FYI- This blog post is a continuation from yesterday’s post. I would read yesterday’s post first. However, if you enjoy being confused then just read this one.
As you remember from yesterday, the students just Skyped with author John David Anderson and asked questions to improve their story. The students then went back to their stories where they revised and finalized their work.
Mrs. Arkwright and I then introduced the next part of the project to the students, the marketing. Students had to now “sell” their story to a grade level below them. The students were required to design a cover and presentation to persuade other students to purchase their story. The presentation had to be no more than one minute long. This was no easy task for the students. So Mrs. Arkwright and I brought in the experts, Andy Jenks and Chris OBrion from the communications department in Henrico County Public Schools.
Mr. Jenks and Mr. OBrion gave the students great information on how to speak to their audience and what might persuade people to purchase their story. Our experts then opened their presentation up for questions.
Mr. Jenks and Mr. OBrion were extremely patient and attentive to the students. Each student was able to give a little summary of their story and the experts were then able to give them ideas on how to present their story in a minute. The students even asked some great follow up questions.
One of my most favorite interactions was seeing a student go back and forth with Mr. OBrion about his story. This student’s story was about a boy that was immortal. By the end of the collaborative exchange, the student had the idea to fill tiny cups of water and hand them out saying it’s from the Fountain of Youth. This concept wouldn’t have happened if the student was stuck at a desk all day. This idea was born out of the fact that the student felt safe to be creative and take chances.
The students then took all of their new knowledge and went to work on the covers for their stories and their presentations. It was amazing to see the students discussing their work. The students came up with some of the most creative ideas for their presentation. Tomorrow we’ll go into the presentations and how other students were able to purchase the stories.
