Unit Plans
"The more reflective you are, the more effective you are." -Hall and Simeral
food trip
Let's Go On A Food Trip! (October 2019)
Reflection: This month long project was inspired by the need to understand where our food comes from. Students read an article about food banks around the world that were set in place in cases of extreme disasters. They were excited about the crops they chose. Though there were some crops that had more information than others, I supported those students by helping them find resources. The entire 2-day presentation were student-led, from taking photos of the event and hosting, the students showed exceptional leadership skills throughout the project. There isn't much I would change with how I approached this project other than to choose crops that have more research and cater to what can be found in their surroundings. For example, heirloom tomatoes was a crop that was easily found in the wet markets of Yangon but not found in supermarkets. Therefore, students who didn't go to wet markets had no idea they could find these tomatoes in their community.
publishing party
Publishing Party (March 2020)
By Yunn (402)
Edited by Sienna and Yeji
On March 5, the 5th-grade class, 402, held a publishing party to celebrate the books they wrote during this school year with their parents. Each student had published three books. The party was hosted by their teacher, Ms. Choco, but executed mostly by the students.
There were three main genres that students have written books on: personal narrative, historical fiction, and a chapter book. The first book was a personal narrative, in this genre each author had to write two short stories about their personal experiences. The second book was a historical fiction where the author chooses a historical event and creates characters for the event they have chosen. They wrote this in a journal-style rather than the traditional book format. Finally, the last book was a chapter book based on a story where the author could freely choose any genre from fantasy to realistic fiction.
At the party, the authors read an excerpt from one of their published books. The excerpts would only show a part of the story, enough to lure the reader in but not give too much away. Every single author had a unique story with genres ranging from action to fantasy. The party was mostly student-led, with each student having a job. The hosts leading the party were Thalia, Yunn, Sienna, and Gloria. Photographers and photo booth managers were Winston, Zwe, Dominic, and Jason. Organizing the class layout was done by the logistics team Qing Qing, Yeji, Khant Htel, and Romeesha. In charge of the slides were Caleb, Leo, May Zin, and Hlwan. Each one of them did wonderfully and made the experience professional and fun.
During the presentations, there was time given for parents and teachers to meet with the young authors and ask them questions about their writing process. Although they only had 10 minutes, they were asked many good questions about their books. Snacks and drinks were also served at the party. Although this was very minor, it added more of a party feel. There was also a photo booth where parents and their child could take a photo, there were also props on a table nearby. A slides presentation was also held, the slides managers helped design the slides and play them during the excerpts. Setting the seats and tables and timing were done by the logistics, they helped place the seats and tables while also making sure everyone was on time. They couldn’t have done the party without all of these wonderful helpers.
By Yunn (402)
Edited by Sienna and Yeji
On March 5, the 5th-grade class, 402, held a publishing party to celebrate the books they wrote during this school year with their parents. Each student had published three books. The party was hosted by their teacher, Ms. Choco, but executed mostly by the students.
There were three main genres that students have written books on: personal narrative, historical fiction, and a chapter book. The first book was a personal narrative, in this genre each author had to write two short stories about their personal experiences. The second book was a historical fiction where the author chooses a historical event and creates characters for the event they have chosen. They wrote this in a journal-style rather than the traditional book format. Finally, the last book was a chapter book based on a story where the author could freely choose any genre from fantasy to realistic fiction.
At the party, the authors read an excerpt from one of their published books. The excerpts would only show a part of the story, enough to lure the reader in but not give too much away. Every single author had a unique story with genres ranging from action to fantasy. The party was mostly student-led, with each student having a job. The hosts leading the party were Thalia, Yunn, Sienna, and Gloria. Photographers and photo booth managers were Winston, Zwe, Dominic, and Jason. Organizing the class layout was done by the logistics team Qing Qing, Yeji, Khant Htel, and Romeesha. In charge of the slides were Caleb, Leo, May Zin, and Hlwan. Each one of them did wonderfully and made the experience professional and fun.
During the presentations, there was time given for parents and teachers to meet with the young authors and ask them questions about their writing process. Although they only had 10 minutes, they were asked many good questions about their books. Snacks and drinks were also served at the party. Although this was very minor, it added more of a party feel. There was also a photo booth where parents and their child could take a photo, there were also props on a table nearby. A slides presentation was also held, the slides managers helped design the slides and play them during the excerpts. Setting the seats and tables and timing were done by the logistics, they helped place the seats and tables while also making sure everyone was on time. They couldn’t have done the party without all of these wonderful helpers.
