IntLP

Intermediate Lesson Plans

Animal Report by Judy Weiford

Interviewing Famous Explorers by Ron Weiford

Biographies of Famous Iowans of the Past by Connie Sharff

Explore Yellowstone by Terry Rex

Dream with Martin Luther King, Jr by Pat Arthaud

Biographies of Famous Iowans of the Past

Connie Sharff

5th grade teacher

Wings Park Elementary School

Objective:

Students will research and create and edit a three paragraph report on a famous Iowan who lived near the beginning of the 20th century. Students will use the internet to locate information using addresses given and/or internet searches. Students will use the word processor using font, size, style, and spell check. This report will go into their time capsule project.

Task Definition:

What famous Iowan that lived near the beginning of the 20th century should I choose to research? (See attached handout for a partial listing of names and web site addresses.)
What information do I need to know?:
Describe the person's childhood (where and when born, early life growing up).
Describe the person's adulthood (places he/she lived, education, hardships, special things he/she did, death).
What were this person's major accomplishments/achievements? (What is this person famous for doing?)
What key words will help me find information about this person?

Information Seeking Strategies:

Use the internet. Some possible addresses are included on the handout.
Use electronic encyclopedias.
Use other reference materials.

Location and Access:

Search the internet. (Use the person's full name and/or other key words.)
Use the internet addresses provided on the handout.

Use of Information

Take written notes on information found.
Type text and save on ClarisWorks. Report should include 3 paragraphs including information on the childhood, adulthood, and major accomplishments of the person.

Synthesis

Site your sources of information. Must have at least two.
Save information to disk.
Print your report including bibliography.
Place in time capsule.

Evaluation

Self evaluation - reflection sheet.
In a paragraph, describe how well you did on this project. Include how well you located your information, what you learned by doing this project, what was the best part, and what you would change if you had to do it again.
Scoring rubric.

Evaluation Rubric

A - Superior in all areas

Well written including proper grammar, punctuation, capitalization, paragraphing and spelling.
Bibliography siting at least two sources of information.
Content covers all three aspects of person's life.
Title and name typed at top of paper.
Able to locate web sites on the internet without assistance.

B - Good in the areas listed for an A but limited in one area.

C - Fair, meeting most requirements but limited in two to three areas.

D - Below Average - Deficient in more than three areas. Quality is not evident.

Famous Iowans

The following is a list of possible Iowans to choose from:

Bess Streeter Aldrich

Black Hawk

Amelia Bloomer

Johnny Carson

George Washington Carver

Carrie Land Chapman Catt

"Buffalo Bill" Cody

Mamie Doud Eisenhower

Jessie Field Shambaugh

The Complete Guide to Iowa Websites

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL FORMAT - Modern Language Association (MLA)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

BOOK

Wheeler, Keith. The Fall of Japan .

Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1983.

CD-ROM -

"Surface Tension." Encarta '97. CD-ROM.

Seattle: Microsoft Corporation, 1996.

E-MAIL

Jones, Tom. "Opinion Regarding Nuclear Fission."

[Online] Available email: jonest@nasa.gov.

Houston, Texas. September 25, 1996.

ENCYCLOPEDIA

"Color." World Book Encyclopedia .

Chicago: World Book, Inc., 1994.

MAGAZINE ARTICLE

With Author

Compton, Karl T. "If The Atomic Bomb Had Not Been

The Atlantic Monthly. December, 1946. 56.

No Author

"At Home: America Toasts the Victory." Newsweek.

August 27, 1945. 30-31.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

With Author

Duke, Lynne. "An African Icon, Mandela's Other is Significant in Her Own Right."

Washington Post. March 1, 1997. A10.

No Author -

"Gore Meets with Tutu, Mandela." The Herald.

Salinas, California. February 17, 1997. A8.

PERSON/EXPERT

Dyson, Amy. Director of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution. Personal interview.

Washington, D.C. October 10, 1996.

TELEVISION SHOW

"Frederick Douglass." Civil War Journal .

Arts and Entertainment Network. April 6, 1993.

VIDEO/LASER DISK

Planet Earth . Videocassette. Intellimation, 1985.

WORLD WIDE WEB

Yang, May. "Describing the Effects of the Vietnam War." [Online] Available:

http://www.place/May.html. January 9, 1996.

Explore Yellowstone

by Terry Rex

4th grade teacher

Wings Park Elementary

Reading Standards:

Students will understand and be able to increase competence to apply the reading process to specific types of literary texts and informational texts.
Students will understand and be able to increase ability to read for information for academic purposes.

