ThirdGrade AuthorsPurpose TeachingYoungStudentsHowToBeginExaminingWebsites

TimeFrame:Four,onehourlessons

Goal:Ourgoalwithintheselessonsistofostercriticalthinking.Weknowthatinthirdgradeour studentsarenotdevelopmentallyabletofullycomprehendandcriticallyexaminewebsitesaswe wouldlikethemto.However,wewouldliketoprovidestudentsopportunitiestobeexposed differentcontentontheInternetsothatcanbegintoaskquestions.Ifwecangetouryounger studentstobegintothinkaboutinformationandhavemeaningfuldiscussion,weareontheright track.Theideabehindtheselessonsistomakeconnectionswithpriorknowledgestudentshave fromtheirreadinginstructioninprimarygrades.Determiningfictionvs.nonfictionandAuthors PurposearetwoobjectivesthathavealreadybeentaughttostudentsasearlyasKindergarten. Wewouldlikeforstudentstomakeconnectionsthatreadingisstillreading,evenifitisonthe computerandonthiscasetheInternetandwebsites.Ourgoalistohavestudentsthinkabout whattheyvealreadylearnedtodoinreadingandapplyit. TechnologyStandards ISTEStandard3:ResearchandInformationFluency Studentsapplydigitaltoolstogather,evaluate,anduseinformation. Standard4:CriticalThinking,ProblemSolving,andDecisionMaking Studentsusecriticalthinkingskillstoplan,conductresearch,manageprojects,solveproblems, andmakeinformeddecisionsusingappropriatedigitaltoolsandresources Standard5:DigitalCitizenship Studentsunderstandhuman,cultural,andsocietalissuesrelatedtotechnologyandpractice legalandethicalbehavior. Accommodations:StudentswilllearnhowtousetheSpeechtoolinSafaritoreadaloud someofthesitesthathavemoredifficulttextforstudentstoreadindependently.Simplyopenthe websiteinSafari,highlightthetextyouwouldliketobereadaloud.Thengototheedittab, followedbySpeech,thenselectstartspeaking. *Notetoteacher:WhenusingaGoogleFormpleaseMakeaCopyoftheformandsaveitwith anewnametoyourGoogleDrive. Day1:Fictionvs.Nonfiction

Objective:Studentswilldemonstrateanunderstandingoffictionvs.nonfiction.Theywill discoverthatsomeinformationontheInternetisfictional.Studentswillbegintoexamineand discusssitesinordertodetermineifsitesarefictional. Engagement:(TumblebooksisapaidsubscriptionunlessyouaccessitthroughtheHoward CountyLibraryPagelink,thenitisfree.) UsetwostoriesfromtheHowardCountyLibraryTumblebooks:DinotrainbyDebLundand DinosaursRoar,ButterfliesSoarbyBobBarnertoreviewfictionvsnonfictionbooks.Havethem watchandtakenotesonhowtheyknowwhichbooksisfictionandwhichbookisnonfiction. tumblebooks: Afterstudentshavehadtimetoviewbothstories,reviewthestoriesasaclassandgooverhow studentsknowoneiffictionandoneisnonfiction. Tellstudentsthatwebsitescanalsobeclassifiedasfictionornonfiction,butoftenitishardto tell.Somesitesarecontaininformationthatisnonfictionandfiction.Thatiswhywehavetobe goodresearchersandthinkabouttheinformationandwebsite.

