Global Classroom Module: My Hero Project

Rachel Turner
Dr. Tamara Blesh
EDTC 645
Summer 2015

Introduction

Global Classroom Module: Pre-Planning Proposal (Previously Submitted)

Summary:
This unit is about students researching, creating, presenting, and acknowledging
influential people and heroes from all walks of life. During marking period 4 language
arts, students complete a literary non-fiction biography unit. The My Hero project is
going to be used and adapted during this literature unit. The unit will begin with
students determining what makes someone influential and a hero in your own eyes.
From that, students will each choose someone who is a hero to them. This person can
come from anywhere in the world, may be famous, a community member, someone
from the childs home country, and even a family member. Next, students will research
this person, and interview (if possible) to learn more about this persons life and
importance. Once sufficient research has been conducted, students have a choice of
how to present their hero and what makes them a hero. Students can create a video,
audio, artwork, written, or acted out performance. At the end of the unit, we will connect
with another classroom completing the My Hero project via Skype / Google Hangouts.
Students will be able to hear about influential people from all over the world from all
types of backgrounds. During the presentations, students will each have a hero
passport in which they will record down facts and information about each hero, as well
as mark this persons home country on the map. When presentations conclude, each

child will have a completed hero passport full of influential people who reside all over
the world.
Background concerning the school and the group you are working with:

School: Rolling Terrace Elementary School

Type: Title 1 & Spanish Immersion School

Grade: 4

This year roughly 57% of my students were ESOL students. Of these students 5
students were new to the country at some point during the school year.

Time frame:
During marking period 4. Weeks 3-7.
Subject and grade level:
Language Arts and Social Studies
Grade 4
Proposed Topic and Rationale:
Topic: My Hero
Rationale: Heroes and people to look up are found in every culture. There is always
someone who others admire for their looks, athletic ability, intelligence, kindness, and
so much more. Having a hero is a global concept and something that everyone,
regardless of race, age, wealth, and language can have in common. The My Hero
project allows for my students to explore, research, and present their own hero. This
project enables my students to learn about a hero from their own culture, someone who
has accomplished great things and can show children that they can too. Through this
project, my class will connect with another class around in a different country in order to

share and present our heroes. This will be an eye-opening experience as we hear both
similar and different heroes. It will be important for my students to realize that
commonalties that we share with other countries, as well as appreciate the differences.
Overall, this project will provide a global perspective on a touching common topic:
having a hero.
Global Network You Plan to Use:
My Hero
Key Challenges:
The key challenge for this unit will be finding a classroom to collaborate with for this
project. Since I want to find a country on a different continent, it also will pose a
communication issue with different time-zones. However, I am hopeful through the use
of Skype Educator Search, and the My Hero site, I will find other educators who are
interested in sharing their students heroes.
Prior Knowledge:
The prior knowledge required for this assignment will be based off of research skills and
the concept of a hero. Since many of my students are English language learners or are
new to the country, some introductory lessons will be essential. With my group of
students, I never assume that they have all the needed background knowledge, since
their life experiences simply have not always provided that. I will begin this unit with a
few intro lessons in which we discuss what is a hero, what makes someone a hero, why
do people like to have a hero. From there, we will review the process of completing
research via primary and secondary sources.

Standards and Key Concepts

Content Standards:
Maryland State Standards, Grade 4:
Reading Informational Text:

Compare and contrast a firsthand and secondhand account of the same event or
topic; describe the differences in focus and the information provided.

Writing:

With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the
Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with
others.

Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation of

different aspects of a topic.

Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from

print and digital sources; take notes and categorize information, and provide a list
of sources

National Education Technology Standard for Students NETS (S):

NETS (S) Standards:
2. Communication and collaboration: Students use digital media and environments to
communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual
learning and contribute to the learning of others.
c. Develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of
other cultures

5. Digital citizenship: Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related
to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior.
Global Theme:
The global theme for the My Hero project can be connected to the American Forum for
Global Education category of Human Commonality and Diversity. As stated above,
during this unit students will identify, research, and present a hero of their choosing from
anywhere in the world. These heroes will then be presented and shared with another
classroom from around the world. The intent of this project is for students to make the
connections of common themes of what makes a hero regardless of location. Students
will also find common heroes between themselves and the other collaborating
classroom. Along with finding commonalities, we will appreciate and learn about
different heroes and different heroic qualities from the collaborating classroom. In all
this project is about promoting diversity, accepting and appreciating differences, while
acknowledging commonalities.
Pre-Lesson Steps:
Collaboration for this project will include:

1.