Reading Benchmarks:

Read social studies and science texts with understanding
Use headings, topic sentences , sequencing, and details to understand the main ideas

Reading Objectives:

The students will read about the great fire at Yellowstone National Park in 1988 and explore the vital role wildfires play in nature.
The students will research information about the history of Yellowstone National Park.
The students will locate and research the national parks that are in our area.

Technology Standards:

Students will increase their ability to use technology to access, retrieve, interpret, and evaluate visual and auditory information.
Students will use technology to support learning in all content areas.
Students will increase their ability to use technology to communicate effectively and creatively.
Students will use a wide range of computer and other technologies to communicate.
Students will use technology ethically.

Technology Benchmarks:

Use appropriate computer software as a resource for acquiring knowledge in any curriculum area
Use devices such as the overhead projector or video or digital cameras in making a presentation to communicate information to others
Use network technologies such as the internet and e-mail for educational purposes
Follow the copyright laws
Follow the guidelines in the district Acceptable Use Policy

Task Definition

The students will look at the vital roles wildfires play in nature and the different perspectives people might have about controlling or not controlling forest fires.
The students will research the history of Yellowstone National Park.
The students will locate and research Iowa's two areas run by the National Park Service: "Herbert Hoover National Historic Site" and "Effigy Mounds National Monument."

Information Students Need to Accomplish Task

What groups of people would be directly affected by a forest fire? (brainstorm)
What are Iowa's two areas run by the National Park Service?

Sources of Information

1. Internet Websites
2. CD-Roms
3. Video
4. Pamphlets and Brochures
5. Field Trip
6. Print Material
7. Guest Speakers (Park Ranger, Firefighter, etc.)

Location of Sources

1. Use the internet to call up websites that deal with National Parks

National Park Service Digital Map Directory

National Park Service: Visit Your National Parks

Yellowstone National Park

The Official Website of Yellowstone National Park -

Welcome to Yellowstone

Yellowstone's Fires and Their Legacy

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site

Herbert Hoover: Iowa Farm Boy & World Humanitarian

Effigy Mounds National Monument

Great Outdoor Recreation Pages

3. Use a video sent out from the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch (319) 643-5301.
4. Send for pamphlets and brochures from the National Parks
Yellowstone National Park

P.O. Box 168

WY 82190-0168

(307)344-7381

TDD (307)344-2386

Effigy Mounds National Monument

151 Highway 76

Harpers Ferry, Iowa 52146

(319) 873-3491

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site

P.O. Box 607

West Branch, IA 52358

(319)643-2541

For e:mail contact HEHO Interpretation
5. Take a field trip to the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch, Iowa.
6.Read the book "The Great Yellowstone Fire" by Carole Vogel & Kathryn Goldner. As a preview to the unit of study you may choose to read Jean Craighead George's "There's an Owl in the Shower" (an environmental story).
7. Invite a local park ranger and/or firefighter to come in to speak to the class about their career.

Use of Information

The students will listen to the teacher read aloud the story " The Great Yellowstone Fire" as they follow along with their own copy (if available).
The students will need access to the internet via computer to call up the web sites listed. They can take notes in a notebook. They will be expected to read, listen to, and view the information from the different sites.
The students will need to interact with the CD-Rom "Explore Yellowstone." They will need to read and listen to the information, and then make decisions based on the information. Notes can be taken right on the computer as they work through the program.
The students will need to view the video sent from West Branch to prepare themselves for what they will see on their field trip. On the field trip the students will need to read, listen to, and view the information presented. They will record their findings by way of video and digital cameras.
The students will need a basic understanding of how to navigate the internet, how to video tape, and how to take pictures with a digital camera.

Synthesis

1.The students will make a project promoting either the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site or Effigy Mounds National Monument. Projects can consist of:
a.) making a video

b.) designing a web page

c.) designing brochures or pamphlets

d.) making a slide show on the computer

e.) making a hyper studio program
2. The students will participate in the Yellowstone Website Scavenger Hunt
3. The students can test their knowledge of Yellowstone by going to the "Test Your Yellowstone Knowledge"
4. Conduct a role playing activity. The students are assigned a group to represent their feelings on whether forest fires should be controlled or not, and to what extent. The different groups that should be represented include: park rangers, fire fighters, tourists (campers & hikers), animal activists, loggers, neighboring townspeople. The groups should be allowed to meet first to formulate a group opinion, and then under the direction of the teacher can share those opinions with the other groups.
5. The students will write thank you letters to guest visitors. They will also write letters to organizations that send them information on their parks, and to people involved in field trips.

