Create an entry event/document
The entry event or document is a way to grab the attention of the students and hook them into the project. It can be fun, serious, real world, or fictitious. Many teachers use a letter from a real or fictitious person that puts the students in a particular role such as:
The CFO of a company seeking help on a financial problem. A park ranger asking for advice for park maintenance. The principal of the school looking for student input on a school program. |
The entry event does not have to be a letter, though. In introducing a project regarding cyberbullying to my government class, I showed a powerful video of the harassment that many students endure and the tragedy that befalls some as a result. We talked about the video and I posed many questions to them regarding freshmen and younger siblings they have in the school. The students felt a call to action in protecting their peers from these dangers and from that day to the last, it wasn’t a project, but a mission to protect other students.
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