Implementing your own Where in the World? Scavenger Hunt

Transcription

1 Implementing your own Where in the World? Scavenger Hunt It is our hope that the materials and resources we shared within this session can also be shared with students, family members, and others within your district, should you choose to incorporate a similar activity into an upcoming program or event. Read on to learn more about how to facilitate a Where in the World? scavenger hunt in your own community! I. Session Introduction Session Objective: To increase awareness and knowledge of GEAR UP college access resources and toolkits available on the web in order to help students and their families with college preparation and postsecondary financing knowledge. Session Agenda/Overview: Session Introduction Internet Set-Up/Guided Exploration of GEAR UP NC Website Where in the World? Scavenger Hunt Missions 1 and 2 Session Wrap-Up/ Q&A As a session facilitator, you ll likely want to share the following information with scavenger hunt participants at the start of the activity. We ve scripted much of this out for you (in italics) below feel free to tweak this wording and make it your own, as this document is simply a starting place to give you an idea of what could be said and when. Welcome! We re excited to have you join us for our Where in the World? GEAR UP North Carolina Scavenger Hunt. (Refer to session objective, which you may choose to write on a handout/ whiteboard or share on a PowerPoint slide) This activity is designed to increase your awareness and knowledge of the many resources and toolkits available online through GEAR UP NC. In doing so, we hope that you ll be better equipped to know where to look to get the information you need about college preparation and financing. Let s quickly walk through our agenda for this session. (Refer to session agenda again, you may choose to write this on a handout/whiteboard or share on a PowerPoint slide) First, we ll work together to get you set up with the internet and familiarize you with the layout of the GEAR UP NC website. Next, we ll pass out a worksheet that walks you through two missions, which you re welcome to complete in small groups. Are any of you familiar with Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Carmen is a crimefighting detective who is the hero of a popular TV show and computer game series from the 1980s-90s. On each of her missions, Carmen uses clues to chase thieves around the world, stopping in different cities and countries along the way and eventually apprehending the bad guys. Much like how Carmen s

2 missions require her to travel from place to place and chase after evil-doers, your missions today will require you to think like a detective and search for information related to college preparation and financing using various GEAR UP NC resources and toolkits. II. Internet Set-Up/ Guided Exploration of GEAR UP NC Website During this portion of the session, you ll want to take a few minutes to ensure that all participants are connected to the internet and can access the GEAR UP NC website. After participants have directed their browsers to the GEAR UP NC home page, walk them through relevant sections of our website, using the buttons on the left-hand side (see the yellow star in the screen shot below) as a guide. Briefly describe what information can be found in each section of the website. For example, a general overview of sections with information that could be shared with external parties like students, family members, and others interested in learning more about GEAR UP NC could be: About GEAR UP North Carolina At the top of this page, you ll see the latest tweets from twitter account. If you scroll down, you ll find a brief overview of GEAR UP NC and a list of GEAR UP NC services, goals, and objectives. The Participating Districts and School Partners subpage contains a list (and map) of school districts served by GEAR UP NC during the grant cycle, as well as a link to the 46 target schools served in these districts.

