DRIVING QUESTION:

How can we design and share a set of activities for kids to do at home while their grown-ups are working?

Day 1: Launch Project

Projects begin with a Driving Question (a question that propels the learning forward) and end with a Public Product (a piece of work that is shared beyond the immediate learning environment, which in this case is the family home). On Day 1, you will introduce the question and begin thinking about what key knowledge and skills are needed to answer it, and how the work will be shared with the larger community.

Overview

Today you will launch the project, share the driving question and introduce the public product. Then, you will generate a list of questions your child/ren need to know in order to answer that driving question. Those questions will guide the project for the next ten days.

Project Work Time

To launch the project (the entry event), read your child/ren a fabricated letter from the school district or principal announcing that school is closed. (See sample below - or you can write your own).

Dear Families,

Due to the Coronavirus, we have decided to cancel school for (or insert your school name) for the next _______ weeks. We are doing this because this virus is easily spread, and we know that having families stay home is the best choice to keep you all healthy. We know that you miss seeing friends and participating in school activities, so we would love your help. While teachers have prepared many exciting lessons for you to do at home, we are also wondering if you could help us come up with some new games or activities that you think kids your age would like to do at home while their parents are working.  

Please keep in mind that since your parents and care-takers have to work, these games and activities need to be things that kids your age can do without too much help from grown-ups. They also need to be fun and last for a good amount of time - at least 30 minutes per activity. Do you think you could help us with this? When you have your activities ready, please send them out either online (on Pinterest or Vimeo) or email _____________ so that kids in our school can use them at home. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

 

Share the big problem: Grown-ups need to work from home, and kids need to learn and play during the day. How can we make that work?

 

Introduce the Driving Question & Public Product

How can we design a set of activities for kids to do at home while grown-ups are working?

Tell children that you are going to do a project together to try to answer this big question. The product is a shareable online resource for kids and care-givers of things they can do at home during the shelter-in-place. This might include a video (explaining different options like games or books) or a Pinterest Board, a reflection platform like  Flipgrid or any other digital display that can be shared (it could be a simple PDF or set of photos and directions). 

Next, create a “need-to-know” list of questions kids have in order to find the answer to the driving question. 

Ask: What questions do you have about our big question? What do we need to know in order to help our school to come up with activities? 

Make a list of the questions that come up.

QUICK TIP:

Young children may have trouble articulating questions right away and will need support. Consider how you might help them rephrase a comment into a question. For example, a child might say: “We have to stay home because we could get sick.” Your response might be, “Oh, so you are wondering about the ways we can keep healthy by staying home?” Connect their statements to a relevant, connected question.

Anticipated Need-to-Knows

  • Why are we staying home from school?

  • What is the Coronavirus? 

  • Why does staying home from school help keep us from getting sick? 

  • Why can’t we have our friends over?

  • What ideas do we have?

  • What materials will we need to do to make the activities? 

  • How will we share it with others? 

  • How will we teach others how to use what we make? 

  • How do we get the project online?

Checking for Understanding

Look over the list of questions. Do you think there is anything missing? What might you add?

Share Your Progress

At the end of each day, we want to encourage you to share your progress with the ECPBL online community. Post photos, ask questions, and let us know how it’s going for you. A key element of all Project Based Learning is that it is done in community with others (we call it “deprivatizing your practice”), and has practical, authentic application. Teachers and parents will enjoy learning along side you, so please: share!

The first step is to join our Facebook page. Click on the link below and - if you haven’t already - click on the blue + JOIN GROUP link under the main image. After you are accepted by the moderators, you will be able to view all the content and post your own.