Multigenre Research Project

Submitted by: Donna Wine
School: J.R. Tucker High School

Summary

Students will research the life of a poet of their choice, finding and evaluating print and online resources and using the most relevant and accurate ones to write an obituary for their poet. In the process of their research, they will also make source cards, note cards, and a works cited page with the proper MLA format. Then students will choose and analyze a poem by their poet and will use their biographical research and the poem as inspiration for original, creative products, at least one of which involves technology. For example, a student could write a song inspired by the poem he chose and then could make a video or audio version of a performance of the song. Students will brainstorm with each other to jumpstart the creative process and will collaborate with each other once the creative process is underway. They will share their work on a blog and will read and comment upon their classmates’ work. Finally, they will reflect on their research and their products, explaining the connection between their poet/poem and their products and assessing what they learned about their poet and about themselves through this project.

TIPC Ratings

APPROACHING – Students completing this project have the autonomy to identify reliable resources from both print and electronic contexts so that they can gather relevant material about their poets. To write an obituary, a real-world assignment, they must do more than simply regurgitate the information they have found. They must present what they have learned about their poet in a journalistic style that arranges information in a reader-friendly way, from most to least important. Having practiced this principle of writing, they will be able to apply it to future writing tasks.

APPROACHING – This project invites requires students to collaborate with each other, both in and outside of class, at several stages of the process: as they summon inspiration to choose which products they will create, as they work out the details of bringing their products from conception to reality, and as they evaluate and celebrate each other’s achievements by offering feedback on the work they have all shared on a blog. Not only will they gain appreciation for their classmates’ work, but they will also learn useful information about poets other than the ones they chose.

IDEAL/TARGET – The multifaceted approach of this project covers all levels of Bloom’s taxonomy. It encourages students to ask and answer questions about their poets and about themselves. By researching poets’ lives, they discover the relationship between artists’ experiences and works. In writing the obituaries, they must choose the best way to present the information they have gathered. In analyzing the poems of their poets, they explore the link between technique and meaning, and they examine that link once again as they create their own products. Finally, in writing the preface to the project, students reflect on their research and creative processes, realizing personal growth and producing new understandings of the artists and their work.

APPROACHING – The multigenre research project scores high in this area for reasons already detailed above. The obituary, the creative products, the poetry analysis, and the personal reflection combine research with invention to generate highly original work with value for both of the classes involved in the project.