Technology Integration Project
Project Artifacts:
Classroom Blog
|
Character Change Essay Example: Jenny
|
Written Plan
Topic: The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
Grade Level: Fifth (due to its complexity, I would wait until later in the year to do this unit)
Pedagogical Goals: The Westing Game - the 1979 Newbery Award-winning novel by Ellen Raskin - chronicles the story of the death of an eccentric millionaire and the game he wants his sixteen “heirs” to play to win his fortune. An engaging “whodunit” that is written for both kids and adults can enjoy, the book will thoroughly expose students to the ‘mystery’ genre. Working together in groups (which will promote comprehension and collaboration skills,) students will listen to the chapters, analyze the clues given and look for others not specifically mentioned, and make predictions that are backed up by evidence from the story. With the use of the internet, individual blogs and social bookmarking sites, students will be able to record their findings, reflections, and hypothesises, and also discover more information about various topics covered in the story. My own personal classroom blog will help keep us all informed and organized, and it will also allow those who are absent to keep up as well. In the end (before the climax and the puzzle is solved,) students will put together a digital story that explains their answer to the game by citing examples from the text. The final task will be an essay (posted on their blogs) that reflects on the significant changes that overcome one of the pairs of characters.
Technology Used:
Classroom blog
Individual student blogs
Digital story
Social bookmarks/websites
Grade-Level Content Expectations:
R.WS.05.04 Know the meanings of words encountered frequently in grade-level reading and oral language contexts.
R.WS.05.06 Fluently read beginning grade-level text and increasingly demanding text as the year proceeds.
R.WS.05.07 In context, determine the meaning of words and phrases including symbols, idioms, recently coined words, content vocabulary, and literary terms using strategies and resources including analogies, content glossaries, and electronic resources.
R.NT.05.01 Analyze how characters and communities reflect life (in positive and negative ways) in classic, multicultural, and contemporary literature recognized for quality and literary merit.
R.NT.05.02 Analyze the structure, elements, style, and purpose of narrative genre including historical fiction, tall tales, science fiction, fantasy, and mystery.
R.NT.05.03 Analyze how characters’ traits and setting define plot, climax, the role of dialogue, and how problems are resolved.
R.CM.05.01 Connect personal knowledge, experiences, and understanding of the world to themes and perspectives in text through oral and written responses.
R.MT.05.01 Self-monitor comprehension when reading or listening to text by automatically applying and discussing the strategies used by mature readers to increase comprehension including: predicting, constructing mental images, visually representing ideas in text, questioning, rereading or listening again if uncertain about meaning, inferring, summarizing, and engaging in interpretive discussions.
W.PR.05.03 Draft focused ideas using linguistic structures and textual features needed to clearly communicate information composing coherent, mechanically sound paragraphs when writing compositions.
W.PR.05.04 Revise drafts based on constructive and specific oral and written responses to writing by identifying sections of the piece to improve organization and flow of ideas (e.g., position/evidence organizational pattern, craft such as titles, leads, endings, and powerful verbs).
W.PR.05.05 Proofread and edit writing using grade-level checklists and other appropriate resources both individually and in groups.
W.PS.05.01 Exhibit personal style and voice to enhance the written message in both narrative (e.g., personification, humor, element of surprise) and informational writing (e.g., emotional appeal, strong opinion, credible support).
W.GR.05.01 In the context of writing, correctly use compound subjects and predicates; proper nouns and pronouns; articles; conjunctions; hyphens in compound and number words; commas between two independent clauses to set off direct address, long phrases, clauses; colons to separate hours and minutes and to introduce a list.
W.SP.05.01 In the context of writing, correctly spell frequently encountered words (e.g., roots, inflections, prefixes, suffixes, multi-syllabic); for less frequently encountered words, use structural cues (e.g., letter/sound, rime, morphemic) and environmental sources (e.g., word walls, word lists, dictionaries, spell checkers).
S.CN.05.02 Adjust their use of language to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes including research, explanation, and persuasion.
S.DS.05.01 Engage in interactive, extended discourse to socially construct meaning in book clubs, literature circles, partnerships, or other conversation protocols.
S.DS.05.02 Discuss narratives (e.g., mystery, historical fiction, tall tales, science fiction), conveying the story grammar (e.g., traits of characters, relationship between setting and climax/anticlimax), while varying voice modulation, volume, and pace of speech to emphasize meaning.
L.CN.05.02 Listen to or view critically while demonstrating appropriate social skills of audience behaviors (e.g., eye contact, attentive, supportive) in small and large group settings.
L.RP.05.02 Select, listen to or view knowledgeably, and respond thoughtfully to both classic and contemporary texts recognized for quality and literary merit.
L.RP.05.03 Respond to multiple text types listened to or viewed knowledgeably, by discussing, illustrating, and/or writing in order to clarify meaning, make connections, take a position, and/or show deep understanding without major misconceptions.
L.RP.05.04 Combine skills to reveal strengthening literacy (e.g., viewing then analyzing in writing, listening then paraphrasing in writing).
L.RP.05.05 Respond to and go beyond the information given by a speaker, making inferences and drawing appropriate conclusions.
