Independent Learning
Project (60 points total)
Wesley 4AP 2016
Assignment: Take a week or so and
learn about something you are truly interested in, and then share your learning
with the rest of the class in 4-5 minute presentation (40 points). Also hand in
a project journal and a
1½ page written reflection essay (20 points) to Mr. Wesley. For topic ideas, see “Brainstorming” section
below.
Presentations and
written reflection due date: Written reflections due May 17;
presentations begin May 17 and go through May 19 or 20.
Proposal Due-date: May 9: I want to learn______________because____________:
A half-page to one page typed proposal explaining what you would like
to learn about and why? Why
are interested in this? What questions do you have? Who, if anyone, can help
you? Do you have a target goal, a sense
for how much you can learn in the next ten days? Will you continue to learn (or practice this
skill) after the end of this unit?
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5/9
Independent
Project Proposal due (5 points)
In-class time for
Research and Daily Journal entry
HW: 45-60 mins of
research/practice
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5/10
In-class time for
Research and Daily Journal entry
HW: 45-60 mins of
research/practice
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5/11
Project Support
Meetings
In-class time for
Research and Daily Journal entry
HW: 45-60 mins of
research/practice
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5/12
In-class time for
Research and Daily Journal entry
HW: 45-60 mins of
research/practice
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5/13
In-class time for
Research and Daily Journal entry
Project Support
Meeting
HW: 45-60 mins of
research/practice
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5/16
Plan
for presentation
HW:
Reflection Essay and Daily Journals Due Tomorrow
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5/17
Presentations
All
Reflection
Essay and Daily Journals Due Tomorrow
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5/18
Late
Start Day
Presentations
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5/19
Presentations
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5/20
Presentations
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Don’t recycle something
lame school project, or present on something you already know. Do something truly new. Go on a journey of
learning. Spend a45 minutes a day for
7-10 days and see what you can learn.
You just might trip into doing something you really enjoy doing, not
just for this week, but for a long time. Inspire yourself!
Homework: Plan on about 45 minutes
a night. We don’t have any DC or lab
time available, so you will need to do a lot of your research outside of
school. Print things at home or before
class begins, and then bring something to class to work on each day: something
to read on your topic, an instrument that you can practice with, a phone that
you can research on, a piece of paper to draw or to plan your
presentation. This will be quick…one
week… so jump in and use each class period productively.
Topics to Possibly
Consider (brainstorming):
Study the physics of
flight or learn what it takes to fly. Learn how to play an instrument or a new
song(s) and perform a short recital. Study a poet and write a collection of
poems, research environmental problems and develop a solution to pending
problems, write and direct a short film, create an SNL style skit or even a
music video. Study a playwright and write a scene to a play or even act it out.
Go to a museum or art gallery and reproduce an artist’s style or a famous
painting. Begin writing the book you always wanted to read and write the first
chapter, plan a road trip and design a guided tour for yourself as to what you
should see, where you should go, and what you will learn. Learn wilderness
survival skills and master how to light a fire without human made objects or
how to navigate using only the stars on the opposite side of the world. Go to a
concert and design a stage set, band tee-shirt logo design or sales promotion
for the next great show. Learn how to skydive, go spelunking, scuba diving,
spearfishing, fly-fishing or how to fly a hot air balloon. Visit the Brookfield
Zoo and learn what zoologists or marine biologists do on a daily basis. Write a
letter to the editor of your local newspaper to fix a problem in your city,
Illinois or the United States in general. Ask people working at interesting
jobs if you can “shadow” them for a day and report explore what there is to
learn about their career. Take photos and make a creative portfolio of your
work or shoot and edit a short video about something that interests you. Learn
about ham radio broadcasting, make a blog or website, plan a shopping spree for
a famous Hollywood actor. Make jewelry or another craft, start a garden or make
a plan to create an organic farming business. Fix your car or some other
machine and discuss the process. Learn computer-coding or how to make a video
game. Collect something or learn more about a hobby. Practice a foreign
language and make a plan to travel to that country. Whatever it is, you MUST be
invested in the topic!
Group Collaboration:
There will be two group
check-ins (May 17 & 19) or think tanks where you will give support, push
each other, provide constructive criticism, give praise, share resources, be
creative and ask questions to help move this process along.
Teacher Facilitator:
I will serve as an
advisor, mentor or coach per say and you will help you focus or expand upon
your ideas. That being said, this is your opportunity to learn something new or
to develop a skill further so I will try to play devil’s advocate instead of
steering you in one direction or another. If you need an alternate setting to
accomplish your goals, please ask for help and I will try my best to set
something up.
Artifacts and Written
Reflection:
Because projects will
vary widely so will your creations whether it is something more concrete or
something more abstract. Nevertheless, you will need to be prepared to discuss
the manner in which your concept or learning plan evolved, how and where you
sought out knowledge, whether or not you collaborated with other people along
the way, and ultimately what you learned and how you know.
Written Materials (20 points total)
1. Daily
Project Journal: At the end of each
day, write a half-page reflection on what you did, what you learned, any
questions that came up, road-blocks you encountered, progress made. At the end
of each journal entry, make a plan for the following day’s research and
learning goals/activities. You will
attach this to the written reflective essay described below.