Reflection: This was just before COVID-19 made the school close and I'm glad that we were able to display their works to their parents and peers. They were really challenged to create 3 books or differing genres and I had the task of publishing them. I would gladly do this unit again and would work on being more organized with their writing.
rooftop garden
Reflection: Students learned about the need for more plants and were presented with a project of building their own school garden. They raised funds and crafted a proposal which was presented to key stakeholders of the school. They took a trip to the nursery and bought plants that were within their budget and constraints, knowing they possibly couldn't take care of it every single day.
In the summer, the rain made a huge impact and the rooftop was no longer there. I was also not as knowledgeable of plants but now know better of their maintenance and sun patterns. I would in the future like to have a space for gardening because of its benefits on health and impact on the environment. |
media literacy Debate
Reflection: It all began with the quest to produce students who are critical media consumers. They all chose a topic they wanted to research more about: 1) screen time, 2) are video games bad, and 3) spelling and grammar with the use of social media.
They were divided into groups who helped each other understand the pros and cons of the debate. After their initial research, groups were divided into the for and against. They quickly learned how to structure a debate. Finishing their presentations, I realized that I could have better prepared them for how to organize their arguments and to speak more fluently, looking at their audience. |
slam poetry
Reflection: Not everyone is born like Shakespeare and I wanted to create some fun with the students in terms of their poem styles. They've been learning how to speak fluently in prose and wanted to take that up a level. Students wrote their own slam poetry, memorized it and added actions to capture their audience's attention. The difficulty in teaching slam poetry is that it is freestyle and that amount of freedom made a lot of students paralyzed. I would like to be more mindful of scaffolding this since I understand that they could enjoy the writing process better this way.
mission nutrition
Reflection: It was fun to have students learn what was available to them in Yangon and to understand that not all food are created equal. The students created their own digital cookbook that listed recipes in which ingredients were accessible and took less time to cook altogether.
To test their recipes, they had to create them and sell these to the school. They learned about hygiene and sanitation, wearing gloves any time they handled food. They also became well versed in giving change as one person needed to do the math. I would like to make this PBL unit better by having a clear goal and a more sustainable solution. Meaning that the recipes they create could be included in the menu at the cafeteria. |
Risk
Reflection: This is one of the first PBL units I implemented after attending the workshop and it was overwhelming. I adapted this unit from PBLWorks and tailored it to my students in Myanmar. The result was astounding. The students learned so much about why their parents/grandparents risked leaving their homes to move to Yangon.
The students were group based on themes or reasons for moving. They created a Choose Your Own Adventure story taking elements from their real stories collected from interviews. When it was time to showcase their work, they enjoyed sharing with their classmates and other students in the elementary school. I could see myself implementing this project better by knowing what technology platforms I could use for these adventure stories such as Google Slides and linking slides together. At the time, I used another platform that I do not have access to anymore. |
geometrocity
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Geometrocity: A City Made of Math (September 2017)
By Cun Sue & Steven (407) Edited by Ms. Choco The class of Room 407 was chosen by the City Council of Geometrocity to design a new city made entirely out of math concepts. We were the lead architects responsible for creating a city that had specific design elements that had to be included in parts of the city. There were many phases that we had undergone to create the final output. In Phase 1, we had to get our permits. We took many quizzes before we were approved to build. In Phase 2, we designed parts of the city but using math concepts such as lines, 2D shapes and more. Before we put up buildings, we had to choose the layout of our city in Phase 3. Then in Phase 4, we cut out some nets to make 3D shapes to glue onto our maps. Phase 5 was all about assessing how well we worked together by circling if we did fair, good or excellent. Lastly, in Phase 6 we made postcards to tell visitors about Geometrocity. We made this city because we were learning about 2D and 3D shapes. During this project, we felt very tired but in the end, it was still fun building it. Reflection: This project allowed students to use their previous knowledge of 2D and 3D shapes. For sure there were some frustrations that came about when working in groups, however, they quickly forgot that when they saw the whole thing put together. It was also great as a teacher to stand back and see them work in their respective groups. |
erosion
Weathering and Erosion Unit (August 2017)
Over the past few weeks, the scientists have been learning about the Rock Cycle. To learn more about the movement of weathered rocks by natural forces, they got a chance to see erosion in many forms: by water and by wind. Four interactive stations were set up in the lab and each group had about 5 minutes in each station to observe what happens. They were to draw a before and after illustration as well as to write a sentence about their observations. After their time was up, they would move to the next station until they had gone through all. When they got back to the classroom, they did two rounds of turn and talk with their classmates before discussing as a class. They all noticed that water and wind can carry tiny rocks to other places, thus discovering more about erosion.
