Interactions of Professionals and Elements of Literature

Introduction

Skills gained from English can be easily applied to many career areas. The opportunities are abundant to an individual with the knowledge of ELA. Individuals that possess the the ability to think clearly and critically, to analyze and interpret data, and communicate results are in great demand by employers. What you are learning in class now will be beneficial for you in the future for your professional career!

In this unit, you will explore the concept of interactions more fully. We will look at how real life interractions are reflected in literature, how interactions create and develop stories, and how elements of fiction interact.

Task

Over the next several months in class, during Flex, and outside of class, you will be working on answering the following question:

How do the elements of literature interact with professional careers?

Your focus will be on one career path. You get to choose which career to study from the list below. (If you don't see a specific job title listed, then come see me for approval to study something not on the list.)

Actor/actress
Advertising Account Executive
Advertising/Sales Representative
Announcer
Application Developer
Area Coordinator
Attorney
Author
Book Publisher
Bookstore manager
Broadcast Advertising Manager
Broadcaster
Business Operations Planner
Child Care Specialist/Teacher
Columnist
Commodities Trader
Communication Skills Trainer
Communications Director
Community Affairs Specialist
Copywriter
Correspondent
Counselor
Court Reporter
Creative Director
Creative Writer
Critic
Development Associate/Social Worker
Director of Public Relations
Dramatist
Editor
Educational Researcher
Entertainment Agent
Filmmaker
Head of Advertising/Asst. Vice President
Journalist
Librarian
Lobbyist
Media specialist
Musician/Composer
Narrator
News Reporter
Operations Manager
Paralegal
Personnel Manager
Philosopher
Politician
Production Assistant
Proofreader
Psychologist
Public Relations Specialist
Publications Manager
Publisher
Reading Consultant
Real Estate Broker
Reporter
Sales Representative
Senior Staff Writer
Singer/Songwriter
Social Worker
Special Agent
Speech Pathologist
Television Producer/Performer

You will research your topic using all the resources made available to you on this WebQuests, in the classroom, in the library, and in the community. You will have to gather information by interviewing actual professionals of the career you choose. If you have trouble finding these human resources, then speak with me and I will help you find an appropriate community member to speak with.

Remember all of the elements of literature we've learned so far this year and will be learning this year in your research. You will first have to research your chosen career. But the main focus of this study is to determine how the career uses elements of literature. You must apply your knowledge of the elements to your newly learned knowledge the chosen career.

You will be creating a product to showcase all of your new-found information. You will present your findings to your parents, teachers, and peers at the Mid-Year Open House. This gives you approximately 3 months to complete your research and product. Again, you may choose a variety of formats to present your findings. You're only limited by your imagination!

The purpose of this project is to spend time researching a topic you are interested in while pursuing a line of inquiry from start to finish. Throughout this process, you will be asked to document your work, including your notes, drafts of your products in various stages, peer revisions, etc.

Process

Don't get overwhelmed with this assignment! We will be using a learning contract to document the steps you take to stay on track. Together, as a class, we will decide on the checkpoint dates on the contract. You can complete your independent study by following these steps.

1. Select a topic/ career of interest.

If you can't choose a topic, use these questions to help:

Which topic is most intersesting to me?

Which topic do I know the least about?

Which topic do I know the most about?

Which topic will be easy to find information?

Which topic is the most unusual?

Which topic will be the most useful to me?

Which topic will be the most interesting to the audience?

2. Think about the research question in relation to your topic-- How do elements of literature interact with your professional career?

3. Develop some research questions that you will have to answer in order to get the information you need for this assignment.

4. Select a product for delivering the research to the audience at the Mid-Year Open House.

Some ideas: Keynote Presentation, Essay, Poster, Comic Strip or Cartoon, Chart or Graph, Photo Book, Musical Performance, Drama/ Skit, Puppet Show, Magazine, Newspaper, etc.

5. Write a research proposal.

Your proposal should include the following: topic, research question, how the question addresses the theme of "interactions," what you hope to learn or better understand from this research, and how you will present your findings to the audience.

http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/biology/7-16-experimental-molecular-biology-…

6.Start researching and taking notes. You will need to use at least 6 sources for this project. Be sure to document all the information on your source sheet you will need to cite your sources using MLA format. If you aren’t sure how to do this, go to the Purdue OWL site and look under the MLA section.

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

7. Develop a first draft of your product/ project.

8.Ask one of your peers (and preferably more than one) for feedback on what you have so far. Does this make sense? Are you making your points clearly? What is confusing? Are there areas they’d like more information? Now do the same for your peers. Be sure to be a critical friend. The more feedback you offer one another, the better the project will become. (If you aren’t sure what to do, use our TAG technique – Tell what you like, Ask a question, Give a suggestion)

http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/peer-edi…

perfection-786.html

http://www.colby.edu/writers.center/peerediting.html

9. Revise, revise, revise.

10. Develop your final product.

11. Present your work and celebrate! Be prepared to answer any questions on your topic that may be thrown your way, but also know it’s okay to say, “I don’t know.” Even though you may be an expert on your topic, there are questions even experts can’t answer. Enjoy your moment in the spotlight!

12. Complete your self-evaluation. Be realistic and think about what went well, what could be improved, and what you'd change if you did this again.

