ELK GROVE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT

Teach 21: Advancing Network Uses (ANU) Grant — Extending Learning Beyond the Classroom Walls

The projects showcased in Elk Grove Unified School District Advancing Technology Grant (ANU) Teach 21 collection stem from the dynamic teaching methods of the Teach 21 Cohort and reflect the district’s commitment to make visible what teaching and learning in the 21 century looks like in elementary, middle and high school classrooms. By including classroom video clips with each lesson, the videos provide educators with a window into what the Partnership for 21st Century Skills refers to as the 4C's: critical thinking, communication, creativity and collaboration. It is important that educators can see model lessons as they are being taught — with real teachers and real students.

All 21 lessons are available on a project wiki and online in SECC’s Video Gallery. Each lesson plan includes objectives, procedures, resources, materials and standards (ISTE, California Content Standards and Common Core Standards) addressed. Lessons follow a format that includes the project description, teacher interview video, snippets of classroom interaction captured on video, final student projects and resources and handouts.

The collection ranges from a 1st grade science lesson on weather to an 11th grade history lesson on the Civil Rights movement — and crosses the curriculum to include math, science, language arts, social studies and media production. Several lessons were greatly extended through the use of interactive videoconferencing and all tap into technology and extend teaching and learning in ways not possible with traditional paper, pencil and textbook lessons.

With more than 21 lessons, the ANU Teach 21 project provides a replicable model for increasing teacher capacity to learn and implement 21st century teaching strategies in the classroom. Equally important, given the current budget crisis, the project showcases good things happening in California classrooms.

The Advancing Network Uses Grant Program supports the development and dissemination of demonstration applications and content that meet critical needs of California schools to make good use of the benefits of the K12 High Speed Network, a state program that connects the California K-12 community.

> Link to the Elk Grove USD Teach21 Wiki

While the World Watched
http://www.secctv.org/video/?cat=46
Through a series of activities, students gain an understanding of pivotal moment of the Civil Rights Movement and the effect of world events on individual lives. The lesson provides a greater understanding of the people and events that shaped the Civil Rights Movement. This lesson stems from a 2011 presentation by Mrs. Carolyn McKinstry, a survivor of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing,and hosted by the Elk Grove Unified School District’s Teaching American History Grant Program.

Carolyn McKinstry Presentation
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1041
The 1963 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing
On September 15, 1963, at 10:22 am, a purposely set bomb exploded at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. The explosion would forever change American History and would serve as a critical event in the Civil Rights Movement.

The Life Cycle of the Monarch Butterfly
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1038
Students learn about the life cycle of a butterfly through a variety of sources (video, diagrams, books and a video conference with a state park ranger). They also observe the metamorphosis of live caterpillars and butterflies and document it through written journals, pictures and video. As a culminating activity, they create a film (using Movie Maker) that serves as a documentary of the life cycle of a butterfly.
Erica Swift, Herman Leimbach Elementary School
Subject Area: Science, English Language Arts
Grade Level: 2nd

Bungee Barbie – Part 1
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1033
To make the concept of linear patterns and relationships more concrete, students collect data using rubber bands and Barbie dolls and use the linear relationship of the data to make predictions.
Traci Seto, Joseph Kerr Middle School
Subject Area: Math (Algebra)
Grade Level: Middle School

Bungee Barbie – Part 2
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1030

Bungee Barbie – Part 3
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1028

Beyond Anne Frank
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1026
Through a series of timeline activities, students gain an understanding of the complex social and political factors that shaped America’s response to the Holocaust from Kristallnacht in 1938 through the liberation of the death camps in 1945. The lesson also provides the historical context to accompany Ellie Wiesel’s Night or The Diary of Anne Frank.
Erin Goldman, Elk Grove High School
Subject Area: U.S. History
Grade Level: 11th

Stand Up, Speak Out!
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1023
In the unit, students use a multitude of technological devices and skills to dialogue with a Holocaust survivor, to view her story and the story of other survivors and to read excerpts from essays and memoirs speaking to the themes of tolerance, survival and hope. The class takes onGerda Wissmann Klein's challeng to Stand Up and Speak Out!
Bob Levin, Elk Grove High School
Subject Area: English
Grade Level: 11th

It’s News to Me
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1014
Students identify what’s happening on campus and learn to report the news by using simple video filming and editing techniques. Working in teams of three, they select a subject, find pertinent facts and report a story. Project requires students to incorporate video elements in news stories, such as interview sound bites, reporter stand-up, b-roll footage, on screen text and reporter narration.
Dana La Chapelle, Toby Johnson Middle School
Subject Area: English/Language Arts, Media Literacy
Grade Level: Middle School (adaptable to all grade levels)