Reflection: These interactive stations are a great way to learn more about erosion. I had done the same stations the previous year and not only did the scientists enjoy but also had a first-hand experience on how weathered rocks move from place to place by natural forces. These interactive stations also need no more than 10 minutes to set up. However, the clean up can be a bit messy from all the water and sand mixing together. Totally worth it for the students, though!
Over the past few weeks, the scientists have been learning about the Rock Cycle. To learn more about the movement of weathered rocks by natural forces, they got a chance to see erosion in many forms: by water and by wind. Four interactive stations were set up in the lab and each group had about 5 minutes in each station to observe what happens. They were to draw a before and after illustration as well as to write a sentence about their observations. After their time was up, they would move to the next station until they had gone through all. When they got back to the classroom, they did two rounds of turn and talk with their classmates before discussing as a class. They all noticed that water and wind can carry tiny rocks to other places, thus discovering more about erosion.
Reflection: These interactive stations are a great way to learn more about erosion. I had done the same stations the previous year and not only did the scientists enjoy but also had a first-hand experience on how weathered rocks move from place to place by natural forces. These interactive stations also need no more than 10 minutes to set up. However, the clean up can be a bit messy from all the water and sand mixing together. Totally worth it for the students, though!
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the scientific method
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The Scientific Method (August 2017)
To introduce the scientific method, scientists watched a video on BrainPOP and took some notes of key words such as: observation, problem, hypothesis, etc. Then, there was a group activity where they had to unscramble letters of the different steps in the scientific method as well as to order them. This gave the scientists a chance to know the difference between each step in the scientific method. We practiced the scientific method by discovering how to make Oobleck. Lab roles were introduced to ensure that everyone was responsible. The groups were given the materials but were not told of the procedure and cornstarch to water ratio. They filled in the scientific method graphic organizer before keeping track of how many spoons of cornstarch and water were used. At the end, the students were able to find that a 1:2 cornstarch to water ratio was needed to have the right consistency for Oobleck. Reflection: The scientists enjoyed making Oobleck and maybe had too much fun that they didn't pay attention when it was time to clean up and thus, ended up being late for recess. Next meeting we are to discuss some science lab agreements before returning to the lab. Overall, the activity got the students engaged and excited for future science lab ventures. |
The writing process
The Writing Process (March 2020)
By Qing Qing (402) Edited by Sienna and Yeji First, the authors had to design a story arc and brainstorm their ideas. They had to include an exposition, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They also added the main characters, setting, and the author’s lesson. Then, they had to do story pacing which is planning how long you will work on a part, by drawing long squares or rectangles to show how much time they will spend on that part. Afterward, they had to do chapter pacing, where they write the chapter and what they will focus on that chapter. Next comes drafting, where they worked on channeling those thoughts onto paper. They would write the skeleton of the story. It didn’t matter if it had bad grammar since the editing part comes later. Finally, the editing and revising stage. For this stage, they fixed all grammar mistakes and unclarity in their story. Actually, seniors from ISM came to help edit their stories, their advice was very helpful. The students used it to make their stories reach the extra mile. Although some were short, they strived for the quality over quantity in their stories. To pay homage to the high schoolers for helping edit their work and being such a big part in their story-making, they visited them and showed them the published copy. It was very exciting to see the high schoolers read their buddy’s finished copy, it was an exciting time for everyone. Reflection: Each student grew in their writing abilities and the addition of getting help from the seniors brought something else to the table. This experience is something I would like to do again if the opportunity presents itself because both learn something from each other. |
Interactive research folders
All photos above are posted with permission.
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