Unit Plan: What does it take to change the World? Grade 7 & 8

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1 Unit Plan: What does it take to change the World? Grade 7 & 8 Unit Overview Unit Plan Title: Curriculum-Framing Questions Essential Question Unit Questions Technology In Our World? What does it take to change the world? What does it mean to go Green? How does society benefit from using green technology? Content Questions What is a greeniologist? Determine between renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. Does the location of a company affect the company s profit? What does Reduce, Reuse and Recycle mean? What is a database? Unit Summary: In this semester long unit, students will be learning what is means to go green. They will research how environmental factors affect our society. Their project will be to create a green company. They will have to: determine the best location of their company by comparing salaries of various staff members; create a database to keep client information; create a marketing presentation to explain societal benefits of their product. Teachers will submit a sample of student s work to Instructional Technology by the end of May. Subject Area(s): Business Education Engineering Home Economics Language Arts Music School to Career Social Studies Drama Foreign Language Industrial Technology Math Physical Education Science Technology Targeted State Frameworks/Content Standards/Benchmarks: Technology Standards: 1. Creativity and Innovation: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. 2. Communication and Collaboration: Students will interact, collaborate, and publish with peers employing a variety of digital environments and media. 3. Research Information Fluency: Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. 4. Critical Thinking, Problem-solving, and Decision-making: Students plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project. 6. Technology Operations and Concepts: Students understand and use technology systems. 1

2 Students select and use applications effectively and productively. Science: Gr. 7 Obj. 32 (1.2 F. a) Identify the different energy transformations that occur between different systems (e.g., chemical energy in battery converted to electricity in circuit converted to light and heat from a bulb). Obj. 33 (1.2 F. b) Recognize that, during an energy transformation, heat is often transferred from one object (system) to another because of a difference in temperature. Obj. 34 (1.2 F. c) Recognize energy is not lost but conserved as it is transferred and transformed. Obj. 35 (5.3 A. a) Distinguish between renewable (e.g., geothermal, hydroelectric) and non-renewable (e.g., fossil fuels) energy sources. Gr. 8 Obj. 207 (8.3.B.a) Describe ways in which science and society influence one another (e.g., scientific knowledge and the procedures used by scientists influence the way many individuals in society think about themselves, others and the environment; societal challenges often inspire questions for scientific research; social priorities often influence research priorities through the availability of funding for research. Obj. 208 (8.3.B.a) Identify and evaluate the physical, social, economic, and/or environmental problems that may be overcome using science and technology. Social Studies: Gr. 7 Obj. 29 (CS 4 Economic Concepts) (A.1) (G1.2) Explain the four basic economic questions a society must answer: What to produce, how to produce, how much to produce, and for whom to produce. Obj. 32 (D.4) (G 1.5) Identify the locations of economic activities on surrounding areas. Obj 34 (D.4) (G 3.6) Explain the consequences of personal and public economic decisions. Obj. 35 (C.3) (G 1.6) Interpret the past, explain the present, and predict future consequences of economic decisions. Gr. 8 Obj. 8 (C3) G. 2.1) Create maps, graphs, timelines, charts and diagrams to communicate information. Obj. 9 (D4) (G 2.6) Use technological tools for research and presentation. Obj. 11 (F.6) (G 1.8) Identify, research and defend a point of view/position. Obj. 10 (E.5) (G 1.7) Distinguish between fact and opinion and how to recognize bias and points of view. Communication Arts: Gr. 8 Obj. 82 (1L1B8) (CA2, CA3, 1.2, 1.4, 1.7) Locate and use primary and secondary sources to investigate research topics. Obj. 33 (LS2A8) (CA1, CA6, 2.1, 2.3) In discussion and presentations, incorporate media or technology. Obj. 34 (1L1C8) (CA2, CA3, CA4, 1.2, 1.8) Record relevant information using a variety of note-taking and organizational strategies. Math: Gr. 7 Obj. 33 (D1A8) (1.2) Formulate questions, design studies and collect data about a characteristic. Obj. 34 (D2B8) (3.6) Compare different representations of the same data and evaluate how well each representation shows important aspects of the data. Student Objectives/Learning Outcomes: Can evaluate the accuracy, relevance, appropriateness, and bias of electronic information sources. Can describe how technology changes to reflect the new needs and wants. Can use a variety of tools to communicate effectively Can discuss how technology has influenced changes in society and the benefits of the changes. Can access and manipulate databases to find specific information. Can access and manipulate spreadsheets to find specific information. Can conduct research using digital reference material. Can use technology resources for problem solving and extended learning activities. Can determine when and what technology is useful and select appropriate tools and resources 2

