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008 Article-Map the Project

Return to 008: Mapping the Project

 

Launching the Project

A Project-Based Learning unit can begin in many different ways. A class discussion, a field trip, an article, an activity, etc--can all be used to provoke thinking and engage students for the project. These can all be considered as entry events for the Project.

 

Entry Event Example : We have learned the importance of creating a great “Driving Question” that meets the curricular goals you have established for your Project. These driving and sub questions are not usually seen by the students. Most students don't become highly motivated when presented with a list of questions. One approach to increase student motivation is to introduce the project with a story, puzzle, mystery or problem-solving scenario. What does a good scenario look like? 

 

  • A good project scenario must engage student's interest and motivate them to probe for deeper understanding of the concepts being introduced .
  • Good project scenarios need to be grounded in student experiences that connect previous knowledge to new concepts and then connect new knowledge to other courses or disciplines.
  • Good project scenarios relate the subject to the real world so that students have a stake in solving the project.
  • Good project scenarios are ill-structured and open-ended, not limited to one correct answer.
  • Good project scenarios allow for a variety of teaching and learning styles.
  • Cooperation from group members is necessary to effectively work through the project scenario.
  • Good project scenarios should challenge students to achieve higher-level critical thinking skills.

 

Entry documents are also often used to introduce the Project. This type of document is designed to build the scenario to provoke thinking and engage students in the project. See a sample entry document.

Whether you use an entry event or an entry document to initiate your PBL Unit, remember the fundamental goal is to begin helping students to quickly comprehend the scope of the project and the outcomes that will be expected, including the assessments.

 

Introduction Letter

Another component of the launch process is the creation of an introductory letter that may be given to the parents and/or guardians of your students, building administrators, and any others you wish to involve. This could be written in a class newsletter or as a separate friendly announcement. However you package it, you should cover the following points in your letter:

 

  • Briefly explain the Project-Based Learning model.   (one paragraph)
  • Introduce your specific unit and your student expectations. (one paragraph)
  • Invite the recipients to join in the process through guest speaking, relevant artifacts, or tutoring.  Don't forget to invite them to join the class at the end of the unit for a  "Culminating Event".
  • Be creative and fun! You want the letter to signify the excitement of your PBL unit.

 

Identify your Resources

What do we mean by resources? We can break them down into the following major categories:

  • Information
  • Supplies
  • Technological Tools

 

As you begin to break down your project think about the resources you or your students might need to complete each of the tasks. Keep the following in mind:

  • Publications: What books, magazines, and other publications are available for your students? 
  • People: Who might be available to help with the project?  Including people from your community enhances the process. This list might include parent volunteers as well as quest speakers/experts.  What guidelines need to be followed before bringing guests into your classroom?  What about online experts? 
  • Knowledge & Skills Needed: Look at one major product for the project and analyze the tasks necessary to produce a high-quality product. What do students need to know and be able to do to complete the tasks successfully? How and when will they learn the necessary knowledge and skills? You should complete a section for all major products for the project.

 

Technology resources may require special consideration given the highly variable status of technology use and availability within any school or district. The following are points to consider when incorporating technology into any project:

  • Hardware: How many computers will your students be able to access? Are they all in your room or will they have to go to a lab? How many hours per week will each student have to use the computer? What rules or acceptable use policies do you need to have in place before you allow students to use the computers? What other hardware such as Neo (AlphaSmart) or PDAs are available?
  • Software: What software is available for research (Encarta or other encyclopedia tools)?  Will they have access to brainstorming software (Inspiration)?  What about presentation software?   

 

The keys to a successful project are to utilize only those resources that increase the power of the project and to include in your plans any guidance or scaffolding students might require to effectively use those resources.

 

Generate a Timeline/Storyboard

How are you going to keep track of the events in your PBL unit? One suggestion is to create a timeline, sometimes referred to as Storyboard. Putting events on a timeline like this gives you a sense of how much time goes by in between each PBL phase. It also helps you remember just when those important things happened. A timeline/storyboard should include all phases of the implementation of a unit and may include all or some of the following:  

  1. Present students with the project idea.
  2. Students are assigned small groups and "brainstorm" what they already know about the topic.
  3. Students are placed in groups and begin new brainstorming activity to decide what they "need to know" in order to complete the project.
  4. Students, working in their own groups, use various sources to research their project.   
  5. Groups come to a conclusion about how to proceed to complete the project.  
  6. Groups decide how to present their "solution product".
  7. Groups create their product.
  8. Groups present their products in a "culminating event".
  9. Groups "debrief" the entire process.
  10. Entire class debriefs the process.

 

Based on this list, you will begin a project timeline this week. I would rather have you begin the timeline now than try to get it done at the end of the project. This way you can add to it or make changes as we go.  The most important thing to think about in this preliminary state is how much time you will need for your project. Then you can start to break it down into smaller segments. It should only take one class period to introduce the problem, but how much time will your students require to go through the brainstorming activities?  More time will be needed for research and presentation development than any other activity, and you will need to allow enough time for all the students to make their presentations. It's not too soon to start thinking about the timing of the process.

 

You might also want your students to create their own timelines. There are many benefits for students making and using their own timeline. Among them are creativity, increased memory retention, enhancing kinesthetic learning, improving comprehension and the list goes on… You can model timeline procedures because you follow one yourself.

 

A sample timeline can be found in Principle 4, Explore 3

 

For your timeline feel free to use any graphic organization tool that you are familiar with and have access to. Some examples are listed below:

 

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