SFS 21st Century Skills Lesson or Unit Plan

teacher: Jo Wilcox - Class lesson or unit title date goals and standards Challenge based learning - Informative/Persuasive writing 13th Feb-March 7th submission Core: express thoughts, feelings and opinions in order to interest, inform or convince the reader show some sense of audience demonstrate adequate control of vocabulary, syntax and grammar exercise care over punctuation and spelling write accurate simple sentences attempt a variety of sentence structures recognise the need for paragraphing use appropriate vocabulary. Extended: show a wider and more varied sense of different styles to interest, inform or convince the reader show a clear sense of audience demonstrate a sophisticated use of vocabulary and structures demonstrate accuracy in punctuation and spelling write accurate complex sentences employ varied sentence structures write in well-constructed paragraphs use imaginative and varied vocabulary.
21st Century Skills Creativity Collaboration Critical Thinking Communication Self-direction Media/Visual Literacy Global Awareness Cognitive ESLRs Students reason critically Students communicate effectively Students produce quality work Students collaborate effectively Students think creatively Affective ESLRs Effective interpersonal skills

21st century skill or ESLR focus

assessment technology tool

(if any)

Informative/persuasive writing (IGCSE Coursework standards) plus project. Google Search, google docs, google sites?, google hangouts? itunesU, Video diary? Haiku.

learning activities
(use Understanding by Design)

What are the desired results? To carry out process based problem solving research

How will you know they achieved them?

How will you get them there? Lesson 1: Information is beautiful What are facts? brainstorm. Where do we read facts? brainstorm agoogleaday challenge (3) - discuss skills used, teach google searches Find me an interesting fact that I dont already know. Research 3 minutes. Present information. Class vote on best. 15 minute scenario challenge (see Jeff Utecht) Intro Challenged based learning for next 6 lessons - see CBL Timeline below resources http://images.apple.com/education/docs/CBL_Classroom_Guide_Jan_2011.pdf http://rightquestion.org/education/ http://www.challengebasedlearning.org/pages/welcome http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/10/for-students-why-the-question-is-moreimportant-than-the-answer/
Questioning
Step 1: Question Focus. A prompt in the form of a statement it is not a teachers question. Step 2: Students Produce Questions. The four rules are: 1 ask as many questions as you can 2 do not stop to discuss, judge, or answer any of the questions 3 write down every question exactly as it was stated 4 change any statements into questions. Step 3: Students Improve Their Questions. The teacher introduces definitions of closed/open-ended questions. The students use the definitions to categorize the list of questions they have just produced into one of the two categories. Then, the teacher leads them through a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of both kinds of questions. To conclude this step, the teacher asks the students to change at least one open-ended question into a closed-ended one, and vice versa, which leads students to think about how the phrasing of a question can affect the depth, quality, and value of the information they will obtain. Step 4: Students Prioritize Their Questions. During this phase, students move from thinking divergently to thinking convergently, zero in on the locus of their inquiry, and plan concrete action steps for getting information they need to complete the task. Step 5: Students and Teachers Decide on Next Steps. At this stage, students and teachers work together to decide how to use the questions. adapted from Harvard Letter

CBL Timeline
Stage 1: From Big Idea to Challenge Understanding the Big Idea and Essential Question (google test) Health, education, relationships, environment, history, citizenship, sustainability, diversity, Create the Challenge Create Challenge Proposal Video for teacher approval Stage 2: Setting the Foundation Develop Guiding Questions, Activities, Resources Researching Answers to Guiding Questions Brainstorming Solutions

Stage Dates

February 19th
Read news headlines and identify big ideas in the news. Consider these big ideas in our own community. From big ideas create an essential question. From the essential question create a proposal video to have approved.

Feb 21st
Use questioning production skills outlined below move challenge from essential question to guiding questions and research activities.

Feb 27th
Complete research activities and brainstorm solutions

Stage 3: Identifying the Solution Initial Testing of Solution Prototypes Final Solution Presentation Stage 4: Publishing Results and Reflections Style models blog, magazine article, news report, speech, leaflet, report or any other informative piece of writing. Solution - informative/persuasive writing Reflection Videos Stage 5 (where appropriate): Implementation and Evaluation Implementation Plan Solution Implementation Data Analysis and Presentation

Mar 1st
Create / report solution in video Agree form and collect style models for informative writing or persuasive writing.

5th March Consider and annotate style models and techniques for informative / persuasive styles. 7th March In class draft (Completion, peer-editing and Redrafting as homeworks)

7th March onwards (Extra Credit)

Implement solution accordingly

Beginning Big Idea

Demonstrates significance.