3 to address a variety of tasks and problems Can create a project using one or more tools that enhances and effectively conveys the project s purpose. Procedures: Module 1 Prior to Class: Create a shortcut to On every student computer. Print off enough copies of the Meet The Greens worksheet. Whole Group Instruction: Explain to the students that they will be creating a Green company. Does anyone know what Green means? Do you know what the term going green means? This semester we are going to research how we can improve our environment. First, we need to find out how much knowledge you have regarding our environment. Are you a greeniologist? We are going to explore a site called Meet The Greens. We will take a survey and then explore the site. Do you have energy vampires lurking in your house? Pass out the worksheet Meet The Greens. Collect worksheets at the end of class. Module 2 Prior to Class: Print out enough copies of the EPA worksheet to give to every student. Place a shortcut on every computer Make sure every student has a pencil to record information. Whole Group Instruction: Last week we met the Greens. Does anybody remember what suggestions they gave to help us go green? Today we are going to explore various forms of pollution and how they effect our environment. Site to explore: Click on an area and within that area click on 2 sub categories. On the worksheet record what sub category you clicked on and what you learned from visiting that area. (This may take 2 weeks). Do you know what EPA stands for? What do you know now that you did not know before? Module 3: Prior to Class: Create a shortcut to: and and 6PAodajjhfw Print enough copies of the Carbon worksheet. Whole Group Instruction: Show just the movie clip on 6PAodajjhfw Discuss what they saw. (If you want you can show the other three movies and discuss what they saw.) Does anyone know what a Carbon footprint is? Do you know that you have a carbon footprint? Today you are going to two websites and you are going to research how the carbon cycle is so important? Pass out worksheet. Module 4: Prior to Class: Download the PowerPoint called Top Ten. Print enough copies of Research notes for every student. Create a shortcut to and 3

4 and Whole Group Instruction: Today you are going to look at people who created the top Green Companies. You are going to see if Kansas City has any green companies and if so, what do they produce. When it comes time to decide on your company are you going to reduce, reuse, or recycle to benefit society There is a PowerPoint called Top Ten which will list the names of the Top Ten Green companies. You will learn how many employees they have, and their profits. You will also be required to visit a website that lists the top 50 companies and it describes the products they produce. The goal of this exercise is to get you thinking about what type of product could you create, what is already out there, how many employees could you possibly need, and what type of profit do the really good companies make. Are you going to Reduce, Reuse or Recycle to help our society? (this may take more than one week to complete) Module 5: Prior to Class: Whole Group Instruction: Last time we looked at various green companies. What did you find out? Did anyone mention carbon footprint? What are people doing to reduce their carbon footprint? What could we make to help us gather type of information? (a survey) What questions could we ask to gather the information needed? (Possible questions: Do you recycle? Do you buy products created from recycled material? How do you conserve energy? Does your place of employment recycle? If you had to rate the following issues which five would be the highest priority: Global warming, air pollution, alternative fuel, renewable energy, hydro electric, solar panels, hybrid vehicles.) Have the students open Word and create a survey? Print 10 copies per student. Ask the student to get 10 people to take their survey. Bring back the completed surveys for the next class. Ask them not to ask the same people to answer their survey. Ask their parents, neighbors, and friends to take the survey. (Depending on your class size, you might get 200 surveys back) Explain to the students that they will be working in Excel and show them how they might want to enter data. Module 6: Prior to Class: Have enough blank sheets of paper for everyone. Whole Group Instruction: Collect surveys. As a class tally the results. Decide how you want to enter the information into Excel to graph the information. Have the students open Excel and input and chart data. Save their work. Ask the students to review the data and decide which issue their product is going to address and let them know that the data will help when we advertise their product later. Today, they must decide on a product. Pass out a blank sheet of paper and have the students sketch out their product. Collect sketches. Module 7: Prior to Class: Download the Jobs.ppt on every computer. Whole Group Instruction: So far we have investigated what is green, what environmental factors affect our society, collected data to find what issues are important to other people, and created a product that would help our society. Now it is time to build the company! Who should we employ, how much should we pay for their services, do we want experienced people or 4