Activity:Playthegame,TwoTruthsandaLiewithstudents.Introducethegamebysharing twothingsthataretrueaboutyourselfandonethatisalie.Shareandseeifstudentscanguess whichtworesponsesaretrueandwhichoneisalie.Forexample:Iplayedtennisincollege, (true)Ihaveapetmouse,(lie)Ioncesteppedonaseaurchin.(true).Havestudentstakeabout tenminutestothinkoftruthsandliesandplaywithapartner. Afterplayingthegamewithapartner,bringstudentsbackanddiscusshowitwasoftendifficult toknowwhatinformationwastrueandwhatwasthelie.SaytheInternetisoftenthesameway. ExplainthattheactivitytheywillparticipatinginusesdifferentsitesontheInternet.Somesites haveinformationthatistrueandsomehasinformationthatisnottrue.Theywillplaytwotruths andalieusingthesesites. Theteacherwillsharethreewebsites,twositesthataresiteswithgoodinformationthatistrue andonethathasinformationthatisnotastrustworthyandfictional.Studentswillworkin partnersorsmallgroupstolookatthewebsiteandmakepredictionsaboutwhetherthewebsites aretruthsandnonfictionorliesandfiction.

Twosetsofwebsitesforstudentstoplaytwotruthsandlieandexamine. Set1 http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/(lie) http://www.thefeaturedcreature.com/2010/12/tinytimtripodfish.html(truth)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/20100606/velvetwormsdeadlyslimerevealed/855728(truth) Set2 http://allaboutexplorers.com/explorers/columbus/(lie) http://www.biography.com/people/christophercolumbus9254209(truth) http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/page/c/columbus.shtml(truth) Studentswillfilloutthegoogleformbelowandsubmititwhentheyhavelookedatthewebsites anddeterminedtheirpredictionwiththeirpartner. GoogleForm: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1TZjFMEolji8sziCo1kOvmLxe_n2YBajRumJ4WMjokmo/viewfor m Closure: Bringstudentsbacktothecarpet.Sharepredictionsaboutwhichgroupsthoughtwhichwebsites weretruthsorlies.Recorddownthepredictionsmadebyeachgroup.Donotsharethecorrect answers,buttellthemthatnextclasswewillseeifanygroupswerecorrect.

Day2:AuthorsPurpose Objective:StudentswilldemonstrateanunderstandingofAuthorsPurposeandbegintoapply thisknowledgetositesontheInternet. Engagement:

Pullstudentstogetherasawholegroup.Reviewtheactivity,TwoTruthsandaLiefromDay1 andshowthewebsitesagain.Havestudentsshowbyraisingtheirhandiftheythinkthewebsite istrueorifitisalie.Sharetheactualanswersafter.Encouragediscussionandprobing questionssuchas,Howdoyouknow?Whatdoyouseeornotsee?Whycantyoutrustthis information?Tellstudentswewillbeexaminingwebsitesinmoredetailinupcomingclasses. Activity: Usethewebsite http://studentpersonalpages.loyola.edu/almackin/www/authorspurpose/test.htmltointroduce todaystopic,authorspurpose.Sharewithstudentsthatifweareabletothinkaboutwhatthe AuthorsPurposeisonawebsite,itwillhelpustrytothinkaboutwhetherawebsiteisfictional(a truth)ornonfictional(alie). TheteacherwillbeginbystartingontheHometabandreadingwhateachpurposeis.Thenthey willreteachbyshowingtheAuthorsPurposePowerPointtofollowuponthewebsite introduction. StudentswillthenlogontothecomputersinordertotaketheAuthorsPurposeQuiz. http://studentpersonalpages.loyola.edu/almackin/www/authorspurpose/quiz.html Whenstudentscompletethequiz,theywillnextnavigatetotheAuthorsPurposesitepage http://studentpersonalpages.loyola.edu/almackin/www/authorspurpose/extra.html toplayfourgamesthatwillhelpreinforcetheconcept. Closure: Havestudentscomebacktoawholegroupandhavethemlogoffofthecomputers.Sharethat peoplewhomakewebsitesalsohaveapurpose.LookatthefirstwebsitefromDay 1:http://www.thefeaturedcreature.com/2010/12/tinytimtripodfish.html Determinethepurposeasaclass.(Toinform.)Askstudentshowtheydeterminedthepurpose andwhatcluestheyusedtohelpthem? Explaintostudentsthatwhenpeoplewhomakewebsiteswanttoinformtheiraudiencethatalot ofthetimetheinformationismorelikelytobetrue.Ifthewebsiteisforentertainment,thereisa betterchanceitcouldbefictional.Thetrickiestofallwebsitesareoneswheretheauthors purposeistopersuadebecausetheyrearetryingtoconvinceoftobelievesomethingandwe alwayshavetobecareful.

