INDEPENDENT PROJECT DESIGN

Name of Project:
Strive to Thrive

Duration:
4 weeks

Subject/Course/Topic:
Health - Redefining Success

Designers:
Alyssa Goheen, Katherine Roth & Tracy Knecht

School: Red Deer College (potentially expanded to schools throughout the

city)

Grade Level:
All

Supervising Teacher: N/A

Signature:

Date:

Budget/Expenses (if any): N/A

Significant Content
(Learning Outcomes,
Objectives of Project)

Learning Outcomes: (What learning outcomes can be met through your project? Is your project connected to the curriculum in
any way? What will be your learning outcomes? Are your outcomes written in student-friendly language (e.g. I Will, I Can))
EDES 340:
2. Students will demonstrate understanding of the importance of creating a brain compatible classroom, and will learn
principles of
how this impacts teaching and learning.
5. Students will develop the understanding that all students can learn by having their needs met in a variety of ways,
and to
identify these different learning styles through a differentiated approach to learning.
6. Students will utilize various technologies to communicate, research, present and deliver content in a
teaching/learning context.
7. Students will demonstrate desirable qualities of a professional educator and life-long learner as well as growth as a
reflective
practitioner.
Alberta Education:
Scope and Sequence Exemplar

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Objectives: (What do you hope to learn from completing this project? What do you hope others will learn through this
project?)
Success is not determined solely by money and power. Contrary to Western societys current portrayal, there are additional
elements we must consider in our definition of success. Through this self-directed learning project, participants will conduct an
in-depth investigation into the third metric of success, as introduced by Arianna Huffington in her critically acclaimed book
Thrive. The objective of this study is to gain a deeper insight into 4 specific aspects of success and the various ways in which we
can implement these elements in both our personal lives and our classrooms.

21st Century
Competencies

Collaboration & Leadership

- merging ideas to create a shared vision of
success
- speak with peers/teachers to get ideas
into the community
Communication
- using podcast and reflective blogs to
communicate the importance of all the
competencies listed
- all team members discuss thoughts during
podcasts
- discussion with various teachers
Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
- reflection blogs (metacognition)

Project Summary

Creativity and Innovation

- peer and self-assessment
- explore new ideas regarding success

Computer Literacy
- blogs
- podcasts

Others: (Cultural Understanding, Career & Life Skills, etc.)

- moving away from the cultural belief that
grades, material items, money, etc. = success
- Learning what success is and how to be
successful (thriving)

Description: (What will your project look like? How would you describe it?)
This self-directed learning project will consist of a 4 week study on the various elements of success and the ways in which we can
incorporate these elements into our lives more mindfully and purposefully. Each week will focus on a specific aspect of the 4 pillars that
form the third metric of success (wellness, wisdom, wonder and giving), as introduced by Arianna Huffington in her novel Thrive. Over
these week-long intensives, we will conduct independent research in each specific field, pose critical questions to one another, log selfreflection blogs/journals about our thoughts, feelings and experiences, and communicate our findings through a summary podcast at the
end of each week. As a final assignment, we will present our ideas at a public showcase to demonstrate our acquired knowledge and
spread awareness of the significance of this topic in our lives both personally and in the realm of education.

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Rationale: (How does this project fit into what we are learning in our program as a whole, and why is it important for a
future middle
years teacher? How does this project impact what you have learned in other courses (e.g. curriculum, planning,
teaching)?)
As future teachers, we have the responsibility of modelling behaviours conducive to learning the classroom. If our individual view of
success revolves around things like marks, ranking and being competitive rather than collaborative, we project anxiety. By shifting our
views of success to focus on wellness, wisdom, wonder and giving, we learn to thrive in life. This fits into our program as it promotes
effective teaching and learning in a middle school environment, where studies have shown major issues in terms of emotional health.

Driving Question

Driving Question: (What is the major inquiry question/problem to be addressed through your project?)

What does it mean to be successful?

Entry Event

Entry Event: (What caused you to enter into this topic/event?)

With all the mental health issues arising today and the discussion based around its origin, we were inspired to enter into this topic as a
way to spark change. Our society focuses greatly on success as having power and money, which creates a lot of pressure to excel from a
very young age. We have been inspired to view success a different way from reading Ariana Huffingtons book, Thrive, which focuses on
wellness, wisdom, wonder and giving as methods to finding true success in life. We hope to take this attitude and implement it to
educators so that they may model behaviours which help improve mental and emotional health for school-age children.

Products/Evaluation:

How will you evaluate

the learning which took
place through this
project?
What criteria or methods
will be used to evaluate
this project? How will
others evaluate your
project? How will you
determine the remaining
20% of your project
evaluation?

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Individual:
Personal Blogs, Self-Reflections, Self-Evaluations/Peer-Evaluations
(checklist), Mapping our growth via growth chart, feedback from
instructor (Brent) and mentors (Maxine/Anomi)

Specific content and competencies to be assessed. Provide

evidence of how this will be assessed (e.g. survey, questionnaire,
rubric, checklists, feedback from others, etc.)