Michigan Educational Technology Standards:
BASIC OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS*Identify search strategies for locating needed information on the internet
*Proofread and edit writing using appropriate resources (e.g., dictionary, spell check, grammar check, grammar references, writing references) and grade level appropriate checklists both individually and in groups
SOCIAL, ETHICAL, AND HUMAN ISSUES
*Discuss scenarios describing acceptable and unacceptable uses of technology (e.g., computers, digital cameras, cellphones, PDAs, wireless connectivity) and describe consequences of inappropriate use
*Discuss basic issues regarding appropriate and inappropriate uses of technology (e.g., copyright, privacy, file sharing, spam, viruses, plagiarism) and related laws
*Identify safety precautions that should be taken while on-line
TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS
*Know how to use menu options in applications to print, format, add multimedia features; open, save, manage files; and use various grammar tools (e.g., dictionary, thesaurus, spell-checker)
*Know how to insert various objects (e.g., photos, graphics, sound, video) into word processing documents, presentations, or web documents
*Collaborate with classmates using a variety of technology tools to plan, organize, and create a group project
TECHNOLOGY COMMUNICATIONS TOOLS
*Use basic telecommunication tools (e.g., e-mail, WebQuests, IM, blogs, chat rooms, web conferencing) for collaborative projects with other students
*Use a variety of media and formats to create and edit products (e.g., presentations, newsletters, brochures, web pages) to communicate information and ideas to various audiences
TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH TOOLS
*Use Web search engines and built-in search functions of other various resources to locate information
Specific Unit Plans:
Excerpts from Week One-
Monday: What Makes a Mystery?
Groups will read and discuss the definition and content of a ‘mystery’ (sites bookmarked on del.icio.us)
Students will listen to an example of a short mystery (a la Encyclopedia Brown) and make predictions; they will then search for content that fits our description of a mystery
Students will journal in their blogs a summary (in their own words) of what a mystery is, then come up with examples of their own (books, movies, real-life cases) and explain why they are considered to be 'mysteries'
Tuesday: It Starts
Students listen to the first two chapters (’Sunset Towers’ and ‘Ghosts or Worse’)
After reminding them that a key to solving mysteries is to keep sharp eyes and ears on the lookout for clues, groups will discuss character descriptions, traits, and anything else they find that they think is relevant
In their ‘detective blogs’, students will keep a running record of their group findings
Friday: Let the Games Begin
Students will listen to the sixth and seventh chapter (’The Westing Will’ and ‘The Westing Game’); the reading of the will itself will be discussed via a PowerPoint presentation (also uploaded on ‘Slideshare’)
Before discussion, groups will learn about the game of ‘chess’ (via a site on del.icio.us)
Excerpts from Week Two-
Tuesday: Chatting and Cheaters
Students will listen to the ninth and tenth chapters (’Lost and Found’ and ‘The Long Party’)
Groups will then discuss the clues (and the assumptions drawn from them) and decide for themselves if the conclusions are valid
Students will be encouraged to post notes to each other or to me via a bulletin board that will be set up in the classroom for the remainder of the unit
Thursday: Raising the Stakes
Students will listen to the fourteenth and fifteenth chapters (’Pairs Repaired’ and ‘Fact and Gossip’)
Before their discussions, groups will read about the song ‘America the Beautiful’ and the skit ‘Who’s on First’ (via del.icio.us)
Groups will then discuss the clues (and the assumptions drawn from them) and decide for themselves if the conclusions are valid
Excerpts from Week Three-
Tuesday: Closing In
Students will listen to chapters twenty-one and twenty-two (’The Fourth Bomb’ and ‘Losers, Winners’)
Groups will then discuss the clues (and the assumptions drawn from them) and decide for themselves if the conclusions are valid
Groups again will discuss their important findings via the help of prompt questions. Their answers will then be recorded on their blogs:
What does Theo want to borrow from Turtle? What does Turtle think he’s threatening her with?
What is Judge Ford’s connection with the Westing family?
Why does Judge Ford think that Sam Westing paid for her education?
What was on the reverse side of the bomber’s note?
What does Turtle confess to the judge?
Briefly describe the note posted in the elevator.
What is the significance of Turtle’s comment that her mother would be upset if she knew who the real bomber was?
Which of the heirs does Judge Ford think may be Sam Westing’s former wife?
Why would it be difficult to recognize Sam Westing now?
In their ‘detective blogs’, students will keep a running record of their character/plot observations
Using the clues they’ve gathered and analyzed on their blogs, groups will create a short (five minutes at the most) digital story that explains their own answers to the puzzle
Friday: It’s Elementary, My Dear Class
Students will present their digital stories
Excerpts from Week Four-
Monday: What a Shock
Students will listen to chapters twenty-three and twenty-four (’Strange Answers’ and ‘Wrong All Wrong’)
Groups will then discuss how they came to their own conclusions, how the groups in the book came to their conclusions, and contrast the two
Students will blog about their conclusions
Wednesday: Game Over
Students will listen to chapters twenty-seven through thirty (’A Happy Fourth’, ‘And Then…’, ‘Five Years Pass’, and ‘The End?’)
Groups will discuss why The Westing Game is considered to be a mystery, using the Ingredients for a Mystery sheet as a guide.
Thursday: Gather Your Thoughts
To conclude The Westing Game unit, students will be required to write an in-class essay Friday, which will then be transferred to their blogs
To prepare for the essay, students will review their running records on character/plot observations. They will choose one character to focus on and find examples of how said character changes as the story progresses
Friday: Convince Us, Turtle
Using their examples they found on the previous day, students will answer the following question:
The Westing Game is more than just a mystery about a game heirs have to play in order to win an inheritance; it also looks at how people are able to influence others. In the story, Sam Westing grouped the residents of Sunset Towers up for reasons the reader discovers as the tale moves forward. Choose one of the heirs and describe the changes they undergo. Make sure to include their original personality traits, who they were paired up with, how their partner helped them, and how your chosen character eventually turned out.
Students will transfer their essays to their blogs. After peer review via blog comments over the weekend, I will check over the essays on Monday.
Christine Fusciardi · 2008-2009
[email protected]