Grade Level / 7th Grade / Unit Length / Week 1.2 & 1.3 (2 Weeks)
August 19th – 30th, 2013
Unit Overview / The Leadership Unit will engage students in the history of leadership to prepare students as their role as leaders in the STEM community. Students will apply their knowledge and skills in leadership positions while completing STEM projects in small groups. These small groups will introduce students to projects that will utilize research, leadership skills, teamwork skills, forms of government, problem solving, graphing, and the scientific method. The projects included in this unit are “The Solar Cooker Project” and “Dock the Rock”. Both of these projects are introductory level hands-on experiments that allow the students to practice the Scientific Method and the Engineering Design Process.
Unit Essential Question(s) / -What are our responsibilities and opportunities as STEM leaders?
-What are the different systems of governance and how are these systems reflected during STEM projects group project?
- How can I gather relevant information from multiple sources to provide evidence and rationale for the STEM projects?
-How can the scientific method and the engineering design process enable me to complete tasks and projects more efficiently and effectively?
-How can I interpret and translate data in a table, graph, or diagram to communicate experimental findings and results.
-How can I form a conclusion that explains the cause and effect relationship between a set of variables?
-How can I reflect and examine the content included during the STEM projects and lessons to compile informative / explanatory text?
Culminating Event / The Culminating Event for week one of the Leadership unit will be the Project Day on Friday. During this project day students will apply their skills as leaders and team members serving in different roles. Students will complete an engineering project entitled Solar Oven Project. The students will also need to apply their knowledge of the scientific method and the engineering design process to document their problem solving steps and findings. Finally, students will reflect upon which one of the five forms of government their leadership most closely relates.
The students will also participate in a problem-based learning scenario, “Dock the Rock”during week two of that will serve as the Culminating Event for the complete Leadership unit that will encompass all standards and skills taught during the Leadership Unit in each subject area.
Problem-Based Learning Scenario – “Dock the Rock”
You are a member of an oppressed community in a foreign nation. You would like to send your best and brightest (youngest and most promising) individuals to a better life in a free nation. You have limited resources (both economic and physical) to devise your travel and immigration to the promise land. Your team will need to engineer a travel vessel to carry your fragile cargo, immigrants who are leaving their home county, to their point of destination. Your goal is for your immigrant to safely arrive at their new destination.
Your potato chip will represent the human immigrants traveling to their new home.
Your team will be provided with a set list of limited materials to design and construct your team’s traveling vessel. One member of your team can bring one food item from home that can be used in your design and construction process.
Common Assessment / During the first week of the Leadership unit students will complete an engineering project entitled Solar Oven Project. The students will also need to apply their knowledge of the scientific method and the engineering design process to document their problem solving steps and findings. Finally, students will reflect upon which one of the five forms of government their leadership most closely relates.
/ STEM Project Rubric / Project Title:
Solar Ovens
Student Name:
Date:
Advanced / Proficient / Needs Improvement
Math Component:
Purchase Orders / Student lists supply costs with 100% accuracy. / Student mistakenly writes an incorrect supply cost for one item. / Student mistakenly writes an incorrect supply cost for two or more items.
Math Component:
Multiplications of Rationales / Student multiplies cost of an item by the number of items with 100% accuracy. / Student multiplies cost of an item by the number of items with 85% accuracy. / Student multiplies cost of an item by the number of items with 70% accuracy or less.
Math Component:
Budget / Student stays well under budget, correctly adding all expenditures with 100% accuracy. / Student stays under budget, adding all expenditures with 85% accuracy. / Student goes over budget and/or adds all expenditures with 70% accuracy or less.
Science Component:
The Scientific Method – Problem Solving Sheet / The student completed the “Problem Solving Sheet” to the “Exceeds” level for the Scientific Method Rubric. / The student completed the “Problem Solving Sheet” to the “Meets” or “Approaching” level for the Scientific Method Rubric. / The student completed the “Problem Solving Sheet” to the “Well-Below” level for the Scientific Method Rubric.
Science Component:
Design Blueprints / The student neatly and accurately completed all required blueprint designs using scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views. / The student accurately completed all required blueprint designs using five or less of the seven requirements:
Neatness, scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views. / The student accurately completed all required blueprint designs using two or less of the seven requirements:
Neatness, scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views.
Social Studies Component:
Governance & Leadership Style Observations / The student recorded at least five observations of the group's governance/leadership style. The observations are constructed in complete sentences with proper grammar and punctuation. / The student recorded at least three observations of the group'sgovernance/leadership style. The observations may lack detail or not conform to proper writing conventions. / The studentrecorded two or less observations of the group's governance/leadership style. The observations are unclear, lack detail, and do not conform to proper writing conventions.
Social Studies Component:
Governance & Leadership Style Paragraph / The student wrote a well-developed, detailed, and accurate paragraph that draws three or more comparisons
