Background
Information
An iAdventure is a way of teaching
students important concepts and skills by involving them in a storyline
about one or more characters (fictional or real). In this story,
two E.S.L. students explore the major political parties and look into several
U.S. political issues. Many of the links found throughout this iAdventure
are good genereal resources. You may wish to bookmark them and refer
back to them in other iActivities related to the U.S. political system.
Also, because this is designed
for E.S.L. students, there is a small glossary
of terms. The first time one of these terms appears in the iAdventure,
it will be in italics and the color of an active link. Students may
access it at that time.
Curriculum
Standards
This iAdventure is designed
to meet the following standards:
|
TESOL Standards
|
|
| Goal 2: To use English to Achieve
academically in all content areas. |
|
| Standard 1: Students will use English
to interact in the classroom. |
Activities: Share a computer and work
successfully with a partner. Ask for assistance when necessary. |
| Standard 2: Students will use
English to obtain, process, construct and provide subject matter information
in spoken and written form. |
Activities: Synthesize, analyze, and
evaluate information. Take a position on a topic and support it in
writing. Edit and revise written assignments. |
| Goal 3: To use English in socially
and culturally appropriate ways. |
|
| Standard 1: Students will use
the appropriate language variety, register, and genre according to audience,
purpose and setting. |
Activity: Write a letter to a congressman
using appropriate language and forms. |
| Missouri
Show-Me Standards |
|
| Social Studies |
3. principles and processes of governance
systems |
| Goal #1 |
10. apply acquired information, ideas and
skills to different contexts as students, workers, citizens and consumers |
| Goal #2 |
1. plan and make written, oral and visual
presentations for a variety of purposes and audiences
2. review and revise communications to improve
accuracy and clarity
3. exchange information, questions and ideas
while recognizing the perspectives of others
7. use technological tools to exchange information
and ideas |
| Goal #4 |
2. understand and apply the rights and responsibilities
of citizenship in Missouri and the United States
3. analyze the duties and responsibilities
of individuals in societies |
Resources
Needed
The only resource necessary
is the student worksheet. It can be accessed here
or through the site map above. If you plan to pre-teach the vocabulary,
you may wish to print out the glossary in this iAdventure beforehand.
Assessment
A scoring guide is included
for teacher and student use. It can be accessed from here
or from the site map above. Students have access to it from the final
page of the iAdventure. As this was designed for an E.S.L. class,
it focuses on both the content related to politics and on English mechanics.
Creating
Conclusions and Student Products
The culminating event or task
of an iAdventure is when students create the conclusion or product, as
described in the "Create a Conclusion" page. For this iAdventure, the conclusion
is for each student to write a letter to one of their congressmen or senators.
The letter should demonstrate a knowledge of political issues and solid
reasoning for why they support the issues they write about.. They
should come from the research they have done throughout the iAdventure.
Acknowledgements
The iAdventure concept was
developed in the Warrensburg, MO school district, as part of the "Learning
with iAdventures" program. This program was funded by a Competitive Technology
grant from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
For more information on iAdventures, visit the iAdventure
Home Page.
Who knew web-composing could
be so easy--Thank you Stan Smith.
Some definitions for the glossary
were taken from the following sources:
Collins
Cobuild English Dictionary. (1995).Ý Harper Collins:Ý London.
The
American Heritage English as a Second Language Dictionary. (1998).Ý Houghton
Mifflin:Ý Boston.