The Long Distance Email Race
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1012
This lesson introduces the issue of plagiarism in the digital age and is one of several lessons on correct and appropriate citation of a digital resource in the bibliography of a cultural research Web quest entitled The Long Distance Email Race.
Karl Mansfield, Joseph Sims Elementary School
Subject Area: Social Studies/Digital Citizenship
Grade level: 6th

Kid’s Book Blog
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1009
This project involved students in reading, responding and collaborating about books that they have read in their free time. This blog has existed for three years, and the 5th graders highlighted in this video are learning how to add their original posts.
Denise Phillips, Joseph Sims Elementary School
Subject Area: Language Arts
Grade Level: 5th

Scratching the Heavens
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=990
This lesson sequence helps students learn the mythology of constellations and explore various ways these stories can be shared — from oral traditions and story telling to written form and digital media. The final product is a student-designed animation or game created using Scratch, a multimedia tool/programming language used to create animations, games, interactive stories and art.
Kevin Ohama, Herman Leimbach Elementary School
Subject Area: Language Arts
Grade Level: 5th

Lessons from the Heart
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=986
Using the National Public Radio (NPR) StoryCorps model for gathering oral histories, students conduct and record interviews with family or community members. In the process, they learn to ask open-ended questions, reflect on the stories and memories of their interviewees, compare and contrast the past to the present and, along the way, become oral historians themselves.
Teresa Cheung, David Reese Elementary School
Subject Area: Social Science History, English Language Arts and English Language Development
Grade Level: 4th

First Graders See the Wind
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=982
The class discusses, reads, writes and draws how wind is weather that can be observed and described. The student work will be shared with the world via VoiceThread and a classroom blog using each student’s own voice.
Terri Mills, David Reese Elementary School
Subject Area: Science
Grade Level: 1st

Main Ideas & Details: Part 1
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=980
Building a Paragraph: Students create a graphic organizer for a paragraph that incorporates a main idea, details, explanations of the details and a wrap-up.
Terri Mills, David Reese Elementary School
Subject Area: Language Arts
Grade Level: 5th

Main Ideas & Details – Part 2
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=973
Students use the graphic organizer from Part 1 to create a wordle which graphically shows the difference between the main and the small ideas.

From Summary Writing to Blogging & Podcasting
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=969
Students examine current examples of advertising and analyze aspects of marketing that make them effective. Collaboration, creativity and critical thinking take place in every part of the process: writing, filmmaking and editing and peer evaluation of the final product.
Rudy Alfonso, David Reese Elementary School
Subject Area: English/Language Arts
Grade Level: 5th

Persuasive Writing
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=967
Students examine current examples of advertising and analyze aspects of marketing that make them effective. Collaboration, creativity and critical thinking take place in every part of the process: the writing, the filmmaking and editing and peer evaluation of the final product.

NASA Mission Geography
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=957
California 5th grade social sciences and history standards require students know the location of the current 50 states and the names of their capitals. Students often memorize these but know little else about the states or their location. By learning interesting facts and allowing students from around the country to comment on their VoiceThread, student learning becomes more personal and relevant. As a kickoff for this geography unit, students participated in NASA’s Mission Geography interactive videoconference, a free event sponsored by Magpi.

Algebra: Motion Activity Part 1
Walking the Line: Using Motion Sensors to Graph Slope
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=872
This lesson makes the abstract concept of the relationship between motion and slope more concrete; students connect the everyday, physical activity of walking to a graphing activity.
Subject Area: Math (Algebra
Grade Level: Middle School

Algebra: Motion Activity Part 2
Walking the LIne: Students Take the Lead
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=869
This lesson is an extension of Part 1. Using what they have learned, students create graphs to show the relationship between motion and slope.
Subject Area: Math (Algebra)
Grade Level: Middle School

Science: The Scientific Method
Communicating Like a Scientist
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=861
Students experience the scientific process of discovering causal mechanisms for everyday natural phenomena as they attempt to determine how a children’s toy works without taking it apart. As the lesson escalates into more challenging components, students, like scientists, test new ideas, challenge and review eachothers’ ideas and collaborate and contribute to an online community. They present their data and ideas in a number of ways including posters, gallery walks/talks, blog postings, online videos and/or podcasts.
Subject Area: Science
Grade Level: 8th

Social Studies: Ancient Egypt
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=858
This lesson requires students to hone their collaborative skills as they become experts on ancient Egyptian civilization. Students team to create a mixed media project focusing on one aspect of ancient Egypt. Using an online tool for creating multimedia posters, teams must use a variety of media types to teach their concept/topic including include video clips, sound files, original movies, original narration, text, charts, graphs, maps and links to outside video and audio resources.
Subject Area: Social Studies
Grade Level: 6th

