Rationale: This lesson calls for the teacher to group students so that those of different interests, abilities, readiness levels and learning styles can be grouped together, with each member’s contribution being integral to the group’s success. This activity serves as an introduction for further exploration and ascent towards higher level thinking skills.
Benchmarks:
See this website for application of appropriate benchmarks:
http://www.firn.edu/doe/curric/prek12/frame2.htm
DI Strategy: Flexible Grouping
Differentiate What? Product and Process
Differentiate How? Readiness, Interest, and/or Learning Profile
Resources needed:
1. Reference materials: books, magazines, Internet access, etc.
2. Teacher-created identical invention bags for each group
3. Scissors, glue, tape, crayons, paper and other resources for
assembling inventions
Teacher preparation:
1. Create invention bags. Each bag should contain identical
items. These may include rubber bands, cleaned and covered soda bottles,
milk bottle tops, paper clips, straws, squares of paper, pieces of cloth,
toilet paper rolls, yarn scraps, feathers, buttons, or any other “junk
items” items of your choosing. If this is a recycling lesson, use
cereal boxes, and other clean, recycled disposables.
2. Pre-teach recycling, pollution, invention theory, or the topic
you’ve chosen to tie in with this lesson.
Explanation of activity: This activity can be used to correlate
with a study of inventions and inventors, or even recycling. It can
be used as a basis of studying descriptive language, giving procedural
information, or most other forms of writing.
Have children use the items and the materials supplied in the bags
to create something new.
Have children share and discuss their creations with the group.
This activity will encourage creativity and development of imagination,
provide opportunities for critical thinking and encourage exploration of
related scientific and mathematical concepts.
All students will then:
1. Think of a real problem that you can try to solve with your
own invention.
2. Keep an inventor’s notebook to jot down ideas, resources or
questions.
3. Draw a detailed plan or build a prototype for an invention
that you want to create.
4. Research to find out three of the following:
What problem did it address? Would this solution be feasible?
Is there a market for such a product? How does one get a copyright?
Each student will then choose to do two additional projects from the
following:
· Create a video commercial to market your product.
· Write and perform a jingle that explains and promotes your
project.
· Create a PowerPoint presentation that documents your invention
process.
· Write a poem that explores inventions, creativity, or a related
topic.
· Create an invention collage.
· Make a book that documents the history and impact of a specific
invention or inventor.
· Create a book of “Inventors and Inventions.” (Books can be
created in hardcopy form or with PowerPoint.)
· Write and perform a play depicting the creation of a famous
invention, or of your own invention.
Students discuss and arrive at criteria for evaluation purposes:
| Example Student-Generated Rubric | Sample | |
| Give each a criteria ranking of importance | 1, 2 or 3 | |
| Multiplied by individual scores | (1-10) | |
| Ranking multiplier | Ranking X Individual score | |
| 1. Was product: creative /unique? | 3 | 3x8=24 pts. |
| 2. Attractive/neat? | 2 | 2x9=18 pts. |
| 3. Factual/informative? | 2 | 2x7=14 pts. |
| 4. Interesting? | 2 | 2x9=18 pts. |
| 5. Did it have a complete bibliography? | (Up to 10-point penalty if missing or incorrect) | 10 points |
| 6. Was it understandable/Appropriate for audience? | 2 | 2x10=20 pts. |
| 7. Attention to details? | 2 | 2x6=12 pts. |
| TOTALS | 116 points |
The rubric is based upon student input. Students and teacher must
reach consensus as to the value of each component. Of course, different
student interests and abilities will influence their attribution of value,
but they must look at the “big picture” in order to make a rubric that
will work for everyone. There is a total of a potential 140 points
on this rubric.
Teacher's Role:
Ask questions to encourage creative thinking, such as “How can you
get that to stand?”
Encourage children to experiment and adjust as they work. Encourage
children to talk about what they are doing. Have them explain their ideas
and thought processes to the group. Compare how different children
used the same item in different ways.
Encourage children to think of ways that they can improve their products.
Eileen Lerner
Chaires Elementary