Evaluation

Performance	Novice	Competent	Expert
Evidence What evidence have I gathered? How well have I evaluated and analyzed the primary sources?	Inadequate use or absence of primary and secondary sources; no variation in types, perspectives, or opinions of resources.	Some evidence drawn from primary and secondary sources; adequate use of opposing and varied resources; refers to analyses of several available sources.	Detailed evidence gathered from primary and secondary sources; evaluation of opposing and varied resources; effective analysis of all sources.
Organization How well have I organized my research? How well have I supported my questions or ideas with evidence?	Organizing idea may be ill-defined, too broad, or absent; evidence may be present but does not support any particular idea, thesis, or set of questions.	Has clearly defined organizing idea, thesis, or questions; most evidence is connected to the organizing idea, and the reader/ viewer is able to make the connection.	Has clearly defined organizing idea, thesis, or questions; complex argument is clearly presented and supported by specific and relevant evidence.
Connections How well have I made connections between my research findings and the questions I have generated? What do I now understand?	Limited or no connections are made to a larger context; shows limited or no understanding of student knowledge or development of new ideas, event at a personal level; use of research findings is not connected to the product.	Recognizes patterns and can make accurate generalizations; explains and applies the relationship between the concepts and issues beyond the work.	Demonstrates relationship between maid idea and larger context; analysis of issues reveals well-developed, original ideas and new understanding.
Style and Voice Does my voice or the subject’s voice come through in my product? How well have I communicated my ideas?	Writing is unclear with no particular style, voice, or originality; uses research findings in the overall product	Writing is clear but lacks focus; style is straightforward, but attempts have been made to add original touches to the story; student voice is present but inconsistent; research findings are used within the product, but rationale for their use is not clear.	Writing is confident; the product is clearly intentional; student voice is evident; writes with lively and engaging language; research findings enhance the story; the book has a distinct personal identity.
Conventions Have I communicated my ideas effectively? Have I edited my work? Have I used the proper documenting sources?	Communication is impaired by errors; little or no use of conventions for publication.	Some mechanical errors, but communication is not impaired; demonstrates knowledge of accepted conventions for publication.	Mechanical errors are rare or nonexistent; follows appropriate conventions for publication.
Presentation Have I presented my ideas and research effectively? Does the audience understand my focus and purpose through my product and presentation?	Ideas and research are not presented clearly; focus is not clear to audience; purpose is not clear to audience; presentation lacks detail	Some ideas and research are presented clearly; focus and purpose are somewhat clear; there is some detail	Ideas and research are presented clearly; focus is clear to audience; purpose is clear to audience; there is detail included in presentation

Self Evaluation:

Answer numbers 1-4 on a scale of 1-5. 5 being “very well” and 1 being “not very well.”

1. How well did you achieve your goals? 1 2 3 4 5

2. How well did you learn new information and ideas? 1 2 3 4 5

3. How well did you learn new skills? 1 2 3 4 5

4. How well did you learn new things about yourself? 1 2 3 4 5

Answer numbers 5-8 in sentence form with detail.

5. What part of your work makes you the most proud?

6. If you had to do your project over again, what would you change and why?

7. How does the project you worked on relate to the life of a person in the career you studied? What are the analogies and metaphors?

8. How does your project show that you have grown or improved in some way?

Conclusion

Well done! You're now able to describe the interactions that take place in a specific career and how the elements of literature are involved within those interactions within that career.

Credits

Burns, D. E., Kaplan, S. N., Leppien, J. H., Purcell, J. H., Strickland, C. A., & Tomlinson,

C. A. (2006). Using Biography and Autobiography. In R.D. Clouse (Ed.), The Parallel

Curriculum in the Classroom: Units for Appliction Across the Content Areas K-12,

Book 2 (352 and 362). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Dover, Sally (2015). Independent Study Example File. EDU593.

http://moodle.converse.edu/moodle2/pluginfile.php/101682/mod_resource/

content/2/independent%20study%20example.pdf

Teacher Page

Grade Level/ Subject: 6/ ELA

Theme: Interactions

Enduring Understandings/Generalizations:

Interactions cause change.
Interactions are inevitable.
Interactions define culture.
Interactions are the driving force of society.
Interactions are essential to life, love, and the pursuit of happiness.
Interactive forces create interactions, which create relationships.
Interactions can be the cause and the effect.

SC Standards: (2015)

RL MC 8.1: Describe how a plot in a narrative or drama unfolds and how characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution; determine the impact of contextual influences on setting, plot, and characters.
RL LCS 9.2: Analyze the author’s word and convention choices and draw conclusions about how they impact meaning and tone.
RL LCS 12.1: Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.
RL RC 13.3: Read and respond to grade level text to become self-directed, critical readers, and thinkers.
W RC 6.1: Write routinely and persevere in writing tasks over short and extended time frames, for a range of domain specific tasks, and for a variety of purposes and audiences.
C MC 1.1: Consider viewpoints of others by listening, reflecting, and formulating questions; support others to reach common understandings of concepts, ideas, and text.
C MC 1.2: Participate in discussions; ask and respond to probing questions to acquire and confirm information concerning a topic, text, or issue.
I 1.1: Develop questions to broaden thinking on a specific idea that frames inquiry for new learning and deeper understanding.
I 2.1 Transact with text in order to formulate logical questions based on evidence, generate explanations, propose and present conclusions, and consider multiple perspectives.
I 5.1 Acknowledge and value individual and collective thinking; use feedback from peers and adults to guide the inquiry process.
I 5.2 Employ past and present learning in order to monitor and guide inquiry.