2. Reflective
Essay: You will also turn in
a 1 ½ - 2 page typed reflective essay that explores your
learning and growth. When writing this reflection, make sure to incorporate a
discussion of your strengths and weaknesses of your learning style(s) as well
as the advantages and disadvantages of different learning methods or
experiences. In addition, consider the following areas to reflect upon further:
The way in which you developed an idea to investigate, set
learning goals, sought out new knowledge, incorporated a trial and error
approach, integrated learning from experience or from others, established
learning timelines, set achievable deadlines for achieving a goal, sought and
received feedback, listened, critiqued your progress, revised work based on
feedback, sought out criticism, encouragement or even moral support or
expressed your own frustrations including how you dealt with it.
Presenting Your Learning:
1. Describe
your learning experience by sharing pieces of your reflection as well as the
artifacts you possibly created.
2. Explain
your personal reaction to the learning experience: What feelings/thoughts did
you have about what happened?
3. Articulate
ideas that derive from the learning experience: What main ideas, concepts or
skills did you learn? What did you read during your research that you agreed or
disagreed with? What assumptions did you make about this topic that possibly
turned out to be wrong?
4. Consider
changes in personal behavior that result from this learning experience: How has
this learning experience changed you? How has it changed the way you view someone/something
in your life?
5. Finally,
what would you do differently if you were designing this learning project
again? What methods might have been more effective? Why?
Grading Criteria for
Presentation: (40 points)
Since topics and
projects will widely vary, you will be graded holistically based on your
effort, explanation of learning and growth, as well as a certain level of a
mastery of skills or knowledge gained. Below is the rubric which I will use to
evaluate how well the student learned and conveyed their information.
A note to introverts:
You don’t have to be outgoing and crazy to do a strong presentation. Be organized, speak clearly and
straightforwardly, and articulately and thoroughly share what you learned. Use
visual aids or other sources to help you (perhaps even a co-presenter if that
helps you feel more comfortable).
Two Part Rubric: Presentation and written materials:
Student Name: _____________________________________Total Points
___________
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Independent Learning Presentation (30 points)
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Invigorating
A-B+
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Solid:
B-C
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Severe Senioritis
D-F
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Effectively
Conveys Knowledge or Skill (approximately
40%)
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-Your information offers an appropriate amount of knowledge to the class.
-It is clear that you chose
the information carefully, and that you had a clear plan.
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-Your information is a bit scattered and is either goes on too
long or is too short.
-You chose some of your information carefully—kind of had a
plan.
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-To quote the movie Billy
Madison, “We are all a bit dumber for having sat through your
presentation.”
-You chose to get up and improvise your knowledge, and now
we’re depressed.
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Length
of presentation and effective use of time
(approximately
20%)
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-Your presentation is a
productive and meaningful FOUR TO FIVE minutes.
-If it is longer, it is because you had a meaningful activity, or your passion
for your I-Search topic was inspirational.
-No time feels wasted.
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-Presentation feels either too long or too short.
-If you went over the FIVE minutes, it felt like you were
rambling and should have stopped sooner.
-Some of the time used consciously.
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-Here you did one of two things: you either stood up in front
of the class for thirty seconds then sat down, or you rambled on and on and
on and on and on, ad infinitum.
-Time was used recklessly.
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Presentation
skills
(approximately
20%)
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-During your presentation you made eye contact with the class, had appropriate volume of voice, spoke at an appropriate speed, and kept us engaged with your passion.
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-Presentation included some eye contact, some appropriate
volume of voice and speed, and somewhat engaged us with your passion.
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-During your presentation you stared at the wall, spoke at a
whisper really fast, and your passion registered 0.0% on the Passion-O-Meter.
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Effective
choice of presentation mode/style
(approximately
10%)
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-You chose a meaningful
way of presenting your learning experience. Whether
demonstrating a skill or sharing what you learned, you kept us engaged and informed.
-You prepared
something that went beyond simply reading some facts off a Keynote
presentation.
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-You attempted a form of presentations that was somewhat
meaningful and fitting for your topic.
-You could have spent more time in the planning stages in
order to make your presentation better suited to your topic and the time
available.
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-Despite the emphasis on creating a meaningful mode of
presentation, you made a Keynote presentation that listed off facts that
neither you, nor the class cared much about.
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Written
Reflection and Daily
Journals
(20 points)
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The reflection is well-written and at
least 1 ½ - 2 page typed pages.
It conveys a thoughtful and engaged reflection
on your learning experience for this
project.
Daily Journals are at
least ½ page, legible and clearly summarize the day’s activities, learning,
questions that arose, challenges encountered, progress made, and plans for
the following day.
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The quality of the writing is satisfactory and
at least 1 ½ - 2 page typed pages.
The reflective essay adequately summarizes the
learning experience but is not as thoughtful or detailed or thorough in its
reflection as the most engaged papers.
Daily Journals are at
least ½ page, legible and clearly summarize the day’s activities but perhaps
do contain limited information on what was learned that day, questions that
arose, challenges encountered, progress made, and plans for the following
day.
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The reflection may be (or is) less than 1
½ - 2 page typed pages.
The quality of the writing is lacking in
several areas.
At best, it conveys a rather superficial
summary of the learning experience.
Daily journals are
deficient in length and reflection, revealing little in the way of meaningful
learning or reflection on learning and planning.
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