Developing
Demonstrates global significance and includes local impact.

Exemplary
Demonstrates global and local significance. Is meaningful to the participants and their community. Identifies what is important to know about the big idea. Refines and contextualizes that idea. Clear, concise, and answerable question. A natural extension of the essential question. Phrased as a real-world challenge. Can lead to an implementable and measurable solution. Presented in a clear and compelling short video. Extensive set representing what is needed to learn to identify a solution to the challenge. A wide range of activities both inside and outside of the class that help to answer the guiding questions. Sets the foundation for an innovative, insightful, and realistic solution. Sources are reliable and accurate. Represent a wide variety of perspectives. Include interaction with local, national, and/or international experts. Solution shows evidence of careful research and deliberation. Can be implemented by the students in their community. Involves partnerships with groups outside of the school. Written task is clear and compelling. Writing is highly appropriate in convention choices for and style is consistent for style of chosen form. (blog, magazine article, news report, speech, leaflet, report or any other informative piece of writing) Follows a detailed implementation and evaluation plan. Solution is implemented with a specific audience for a specified amount of time and includes extensive data collection. Conclusions are drawn using the data generated from the implementation. Findings are presented in a clear and compelling manner in a written report and a short video. Clear and concise perspectives on what was learned about the topic, specific

Essential Question

Multiple questions.

Identifies what is important to know about the big idea. Refines and contextualizes that idea.

The Challenge

A natural extension of the essential question. Phrased as a real-world challenge.

A natural extension of the essential question. Phrased as a real-world challenge. Can lead to an implementable and measurable solution. Extensive set representing what is needed to learn in order to identify a solution to the challenge. A wide range of activities both inside and outside of class that help to answer the guiding questions. Sets the foundation for an innovative, insightful, and realistic solution. Sources are reliable and accurate. Represent a wide variety of perspectives.

Guiding Questions Guiding Activities

Narrow set of questions.

A range of activities primarily within the classroom.

Guiding Resources

Sources are reliable and accurate.

Solution

Solution shows evidence of careful research and deliberation.

Solution shows evidence of careful research and deliberation. Can be implemented by the students in their community.

Written Task*
*see specific IGCSE rubrics.

Written task is clear and an appropriate form has been chosen. (blog, magazine article, news report, speech, leaflet, report or any other informative piece of writing)

Written task is clear and compelling. Writing is purposeful in convention choices for style of chosen form. (blog, magazine article, news report, speech, leaflet, report or any other informative piece of writing)

Implementation
(if applicable)

Solution is implemented with a specific audience for a specified amount of time.

Follows a detailed implementation and evaluation plan. Solution is implemented with a specific audience for a specified amount of time with some data collection. Conclusions are drawn using the data generated from the implementation. Findings are presented in a clear and compelling manner in a written report.

Evaluation
(if applicable)

Conclusions are drawn using the data generated from the implementation.

Reflection

Clear and concise perspectives on what

Clear and concise perspectives on what was learned about the topic,

was learned about the topic, specific content, and process presented in classroom discussions.

specific content, and process presented in written journals.

content, and process presented in written and video journals.

[Modified from - Challenge Based Learning: A Classroom Guide]

IGCSE COURSEWORK Table A: Grade descriptions for Writing (Assignments 13)

Band 1 (3640): Confident and stylistic completion of challenging tasks throughout the Portfolio.
W1: Candidates describe and reflect effectively upon experience, give detail and analyse thoughtfully what is felt and imagined. Arguments are cogent and developed in mature, persuasive thought. W2/5 (paragraphing): Facts, ideas and opinions are ordered logically, each stage in the argument or narrative carefully linked to the next. Paragraphing is a strength, and candidates are confident in experimenting where appropriate in the structure of expressive writing. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates write with assurance, using a wide range of effective vocabulary and varied, well-constructed sentences. W4: Candidates vary their style with assurance to suit audience and context in all three assignments. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Candidates write accurately. They use punctuation and grammatical structures to define shades of meaning. They spell simple, complex and technical words with precision.

Band 2 (3135): Frequent merit and interest in the choice of content and the manner of writing.
W1: Candidates describe and reflect upon experience and analyse with occasional success what is felt and imagined. Some argument is well developed and interesting, although the explanation may not always be consistent. W2/5 (paragraphing): Facts, ideas and opinions are often well ordered so that the construction of the writing is clear to the reader. Sentences within paragraphs are mostly well sequenced, although some paragraphs may finish less effectively than they begin. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates write with some confidence, demonstrating an emergent range of varied vocabulary and some fluency in the construction of sentences. W4: Candidates give evidence of understanding the need to write appropriately to audience and context even if there is not complete consistency in the three assignments. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Candidates show some signs of understanding how punctuation and grammatical structures can be used to aid communication. Errors of spelling, punctuation and grammar are minor, and rare at the top of this band.

