Engagement Gallery

Design Challenges

developed by interdisciplinary teams of teachers to address common challenges in the classroom

The Design Process

A Protocol for Designing Engaging Student Work

Protocol Guide

Protocol Template

Engagement Gallery

Design Gallery of Engaging Work

McCulloch Intermediate School/Highland Park Middle School

a project of the Campus Design Team

Inauguration Engagement

Plucky, Precocious Pumpkins

Geography Photostory

Dissecting a Story

Mr. Know It All

Design Your Own Experiment

Larger Than Life Numberline

Symbolic Treasures

Visualizing Density

If the World Were a Village

6th grade Language Arts teacher Angelique Foster engaged her students with a textual analysis of President Obama's inauguration speech. Students were given excerpts from the speech and given the opportunity to choose one excerpt that "spoke" to them the most, which was then taped in their writing journal. As a group, they used dictionaries to understand the literal meaning of the speech. Then, the students worked individually to craft a written response to the speech, in any genre. Finally, they identified individual phrases in the speech that were particularly well crafted from a writer's perspective. The classroom activity engaged the students using the design qualities of choice, affiliation, and authenticity, while reinforcing what the students are learning about the writer's craft.

Return to top.

5^th grade Language Arts teachers Karen Arnold, Doug Jeffcoats, Casey Myers, and Megan Parks had their students work on characterization by decorating pumpkins. The lesson began with a review of the author’s craft of characterization and use of figurative language. Students were then invited to decorate a pumpkin however they chose to represent aspects of the pumpkin’s personality or characterization. The results were very entertaining and showed great depth of thought. The project required creativity, planning, and follow-through. Students concluded the project by producing a well-written paragraph analyzing their pumpkin’s “character.”

Return to top.

Kathy Wofford designed a project for her students to look through the four lenses of geography: culture, physical geography, economics, and government. The students had to do research to find facts about these core areas and pictures to go along with them from the internet. Then, students pulled their research together in a PhotoStory movie with narration and music they selected that they felt would enhance the movie. Learners had to explore abstract concepts in the creation of their movies such as file formats of graphics, video, and audio files. Students were so enthusiastic coming into a classroom full of laptops, headphones, and microphones. The excitement was palpable in the room and comments ranged from, "This is a techno classroom!" to "This is going to be so cool!"

Return to top.

Working on language and articulation goals, Laura Wolfe enlarged and laminated an age appropriate story, "Spiders - Master Weavers", and placed it on the wall. The story becomes interactive as the students go through each sentence dissecting vocabulary, multiple meaning words, fact and opinion, cause and effect, and figurative/ literal language. They work together to identify main idea and story details for good reading comprehension, and also target articulation while reading aloud. The students use their markers on the story to circle or underline words, to write out definitions, and to draw pictures that are relevant to the story. They read aloud and move about the room while discussing the story together. At the end of the lesson students watched a You Tube video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gglxehpl28Q&feature=related of spiders weaving their webs.

Return to top.

Cindy Lapp shared an engaging strategy that can be used for review or a check for understanding of major concepts called “Mr. Know It All.” This strategy was adapted from the KidProv improvisation troupe and begins with selecting a number of student volunteers, usually 4-6 people works best. The participants are given a key concept or vocabulary word to explain as a team. The activity continues with each participant adding one word in sequence to try to come up with an explanation of the concept. When the participants finish their explanation, the rest of the class can vote or discuss whether they think the response was correct and complete.

Return to top.

The 6^th Grade science teachers engaged their students while introducing the scientific method by having the student design their own experiment. The students identified a constant and several variables for data collection to evaluate their favorite brands of bubble gum. The design qualities of choice, novelty and variety, affiliation and authenticity were incorporated in this lesson to increase student engagement.

Return to top.

In a math lesson designed to reinforce the concepts of positive and negative numbers on a numberline, Jean Streepey used design qualities to authenticity and novelty to engage her students. She laid a lifesize numberline on the ground in the atrium of the school and hung a second numberline vertically from the 2^nd floor balcony to the floor. The two numberlines together created a visual display of a coordinate plane for the students. Using a tethered helium balloon the students could raise and lower a “point” on the vertical axis, as well as move the “point” left and right on the horizontal axis. Students had the chance to experience the coordinate plane. Georgie Swize has organized a similar experience for her 8^th graders by marking out the coordinate plane on the floor. Students walk the horizontal and vertical axes in order to experience slope and rate of change.

Return to top.

Students in Yvonne Janik’s language art classes produced a project called Symbolic Treasures to develop their abstract thinking and communication skills. The design qualities of affiliation and product focus engaged the students. Students were instructed to bring five unusual items and a container that represented their unique personality and then prepare a brief speech to introduce themselves through presenting the object. Ms. Janik also used the design qualities of clear and compelling standards—by personally modeling her expectations regarding the object and the presentation—and content and substance and organization of knowledge—by using the student presentations to evoke discussions of abstract thinking.

Return to top.

Belinda Drew engaged her students using the design qualities of authenticity and novelty and variety to introduce the concept of density in 8^th grade science. She chose to let students visually experience the concept of density through showing contrast images on x-rays. This was a unique way to show different densities so the students could understand the concept and relate a known experience to an unknown concept they were learning.

Return to top.

Lynn Simoneaux’s “If the World Were a Village” simulation engaged students through the design quality of authenticity while developing a sense of empathy and understanding for the daily challenges of people who live in poverty in the developing world. The water simulation walk requires students to carry the amount of water used by a family over the typical distances experienced in remote villages in Africa. No one leaves this experience with their perspective unchanged.

Return to top.

Debbie Blackwell’s students used technology to present their understanding of the concept of mood in a book they were reading. After observing several example movie trailers, they used Microsoft PhotoStory to make their own trailers to promote their book. Students used narration, colors, images, and other elements to show mood in their PhotoStory project. Ms. Blackwell used the design qualities of clear and compelling standards, authenticity, affirmation, product focus, and novelty and variety to engage her students with this assignment.

Return to top.

Annie Paul developed a game for 5^th grade math students to practice rounding. If a team of students figures out the correct answer to a problem, they get to grab a handful of dominoes. Problem-solving practice is also built into the game. After several rounds, the students work together to use their dominoes to build a tower. The team with the tallest tower wins.

Return to top.

Diane Durgin has students practice vocabulary by placing an unknown word on their back. They must ask classmates questions to figure out their word while they circulate around the classroom. Students are very engaged in this vocabulary game because of the use of design qualities of affiliation, authenticity, and novelty and variety.

Return to top.

Jessica Marshall introduces new vocabulary and grammar by having students role play dialogues in Spanish. Students present their dialogues in brief skits in front of the rest of the class. The design qualities of affiliation and authenticity lead to higher levels of engagement.

Return to top.

Return to HPMS Home Page.

Return to MIS Home Page.