Evaluation

Product / performance:

1. Students will do a self-evaluation. (Questions will include: Did I meet the criteria? What part is the best? What part(s) needs improvement? How well received was my product?)
2. The teacher/media specialist will evaluate the product/performance using a rubric.
Process efficiency:
1. Students will do a self-evaluation. (Questions include: Did I easily navigate the web?
Did I use my time wisely? Did I take notes efficiently so that I could answer the questions easily?)

Dream with Martin Luther King, Jr.

by Pat Arthaud

4th grade teacher

Wings Park Elementary

Reading standards:

Students will understand and be able to increase skills and strategies for reading literature to become aware of similarities and differences between self and people.
Students will understand and be able to increase ability to read for information for academic purposes.

Reading Benchmarks:

Students will read to make inferences about characters and their actions.
Students will use headings, topic sentences, sequencing, and details to understand the main ideas.

Lesson Objective:

To learn how Martin Luther King, Jr. influenced American's treatment of African Americans and worked for equal rights for them.

Technology standard:

Students will increase their ability to use technology to communicate effectively and creatively.

Technology Benchmark:

Students will gather information from electronic databases and use that information to prepare a document .

Technology Objective:

To use the internet sites about Martin Luther King, Jr. to gather information showing how he worked for the betterment of African American people.
Collaboration with media specialist:
Classroom teacher will work with media specialist to research information on Martin Luther King, Jr. using electronic library, the internet, CD rom encyclopedia, and other print sources in the media center.
Classroom teacher will work with media specialist in video taping presentations of projects.

Task Definition:

To learn how African Americans were treated unfairly according to how the Constitution guaranteed their rights, and how Martin Luther King, Jr. worked for equality for all people.
Defining the task without actually telling students:
Teacher asks the question, "Have you ever had a dream?" Class with discuss dreams and how they may influence people's lives. Teacher asks the question, "Do you know a famous African American who had a dream that influenced America?"

Information needed to do the task:

a. Teamwork responsibilities and expectations
b. K-W-L model
c. Web sites about Martin Luther King, Jr.
d. Electronic encyclopedia sources
e. Sources of print about Martin Luther King, Jr.

Information Seeking Strategies:

Possible sources:(Student teams will brainstorm to get this list.)

a. Local African Americans
b. Web sites dealing with Martin Luther King, Jr.
c. Encyclopedia CD roms
d. Brochures from Martin Luther King, Jr. Center
e. Print sources
f. Vertical files
g. Professional materials

(Discussion considerations during brainstorming will include content reliability, bias, and currency of the sources.)

Location and Access of Sources:

Selected sources available in school media center:

a. Web sites dealing with Martin Luther King, Jr.
c. Print sources
- 1. Martin Luther King Jr by Nigel Hunter (B KIN - # 307616)
- 2. Martin Luther King Day by Linda Lowery (B KIN - #313203)
- 3. Young Martin Luther King, Jr. by Joanne Mattern (B KIN - #320905)
- 4. Martin Luther King, Jr. by Lillie Patterson (B KIN - #307728)
- 5. I Have a Dream by Editors of Time-Life Books (B KIN - #307480)

Instruction students need in accessing information within the source:

a. Using internet search engines
b. Keyword searching for web searches
c. On-line card catalog
d. Shelf arrangement of print sources in the media center

Use of Information:

Engage sources:

1. Student teams will read, listen to, or view the web sites, CD rom, and print sources.

2. Student teams will use the card catalog searching stations to locate the print sources.

3. Student teams will use the internet to access the web sites.

Taking out needing information:

1. Students will use note-taking in the outline form to record information needed to complete project for sharing. (Previously taught in language class.)

Synthesis:

Organization of the information from all sources:

1. Students will use the writing process (first draft, peer conference, revision, teacher conference, final draft) to organize the information.

Resulting product:

1. Student teams will create a written report which will be presented to the rest of the class.
2. Student teams will give credit to their sources at the end of their written report.
3. Student team presentations will be video-taped by the media specialist or classroom teacher and broadcast over the closed circuit TV.

Evaluation:

Product/performance:

1. Student teams will do a self-evaluation. (Questions include: Did I meet the criteria? What part was the best? What part needed improvement? How well received was the product?)
2. The teacher will use a teacher/media specialist created rubric to assess the product/performance.

Process efficiency:

1. Students will do a self-evaluation. (Questions include: Did I easily find the web sites? Did I use time wisely while searching the internet? Did I use the note-taking efficiently to create the best possible written product?)

Lessons based on the Big 6 Information Skills Model by Mike Eisenberg and Robert Berkowtiz.

Wings Park Home Page