Submitted by: Kelly Robison
School: Academy at Virginia Randolph
Summary
The students will be creating a review DVD for the end-of-course/year SOL test. SOL tests are cumulative; therefore, it is very difficult for students to remember material taught during the first semester. This hands-on, student-led lesson plan will allow students to progressively create a review movie for the SOL, where each chapter of the DVD will be a different “chunk” (or unit) of material. The students will complete a chapter after 2-3 weeks of regular teacher-led instruction. All SOL-based material will be broken down into student-created dialogue; to include terms, dates, important people/places, etc… The students, in collaboration with the teacher and other instructional staff, will present information on-camera using a variety of creative techniques (skits, charts, graphs, sample questions, etc…) in order to create a full DVD for review before the SOL test.
TIPC Ratings
Approaching: While completing this project, students will select the tools they need to assemble and utilize information. Prior knowledge, in addition to teacher/peer support, will assist the students in coming up with creative ideas for their DVD. Finally, students will apply learned information to new experiences and modern life by creating chapters that will help explain information in student-based dialogue.
Developing: Students must communicate within the classroom to complete this project, especially if the teacher has decided to form small project-based groups. Students will also need to share information with one another to complete this project; for example, if a student missed a unit, they will need to get that information from another student in their class in order to complete that chapter of their DVD. Finally, students will share these DVD projects with other students at the school-wide level; however, this project could definitely reach the community (or global) areas.
Developing: Students completing this project will select from a variety of resources in order to create scripts for their DVD. Creating a DVD will force students to “think outside the box” because there are multiple ways to present the same information. Students must use higher-order thinking skills to think of creative ways to share prior knowledge.
Approaching: This project is heavily based in creativity and innovation. The final product, SOL Review DVDs, will have value for specified audiences of high school students taking SOL-based content classes. Students working on this project will be working collaboratively in teams and with their teacher to produce a product that offers a solution to last-minute “cramming” and unnecessary frustration about the end-of-year SOL tests. Finally, students will have to apply innovative thinking and multiple research methods in order to present learned information in a creative and memory-significant way.