Day3:AnimalResearch Objective: Studentswillapplyknowledgeofpreviouslessonsinordertoevaluatewebsites. Engagement:

Explaintostudentsthatthereisnosecretwaytoknowifawebsitehastruthorliesonit. However,sharewithstudentsthewebsiteevaluationform. http://studentpersonalpages.loyola.edu/almackin/www/authorspurpose/form.html Tellstudentsthatifweaskourselvestherightquestionsandreallythinkaboutwebsitesthanwe candecideifawebsiteishelpfultousorifweshouldnotuseitortakeitseriously.Tellthemthis formisagoodtooltohelpusstartthinkingbutwestillhavetouseourbrainsandothersiteson theInternettoknowforsure. Modelhowtocompletetheformbyusingawebsitefromtheotherdaythatstudentsarefamiliar, withsuchas:http://allaboutexplorers.com/explorers/columbus/ Thinkaloudanddemonstratetheprocessyouwouldgothroughtoshowstudentshowtofillout theform.Oncestudentshavefilledouttheform,theycangivethewebsitetheylookedattheir ownratingorscore.Thiswillbebasedonwhetherornotwelikeandcantrustthewebsite.If theywereabletoanswermostofthequestionsontheformandliketheresponsestheyfilled out,thewebsitewouldmostlikelygetahighratingandwewouldsaythatwecanmostlytrust thiswebsite.Iftheyhavetroublefindingsomeoftheanswersthantheymightnottrustthe websiteasmuchandgiveitashighofascore.RemindstudentstousetheAuthorsPurpose activityandTwoTruthsandaLieactivitytohelpthemthink.

Acitivty:WebsiteProject Fortheactivity,thestudentswillbeworkinginsmallgroups.Eachgroupwillbeassignedan animaltoresearch.Afterresearchingtheywillhavetopresentinformationtheyhavefoundon thewebsitetotheclassintheformofaPowerPoint.(Ifstudentsaremorecomfortableusing anotherprogramthatisfine.) Studentswilllogontothecomputerandgotothesite: http://studentpersonalpages.loyola.edu/almackin/www/authorspurpose/project.html Fromtheretheywillclickthelinkthatwilltakethemtotheiranimalssitewhichwillcontainother hyperlinksthatwillleadthemtothewebsitestheywillevaluateandrate. Itwouldbehelpfulforstudentstohaveprintedcopiesofthewebsiteevaluationtoolsforthe assignment.(Thiswillnotbeelectronicallysubmittedormandatorytodayforstudentsto complete,thiswilljustaidinhelpingthemdeterminearating.Thisformwillbesubmitted electronicallyonDay4forthefinalwebsite.) https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1HsGwD3aGG056XDMmxeMpkpUzqBh3InVJrc4Ajr9DVYQ/edit # Thiswillallowthemtotakewrittennotesandjotdowntheiranswerssothattheymaycomeup withafinalscore.Whengroupshavedeterminedscoresforeachwebsitetheyaretoevaluate, theywillfillourtheGoogleFormwheretheywillsubmittheirratingsandexplaintheirscores. Eachgrouphasaseparateform. CatRatingForm

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1p_cVmLaMYE1Uson3wIGTi_CDYmauD40uPS7JOz0TEQ/ed it# DogRatingForm https://docs.google.com/forms/d/13GOFMNrfdHGTaeljVxPG5Oy54HAtsCvtmxFxoTTVHM/edit# SquirrelRatingForm https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1UzP2wmS55bqbLnwXPuTNQ0K2EWL7PARObSYHZqO668/ edit#

Closure: Groupswillsubmittheirratingformandbepreparedtosharewiththeirteacherwhichwebsite theyareplanningtousetomaketheirPowerPointbeforetheyleavetheclass.Theteacherhas toagreewiththegroupthattheymadeanappropriatechoiceandthegrouphastodefendtheir websiteandsharetheirpurposeforpresenting.