Band 3 (2630): Competent writing with some development of ideas.

W1: Candidates express clearly what is felt and imagined and supply some detail, explanation and exemplification for the benefit of the reader. Arguments are expressed in a competent series of relevant points and a clear attempt is made to develop some of them. W2/5 (paragraphing): A clear attempt is made to present facts, ideas and opinions in an orderly way, although there may be some insecurity in the overall structure. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates write competently, using appropriate if sometimes unadventurous vocabulary and writing sentences that mostly link ideas successfully. W4: Candidates make a clear attempt in at least one assignment to write with a sense of audience and there may also be some evidence of adapting style to context. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Candidates use punctuation and grammar competently although the range is not strong. There may be a number of minor errors especially at the bottom of this band and even occasional errors of sentence separation.

Band 4 (2125): Satisfactory content with brief development and acceptable expression.
W1: Candidates express with some clarity what is felt and imagined. Arguments are relevant to the topic and are developed partially with some brief effectiveness. W2/5 (paragraphing): There is evidence of overall structure, but the writing may be presented more carefully in some sections than in others. There may be examples of repetition and the sequence of sentences within paragraphs may be insecure in places. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates write with occasional competence, using a mixture of effective and straightforward vocabulary and some complex and some simple sentences. W4: Candidates show occasional evidence of writing with some understanding of audience and context, but this is not sustained. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): They use a limited range of punctuation and grammatical structure with some care, although occasionally grammatical error will cause the reader some difficulty. There may be quite numerous errors, particularly of sentence separation and the misuse of commas.

Band 5 (1620): Simple writing, the meaning of which is not in doubt.

W1: Candidates express intelligibly what is felt and imagined. Arguments are expressed with variable relevance, logic and development. W2/5 (paragraphing): Facts, ideas and opinions are presented in paragraphs which may be inconsistent. The overall structure is unsound in places. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates use simple straightforward vocabulary. Simple sentences are correctly used and there may be an attempt to write complex sentences which have a slight lack of clarity. W4: Candidates make slight variations of style according to audience and context, although this does not seem deliberate. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Candidates show knowledge of simple punctuation and grammar, but the amount of error, especially of tense and the use of prepositions, is sometimes considerable. Sentences separation is often poor, but error does not prevent the reader from understanding what is written.

Band 6 (1115): Writing can be followed despite difficulties with expression.

W1: Candidates make a simple attempt to express what is felt and imagined. Arguments are expressed very simply and briefly. W2/5 (paragraphing): Facts, ideas and opinions may appear in partially formed paragraphs of inappropriate length and some attempt is made to provide a beginning and an end. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates use simple, mainly accurate vocabulary. Attempts to write complex sentences may involve repetition of conjunctions and some blurring. W4: Candidates may show occasional, brief acknowledgement of the possibility of writing for different audiences and contexts, but overall there is little variation of style. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Candidates occasionally use appropriate punctuation and can spell simple words, but the reader is not convinced that their understanding, especially of grammar, is adequate.

Band 7 (610): Some of the writing can be followed.

W1: Candidates occasionally express what is felt, thought and imagined, but they are hampered by their command of language. W2/5 (paragraphing): Inadequate presentation of facts, ideas and opinions creates blurring, although there may be some signs of an overall structure. W3/5 (sentence structures): Candidates demonstrate a narrow vocabulary and there are unlikely to be more than a few accurate sentences. W4: Candidates occasionally write inappropriately or their command of language is not strong enough to acknowledge audience or context. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): Weaknesses in spelling, punctuation and grammar are persistent, but the reader is able to follow at least part of the writing.

Band 8 (05): Writing does not communicate adequately.

W1: Very simple meanings are attempted, but most of the work is too inaccurate and blurred to make sense. W2/5 (paragraphing): An absence of overall structure and paragraphing leads to confusion. W3/5 (sentence structures): Very simple meanings are attempted, but the candidates knowledge of vocabulary and sentence structures is too slight to make adequate sense. W4: There is insufficient evidence of audience or context to reward. W5 (spelling, punctuation and grammar): The amount and breadth of error prevents sufficient communication of meaning.