Bigfoot in Our Backyard? – 7401

Summary

This lesson was not in my plans at the beginning of the year. But when the students showed a natural and genuine interest in stories about Bigfoot, it presented a perfect opportunity to let students apply their knowledge of animals and communities to a real life mystery. They started seeking out books, websites and TV shows at home to share stories and ideas with their classmates. This lesson was created with the help of the students to guide them in answering the burning question they all had… Is Bigfoot real? Through three investigation stations, students were presented with various concepts to research and analyze to help them form an opinion that they are able to support with specific reasons. Although the favorite part of the day was the investigation stations, Bigfoot seemed to walk his way into our other content areas, such as reading and math, which made the lesson even more authentic to the students.

 

TIPC Ratings

Students performed in multiple levels of the TIPC chart for research and information fluency, including ideal/target. While much of the research was guided in the beginning, the students often selected their own tools to present the information that they learned and also used a variety of research materials.

Students were working in the Approaching and Ideal/Target during all of the investigation stations. Not only did they work together for all of the tasks, they also selected the best ways to communicate information and met with professionals outside of the school.

This lesson came directly from the students and their own curiosity. They were genuinely curious about the Bigfoot legends and wanted to find the answer. They eagerly asked questions that guided much of the development of the project. This is still a real mystery that we have today, so students were in the same boat as the rest of the population. They enjoyed being able to express themselves in ways that they chose and tried to make sense of the mystery. I was proud of the fact that they were reflective along the way and were not afraid to change their opinion because they were comfortable supporting it. This type of responsibility and maturity indicated that they worked in the highest levels of the TIP-C chart.

Students met many of open-ended challenges in this lessons that presented many opportunities to be creative, requiring them to work in the Target/Ideal level for the majority of the lesson.

 

Student Artifact

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Contents:

  • Lesson Plan
  • Student Station Directions
  • Student Samples

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