"Same Stories; Different Ages"
By:  Cathy Engel

Project at a Glance :

This project is for 10th and 11th graders in English 3A after reading a series of narratives. It allows students to tell their own stories for a younger audience. It also allows them to share their wisdom, perspectives, and guidance with elementary school students.  This unit is roughly 4 weeks.  ​
​       
 Driving Question:

How can we best share our stories with a 5th grade audience?             

Standards:

•  W11-12. 2a-f
  
• W 11-12.3a-e
  
• W 11-12.7, 11-12.8, & W 11-12.10
• SL 11-12.1 11-12.2, 11-12.3, 11-12.4 & 11-12.5S​

Team / Culture Building:

• Hopes, Fears, and Norms
• Values Cards
• Students will also create a list of excitements and worries from their time as a elementary or middle school student.

Entry Event:

• The entry event is a meeting with our 5th grade partners from Waukazoo Elementary School over Google Meets to talk about their hopes, fears, and excitements for the upcoming years. ​

Stakeholders:

• 5th graders at Waukazoo Elementary School
• Elementary age students 

Empathy Building:

• Stakeholder Map- How do they connect to the Driving Question?
• Empathy Map- Reminding ourselves of what life is like as an elementary school student.​​

Inquiry/Need to Knows:

• After meeting with 5th grade friends, students will do a Mind Mapping activity showing memories that tie to their fears and excitements.
• Then, students will tell their story in a personal narrative. After sharing, we will do some research into the interests, hobbies, and habits of current 5th grade/ elementary students to help us better understand the age group to make the best story possible.

Incubation:

• Brainwriting
  
• Idea Quota
  
• Elevator Pitch 

Checking in:

• Students will submit their work daily on Google classroom. The teacher will meet with them regularly to debrief and provide assistance as needed. 
  
• Use the Pluses and Deltas protocol for feedback.​

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Solution Building:

•  After researching, narrowing ideas, and getting an Elevator Pitch approved, students will then start to outline their 5th grade version of their stories. 
• They will then read this first draft to another group to get feedback. 

Critique and Revision: 

•  After voting and making an outline of their story, they will create an Elevator Pitch to present to the teacher. This will allow them to get feedback on parts that may be missing while also creating something engaging for a younger audience.
• The next step will be engaging in the Critical Friends protocol for further feedback.​

Authentic Audience:

• 5th grade students and teachers from Waukazoo Elementary School

Final Presentation:

• In a Gallery Walk format, students will set up their stories around the room. The 5th grade students will come around and read, watch, and experience their stories.
  
• Students can choose what their story subject matte and format of their will be.​

Click here for teacher's full plan.

​Reflection and Feedback:

• High School students will complete a feedback form for the other stories from the many sections of English 3.
  
• The 5th grade students will vote for their favorite story and tell them what they liked and wanted to see changed. 
  
• The teacher will be using the rubrics from the FAST team for my assessing.
  
• Students will complete a reflection on their work in the group, the feedback given by their peers and authentic audience, and the project as a whole. ​

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

Meet the Educator:

Cathy Engel is a high school English teacher at West Ottawa HIgh School. 

 "PBL helps me bridge the gap between curriculum and the real - world."