Model Schools:quad D lessons
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Melinda Bailey
the quad D lesson I taught was an english/writing with the instructional focus being writing for a variety of purposes and audiences. The lesson began with a discussion of where student's could locate dialogue between people or characters. Following that we discussed the purpose of dialogue in writing. This lesson seemed especially appropriate with the upcoming writing portion of the Benchmark test. Their responses included books, newspapers, etc. I used transparencies of dialogue with and without narration which made it obvious that the message was much clearer in the dialoge that included narration. I followed this with a "Peanuts" comic strip. As a class, we read the strip and discussed the meaning Schulz wanted us to get. Then we constructed a paragraph of dialogue and narration that would have the same meaning as the strip we were using. As an independent activity, students used comic strips to construct a paragraph of their own by rewriting the dialogue and narration in the comic strip they had. They did this by using quotation marks, commas, periods, exclamation points, and question marks as needed. Students were then given time to share their paragraphs with the class. I modified one of the Gold Seal Lessons we received from the district to fit what I wanted to teach.
Candy Fain
My Quadrant D lesson was a project. The students planned a vacation for 2007 to a particular beach. They had to use historical data about hurricanes to decide when the safest time would be to take their vacation. The students displayed the month and the number of hurricanes affecting their beach in a chart and graph. Each group had to: turn in a report, make a chart and graph, and discuss their vacation plan. The students also had to include information about hurricanes and evacuation plans.
The students did really well and enjoyed doing something different. We also discussed the fact that there is no guarantee, no matter how much you research, that there will not be a hurricane during their vacation. Mr. Valentine shared his vacation story with the students, which confirmed the point that hurricanes can be unpredictable. The lesson took three days. We discussed the four quadrants and bloom's taxonomy the day before we started the project. The students weren't really sure about some of it, but they realized that the goal is to get them to have higher order thinking skills.
Ann Schlotthauer
I had the definition of satire on the board, and I asked the class for examples of contemporary satire. After they mentioned several, we watched a video excerpt from a late night talk show host. Students had to keep a running list of the different institutions, individuals, or behaviors he satirized in his monologue. Then we discussed the purpose of satire. Students read three poems in their literature books and discussed how the poems were classified as satire and what statements each of the authors were making.
The assignment is for students to write their own satirical poem or monologue or cartoon(for the artistic) and present it to the class. The class will evaluate the presentations with a rubric. Real-world application-- students have to make a decision about what they would like to see changed in their lives and communicate it.
Aaron K. Thrift
First, I developed a QD project. Using the play A Model_Schools:Raisin in the Sun, students worked in small groups to create a new scene that would change the outcome of the play. Since "Raisin" is focused on many social issues in America, their new scene had to be developed thematically around a central issue of the original play. To kick off, we had a discussion ranging from prejudice and discrimination to poverty (the themes of "Raisin"). Then a development process started in their small groups (four days - each having individual evaluation targets). On the fifth day, they acted out their new creations and gave an oral explanation of their theme-centered skit. I have attached the handout and Model_Schools:grading rubric for this activity.
Second, I developed a "Dr. Phil" moment and turned it into a small writing project. During our Greek mythology unit, I created an activity to have the students assess themselves and also to see what others thought of them. Tying it into the Greek Gods and Goddesses, each who had their own powers (positive and negative), students made themselves a God or Goddess. I have attached the Model_Schools:thrift_handout for this activity for a better explanation.
Both activities went very well. It definitely had students thinking and working. Real world application played a large part in both activities. In the first, important themes were addressed that students face every day, even here at Alma High School, and in the second, students assessed themselves and their impressions on others.
Sue Walden
did a lesson the other day on work songs. We pretended to be loading a boat with boxes of eggs. The objective was work songs & seeing how slavery worked. We discussed what would happen if we dropped boxes or didn't do our job. We also discussed what jobs the kids' parents had. We discussed words that would describe what our employer would want from us. Perfection, consistency, teamwork etc.
After conferencing, we decided that all quadrants had been used, but to put it over the top in Quadrant D, we should write a work song for our parent's job or the job we had. We would be put in groups of 5 students & then we would perform it for the class. I was really unaware how many different quadrants I teach in! It is neat to see what you actually do when teaching a lesson!
Brant Law
Last week I taught a D quadrant lesson dealing with historic, current, and future gasoline prices. Students were to predict future gasoline prices based on historical trends, technological advances, and current events in the news that could affect gas prices in the future. The students used Linear Regression capabilities on their calculator and slope to help make their predictions. They also did a lot of research on the internet about alternative sources of energy that could influence prices. The presentations were done in role playing format. The students were OPEC representatives presenting to a congressional hearing about the future of gasoline prices.
I really thought the lesson went very well. The students got really interested in it because it was something that was relevant to them. They also had to do the math and research themselves which accounted for the rigor. I liked the lesson myself for two reasons: First, the students were really involved in the lesson because of the relevance. Second, it was less work for me.
nicole williams
I have had a great time creating and teaching quadrant d lessons, but like most of us, it took discipline to actually sit down and write to the rest of you about them. Here is one that I taught recently.
We began by reading independently about the post-revolutionary war period and the forming of American government. We then divided into groups to make charts that depicted how George Washington set up his cabinet and described each department's purpose. The next day we divided into groups again and the mission for every group was to pretend that they were establishing and heading a brand new government today. They were to create their own cabinet, listing each department and its function, and describe the qualifications of each department head. The only requirement was that it had to be a republican form of government. Each group had the option of presenting their government to the other groups via overhead projector or posters. The groups took one class period to go to the computer lab and library to research and discuss the current issues facing the nation and world. They took another class period to plan their governments and create their visuals. The final day, each group presented the governments that they had created and we, as a class, discussed what issues had or had not been addressed based on the needs that had been researched on day one of the project.