between the group governance/leadership style and one of the forms of governance studied in class. / The student writes a well-developed paragraph that draws at least two comparisonsbetween the group governance/leadership style and one of the forms of governance studied in class. The paragraph may be lacking some details or containinaccuracies. / The studentattempteda paragraph that draws only one comparisonbetween the group governance/leadership style and one of the forms of governance studies in class. The paragraph is not developed, detailed, and/or does not accurately compare systems of governance.
ELA Component:
Analysis of Sources / The team used 5 or more sources and all the sources were relevant and beneficial to the project’s goal. All writing assignments created by the group is the group’s original creation. / The team used 4 sources and all 4 sources were relevant and beneficial to the project’s goal. All writing assignments created by the group is the group’s original creation. / The team had 3 or less sources. Sources may not be relevant and beneficial to the project’s goal. Writing is sometimes copied directly from the sources.
ELA Component:
Examination of Proposal / The purpose of the proposal was on topic to the reader. The proposal used correct grammar and mechanics and had 4 or less grammatical/mechanical errors. The proposal had 1-2 misspelled words. / The purpose of the proposal was on topic to the reader. The proposal used correct grammar and mechanics and did not have more than 5 grammatical/mechanical errors. The proposal had no more than 3 misspelled words. / The purpose of the proposal was not on topic to the reader. The proposal did not have 6 or more grammatical/mechanical errors. The proposal had 4 or more misspelled words.
The students will participate in a problem-based learning scenario, “Dock the Rock”, that will serve as the Culminating Event for the complete Leadership unit that will encompass all standards and skills taught during the Leadership Unit in each subject area. The common assessment will focus on the skills needed to address the problem presented in the scenario. A rubric will be used to assess the students’ application of skills and content knowledge during the Culminating Event.
/ STEM Project Rubric / Project Title:
Dock the Rock
Student Name:
Date:
Advanced / Proficient / Needs Improvement
Math Component:
Data Collection / Student collected data for each vessel that sailed including the time on the water and distance of travel with units labeled with 100% accuracy. / Student collected data for each vessel that sailed including the time on the water and distance of travel with units labeled with 85% accuracy. / Student collected data for each vessel that sailed including the time on the water and distance of travel with units labeled with 70% accuracy or less.
Math Component:
Statistical Graph / Student used data to construct an appropriate graphical display with correct labels and scales. / Student used data to construct an appropriate graphical display with most labels and scales completed correctly. / Student used data to construct a graphical display with labels and scales, some incorrect.
Science Component:
Completion of Dock the Rock Questions / The students accurately completed and answered eleven or more of the questions. / The students accurately completed and answered ten or less of the questions. / The students accurately completed and answered five or less of the questions.
Science Component:
Design Blueprints / The student neatly and accurately completed all required blueprint designs using scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views. / The student accurately completed all required blueprint designs using five or less of the seven requirements:
Neatness, scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views. / The student accurately completed all required blueprint designs using two or less of the seven requirements:
Neatness, scale, legend(s), labels, descriptions, color, and multiple views.
Science Component:
EDP Process / The student completed the “Engineering Design Process” to the “Excellent” level for the EDP Rubric. / The student completed the “Engineering Design Process” to the “Good” or “Fair” level for the EDP Rubric. / The student completed the “Engineering Design Process” to the “Poor” level for the EDP Rubric.
Social Studies Component:
Pull and Push Factors / The student accurately described at least two pull factors and at least two push factors from the problem-based scenario and communicated them in complete sentences. / The student accurately described only one pull factor and only one push factor from the problem-based scenario and communicated them in complete sentences. OR, two factors were cited but are not communicated in complete sentences. / The student does not identify any push or pull factors from the problem-based scenario.
ELA Component Score:
Focused and Relevant Information
CC.7.W.8 / The research question and the research were focused and relevant to the goal of the project. The student used 3 or more valid research sources. / The research question and the research were focused and relevant to the goal of the project. The student used at least 2 valid research sources. / The research question and/or the research were not focused and relevant to the goal of the project. The student may have only used one research source and the source may be lacking important information or not valid.
Unit Objectives /
  1. I can identify key STEM leadership positions in my local community.
  2. I can identify the central responsibilities of our local STEM leaders.
  3. I can identify the central opportunities of our local STEM leaders.
  4. I can identify and explain the different systems of governance and how are these systems reflected during STEM projects group project?
  5. I can gather relevant information from multiple sources to provide evidence and rationale for the STEM projects?
  6. I can explain how the scientific method and the engineering design process enable me to complete tasks and projects more efficiently and effectively?
  7. I can interpret and translate data in a table, graph, or diagram to communicate experimental findings and results.
  8. I can form a conclusion that explains the cause and effect relationship between a set of variables?
  9. I can reflect and examine the content included during the STEM projects and lessons to compile informative / explanatory text?