Day4:WorkandPresentations (Note:dependinguponabilityofstudentsandhowfamiliartheyarewithresearch,presentations andPowerPoint,thislessonmaybesplitintotwodays.) Objective:Studentswillcompleteandpresenttheirpresentationstotheclassinorderto demonstrateandunderstandingofevaluatingawebsite. Engage:Reviewwithstudentstheexpectationsforthepresentations.Projecttheexpectations forthepresentationsonthecomputerscreensostudentscanviewthemastheyareworking andbesuretheymeetwiththeexpectations. Presentationsmust:

Includeatitlepagewithgroupnames Havealinktothewebsitetheychoose(Sharesitewithclass) Explainwhytheypickedthatwebsite(Sharetheirwebsiteevaluationtool) Sharewhattheylearned(Paragraphform) Activity: GroupswillworkonandcompletetheirPowerPoints.Theteacherwillmonitorandassistgroups asneeded. Closure: Groupswillpresenttoclass. Websiteevaluationformwillbesubmittedtodayforthewebsitetheypresented. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1HsGwD3aGG056XDMmxeMpkpUzqBh3InVJrc4Ajr9DVYQ/vie wform

CriticalLiteracyWebsitesforStudents DOGS Persuade http://www.justdogdayz.com/2009/08/03/dodogsmakethebestpets/ ThetitleofthisarticleisDodogsmakethebestpets?Thewebsitewhichhoststhisarticleis titledJustDogDayzandthepurposeofthesiteistohelpotherswiththedecisiontoownadog aswellasprovidinggeneralinformationaboutalltypesofdogs.Whenlookingforthespecific authorofthewebsite,allthatwasfoundwasacontactformwhichdoesnotspecifywhowould youwouldbecontacting.Thesitehasacopyrightdateof2013soinformationhasbeenupdated recently,however,manyofthesitesarticleswerewrittenduringdifferentyears. AwomannamedWandawritesthearticlethatthestudentswillbeusing.Wandaprovidesno

