Digital Writing Lesson Plans
Web Based Text
Synopsis: Students will create a (creative) non-fiction website that explores an issue or event in History. The website must include research based details about the issue, and include (where appropriate) hyperlinks, video, audio, images or other graphics that support the information and content of the webpage.Materials:
Students need access to computers, or tablet devices.
They will need to view Road Map to Research Presentation, and have access to internet research resources and library research resources relevant to their topic.
Pens or pencils, Paper.
Color-coded strips of paper in seven different colors.
MMAPS heuristic handout
Procedure:
1) As a class, view and discuss the Road Map to Research Presentation. Students may take notes, or teacher may provide handout.
2) Allow students time to research. They should answer the guiding questions discussed in the presentation in their notes (either in an online Google Doc, saving websites and information to Pinterest, or on paper and kept in an Inquiry Box) to help them collect and analyze appropriate information.
(If you haven't already, teacher should discuss what constitutes a reliable source)
3) Students need to synthesize their information and find a way of organizing.
A good way to help students is to have them complete a TRIPSQA activity.
-- Hand students seven different color-coded strips.
-- Students need to label the strips making sure to label the same color strip
with the same title (color coding is at the discretion of the teacher).
Strips should be labeled:
Topic
Restatement
Illustration
Problem
Solution
Question
Answer
-- On each strip students can record and develop their paragraph
information. Students may not use every strip (may use
Problem/Solution or Question/Answer)
-- After the strips are complete, students may manipulate their strips
to determine the order and organization of their text.
4) Next, students need to set-up their webpages. This is done best in a guided lesson.
Wiki Spaces will let students create multi-page websites with links, images and other graphics. Teachers can also set up class spaces and projects. In the words of Troy Hicks, "I encourage you to search for a tutorial on Youtube."
One note: Wiki Spaces does not have much in the way of text fonts, and other graphic design options. It is easier however, to link to pages within the wiki than in other website generators. Blogger, as another option, has much more beautiful templates and graphics options for web page design.
5) Teacher should model how to set up the webpage, what information to include, how to incorporate links and graphics. Thinking out loud, a teacher should demonstrate the following question stems:
-- I have chosen to include this information in this order because...
-- I am adding this link to an external site because...
-- This video will help my reader understand....
-- I need to put this graphic image here because ...
-- I am using this background/font/color because ...
6) Allow students time to build their webpages. Students should pay attention to the quality of the text they write, the effectiveness of link and graphics, and the overall design of the page and whether it contributes to their message.
6) Have students complete MMAPS heuristic to evaluate their webpage.
Mode: the genre of the text
Media: the form(s) in which the text is created
Audience: the reader, listener, or viewer of the text both intended
and incidental
Purpose: the action the author takes, in both an academic and personal sense
Situation: the context for the writer and the demands of the writing task
Student should be able to justify why they chose the mode and media, and how the mode and media will accomplish the author's purpose towards the intended audience.
7) Have student publish the webpages and share!
Assessment: Students should be assessed on an Analytic Scale according to what the teacher and the students agree was taught during the unit. Here is a sample scale.
Examples of Web Text Digital Writing
Digital Presentation
Synopsis: Students will create a mind map of a character that they would like to feature in a story. (This can be adapted to study characterization in novel or drama, or to build a profile of a historical figure).Materials:
Pen, paper.
Students will need access to computers or tablets, and access to the internet.
Students will need account access to Mindomo.com where they can create their character in a mind map.
A mentor text to teach characterization
*If adapting for other use, will need text documents where character is featured.
Procedure:
1) As a class, discuss favorite characters (both protagonists, supporting and antagonists). Guiding questions include: What do the characters do that we like or dislike? Why?
What characteristics do the characters have, and how do those characteristics make them seem real? What interests and goals do the characters have? How do their interests and goals motivate them to act, and how do their interests and goals keep the audience interested in the character?
2) Find a mentor text to teach the methods of characterization (action, dialogue, thoughts and emotions). A good example is The Story of Fish and Snail by Deborah Freedman. Read the text two times outloud, once to hear the story and a second time looking at how the characters think, act, feel and say.
3) Using the mentor text, have students identify the main character's Feelings, Actions, Speech, and Thoughts and document them on a FAST chart.
Then, have students use the information recorded on the FAST chart as clues to discover the personality, goals and interests of the character.
(This is a great place for discussion of flat vs round, and static vs dynamic characters)
A great resource for characterization is NaNoWriMo Young Writer's Workbook. The workbooks have a wonderful section that discusses characters and what to think about when building them.
4) Next, have students create their own characters. Based on your class's study, you can create with your students what kind of criteria you character needs to have to be a complete character. Examples include: Four personality traits (including one flaw or weakness), a goal or a want, three physical traits, and a hobby or interest. Students may work independently or in pairs.
If adapting this as a character study of a fictional or historical figure, students can now use the FAST chart independently (or in groups) to identify the personality traits, goals and interests, and physical traits of their character.
