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Information
Reports ~ Inspiration
SUMMARY: Students
use the information they learned at Hidden Villa to learn
to write informational essays. The common Hidden Villa experiences
allow for extensive teaching modeling and facilitate peer
support during the writing process. This project also offers
significant review and deepening of the science and social
studies standards introduced during the field trip. DURATION: 3
to 5 weeks GRADES: 4th-5th, can be adapted for 3rd
CALIFORNIA
STANDARDS |
| Learning to organize information in clearly-written paragraphs is a focus of the writing standards for 3rd through 5th grades. This unit's particular emphasis is on harnessing students' enthusiasm about their learning at Hidden Villa, to push them to the next level in their informational writing skills. This unit focuses heavily on teacher modeling and peer support. Students also review science and social studies standards as they address the topics they have chosen for their writing. |
HIDDEN
VILLA GOALS |
| This unit reinforces all of the content information that
students learned at Hidden Villa, very clearly supporting
Hidden Villa's goal to introduce students to basic ecological
concepts, including the interconnection between human social
systems and natural cycles. |
CLASSROOM
RELEVANCE |
Learning to write organized information reports is a great teaching challenge that, in the upper grades, generally spans the entire school year. Teaching the skills of report writing involves acquisition of new knowledge within the classroom context, and becomes considerably harder for those students who stuggle in other academic areas. Because a wide range of other (i.e. non-writing) skills are required to produce an informational report, try to highlight the writing process and isolate it from other academic skills.
Your Hidden Villa field trip offers such an opportunity because students learn information there in such an engaging way, providing the added bonus of heightened student interest and enthusiasm. Several of my students who stuggle immensely with writing excel during our Hidden Villa informational report project. Their excitement from the field trups gives them an internal motivation that helps them focus on my teaching points and their work. |
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