6th grade Career Pathway/Business PBL  
                                                            By:  Mallory Postma & Chloe Pretzer

Project at a Glance :

This project partners 6th grade Homeroom classes with a local business.  Students will work to to solve a challenge facing the business. 

Driving Question:

How can JR Automation become more well-known in the community? (Pretzer's class)
How can we organize sheet goods and raw materials more efficiently?  (Postma's class)           

Standards:

• 6.EE.3.3.2 Diagram or map the flow of materials, labor, and capital used to produce a consumer product. 
• 6.E.3.3.3 Explain how communication innovations have affected economic interactions and where and how people work.
• 6th grade Business Curriculum Vocabulary standards

Team / Culture Building:

• Creative Sequence activity
• Creative DNA protocol
• Hopes, Fears, & Norms​​

• Values Cards  

 Entry Event:​

• Professionals from the Grand Rapids Griffins shared various aspects of running a business, emphasizing key business vocabulary with the students.
• Students attended a Griffins Game and visited two local businesses  (Gentex and Fabcon). 
• Visit to business partner - Cento Anni.

Stakeholders:​

• Business professionals from Cento Anni

Empathy Building:

• Empathy Map Template
• Empathy Map Directions
• Stakeholder Maps
• Pains/Gains
• Employee/Character Profile

Inquiry / Need to Knows:

• Rewrite the Driving Question/Brainfiring protocol directions
• Rewrite the Driving Question student handout
• Chalk Talk 
• Interview Directions
• Interview question ideas​​

• 5 Why’s ​

Incubation:

• AEIOU 
• Tell it to a Toddler

• 100 Ideas protocol​​

Checking in:

• SCAMPER​

• Group and Saturate
• Filtering and Objectives

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Solution Building:

• Poster Session
• Gallery Walk Protocol

• $100 test
• Dot voting
• NUF test

Critique and Revision: 

• $100 test
• Dot voting
• NUF test

Authentic Audience:

•  Business Professionals

Final Presentation:

• ​Students will present at the local business for feedback, following by a final pitch to local community members.​

Click here for teacher's full plan.

​Reflection and Feedback:

• Pitch Brainstorm Sheet
• Pitch Rubric
• SWOT Analysis
• Critical Friends Protocol​

Check out the teacher's Journey through PBL on Padlets below  . . .

Link to Padlet

Malory Postema's Padlet

Link to Padlet

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Chloe Pretzer's Padlet

Meet the Educator:
Chloe Pretzer teaches 6th grade math, science, and social studies at Hamilton Middle School.  Malory Postma teaches 6th Grade Math and Social Studies at Hamilton Middle School.
​     “I love project based learning because it really gives the students the opportunity to think in real world scenarios, to explore answers through discussion and their own prior knowledge.  It gives them ownership of their learning, which really helps ideas stick!”

     “Project Based Learning is such an engaging way for students to prepare for real world experiences.  I love offering the opportunity for students to be creative and use or discover  their individual strengths.”