Through Skype and the My Hero site, find another classroom teacher to collaborate

2.
3.
4.

with.
Using my own professional networks to find a cooperative teacher.
If necessary, using other educational networks to find peers.
Once a peer teacher is located, collaborate with this teacher to plan out the logistics of
the project. Timeline, materials, technology needs, and other organizational steps will
be discussed and planned out prior to implementing the project with our classes.
Technology Use:

Classroom teachers and students will use a variety of technology tools in order to
complete the My Hero project:

Skype/Google Hangouts for classroom collaboration

Online database searches for research
Google Docs/Google Slides for presentations and Summative Assessment
Animoto/Powtoons for video presentation
Online audio recorders/Screencasts for presentations
KidPix for visual presentations
Essential Question (s):
What makes someone a hero to you?
How can we find out more about the life and accomplishments of a hero?
What common qualities of what makes a hero were found between our classroom and
the international classroom?
What different qualities of what makes a hero were found between our classroom and
the international classroom?
Starting Activity For Module:
Prior to starting this activity with the class, each classroom teacher will create a
short video describing themselves as a teacher, and the area and country in which they
teach. This short video will serve as an engaging hook to introduce the two classrooms
to each other, to get an idea of who the teachers are, and what each classroom and
country is like.
As a warm-up for this unit, I will begin by presenting the My Hero video to the
class. This video will serve as a activator the assignment of researching and discussing
heroes. Then, when introducing the project to the class, I will use the international
teacher video as my hook. This will instantly engage students as they watch and hear
about the classroom we will be collaborating with.
Summary of Two Lesson Plans:

The two lesson plans will be at two different stages of the project. The first
lesson will be during the beginning phase of the project in which students are learning
what a hero is, what makes a hero, and beginning to choose their hero and start the
research process. This lesson is setting students up for the entire project. The second
lesson will be in collaboration with the international classroom, in which students are
presenting their My Hero projects. During this lesson, students will be able to hear about
influential people from all over the world from all types of backgrounds. During the
presentations, students will each have a hero passport in which they will record down
facts and information about each hero, as well as mark this persons home country on
the map. To conclude this lesson, with the international classroom, we will discuss the
commonalities and differences of what makes someone a hero to us.
Summative Assessment:
The final assessment will be two parts. The first part of the assessment is the
presentation that each child creates on his/her own hero. This presentation can be
video, audio, artwork, written, or an acted out performance. The second part of the
assessment will be a Google Slide Presentation, in which each child is assigned one
slide of the presentation. On this slide, the students will compare what makes a hero
between our classroom and the international classroom.
Differentiated Instruction:
Changes/Revisions to the GCM Proposal:
Lesson Plan Template # 1
Lesson Title:

Grade Level/Subject Area:

Concept/Topic:

Length of Lesson:

Standards Addressed: (Local

or National Standards)

Lesson Goals:

Performance Objectives:

Introduction:

Step-By-Step Procedures:

Technology Requirements:
Resources:
Related URLs:
Assessment Based on
Objectives:

Follow-Up:
Classroom Management:

Accommodations:
(Special needs / gifted &
talented)

Comments / Notes:

Lesson Plan Template # 2

Lesson Title:
Grade Level/Subject Area:
Concept/Topic:

Length of Lesson:

Standards Addressed: (Local

or National Standards)

Lesson Goals:

Performance Objectives:

Introduction:

Step-By-Step Procedures:

Technology Requirements:
Resources:
Related URLs:
Assessment Based on
Objectives:

Follow-Up:
Classroom Management:

Accommodations:
(Special needs / gifted &
talented)

Comments / Notes:

References:
International Society for Technology in Education. (2007). National educational technology
standards for students.Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_StandardsS_PDF.pdf

Maryland State Curriculum. (2014). Reading informational text grade 4. Retrieved from
http://mdk12.org/share/frameworks/CCSC_Reading_Informational_Text_gr3-5.pdf
Maryland State Curriculum. (2014). Writing standards grade 4. Retrieved from
http://mdk12.org/share/frameworks/CCSC_Writing_gr3-5.pdf