Science and Art: Field Journaling
Comparing and Contrasting in the Great Outdoors
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=847
This lesson introduces students to field journaling, an interdisciplinary approach to science, art and language arts. Students find two specimens of the same species or item such as branches, flowers, leaves or rocks then draw them side by side and delve into the incredible variety of things to observe through field journaling, movie making and audio casting (via VoiceThread).
Subject Area: English Language Arts, Science, Art, Media Literacy
Grade Level: 4th

Writing: Show Not Tell
Show 'n Tell Goes to the Movies
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=854
This lesson builds on students listening, speaking, reading and writing vocabulary. Students often have a difficult time with the concept of showing — not telling — details in their writing. Breaking the skill down helps them to gain an understanding of the concept, to become more descriptive writers and to apply the concept of show-not-tell to multimedia writing (movie making).
Subject Area: English/Language Arts, ELD
Grade Level: 4th

TWIN RIVERS UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT

21st century skills videos help teachers integrate the skills of the future into the classroom today

SECC partnered with member Twin Rivers Unified School District to create a series of videos to begin the ongoing process of preparing students for the future — a future where skills are not the same as they have been in the past. The district videos provide opportunities for teachers to practice 21st century skills and “to understand those skills and see the relationship to the world outside,” says Steve Scott, Twin Rivers USD Instructional Technology Director. “So this transition to the outside world becomes much more seamless… Ideally, it’s an ongoing continuum of development.”

Working with the Metiri Group, a consulting service that helps learning organizations create ecosystems where 21st century thinking, teaching and learning can flourish, the district developed a set of eight skills that include collaboration, creative thinking, cross-cultural skills, higher order thinking, information/communications technology, information media literacy, self-directed learning and social skills. Each of the resulting 18 videos shows a specific skill used in a real classroom with a teacher and his or her students. When used with professional development presentations, these videos present the skill and its importance to the educator and show how to integrate it in course content.

Even though research that supports purposeful integration of 21st century skills is in its infancy, when business leaders around the world describe what they want in their employees, words such as collaborator, problem solver, self-directed and creativity are most frequently mentioned — all 21st century skills. Authentic learning opportunities tied to the use of technology increases engagement and builds information and communications technology (ITC) skills. “Making the learning authentic means making it connect to [the student’s] outside world,” says Tim Gardes, Library Media Services, “making them see themselves in the learning. Students are more engaged, students are on task, students are proud of their work and they keep asking, ‘When are we doing this again?’”

Educator Kenneth Durham also believes that “doing this again” is the key to success. He says, “As educators we have to give our students opportunities continuously — not just this one project but year long, all the time, have something going where they’re having to use their skills and become lifelong learners.”

> Learn about the Twin Rivers USD program and link to additional resource

Photos (left) by Roman Rykun, Digital Video Producer,
Twin Rivers Unified School District, at Kohler School.

21st Century Skills: Overview
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1306
Twin Rivers Unified School District teachers and administrators provide an overview of 21st Century Skills.

Collaboration – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1303
Vicki Plefka of the Twin Rivers Unified School District and Cheryl Lemke provide an overview of Collaboration.

Collaboration – Shared Goals
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1300
Students learned about collaboration and cooperation, shared goals and responsibilities by participating in a team building activity.  Afterward, students put their collaborative knowledge to work with a life science lab where they extracted DNA from strawberries and collaborated in a discussion analyzing, comparing and contrasting the methods of extraction.
Autumn Sharp
Subject Area: Life Science

Collaboration – Communication
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1298
Students learn the collaborative communication principles: the what, how and why of collaborative communication and then create presentations of these principles. The students worked in groups to visually depict a key element of collaborative communication.
Jeanette Providence
Subject Area: Language Arts

Creativity – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1285
Cheryl Lemke provides an overview of the 21st Century Skill – Creativity.

Creativity – Writing
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1283
Students research bats and birds and their life cycles. After reading the story Stellaluna, they applied their research information to create an alternate ending where the bats find a bird egg and raise the bird.  After they finished their stories, they made a digital book with illustrations and recorded their stories using Photostory 3.
Jean Friedrich
Subject Area: Science and Language Arts

Creativity – Science
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1277
Students used what they already knew about the animal cell to create a system that incorporates the functions of the organelles. The students were given organelles with the functions that needed to be included in their project. They had a sheet that described what a “system” is. This could be a school system, a sports team, a video game or any other system that they come up with. They compared the parts of the system with the functions of the cell. The students could use any technology they can get their hands on to create this project. They had training with different programs on the computer. They could create a video game, make a model, or even create a movie. They could also build their project from items that I provided such as Legos, or other materials.
Allison Ramsay
Subject Area: Science

Cross Cultural – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1294
Cheryl Lemke provides an overview of Cross Cultural Skills.

