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Erin
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I'm trying to help my highschoolers plan how best to; start, do, and complete a project of their choosing. Does anyone know of any sites that can help here, or an outline sheet, step by step, anything to help me. Obviously I'm not totally clear on this myself.
Thanks 
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Erin
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Angel
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I need to think about this one. Looking forward to reading anything others have to say!
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Angela
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lapazfarm
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At that age a good strategy to use is mind mapping.
I love it as a tool for brainstorming project ideas--seeing all of the different potential paths one could take with an idea. It really gives you the "big picture" which then can then be narrowed/expanded according to interests.
If you are not familiar with the concept, just Google "mind mapping" and you'll get a ton of info, from free software to YouTube videos, and more.
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Theresa
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Erin
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Thank you Theresa, off to search
Love your enthusiasm Angela
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stellamaris
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Erin, I found this helpful site designed with upper elementary and middle school students in mind: So You Have to do a Research Project?. It has quite a lot of Internet references and useful information even for high school students and adults! The layout and information are very accessible to the student...that is, they could study the site and follow the steps pretty independently.
ETA: The link to the "Flip-IT" project approach is broken, but if you google "Flip-IT 4 steps" you should be able to find it. It goes directly to a pdf file which downloads automatically. I saved a copy here and can email it to you if you can't get it.
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Caroline
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Erin
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Caroline
Thank you! Off to check it out.
Theresa, I've spent a far time today researching, listeing to YouTubes etc. I was thinking it rather familiar when I emailed my dh and he informed me that's what it is called when he brainstorms with us on the whiteboard. Spoke to a friend and she has the book, 'Mind Maps for Children' so picking that up tomorrow. Feeling excited about this as a tool to get the creative juices.
Hoping Caroline's link helps with the presentation angle.
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stellamaris
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In browsing that site, I found another inoperable link, the one for the graphic organizers, so here's a link to graphic organizers that you might want to use. The Cluster/Word Web ones are the ones I have seen and used before during the brainstorming process.
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Caroline
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Angel
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I use the mind-mapping approach a lot, too, actually, especially when I'm helping my 13 yo plan papers. He has a very hard time organizing his thoughts, and beginning with something completely free-flowing helps him get started.
But what kind of projects are you thinking about? Whenever I think about helping my kids to do some sort of project, I usually try to start by thinking through my own process (realizing, of course, that everyone is different!) For some projects -- say, household projects -- that have a clear beginning and end, I break the project all out into steps as a list. For something a bit more amorphous -- say, "I want to plant a big garden" -- the first thing I do is read all about it, as many books as I can get my hands on. Then, at a certain point, I feel like I've read enough and I'll push all the books aside and maybe I'll just write about it synthesizing what I've learned -- or make a list to get me going on the hands-on stuff -- or whatever.
So I would say... method depends somewhat on what kind of project you're doing.
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Angela
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Erin
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Angela
Top priority that come to mind is my son taking ownership of his electricity project. He has a kit (thanks Theresa  ) but I want him to do more than just 'play' with it. I would like to see him take it to deeper levels and to follow through and finish in some manner. Our big stumbling block.
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lapazfarm
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Erin wrote:
Top priority that come to mind is my son taking ownership of his electricity project. He has a kit (thanks Theresa ) but I want him to do more than just 'play' with it. I would like to see him take it to deeper levels and to follow through and finish in some manner. Our big stumbling block. |
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Has he had a chance to do some playing first and try out some of the simpler projects? I think that is an important first step, just familiarizing yourself with the materials, the concepts he might want to learn more about, etc.
For instance, if he gets stuck on the first few projects because he doesn't understand the basics, then his project will look quite different than if he flies through the first books and only comes across something he doesn't fully understand once he is deep into more complex ideas, kwim?
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MichelleW
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This year, dh decided that our kids needed to spend some time with technical reading. This has been interesting for me, as I had never thought of it as a subject before. We rounded up some unfinished projects and built them in the curriculum.
Currently:
My 12 yo ds--reading through "Lego Mindstorms NXT: The Mayan Adventure" and working through the models/programming.
My 11 yo ds--reading through the manual that came with his stop-motion animation kit and storyboarding, writing scripts, setting up lights, animating, editing, etc.
My 10 yo dd--reading through "Stitches and Pins" and doing the sewing projects in the book.
We felt that these projects in particular were languishing because the kids lacked some knowledge to move forward. We also felt that these were projects we could support during school.
Using my daughter's sewing as an example, I have her read through the project the week before, gather materials and prepare the fabric. Then she sets goals for herself which I either enforce or help her reassess depending on the outcome. After the project is over, I have her write a few sentences in her project journal about what she learned while working on this particular project. So far, she is learning a lot and having fun. She has thanked me several times for "making" her do this. She is becoming more and more confidant around the sewing machine, and I don't think she would have pursued these projects to this extent on her own.
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ekbell
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It's true that reading a manual is different from reading narrative nonfiction.
Given how many manuals we end up with in day-to-day life learning to how to read and follow them is certainly a useful skill.
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Project Approach - Help Children Plan
