Project Template - 5 Points

Name Melissa Buskey

Date Spring 2014
Project Title Tour Across the Country
Grade
Level/Subject
Area(s)
5
th
Grade
Social Studies/ELA
Purpose Students will be learning about different regions of the country. They will be
learning about the geography of the land, landmarks, what the area is known
for, etc.
CCLS/ISTE
Standards
5.RI.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to
write or speak about the subject knowledgeably

5.RI.10 Read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social
studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of grade 4-5 text
complexity band independently and proficiently

5.W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey
ideas and information clearly

5.W.7 Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build
knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic

5.SL.4 Report on a topic or text or present an opinion, sequencing ideas
logically, and using appropriate facts relevant, descriptive details to support
main ideas or themes, speak clearly at an understandable pace

SS Standard 3 Geography: Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate
their understanding of the geography of the interdependent world in which
we livelocal, national, and globalincluding the distribution of people,
places, and environments over the Earths surface

SS Standard 4 Economics: Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate
their understanding of how the United States and other societies develop
economic systems and associated institutions to allocate scarce resources,
how major decision-making units function in the U.S. and other national
economies, and how an economy solves the scarcity problem through market
and nonmarket mechanisms.

ISTE Standard 3.B Research and information fluency: Students apply
digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Locate, organize,
analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of
sources and media

ISTE Standard 2.A Communication and collaboration: Students use digital
media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of
others. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others
employing a variety of digital environments and media
Desired
Outcome -
Knowledge
Students will be able to label major bodies of water, mountains, deserts,
and the states within their region.
Student will be able to explain the major landmarks and areas of tourist
attraction in their region.
Students will be able to describe major sources of commerce in their
region.
Desired
Outcome - Skills
Students will be able to read a map of the area in order to locate different
aspects of the region.
Students will be able to create a map of their region.
Students will be able to create a multi-media kit for tourist going through
their region of the country.
Essential
Question(s)
What information does a traveler in this area need to know to make the
most of their trip through this region of America?
How can we create a kit to entertain and educate kids about the region
they are visiting?

Project Plan - 5 Points
Phase 1: Set the stage Show an episode of Postcards from Buster and
discuss how Buster introduces us to the area he is
visiting
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OS37QG0Ht0
Discuss and brainstorm what you want to know when
you are going to visit a new area
Preview the different regions that make up the US
Give each student a letter from the travel ambassador.
The letter will state that tourism of families across the
country has declining because kids are getting bored
on the car rides and parents dont know where to visit.
They need help! The students are challenged to create
a travel kit that both entertains kids while educating
them about the specific region. The letter also tells
students which region they will be researching.
Phase 2: Engage students
Have groups meet with travel agents to get information
about enticing tourist to areas and types of features to
highlight
Have groups set up a time to skype a class within the
region that they are studying. Before they skype, have
the group email interview questions to the teacher so
the class can be prepared
Students will conduct research using books and
internet sources to collect data about their region
Students will design a map for their travel kit so kids
can track where they are. On the map they need to
include significant geography (mountains, rivers, etc.)
as well as suggested places to stop (cities/landmarks).
The states in that region should also be labeled.
Create a brochure or a movie to highlight information
about the region.
Develop any type of game kids can play which is
educational about the area.
Create a display board with relevant information about
the region to be shown at the booth during the road
trip presentation. On the display board, students
should include an info-gram about some facts of the
area.
0Phase 3: Culminating
event
The culminating event is a road trip around the country.
Each region will set up an area with information about their
region including the travel kit they have created. The class
rotates through each region as students present their project.
Each student will have a travel log to record information they
learn in each area.

Project Schedule - 5 Points
Include a calendar overview of the sequence of lessons
Time Frame Objective Task
2-3 Lessons Student will be provided with
background information about how the
country is divided into region and be
given details about their task.
See phase 1 for details on the tasks
for this section.
1-1.5 weeks Students will gather and record
information about their assigned
region.
See phase 2 for more details on the
tasks for this section.
Meet with a travel agent
Skype a class from the region
Use books and internet to
gather information about the
region
2-2.5 weeks Students will develop and create
materials to include in their travel kit.
See phase 2 for more details on the
tasks for this section.
Make a box to contain all of
the travel kit material.
Create a map for the region
Create an info-gram about
facts for the region
Design a brochure or an
informative movie about the
region
Design an educational game
about the region
Make a display board with
quick facts about the
region.
1 day Students will present what they have
learned in an information fair type
setting.
See phase 3 for details on the
culminating road trip event.

Monitoring/Assessing the Project - 5 Points
Benchmarks/Formative
Assessments
A lot of this project is going to be monitored by the students.
Each phase will have a time limit but there wont be specific
deadlines for each task within the phase. Tasks can also be
done in any order. Groups will have a checklist of things to
accomplish. They will also create their own deadlines to add to
the checklist. The groups will also be monitored on the
smartboard. They will mark off when their group has
accomplished the task so the teacher can do a quick check of
progress.
Assessing the Project There will be rubrics for each of the smaller projects. These
rubrics will be shared with groups beforehand so they know
exactly what to include. A rubric will also be used to evaluate
their final presentation. All rubrics will come together to form the
final grade. Students travel logs will also be checked for signs
of attentiveness during the road trip.
Evaluating the
Experience
Students will complete a group reflection together about how
the project and the presentation went. Students will also
complete a survey individually to reflect of the experience.