5) Model for the students how to use Mindomo.com. Students can use the mind mapping program to illustrate the different characteristics of their character. Students can insert pictures of actors or people that look like their character, can find and insert graphics and videos (homemade or downloaded from the internet) of things their character likes or says, and even record audio clips.
Students should be able to give textual evidence for the traits they identify. For example they should include what the character or historical figure did/say/thought/felt that demonstrates any trait they include on their map.
6) Allow students to publish their character maps and share!
Assessment: Students should be assessed on an Analytic Scale according to what the teacher and the students agree was taught during the unit.
Example of Digital Presentation
Audio and Video Text
Audio Texts
Synopsis:Poetry is written to be shared aloud. Therefore, to fully understand and appreciate poetry, students need exposure to reading and listening to poetry.
Students will analyze a poem, and demonstrate their understanding by synthesizing an audio performance. As an extension, students will create a poem in response (one that shares a similar theme, tone or message, or address the same topic from a different point of view).
Materials:
Copies of a poem to analyze (teacher or student choice)
TPCASTT template (see below)
Access to computers or tablets, and the internet.
Access to audio editing program (like Audacity)
Pen, paper, highlighters
Procedure:
1) Pass out copies of the poem that students will be analyzing and performing (or have students take out the copies of the poem they chose).
Encourage students to analyze the poem over multiple readings.
One way is to use TPCASTT template.
Teacher may need to model how to make these decisions in a whole group setting. Guiding questions include: What music can I include that might help add to the tone and mood of this poem? Are there places in the reading that I hear a sound effect in my head? Can I include that in my performance? What is the most important word in this stanza, how can I emphasize it to my readers? Should I pause at the end of the line, at this comma, at this stanza break? Why or why not?
Students may even want to write a short introduction or conclusion to share in their performance.
3) When students have made most of their performance decisions, they should be able to start recording their presentations on the audio editing program. Teacher will need to model how to edit. Audacity Tutorials may also help students navigate the program.
4) Students can publish and share their finished recordings in class, or online (using Google Drive).
5) Students may choose to respond to their own poem or another shared poem.
Student should pre-write for 5-10 minutes, responding to the poem they read. They can make a text-text connection, text-world connection, or text-self connection. They can comment on their thoughts or emotions during the reading.
Guiding questions: How does my understanding of the poem change from reading it silently on paper, to hearing it read aloud? How did the music, and other sound effects add to my understanding?
Extension:
6) Using their pre-write, students will write their own poem.
7) Similar to Step 1 and Step 2, students should analyze their own poems and prepare for their audio performance of their own poem.
8) Allow students time to record and edit their audio performances.
9) Publish and share!!
Assessment: Students should be assessed on an Analytic Scale according to what the teacher and the students agree was taught during the unit.
Video Text
Synopsis: Students will create news broadcasts that explain the 5W's and H, and present a balanced report of an event. This can be done as part of a Current Events project, or as a historical broadcast about an event in history, or as a creative look at plot, cause/effect, sequencing, theme from a novel or short story.Materials:
Access to computer or tablets.
Access to the internet and video editing programs (I suggest iMovie)
Pen, paper, highlighters
*If adapting this to a historical event or novel study, will need documents that present accounts of the event/ copies of the novel or story
Procedure:
1) Introduce the 5Ws and H:
Who is involved in the story? Who is affected by the event?
What happened?
When did it happen, or will it happen?
Where did it happen? Where will be affected by the event?
Why did it happen (the causes)? Why is it important?
How did it happen (the instrument)? How will it affect others
(the relationship)?
2) Students need to investigate their topic or event. They will need to write interview questions, conduct interviews and research to find the answers so that they can construct their news story using the 5Ws and H.
Note: Interview questions should always be open ended, and invite the interviewee to respond in their own words. Questions that start with "Do" are discouraged because they are typically yes/no questions.
It is very important that student film their interviews, so that they can use footage from the interview in their news broadcasts!!!!!
(If adapting this for historical event or novel study, students at this stage would write questions for the characters or historical figures and use textual justification for creating answers to their questions.)
3) Next, students need to plan and write their news stories. These can be simple summary stories, or news format stories. I've included a handout that my Journalism students use to help organize and walk them through each step from interview through outline.
This process should be modeled!
News Story Planning Sheet
4) Students can now use pens and highlighters to annotate their stories marking words they would like to emphasize, places to pause and stop in the story, and notating which images or interview footage they would like to insert into their broadcast and when.
This also needs to be modeled!!
Guiding questions include: Which words are most important to getting my point across? What image or graphic could best illustrate this point? What clips from the interview are most compelling and where would they fit best in our story?
5) Allow students time to edit their videos. Students may use a template, or create their own project.
6) Publish and share.
Assessment: Students should be assessed on an Analytic Scale according to what the teacher and the students agree was taught during the unit.
Example of Audio and Video Texts
I think kids would be so incredibly proud of creating their own websites! They would totally take ownership of it and put forth A LOT of effort!
ReplyDelete