The class enjoyed the project and learned a lot about how every need, from border security to water supply, is met or unmet by our national government. They also developed a true appreciation for George Washington and his efficient planning his cabinet and our government.
Josie McClain
Students have had background lessons and practice in ‘author purpose’ and ‘genre’. They have practiced their knowledge with short stories and a group response called ‘Corners’. Different areas of the room were labeled with the different types of literature such as: Science Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fantasy Fiction, Adventure, and etc. After a story was read, students needed to choose what area the story best fit and go stand by that label in that part of the room. Each student had to be prepared to defend their answer. Often the stories overlapped to two or more areas. There was one best answer, but other answers were understandable. It was good practice for choosing the BEST answer.
SUBJECT: Guided Reading
INSTRUCTIONAL FOCUS: R 10.4.3 Apply knowledge about genre to the books they are Reading. R 10.4.3 Analyze/compare the distinguishing features of familiar genres. R 10.3.4, 10.4.4 Respond to a wide variety of texts. R 10.3.11, 10.4.11 Read a variety of stories.
PERFORMANCE TASK: Students are assigned the task of creating a movie poster for the book they are reading in their guided reading group. Teacher demonstrates this process using a short story. Student are given a scoring rubric to help them in their process. (see attached rubric)
FINAL SHIFT TO QUADRANT D
Some books make great movies and some books are better left as books. What kind of movie will your book be? On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the best, rate how well you think your book will do as a movie tell why you rated it that way. Can you think of another book that you have read this year that would make a really good movie? Why?
Supplies: Markers. Paper, copies of movie posters (got them off the internet)
Joyce Dahlem
Recently, I taught a quadrant D lesson about political cartoons. To lay the groundwork for this lesson, throughout the year we had been briefly discussing the meaning of political cartoons any time we used the Southwest Times newspaper. We had been studying the Revolutionary War for several weeks and on this particular day we looked in our textbook at a political cartoon illustrated by Benjamin Franklin and discussed its meaning. I led the students in a discussion about patriotic symbols and their meaning (or implications). We also discussed the criteria for a good political cartoon: must have meaning, be humorous and neatly drawn, and express the artist's opinion about politics or government. I shared my collection of political cartoons cut from newspapers which are stored in plastic sleeves inside a notebook. I also had a student share her personal book chalked full of political cartoons. The students then realized that exaggerated features, text, and other elements add quality to political cartoons.
Their assignment was to draw their own political cartoon about some person, group of people, or event during the Rev. War period. They would then publish their cartoon in their own Rev. War newspaper, which they had been working on frequently throughout this unit of study. Their cartoon would be graded with a modified rubric and included as part of their whole newspaper assessment.
The students then brainstormed for ideas, drew a rough sketch, and shared it with a classmate or me to see if it made sense and expressed a strong opinion. They were pretty tough on each other since they have an extensive background knowledge of the Rev. War (for 5th graders). The students were very engaged in this lesson and took a lot of pride in their work since it was so relevant to them.
To extend this activity, I've encouraged the students to bring in current political cartoons to be added to the classroom collection. They were very excited to know they'll get to draw another political cartoon during our WWII unit
Lisa Jensen
I incorporated a "D" lesson at the end of our weather unit. The water cycle was included in the unit. Since we have had a shortage of rain recently, I decided that water conservation could easily become a good "D" lesson. I was lucky enough to have Mark Yardley from the Alma Water Dept. as a guest reader on Dr. Suess Day. He was able to answer many of our "water" questions. I had taken several pictures of area ponds and of Lake Alma so that students could see the low water levels. We did a water cycle and a run-off experiment during the lesson. At the end of the lesson, groups of 4 had to come up with ways that they used water in their every day life. Then, as a group, they had to choose one use and think of how to conserve water. Each group had a recorder and a reporter. First grade always takes a field trip to the Alma Water Plant in the spring. We are totally ready. By the way, Mr. Yardley told us that they will decide on conservation at the end of March. Thanks!
Missy Edwards
This lesson was to introduce my students to the process of earning, spending, and saving money, as well as to explain the concept of expenses and profits. On the previous day, we discussed the differences between what people "need" & what they "want". We brainstormed ideas for both. I had two students act out a play between a father and daughter. They discussed what "Ericka" could do to earn money in order to buy a new bike. We then created a budget for her & figured how long it would take her to earn enough money to purchase the bike. The following day, we discussed that before starting a business, people plan, research, create publicity, raise capital, and invest in materials. We brainstormed other businesses that they might run in one day, such as hosting a bake or craft sale; running a car wash; performing a puppet show, etc. The students were then paired up & asked to plan a one-day lemonade stand. They had to decide what kind of lemonade (fresh squeezed or concentrate) to sell, list their expenses (they had a price sheet & recipes) & calculate what they needed to charge for each cup sold. They also had to figure their income & the profit for each partner. They then took turns explaining the decisions they made & why they made them.
Sabrina Landers
Our class is working on an ocean unit. We have been reading, writing, and doing science experiments with this unit. Monday we used menus from various restaurants around town to help give us help in developing our own seafood menu. They decided on the layout and design from the examples brought into the class. Today, we used our menus to make change. Students were seated in groups of four. Two people were "cashiers" and two were "customers". They were given a dollar amount to "buy" from their menu. The cashier had to determine how much change to give back. They could use paper and pencil to help them determine how much change needed to be returned. Some students realized they had money left over to purchase more from the menu. Other students needed review on how to line-up a subtraction problem and borrowing from the dollar amount. We also talked about that when making change we start with the cents and work up to the dollar.
