Writers Making Connections
                                                              By:  Christiana Sheppard​

Project at a Glance :

During this project students explore and write narratives from members of their community. Second grade writing/ 3-4 week project.
       
 Driving Question:

How do writers connect with their community?            

Standards:

• Skills4Success - Communication​, Personal Accountability, and Flexibility & Adaptability
• ELA Stds:  W.2.3 and SL.2.3

Team / Culture Building:

• Collaboration Tower
• Post Card Protocol
• Creative Sequence Scenario Assessment​​

Entry Event:

•  Students will read local newspapers and connect to community events and ways we communicate.​​

Stakeholders:

• Community members - including doctors, police officers, family members, teachers, business owners, etc. 
• Anyone in the student’s community could be a stakeholder.

Empathy Building:

• Directed Storytelling- students will interview a chosen stakeholder to uncover more information/stories from them.
• Empathy Maps- students will work in groups and choose one stakeholder to map out. We will keep these maps as a reminder of our goals throughout the project.

Inquiry / Need to Knows:

• Need to Know protocol- students will list everything they know related to the DQ on sticky notes. Then they will write down everything they want/need to know related to the DQ on sticky notes.
• Stakeholder Map- students will brainstorm who is affected by the DQ and make connections between all of the stakeholders. As we get to know our stakeholders, students will add information to their maps (in a different color marker). ​

Incubation:

• Using sticky notes students will brainstorm ideas, then share them aloud. It’s important to give time for all learners to think without feeling the pressure of sharing.
•  Use the Think, Pair, Share protocol - to ensure all voices are heard.
• Idea Quota - 100 ideas in 10 minutes​

• Anti-Problem- What would writers workshop look like without community? What would our school / Allendale look like without community?
• How would _______ solve this? protocol

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Solution Building:

•  Students will use the Name Your Idea protocol to develop their solution. They will then share their ideas with another group for feedback.
• Students will use the NUF Test first to see which idea(s) they will pitch to the whole group. Then we will Dot Voting based on the ideas that passed the NUF test.
• Next, students will do the $100 Test to decide on a solution.​

Critique and Revision:

• ​Students will do the Name Your Idea strategy to decide which solution they will move forward with
• Watch Austin’s Butterfly to learn about constructive feedback. When students do dot voting they will also give feedback (Pluses and Deltas) for parts they like of each idea. ​

Authentic Audience:

• Students will invite the community members and parents to our classroom to share their narratives. We could share in small groups, large group reading, or with a Gallery Walk.​

Final Presentation:

• Students will build their final solution by writing (handwritten / Google slides / poster, etc.) a narrative about someone in the community. They may choose which medium to use, but it must include writing and a visual.

Click here for teacher's full plan.

​Reflection and Feedback:

• Narrative writing rubric

Click here for  the teacher's Journey through PBL on Padlet . . .

Meet the Educator:

Christiana Sheppard teaches 2nd grade at Allendale Christian School.  

​     "I am passionate about PBL because it equips students to participate in the world around them. PBL teaches students to problem solve and think critically in a way that can’t be duplicated elsewhere."