Team:
Rubric for evaluation from Maxine, podcasts and team discussions,
weekly questions created by team members for blogging, final
blogs/podcasts

Specific content and competencies to be assessed. Provide evidence

of how this will be assessed (e.g. survey, questionnaire, rubric,
checklists, feedback from others etc.)

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Public Audience
(Experts, audiences, or
product users that you will
engage with during/at end of
project)

Resources Needed:
What resources will you
use to complete your
project (e.g. print, media,
guest speakers, internet,
community facilities,
etc.)? How will
you access these resources
for your project? How
will others access them?

- Middle Years cohort/instructors

- Showcase attendees
- Potential future audience members should we continue and expand on the project (which is something we are
greatly interested in doing).

On-site people, facilities:

- Brent Galloway (EDES 340 Instructor)
- Maxine Evans (RDC Mindfulness Workshops)
- Anomi Bearden (RDC Health/Social Psychology Instructor)
- Suzanne Blackwell (RDC Yoga Instructor)
Equipment:
-

computer
recording device

Thrive by Arianna Huffington

Internet (research)
- TEDTalks
- YouTube
- Social Media (Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, etc)
- Scholarly Articles
- Blogs
- Science/Wellness Journals
- etc
Newspaper articles

Materials:

Community Resources:
- Teachers/resiliency teacher @ Westpark

Reflection Methods
(Individual, Team, and/or
Whole Class)

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Journal/Learning Log/Blog
- Individual journal/reflection
- Team Podcast

Checklist
- Peer/individual checklist for formative
evaluation
- Team checklist (Maxine Evans?)

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Discussions (with peers, students, supervisors)

- Team Podcast discussions

Survey

Questionnaire
- N/A

Other:

N/A

Rubric (Maxine Evans?)

Timelines: What are the major timelines for this project (e.g. The Big Things Calendar)? What is the best sequence for acquiring the skills/knowledge
required of your project objectives? What are the small tasks to be completed and when do they need to be done? Attach a Task List that breaks down all
expected tasks of this project, tentative due-dates, and who is responsible for the completion of each task (e.g. See attached Sample Task List)
View our Teams Google Calendar and Task List

Final Product(s)
Presentations,
Performances,
Products and/or
Services
(individual and/or
team)

Learning Outcomes/Targets
How will you demonstrate the content &
21st century competencies that were
acquired through the completion of this
project?
2. Students will demonstrate understanding
of the importance of creating a brain
compatible classroom, and will learn
principles of how this impacts teaching and
learning.
- study the ways specific
elements of success affect brain
compatible learning/classrooms
through independent research, selfreflection blogs, and group
discussions
- (creativity and innovation,
communication, cultural, social and
global understanding, collaboration
and leadership)

Checkpoints/Formative Assessments
How will you check for learning and ensure
that you (and others) are on track?

Individual

accountability/reflection blogs
- Independent research:
notes and resources collaborative
document
- Providing questions for
other group members
- Weekly group
meetings/discussions
- Mentor evaluations (Maxine
Evans)
- Meeting with Brent

Instructional Strategies for All Learners

provided by you/teacher/other
staff/experts/students;
includes documentation such as materials,
lessons aligned to learning outcomes,
formative assessments
-

Brainstorming and

Discussion
- Writing and Journals
- Technology
- Project-Based/ProblemBased Learning
- DiscoveryBased/Exploratory Learning
- Additional strategies used
by each individual in their own
studies and research (ie music,
visuals, humor, etc)

5. Students will develop the understanding

For more PBL resources visit bie.org

PROJECT TEMPLATE ADAPTED FROM 2014 BUCK INSTITUTE FOR EDUCATION

that all students can learn by having their

needs met in a variety of ways, and to
identify these different learning styles
through a differentiated approach to
learning.
- study the ways in which we
can alter our societys view of
success to accommodate a more
holistic approach and the ways we
can incorporate this view into our
own lives and the classroom (ie less
power/material-based, more
focused on
wellness/wonder/wisdom/giving)
- meeting individual needs
and achieving success through a
variety of approaches
- researching, studying,
reflecting and making sense of new
information in a manner that is
meaningful to each individual on
our team
- (career and life skills,
creativity and innovation)
6. Students will utilize various technologies
to communicate, research, present and
deliver content in a teaching/learning
context.
- researching via internet
- reflecting via blog
- sharing our
discussions/discoveries via podcast,
social media, etc
- (computers and technology)
7. Students will demonstrate desirable
qualities of a professional educator and lifelong learner as well as growth as a
For more PBL resources visit bie.org

PROJECT TEMPLATE ADAPTED FROM 2014 BUCK INSTITUTE FOR EDUCATION

reflective practitioner.
- reflection blogs
- group discussions (podcasts)
- exploring and developing a
different perspective on success
that supports us as individuals,
teachers and students
- (critical thinking, career
and life skills, collaboration and
leadership)

For more PBL resources visit bie.org

PROJECT TEMPLATE ADAPTED FROM 2014 BUCK INSTITUTE FOR EDUCATION