Online+Activity+and+Inquiry

Peter Formica EDU 7666 (1)The online activity I chose is from the [|www.PBS.org] website entitled Civil War Letters. Out of 6 activities for the lesson, I chose the 5th activity. In this activity, the students are encouraged to write letters as the men and women they learned about in the previous activity. They are engaged to write from the point of view of the person they chose during the war years (whether it be an abolitionist, slave-owner, general, activist, soldier, etc.). The students then go through 3 rounds of letters that they must write at three different time periods: Round 1 – January 1, 1863, Round 2 – July 4, 1863, and Round 3 – Thanksgiving, 1863. They are encouraged to envision the thoughts of their character during these three time periods. (2a)**NY Learning Standards** Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the geography of the interdependent world in which we live—local, national, and global—including the distribution of people, places, and environments over the Earth’s surface. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic values of American constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation. Students will listen, speak, read, and write for critical analysis and evaluation. As listeners and readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to present, from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues. Retrieved from []
 * Social Studies**
 * Standard 1**: History of the United States and New York
 * Standard 3**: Geography
 * Standard 5**: Civics, Citizenship, and Government
 * English Language Arts**
 * Standard 1**: Language for Information and Understanding Students will listen, speak, read, and write for information and understanding. As listeners and readers, students will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and use knowledge generated from oral, written, and electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information.
 * Standard 3**: Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation

(2b) Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Retrieved from []
 * 1.** **Creativity and Innovation**
 * 3. ** **Research and Information Fluency **

 (3) Inquiry is a type of learning approach which involves students asking questions. The purpose of inquiry is to engage students in active learning. It is different than simply just answering questions and remembering facts. Students can ask their own questions, investigate their question, develop their own skills, discuss their findings and then reflect on their findings. There are an infinite amount of answers when dealing with inquiry based question, as well as, a multiple amount of methods involved in communicating and carrying out learning activities. These include: observing, researching, recording data, and processing information, just to name a few. Inquiry-Based learning actually allows students to engage themselves in learning and actually motivates them to learn more about things that matter in the world and things that matter to them. Rubric Template  || **Not Evident** **1** ||  **Partial** **2** ||  **Exemplary** **3** ||  **Score**  ||
 * Skill Development || There are no activities which allow students to learn new helpful skills || There are one to two high level activities which allow students to develop new learning skills || There are 3 or more high level activities allowing students to develop new learning skills ||   ||
 * Questioning  Method || The types of questions being asked require a one answer response || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">The types of questions being asked have a few possible answers || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">The types of questions being asked have an infinite amount of answers ||   ||
 * <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Discussion <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;"> Method || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">The students are provided with only one technique used to discuss data || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">The students are provided a few techniques used to discuss data || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">The students are provided with a multitude of techniques used to discuss data (graphing, charts, journals, etc.) ||   ||
 * <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Communications <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;"> Method || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are encourage to express their ideas in one task || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are encouraged to express ideas in a few tasks || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are encouraged to express ideas in a variety of tasks; i.e., journals, ideas, reports, graphs,etc. ||   ||
 * <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Reflection Method || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are not encouraged to assess their own work || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are encouraged to assess their own work in one way (just to see if they got the right answer) || <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Students are encouraged and required to assess their own work, their strengths and weaknesses, and reflect on their learning with their peers ||   ||