informationaboutherselfanditisdifficulttofigureouthowsheisaffiliatedwiththesite.When clickingonhername,avarietyofotherarticlesshehaswrittenarelisted.Eachofthesearticles providesinformationaboutdogs,however,shedoesnotsiteanyresourcesshehasusedand thereforethereadercanassumethearticlesarewrittenfromherownpersonalknowledgeof dogs.Whenseeingthistypeofinformationaboutanauthor,studentsshouldunderstandthat thismightnotbeanauthortheyshouldtrustwhenbeingpersuaded.WithintheactualJustDog Dayzarticle,theargumentpresentedissimplybasedononeauthorsopinion. Thereis1articlethatislinkedtothisarticleanditisaboutdogslikingmusic.Ittalksabouthow musicrelaxesdogsanddifferenttoysyoucanpurchaseforyourdogtomakethemfeelcalm. Thiswebsiterelatestothepreviouswebsitebecausetheyarebothbasedsoleonpersonal opinion. Inform **http://prsnal.blogspot.com/ Thewebsiteaboveisablogaboutdogs.Thetopicsincludetrainingandcaringfordogs.A differentauthorwriteseachblogentryandasmallblurbaboutwhotheyareiswrittenbelowtheir entry.Someoftheauthorshavecareersinworkingworkdogs,however,somejustwritefrom personalexperienceorhaveacareerthathasnothingtodowiththeanimalfield.Underneath eachoftheentries,thereisaplaceforpeopletowritecommentsandforlinkstootherpage. Therearenotmanycommentswrittenoneachentrywiththeexceptionofafewquestionsthat theauthorhasnotresponded.Therearenolinkstoanyoftheblogentriesorthewebsiteitself. Thelastpostingonthisblogwasfrom2010andthereareavarietyofarchivedpostsfrombefore then,however,therehavenotbeenanyupdatestothesitesincethen.Whenstudentslookat thiswebsitetheywillneedtolookateachauthoroftheblogentriesanddecideifitisanauthor theycantrustandrelyontoprovidetruthfulinformation. http://www.timeforkids.com/photosvideo/video/dogsrescue25761 TimeforKidsprovidesawealthofinformationonnewsforkids.Thearticleabovespotlights rescuedogsandwascreatedin2012.Althoughthisarticleisaboutayearold,theTFKwebsite isupdatedfrequentlywithcurrenteventsforkids.Withthisarticleonrescuedogs,thereisan informationalvideofromtheNationalDisasterSearchDogFoundationthatshows readers/viewershowthedogsrespondandhelpothersduringdisasters.Whilethereisno specificauthorofthisarticle,sincetheNationalDisasterSearchDogFoundationisaNational organization,thevideothattheysharedisareliableresource.Therearemanywebsitesthatare linkedtotheTimeforKidswebsite.ManyareotherarticlesfromTFKaswellasafewnews outlets. Entertain http://www.storiesthatlift.com/index.php/readchildrensstories/joshandhisdogmax.html Thiswebsiteprovidesreaderswithastoryaboutaboyandhisdog.Asstudentsreadthestory, theywillrealizethatthepurposeofthewebsiteistoentertainchildrenandisnotanappropriate websitetousewhenresearchingdogs.Theauthorofthisstoryprovidesreaderswithashort biographyofhimself.Whilehestatesthathehaswrittenothershortstoriesthathavebeenused

forteaching,thereisnowaytolegitimizethisinformation.Othersiteslinkstothisonearefrom DaybreakMagazine.Thiswebsiteisanonlinemagazinethatpostsfictionalstoriesrelatedtoa seriescalledShinewhichisasciencefictionseries.Thesitepostssciencefictionstories everyotherFridayfromvariousauthorswhoenjoytheShineseries. SQUIRRELS Entertain http://www.storiesthatlift.com/index.php/readchildrensstories/asquirrelsday.html Thiswebsiteprovidesreaderswithastoryaboutasquirrelsday.Asstudentsreadthestory, theywillrealizethatthepurposeofthewebsiteistoentertainchildrenandisnotanappropriate websitetousewhenresearchingsquirrels.Theauthorofthiswebsiteprovidesabiographyfor thereaderandstatesthatshehasbeenwritingsinceshewasyoungerbutthereareno credentialsprovidedaboutherprofessionalcareer.Therearenowebsitesthatarelinkedtothe specificlinkofthestory,however,theStoriesThatLiftwebsitelinkstoDaybreakMagazine.This websiteisanonlinemagazinethatpostsfictionalstoriesrelatedtoaseriescalledShinewhich isasciencefictionseries. Persuade http://antisquirrel.com/ Couldanyoneactuallybeantisquirrel?Thiswebsitetriestopersuadereadersthatsquirrelsare tryingtotakeovertheworldandhumanity.Studentswillreadthroughthevariouspagesonthe siteandhopefullyfigureoutthatthissiteisnecessarilyareflectionofhowsquirrelstrulyact.This siteisgoodtouseforstudentsbecauseitisnotoftenthattheywouldseeawebsitethatis persuadingthemtohateananimaltheyshouldbeabletoseethissideofthewebaswell.As farastheauthorsofthissite,theyprovidecontactinformationandlabelthemselvesas webmasterandcowebmasterandtheydonotgiveouttheirrealnames.Thereisalsonodate ofwhenthewebsitewascreatedorwhenitwaslastupdated. Oneofthetwowebsitesthatislinkedtothisis:http://www.cbel.com/animal_humor/.This websiteprovidesalargelistofotherwebsitesthatarefor,about,oragainstanimalsaswellas humoroussitesinvolvinganimals.Forexample,oneofthewebsitesonthelististitledCows Anonymouswhichisawebsitewherecowscangoforsupportiftheyarebeingabusedorgoing throughafamilytraumasuchasslaughtering.Theantisquirrelsitethatstudentsareusingis alsolistedonthiswebsite. Inform http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/squirrel/ **http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squirrel Thepurposeofeachofthewebsitesaboveistoinformthereadersaboutsquirrels.Thefirst articleisbyNationalGeographic.StudentsarefamiliarwithusingNationalGeographicandknow thatitprovidestrueinformation.ThepurposeoftheNationalGeographicwebsiteistoinspire

