920FP-Pellegrino,+Stephanie

Stephanie Pellegrino 8th Grade: General Science Jared Eliot Middle School, Clinton CT Astronomy and Space Science Research Project


 * Introduction:** The class is about 2/3 through the astronomy unit. Rather than teaching them about the fine details of each of the eight planets, each student will be assigned a planet to research and present on. So far in the unit, we have been learning about other smaller orbiting bodies, but this will be their first look at the larger bodies, the planets. At the end of the two weeks, we will be ready to study past, present, and future space exploration.

CT Science Core Theme, and Content Standard: //Earth in the Solar System – How does the position of Earth in the solar system affect conditions on our planet? // All class meetings are 42 minutes in length. Throughout the two week span of the unit on planets, I will be assessing students summatively on task completion and through the class blog. Formal assessment will be at the end of the two weeks as they complete their PowerPoint presentations, and a brief synopsis. Applications from EDC 920 are: · accessing and commenting on the class blog · using the website evaluation template to evaluate websites for use in their presentation · accessing and using a Google News Alert within their presentation, and afterword in a brief piece of writing
 * 8.3 - The solar system is composed of planets and other objects that orbit the sun. **

Day 1: Accessing my Blog! Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. gain access to the class blog and post comments. 2. read through and identify important news articles about space. As a class, we will head to the computer lab. Students will log onto the computers and I will show them how to sign up for my blog. Students do not have their own email accounts, so they will have to access the blog from school computers only. Once I accept their requests to join the blog they will be able to access all of my Google News Alert posts about Space. Students will read through some of the latest news stories and will practice posting comments. The media specialist and I will be circling the room to help troubleshoot and ensure the blog is being used for appropriate purposes. Homework: Read pages 121-128 The Inner and Outer Planets.
 * I cannot assign computer based homework as I work in a very diverse community. About half of the students would be able to access the internet. Others would experience great distress in attempting to get to an internet connection.

Day 2: Pick your planet Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. research their assigned planet and list information pertaining to planet measurements, number of moons, atmospheric conditions, human or satellite exploration. Students will be working in pairs and will pick the name of one of the 8 planets out of a hat. They will jot down any specific notes from the textbook from the previous night’s homework. Students will use the texts and articles I have in the classroom to find out more about their planet. I will explain that we will be spending the next week or so in the computer lab researching the planet and posting comments on the blog. All of my classes are a heterogeneous mix, so I have not strategically paired them. I always pair them randomly so they get used to working with people of varying abilities. Sometimes this backfires and I have paired two students who are on the lower end cognitively, but they learn to deal with it are always able to finish the project. Day 3 and 4: Evaluate the website Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. __Use the website evaluation template__ to evaluate 2 websites of their choice. 2. Gather information from the internet about their planet. As a class we will go to the computer lab. I will give the students a paper copy of the website evaluation form. They will begin researching their planets. When they come across a site they think they may want to use, such as [] they will put it through the checklist. If it meets at least 80% of the criteria and with my approval, they may use the site in their project. We will need two days for this so they may finish the evaluation and then comment on the blogspot about their findings from the website evaluation. Students who have trouble navigating through the webpage will be given a modified form of the evaluation page similar to Kathy Schrock’s middle school evaluation form []. This one is a bit simpler and will not take as long. Those students will not be aware that they have been given a simplified version and will be going through the same process as everyone else.

Day 5-8: The actual project Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. Design a PowerPoint slideshow (12 slides per group minimum) about their planet including: pictures with captions on every slide, planet measurements, atmospheric information, known satellites, known exploration, interesting facts. 2. __Include at least one Google News Alert link__ in their slideshow. For the next three class meetings students will actually begin their research and creating slides for their PowerPoint. They must use at least two approved websites as well as information from the classroom texts from Day 2. Each student will be responsible for at least 6 slides. Together they will decide which news alert fits with their slideshow and will copy the link into a slide to share with the class. They will need my approval before they choose their news alert, but for the most part they are all approved. Students of lower ability will still be required to complete at least six slides, but I will modify and simplify the information that is necessary. I will guide them to an appropriate news alert. Students of higher ability will still be required to complete at least six slides, but will have animations, more pictures, or more detailed slides. I will speak to those students on an individual basis.

Day 9: No plagiarizing in here Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. Use the internet to create a bibliography page in MLA format.

Students will copy down page numbers, article titles, authors etc. from the classroom texts. We will then go down to the computer lab and create a reference page in their slideshow. They will be able to create a reference page using either [|www.easybib.com] or [|www.bibme.org]. Students will choose MLA format and create citations for their information used in their slideshow. Students will put the finishing touches on their slideshow and post comments about their experience using the citation generators on the blog. The media specialist and I will be circling the room to ensure that they are using the proper format.

Homework: Prepare your presentation with your partner. Students will decide who will be responsible for certain information and will practice their presentation.

Day 10 and 11: Presentation day Objectives: The student will be able to … 1. Present information about their assigned planet in front of the class from a PowerPoint slideshow. Students will carry out their presentations in front of their peers. They will be assessed on slide content (60%), presence of a news alert link (10%), and evidence of practice(10%). If the students look as though they have no idea what they are talking about and are stumbling through measurements and other planet data, they will lose points for not completing the homework assignment to practice. As a final activity, students will post constructive comments about other group’s presentations and will comment on how they liked using a class blog. Because this took two weeks, there will be no formal test on “the planets.” Their slide content will be weighted heavily.

Day 12: What about that News Alert Objectives: The student will be able to… 1. Analyze the news alert they chose and write a 3 paragraph synopsis. As a class, we will meet at the computer lab. I will explain that they will write a brief, 3 paragraph synopsis about the News Alert they chose for their presentation. They will be given headphones in case any of the alerts have audio. If any students decide they do not find their News Alert interesting, they may choose another from the class blog that I have posted. In an effort to be savvy I will have the students post their synopses on the class blog. The synopsis will be worth 20% of the project grade.