Elementary

=Elementary Design =

Use this page to share your elementary instructional designs. To begin, click the Edit button in the upper-right part of the screen.

** Goshen County Schools **
 * Design to Plan **
 * Unit Design Format **

** Title of Unit Design ** 4th grade writing- informational text

** Tell us about your work design team ** Names/Grade/Content/Theme/E-mails Staci John/Title 3-5/informational text/sjohn@goshen.k12.wy.us Sheila Cruth/4th Grade/ informational text/scruth@goshen.k12.wy.us Brittni Thomas/4th Grade/ informational text/bthomas@goshen.k12.wy.us Jennifer Brummell/4th Grade/ informational text/jbrummell@goshen.k12.wy.us

** Why is this content/concept worthy of design? ** It is a standards-based hard to teach and difficult to learn concept.

** Description of the students for whom this unit is intended? ** **T-chart of your WHO:** Each teacher created a “who” chart for their individual classroom. We synthesized our “who” needs for this document keeping in mind we need to meet the needs of our own who when teaching our design.

Chatty/social Affiliation (purposeful)

Need to publish Affirmation

Active/Hands-on Organization of Knowledge Novelty and Variety

Likes to know end result Clear and Compelling Product Standards

** Content & Substance ** -Know and choose appropriate topic -Effectively use facts and definitions to develop points -Provide a conclusion to the piece -Use appropriate transitions -Use precise words to inform, justify, or explain your topic -Cite resources by providing a list

**Content sentence:** The student creates an informational text around a topic of choice.

** Assessment of engagement: ** **-**Engagement/Learning survey

** Assessment of learning: ** **-**Student/Teacher created rubric -All content and substance components will be present in the rubric through student noticings. Teacher may need to guide noticings to make sure the rubric reflects the intended content. -The rubric will be created around the midway point based on needs of the class. -Reflective Conferencing-Feedback -Self-evaluation -Final product will be graded according to the rubric

** Product Focus: ** A written informational piece.

** Strategies for each design quality ** Organization of knowledge: - Guest Speaker -editor of newspaper -someone whose occupation is not being an author (police officer, blogger, person who writes feature articles for a newsletter, high school newspaper contributors) -Field Trips -Mini Lessons -Anchor charts -Classroom Buddies -Lecture -Author visits -Feature Article Bucket (mentor texts) -Technology -Skype - Videos (Reading Rainbow) -Recording (video, audio) -Word Processing -Internet -Blogging -Teacher modeling -Graphic organizers -Experts

Clear & Compelling Standards -Teacher/Student Rubric -Publish/Share/Present (i.e. Author Night)

Protection from Adverse Consequences for initial failure -Pair shares (Plus and a Push) -Conferencing (Teacher and Peer) -Opportunity to fix mistakes and re-conference -Time -Mentor Bucket -Modeling -Rubric -Teacher decisions (publishing, sharing, etc.) based on student needs at the time

Affiliation -Peer coaching (2nd and 4th or others) -Pair share (plus and push) -Final product share -Document Camera to share student work as whole group (share the pencil)

Affirmation -Final product share -Conferencing -Document Camera

Choice -Topic Choice (within reason) -Publishing Techniques -Partner Choice -Resources (internet, books, mentor texts) -Student/Teacher created rubric

Novelty & Variety -Mini-craft lessons (not designed yet) -Peer coaching -Guest Speaker

Authenticity -Mentor text (What have you read that you’re trying to write?) -Publish/Share/Present -Guest Speaker

** Plan & timeline for implementation ** **-**Launched February 23, 2011. Goal to have unit finished by March 25, 2011. -Meeting at the initial unit design, and frequent follow-up designing sessions before and during unit.

** Materials ** **-**Mentor texts (lots), graphic organizers (index cards, charts, markers, etc.)

** Results ** -Engagement surveys -Students were able to research, persist with a topic and achieved a writing on a topic of their choice better than in past years

-Students were persistent with their topic -Students were motivated by technology -Students were motivated by self-selecting topics -Students are making connections and transferring learning to other daily reading and seem to be more interested in “Featured Articles.” -The students took ownership of learning through the process of “noticings.” - Taught to target McRel standards

** Reflections ** What did you learn from implementation and the Working on the Work Protocol?
 * After a lengthy discussion, we decided that we would like our focus to be a “Featured Article.”
 * Up front, need to get sample “mentor texts”
 * Working with helped clarify our goal and provided a clear target