Strands (main ideas taught in unit)
ELA / Research, Writing, Reading Informational Texts
Math / The Number System, Expressions and Equations, Seeing Structure in Expressions, Reasoning with Equations and Inequalities
Science / Embedded Inquiry
Embedded Technology and Engineering
Social Studies / Governance and Civics
History
Vocabulary
ELA /
  1. Focused- clearly and sharply defined
  2. Relevant- related to the matter at hand
  3. Search terms- a single word or short phrase used to find information
  4. Search engine- a computer program that searches the Internet for documents containing a specified word or phrase
  5. Explanatory writing- writing to explain or to inform

Math /
  1. Linear Equation - A mathematical sentence containing one or two variables that uses an equal sign to show that two expressions have the same value. Its graph is a line on the coordinate plane.
  2. Irrational Numbers - Real numbers that cannot be written as simple fractions - the decimal goes on forever without repeating.
  3. Additive Inverse - One of a pair of numbers whose sum is zero
  4. Real Number Properties – Properties that apply to all real numbers, like commutative, distributive, and symmetric.
  5. Coefficient – Multiplicative factor of some term in an expression, usually at the front of the term.

Science /
  1. Science – The study of the natural world through observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanations.
  2. Engineering – The profession of or work performed by an engineer. Engineering involves the knowledge of the mathematical and natural sciences (biological and physical)gained by study, experience, and practice that are applied with judgment and creativity to develop ways to utilize the materials and forces of nature for the benefit of mankind.
  3. Experiment – 1. A controlled test or investigation. 2. Trying out a new procedure, idea, or activity.
  4. Variables – A factor or condition that is subject to change, especially one that is allowed to change in a scientific experiment to test a hypothesis.
  5. Hypothesis- A statement that explains or makes generalizations about a set of facts or principles, usually forming a basis for possible experiments to confirm its viability.

Social Studies /
  1. Monarchy - supreme power or sovereignty is held by a single ruler (king, queen)
  2. Autocracy - government in which one person has uncontrolled or unlimited authority over others: the government or power of an absolute monarch
  3. Oligarchy - a form of government in which all power is vested in a few persons or in a dominant class or clique; government by the few
  4. Democracy - government by the people; a government in which the supreme power is invested in the people and exercised directly by them or their elected agents under a free electoral system.
  5. Dictatorship - a country, government, or form of government in which absolute power is exercised by a dictator; imperious or overbearing power.

Key Questions
ELA / Math / Science / Social Studies
  • What role does language arts play in STEM?
  • How does a leader create communications that are organized, clear, effective, and well-received?
/
  • How do we make sense of problems and persevere in solving them?
  • How does a leader construct viable arguments when solving problems and critique the reasoning of others?
  • How does a leader keep his team under budget?
How does a leader communicate his findings to others? /
  • What is STEM?
  • How does Science fit into the STEM process?
  • Who are leaders in the science community – why are they considered leaders, what is their field and contribution?
  • What makes you a leader – resume?
  • How do you lead a scientific team – Scientific Method, Engineering Design Process, and Safety?
  • How do I determine the cause and effect relationship between a set of variables?
  • How do I interpret and translate data in a table, graph, or diagram?
  • Which tools are appropriate for a given laboratory experiment or project?
/
  • What is government and what is its purpose?
  • What are the various systems of governance found throughout the world and how do they compare to our school? Our town? Our country?
  • What factors cause people to move?

Hook for Unit / Innovation Academy in the Media:
Being the beginning of the school year, local news stations and newspapers will document various Innovation Academy activities, ceremonies, and lessons. The media spotlight will emphasize the school’s mission of promoting and expanding the teaching and learning of STEM education in K-12 public schools across our region and state. As an activating strategy for the Leadership Unit, teachers will present several of these video clips and newspaper articles to students. The intent is to demonstrate to students that Innovation Academy already plays a local leadership role in our local and regional areas and across the state.