5 not? These are issues we are going to solve today. Show the PowerPoint presentation called Jobs. As you progress through the show explain in detail what the jobs could entail. Have the students look at the locations and why is there a difference? Which location would be the best for their company? Have the students access the website for more information. (If they want to know how much an experienced person would cost. The PPT chart displays just the average salary.) Explain to the students that they could have the factory located in a cheaper area than there main office location Have the students select the positions they want and location of the office and the factory. Have students open Excel and start charting salaries and cost. Calculate the total Expenses for Salaries. Save their work. Module 8: Prior to Class: Whole Group Instruction: One of the tools that a business needs to keep records efficiently is a database. A database could be used for client/sales records, employee information, etc. Before we build a database, we need to learn what it is. Have the students determine the fields for the database for their company. They could create a database containing employee information or one on clients and sales. * We are going to use Excel and the form feature of this program simulates how a database is entered. Type the field names in row 1. Highlight the field names. Go up to Data, chose Form. Click OK. Students can then type in information. Once all the data is typed in click New to add another record. When finished click Close. Save work. Module 9: Prior to Class: WORD, Excel, PowerPoint, imovie, Moviemaker Whole Group Instruction: Today you are going to pull it all together. Create a marketing campaign to convince consumers to buy your product. Be sure to include reasons how your product is good for the environment, how will it benefit society? Where can consumers go to buy your product (your client database should help you with this task)? How is your company staffed? Is the product well tested before it goes out to market? Do you have a helpdesk that 5

6 consumers can call if they require assistance? What problem is your product addressing? How much will your product cost the consumer? How many do you have to sell to cover the cost of running your company? (this may take more than one week to complete) Module X: Presentation Day Prior to Class: Have an LCD hooked up to a computer for students to present their company. Whole Group Instruction: Have students present their companies. Approximate Time Needed: A semester long unit. Prerequisite Skills: Students can formulate questions and collect data. Students can manipulate the layout of a document. Students work collaboratively and cooperatively with a team. Students can format text. Students can use columns and/or text boxes. Materials and Resources Required For Unit Technology Hardware: Camera Computer(s) Digital Camera DVD Player Internet Connection Laser Disk Printer Projection System Scanner Television VCR Video Camera Video Conferencing Equip. Technology Software: Database/Spreadsheet Desktop Publishing Software Encyclopedia on CD-ROM Image Processing Internet Web Browser Multimedia Web Page Development Word Processing Printed Materials: Supplies: Meet the Greens Worksheet, EPA worksheet, Carbon Footprint worksheet, Pencils, ink, paper. TopTen.ppt, Jobs.ppt, 6

7 Internet Resources: Pa1spECFQ66PAodajjhfw Others: Accommodations for Differentiated Instruction Resource Student: Non- Native English Speaker: Students can work in pairs. Gifted Student: Student Assessment: Students could create a prototype with detailed plans for the product. The student s work will be access by using the enclosed checbric Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. I N T E L T E A C H T O T H E F U T U R E