3 Field Services This section of the website houses information about the different services provided to GEAR UP NC students and their families. Of particular note is the Spanish Services subpage, which contains resources and information specific to engaging Latino students and their families. Programming The Student Programming subpage outlines upcoming GEAR UP NC programs for students and includes links to sample event agendas and other event information. The Professional Development subpage lists upcoming programs for educators that are coordinated by GEAR UP NC. When you click on the Statewide Initiatives subpage, you ll be taken to a list of statewide college access events (coordinated outside of GEAR UP NC), along with a wealth of information and toolkits specific to each initiative. Outreach Information about specific students experiences with GEAR UP NC is housed on this page of the website. The Good News subpage highlights recent GEAR UP NC press and our monthly GEAR UP NC Award winners. The Calendar subpage takes you directly to our Google calendar, which is updated frequently and reflects a variety of programs, statewide initiatives, and other important dates. The Peak Student Newsletter subpage directs you to current and previous editions of our student newsletter, which is a wonderful source of GEAR UP news and stories from across our state. Resource Library for Professionals While this section of the website is geared predominately toward the GEAR UP NC staff members who work in our districts, there are many important resources housed on this page that are also important to share with students, family members, and others. These include the College Survival Toolkit, College & Scholarship Application Essay Toolkit, and Personal Financial Literacy Toolkit, among others. Also included on this page are links to helpful financial aid and scholarship resources. Student & Family Resources This page links visitors to an updated list of Student Coordinators and Family & Community Facilitators, along with their contact information. III. Where in the World Scavenger Hunt Have you ever thought to yourself, I know this resource probably already exists, but where is it?! Would you like to know exactly where to look to find the information you need about college preparation and financing? If so, you re in the right place! Let s chase Carmen Sandiego through the world of GEAR UP NC and its many helpful resources that are designed to make preparing for and successfully enrolling in college a little bit easier. Our first mission involves exploring a resource called the College Survival Toolkit. Pop quiz! Can anyone remember where on the GEAR UP NC website we might find this toolkit? Walk session participants through the process of navigating to and opening this document. If you haven t already done so, pass out the worksheet that outlines both missions and direct participants to the chart for Mission #1.

4 On this chart, you ll see a variety of very specific questions each question asks you to locate a specific detail or piece of information related to postsecondary options and financing. The trick here is recognizing that to successfully answer these questions, you don t have to know all of this information off the top of your head it s all about knowing where to look. In this case, all of the answers to these questions can be found in one place the College Survival Toolkit. Let s take a closer look! I ll walk you through my thought process as I look for the answer to the first question on this chart what UNC institution has the highest percentage of Pell recipients among freshmen? For the first three questions on this chart, follow the I do, we do, you do method model how to answer the first question, collaborate with session participants to answer question #2 together, and then allow them to try question #3 in their small groups. Depending on their level of comfort, have them continue to work independently to answer as many of the questions on the first chart as they can in a given amount of time (10-15 minutes or longer, if desired). Open the College Survival Toolkit and begin looking through each tab, starting with the one on the far left labeled Main. Describe the layout of the spreadsheet associated with this tab, focusing on how to interpret the information about each UNC institution that is presented in the columns. Be sure to scroll through and briefly describe the content of each column before coming back to the one that contains the information needed to answer the first question (about percentage of Pell grant recipients among freshmen). Locate the highest percentage (80%) and identify the corresponding school (Elizabeth City State University), indicating to session participants that this is the correct answer for question #1. Work collaboratively to find the answer to question #2 - what is the priority financial aid deadline for all UNC institutions? Hint: it s located on the second tab, titled Admissions & Fin Aid. As you did for question #1, scroll through the columns and highlight the information contained in each. This time, have participants indicate when they see the answer to the question, which is located in the Priority Financial Aid Deadline column. For question #3 (name one first year college support initiative or program for a UNC institution and briefly describe what it does), ask that participants work in their small groups to explore the remaining tabs of the spreadsheet and raise their hand when they have found an answer. Check their work and gauge their level of comfort with proceeding, and monitor participants to answer questions and offer assistance as they work to fill out the rest of the chart (or a portion of it, depending on how much time you have). For Mission #2, follow this same I do, we do, you do framework and walk participants through the first three questions, gauging their comfort with the material and allowing them to work in small groups to

5 complete the chart if time allows. Be sure to remind participants that the majority of the information needed to answer the questions in Mission #2 can be found (or is linked to) on the GEAR UP NC website. IV. Session Wrap-Up/Q&A Thank participants for their time and redirect their attention to the session objective (to increase awareness and knowledge of GEAR UP college access resources and toolkits available on the web in order to help students and their families with college preparation and postsecondary financing knowledge). Ask for their feedback as to how well they feel that this session prepared them to find and use GEAR UP college access resources and toolkits like the ones they explored today, reminding them that all of this information can be found on the GEAR UP NC website, which they explored earlier in the session. Allow time at the end of the session for participants to ask questions and share their thoughts with one another.