Cross Cultural – Learning About Others
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1292
After a class discussion defining what culture is, students participated in a gallery walk to present their home culture project. Students explored their daily lives and photographed to study their own home culture and the subcultures among their peers. PowerPoint presentations were created to share with the class.
Raquel Guerra-Ramirez
Subject Area: Social Studies

Cross Cultural – Building Classroom Culture
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1290
Students study media using a lens that looks for instances of racial bias and cultural insensitivity including age and gender. Students choose an organization and then gathered and analyzed data using various media and research. This prepared them for writing persuasive letters or creating a PSA for the organization about changing their current methods.
Megan Hagelis
Subject Area: English and Media

Higher Order Thinking – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1272
Edna Shoemaker and Cheryl Lemke provide an overview of HOTS (Higher Order Thinking) as a 21st Century Skill.

Higher Order Thinking – Math
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1269
After learning about and understanding division of fractions, students developed a way to explain and demonstrate division of fractions to their peers.
Patty Reetz
Subject Area: Math

Higher Order Thinking – Science
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1266
Students created a story/picture book describing what Earth would be like today if a mass extinction had not occurred. Students demonstrate Higher Order Thinking skills by comparing organisms that are present today to organisms present in the period before their chosen extinction, and then inferring what may not have evolved or what event may not have happened to determine how the world would be different.
Alison More
Subject Area: Life Science

ICT – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1263
Cheryl Lemke provides an overview of ICT (Information, Communication, Technology) as a 21st Century Skill.

ICT – Writing
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1260
Students demonstrate knowledge of the characteristics of fables and myths by creating an alternate ending or their own story. To complete the project, students learn how to use a new program then create other projects on their own and continue to communicate outside of the classroom.
Leslie Cohen
Subject Area: Writing

ICT – Chemistry
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1257
Students translate complex concepts about the distinct properties of all forms of matter into simpler language to develop a deeper understanding of chemistry concepts. Microsoft Word and Publisher increase students' creative productivity and the ability to access, evaluate, process and synthesize information gathered from a variety of sources. Wiki spaces and Prezi help with information gathering and spark interest while building upon basic to advanced technology skills.
Kenneth Durham
Subject Area: Science

ICT – Prehistoric Times
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1253
Students collaborate to develop a video depicting life during a particular period of time, including specific species from that time. Information Communication Technology – students use Web 2.0 tools to access information, collaborate and create products to share their understanding of concepts and ideas.
Karolee Smiley
Subject Area: Science

Information Literacy – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1249
Cheryl Lemke provides an overview of Information Literacy as a 21st Century Skill.

Information Literacy – Searching for an Answer
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1247
Students read a biography about a person who interests them and then continue their research using Worldbookonline and input the information into Blabberize or Zoo Burst to present their work. The students learn how to become information literate by locating appropriate information, verifying that the information is credible, citing their sources and presenting the information.
Farah Jo
Grade Level: Elementary

Information Literacy – Enhancing with Technology
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1243
Students research two careers and prepared a paper comparing and contrasting the two careers. First students brainstormed questions related to research then learned about resources on Saclibrary.org and the Grant Library website available to them (card catalogs and databases). They developed search queries, researched their careers and were encouraged to “be detectives” locating relevant information for their topics.
Diane Roberts
Grade Level: High School

Self Direction – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1235
Cheryl Lemke describes the three part process of the 21st Century Skill of Self Direction.

Self Direction – Kindergarten
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1229
During reading groups, students were given activities that they “must do” and “may do” and set goals on how to accomplish them. They used a check off sheet where they set their goals for the activities that they wanted to accomplish in the allotted time and monitored their progress. Several students met with the teacher to evaluate their “must do” work by using a picture rubric.
Nancy Nozaki
Grade Level: Kindergarten

Self Direction – High School Geometry
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1225
Students discovered the four triangle congruence postulates and theorems (SSS, SAS, ASA, AAS) first hand. Students were divided into groups. Each group was given a ruler and three pairs of corresponding parts (sides and angles) in a bag. Pre-cut spaghetti noodles were used to represent the side lengths of triangles and angles were pre-cut from construction paper. Each group arranged the three pairs of corresponding parts differently and discovered which combinations guarantee triangle congruence.
Pearl Hinlo
Subject Area: Geometry

Social Skills – Introduction
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1218
Cheryl Lemke discusses the importance of social skills as a 21st Century Skill.

Social Skills – Reading Emotions
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1213
Students discussed pictures of classmates with different facial expressions and learned about reading the information found in facial expressions. Students worked in small groups to analyze two different facial expressions asking what could have happened to create this expression or feeling and how to work with someone who has that feeling.
Julie Harms
Grade Level: 2nd

Social Skills – Support & Inclusion: Fitness stations
http://www.secctv.org/video/?p=1198
Students have a set amount of time to perform exercises at various fitness stations throughout the class period then self-assess their performance and observe their partner’s performance. Students use their performance results as a tool for setting future fitness goals.
Tera Carter
Subject Area: Physical Education