peopletocareabouttheplanet.Thiswebsiteprovidesapurpose,termsofuse,andwaysto contactthecompany.ManyotherNationalGeographicwebpagesarelinkedtotheoneon squirrels.Alloftheselinkedpagesareaboutacertainanimal. ThesecondwebsiteisfromWikipedia.Thesiteprovidesgreatinformation,however,students shouldbeawarethatthereisnoformalauthorforthissitesoitisnotappropriatetobeusedfor researching.ThelastupdateonthissiteisfromFebruaryof2013butthereisnowaytotellwhat wasupdatedandifitwastrue.ThisWikipediasiteislinkedtoaplethoraofotherwebsitesmany ofthembeingothersitesfromWikipedia.Manyofthelinkedsitesareaboutanimals,specifically rodents.

CATS Persuade http://animal.discovery.com/pets/iliketoptencatsbetterdogs.htm Theauthor,orlackthereof,ofthisarticletriestopersuadethereaderthatcatsarebetterthan dogs.Thewebsitedoesnotstatewhowrotethearticle.Whilereadingthisarticle,students shouldbeawarethattheyarebeingpersuadedtolikecatsoverdogsandthattheinformation presentedshouldnotbeusedwhileresearching.Attheendofthisarticle,thereisaplacefor peopletomakecomments.Peoplehavestatedtheiropinionsoncatsanddogsinthisarea. Whenlookingtofindiftherewereanywebsiteslinkedtothisspecificarticle,therewereno resultsfound,however,thereareavarietyoflinkedpagestoanimal.discovery.com.Thelinked pagestothisonearefromavarietyoftopics.Somelinksincludedare,TLC,Imagination Discovery,andothersitesdevotedtosomeformofTV. Entertain http://www.abcya.com/childrens_book_for_smartboard.htm Abcyaprovidesstudentswithacatstoryforentertainment.Whilethisstorywillholdastudents attention,theyshouldbeabletodeterminethepurposeforthiscreationandexplainwhyitwould notbeappropriatetousethiswebsitewhenresearchingcats.Thereisnoinformationonwho theauthorisorwhattheiraffiliationwiththewebsiteis.Manyteachersorschoolwebpagesare linkedtoabcya.com.Whenclickingonthedifferentlinkedpages,teachersorschoolshad providedabcya.comasaresourceforwhichparentsandstudentscoulduseathome. Inform http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/domesticcat/ ThearticleaboveisbyNationalGeographicandprovidesstudentswithagreatdealof informationonthedomesticcat.Thisarticlewillbeabitmorechallengingforstudentsread.For thisarticle,studentswillneedtousethereadtomefeatureontheircomputerorworkinpairs tocompletethereading.StudentsarefamiliarwiththisfeaturefromTechnologyclass.This articledoesnotstateanauthor,nordoesitprovideaplaceforreaderstocommentonthe article.ThepurposeoftheNationalGeographicwebsiteistoinspirepeopletocareaboutthe planet.Thiswebsiteprovidesapurpose,termsofuse,andwaystocontactthecompany.Many otherNationalGeographicwebpagesarelinkedtotheoneonsquirrels.Alloftheselinkedpages

areaboutacertainanimal.