Unit Title:  Presidential Slideshow

Name:  Deborah White
 
Grade:  7th Grade
  
Discipline:  Instructional Technology     	 
Purpose:  Creation of an Appleworks slide show incorporating the skills of Internet research, use and movement of graphics, creation of a bibliography, and the core technology skills of creating a slide show.  Content will be based on our semester theme of United States presidents.

Objectives:  
•	Students will learn to plan and create the “storyboard” of a big project.
•	Students will learn the skill of moving between 2 or more applications.
•	They will practice thoughtful Internet research and note taking
•	Students will learn to capture an image on the Internet and bring it into a document, along with a review of using available graphics.
•	They will learn the process of citations and creation of a bibliography
•	They will learn the nuts and bolts of creating a slide show.
•	Students will develop an understanding of artistic consistency from slide to slide.

Outcome:  Each student will create a slide show with 9-12 pages.  The slide show will include a title page, a bibliography page and at least 7 pages of content information.  Information will be accurate, graphics and design elements will flow from page to page, and students will have in-depth knowledge of one U.S. president.

Essential Question: How can learning to create a slide show improve a student’s classroom skills and performance?

Activities: 
Activity	Standard (Use text not codes)	
Unit Question #1:  How will you store and organize data which you collect? (No paper storage systems allowed!)

 Activity #1  Students create 2 storage documents in their personal folder for their research results.  One document is a spreadsheet divided into 3 columns to address question, answer and URL.  Students will learn to use the text-wrap tool with the spreadsheet. The other document is a simple word processing document, meant for storing graphics and photographs copied from the Web.	Standard Addressed:  Create an original spreadsheet and apply formatting features.

Length of Activity:  40 minutes

Instructional Mode:  whole group introduction using an LCD projector followed by individual work.	
Unit Question #2:  How do you copy an image from a Web site into a document?

Activity #2:  Having chosen a president to research, students will access a special hotlist of POTUS (presidents of the U.S.) and find some images for their slide show.  They will copy them into their special image-storage document.   They will copy and paste the URL of each image underneath it	Standard Addressed:  Instructional Technology
Copy an image from a Web site into a file on the desktop; write a correct citation caption in keeping with the copyright law.

Length of Activity:  40 minutes

Instructional Mode:  whole group introduction using an LCD projector followed by individual work.	
 Unit Question #3: What kind of information do you want to present about your president?  

Activity #3:  Students will receive a list of 20 questions they can research about their president.  A few of the questions will be required. Students may add additional questions.  They will access a prepared Hotlist of POTUS and begin their research, storing their text in the spreadsheet they have prepared and graphics/photos in the other document.  Students may not copy and paste text into the spreadsheet, but may transfer information in bullets and phrases.  When they transfer a photo or piece of text, they will copy and paste the URL from the source right into the document.	Standard Addressed:  Instructional Technology
Organize information that is collected using a variety of tools, e.g. spreadsheet, saved files, etc.

Demonstrate ethical and legal behavior in copying files, applications and media.

Length of Activity:  One 80 minute block.

Instructional Mode:  Brief introduction with LCD projector of how to read some information, analyze and distill it into a bullet of info for the spreadsheet, followed by individual work.	
Unit Question #4:  How can you sort the information you have collected, and decide which info to use?

 Activity #4:  Using the data they have collected, students will use Inspiration software to create a web or graphic organizer.  Each “bubble” in the web will represent one slide, and will contain just a few words to describe what will be in that slide.	Standard Addressed:  Instructional Technology
Manipulate data using charting tools and graphic organizers to connect ideas and organize information.

Length of Activity:  40-80 minutes

Instructional Mode:  Students have already used Inspiration in other classes, so a brief vocal description of the activity will be followed by individual work.	
Unit Question #5: How do you create a slide show?

 Activity #5:  With detailed information collected, and a graphic organizer already created, students will begin the actual construction of the slide show, using written directions after a brief group demonstration. 	Standard Addressed:  Instructional Technology
Create a slide presentation using appropriate application.

Length of Activity:  2  80” blocks

Instructional Mode:  Group demonstration using an LCD projector followed by individual work using written directions.	
Unit Question #6:  What are citations:

Activity #6:  Students will participate in a discussion of ethical use of material created by others and use the URLs they have collected to create a bibliography as the last page of their slide show.
	Standard Addressed:  Instructional Technology
Write correct citations for text and images gathered from electronic sources.  Understand that use of materials is limited by the fair use rule of copyright law.

Length of Activity:  40-80 minutes

Instructional Mode:  Group demonstration using an LCD projector followed by individual work using written directions.	

Tools and Resources: Computers with an Internet connection, Appleworks software, Inspiration software, Hotlist of POTUS (Presidents of the United States), LCD overhead projector, printer (to be used by students who want to view their collected data in their hand, rather than scanning it on the computer).  Students will receive a list of 20 potential questions they can research about their president, as well as written directions for several of the activities.

Assessment: This 4 week unit is the culmination of a semester of technology class for 7th graders.  It finishes the same week that grades are due.  In order to be thorough in my assessment, and not have to rush with major correcting that last week, I assess work on a weekly basis – students receive 4 grades over the course of the month.  Each week’s assignment has a focus and a rubric.  Because students are keeping their work on computer files, they don’t turn anything in to grade.  So I will “work the room” with a clipboard and rubric in hand during the last 15 minutes of the 80 minute block.  I will visually determine if they have achieved the goal of that day’s lesson, have they understood the directions at the beginning of the class, have they used their time well.  Students will receive points during the visual assessment, which will be transferred to my grade book after class. 
 
References:

American Presidents.  March 30, 2005:
http://www.americanpresident.org/history/h_home.shtml
	
CAST.  Universal Design for Learning. (2005). March 3, 2005:
http://www.cast.org/research/udl/index.html

“Citation Style for Research Papers.”   Long Island University.  April 26, 2005.
	http://www.liunet.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citation.htm

Internet Public Library.  POTUS.   April 6, 2005.
http://www.ipl.org/div/potus

MacAlester College~Fines’ Personal Website.  April 27, 2005.  
http://www.macalester.edu/ ~fines/presidents.jpg

Massachusetts Department of Education.  Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.   March 30, 2005.
http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html

Presidents.   April 17, 2005.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0194030.html

“Student’s Guide to Preventing and Avoiding Plagiarism.”   Long Island University.  April 26, 2005.
	http://www.liunet.edu/cwis/cwp/library/exhibits/plagstudent.htm

Whitehouse Kids. Presidential Biographies.   April 6, 2005.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/presidents/

“Works Cited for Grades 6”.  Research and Style Manual.  April 28, 2005
	http://nausetschools.org/research/worksgrade6.htm

World Almanac for Kids.  Presidents.   April 6, 2005.
http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/presidents.html

 Credits:   Carole Perla, Library Media Specialist at the An Wang Middle School, compiled the sites for the Presidential Hotlist.  Her email address is:  cperla@lowell.k12.ma.