Submitted by Dayna Laber
Objectives:
Content:
Students will...
· learn about the lives of famous inventors in history and the inventions they created
· analyze the relationship between problems and solutions when creating inventionsCultural:
Language: Content Obligatory
Students will...
· use new vocabulary related to the lesson such as: el invento, la invención, inventar, fabricar, problema, soluciónLanguage: Content Compatible
Students will...
· use the preterite and imperfect tenses appropriately
· use descriptive language to describe inventors' livesLearning Strategies / Social and Skills Development:
Students will...
· summarize the main idea and recall relevant information which has been presented through a video
Time Frame:
One to four 50 minute class periods of one hour depending on the number of inventors studied.
Materials Needed:
Animated Hero Classics Videos (see References)
*Substitute video series with books if necessary.
Description of Assessment (Performance Project):
The unit begins by exposing students to various situations in everyday life through literature. Then the students may study various inventors and the problems that they solved. Formal assessment begins when the students need to brainstorm a problem and create an invention to solve that problem. The students also explore the types of propaganda used in advertisements and are assessed on their ability to persuade the reader to buy their invention. Through writing, the students discuss four key points: what the invention is, how to use the invention, why people should buy the invention, and the problem the invention solves. Their writing ability in assessed on previously taught skills that need to be continually reinforced and developed. The highlighted grammar skills are listed on the rubric. Time permitting, the teacher will decide how the students will present their invention projects to the class or other classes.
Using the Animated Hero Classics Video Series, the class will learn about the lives of famous inventors and the problems they solved through creating their inventions. Some famous inventor videos in this series include George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, Louis Pasteur and Alexander Graham Bell. The teacher may choose how many inventors to study.
After viewing the videos, students will choose one of the inventors that was highlighted in the video series to write a summary about the inventor's life and the problem that presented itself so that the inventor needed to create a solution. The students will also describe the new invention that was created, and how life would be different today without that invention.
Assessment:
The teacher will assess the students work by reading the summaries and determining whether the students understood the relationship between the problem that was presented to create the need for the invention and the solution to the problem (invention). Also, were the students able to hypothesize how life might be different today without the invention?
Formal assessment is not necessary at this time; however, it would be helpful to note whether the students understood the concepts highlighted above by using the following guidlines:
+ Shows an outstanding grasp of concepts
Satisfactory
- Does not show an understanding of concepts
References and Resources:
Animated Hero Classics. Living History Productions: Irving TX, 1993. (To order: 1-800-452-4485)
This is a series of videos, available in both English and Spanish that include information about famous inventors, their inventions and lives. There are also activity books for each video available.