps them through identifying who they will interview and what they will ask. They do much of this as a class, allowing the teacher time to explain the concepts and activities as needed. The amount of data they collect is small, allowing the activity to address teaching the process. Fifth graders are expected to “bump it up” – more is expected of them on an individual basis rather than done as a class, and the expanded amount of product requires them to concentrate more on data collection. They are expected to have been through the process multiple times previously, and to be able to function more as individuals. The small group work provides an intermediate form of scaffolding which assists students who may need help at that level, as well as a springboard for students who have a hard time getting started with ideas. Activities in this part of the project address AASL skills 1.1.2 – Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning, 1.1.3 – Develop and refine a range of questions to frame the search for new understanding, 1.1.4 – Find, evaluate, and select appropriate sources to answer questions, 1.2.1 – Demonstrate creativity by using multiple resources and formats, and 3.1.4 – Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess. It also addresses the following Indiana Academic Standards for English/Language Arts: 2.2.8 – Follow two-step written instructions, 2.3.6 – Recognize the difference between fantasy and reality, 2.5.6 – Write for different purposes and to a specific audience or person, 2.7.3 – Paraphrase (restate in own words) information that has been shared orally by others, 5.5.6 – Write for different purposes (information, persuasion, description) and to a specific audience or person, adjusting tone and style as appropriate, 5.7.1 – Ask questions that seek information not already discussed, and 5.7.2 - Interpret a speaker’s verbal and nonverbal messages, purposes and perspectives.

__ Sources and Materials __

Print resources to support classroom units on heroes:
 * || Brett, Jan. //Fritz and the beautiful horses.// Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1981. Print. ||  ||
 * || Bull, Angela. //Robin Hood : the tale of the great outlaw hero.// New York: Dorling Kindersley, 2000. Print. ||  ||
 * || Graham, Bob. //Max.// Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press, 2000. Print. ||  ||
 * || Nichols, Catherine. //Record breakers : a chapter book.// New York: Children's Press, 2004. Print. ||  ||
 * || Park, Linda S. //The firekeeper's son.// New York: Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin, 2004. Print. ||  ||
 * || Raven, Margot T. //America's white table.// Chelsea, MI: Sleeping Bear Press/Thomson Gale, 2005. Print. ||  ||
 * || Reit, Seymour, Miguel d. Cervantes Saavedra, and Arthur C. Doyle. //Great heroes.// Milwaukee, WI: World Almanac, 2007. Print. ||  ||
 * || Thomson, Sarah L. //Astronauts and other space heroes.// New York, NY: Smithsonian, 2007. Print. ||  ||

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