Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ThePassionProject:EnrichmentforGiftedStudents
JamieCorkum
UniversityofSouthFlorida
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TableofContents:
BackgroundandPurpose
LiteratureConnections
MethodsandProcedures
Findings
LearningStatement1
LearningStatement2
LearningStatement3
Conclusion
References
Appendix
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BackgroundandPurpose
IaminterningatanInternationalBaccalaureateMagnetSchool.Ihavethepleasureof
teachingathirdgradeclassofstudentswhoareextremelycreativeandintelligent.Myclassroom
consistsoffifteenstudents,sevenofwhicharelabeledgifted.Allofmystudentsarewell
behavedandeagertolearn.Theyanswerquestions,andareproblemsolvers.Imextremely
luckytosaytheleastthatIhaveanexceptionalgroupofstudentswhoarecaring,openminded,
andprincipled.Atfirstglance,IwonderedwhatIcouldpossiblyhelpthesestudentswith;they
alreadyhavesomanywonderfulqualitiesandweremeetingmostoftheexpectationssetfor
them.MyCollaboratingTeacherthentoldmethatalthoughstudentswerelabeledgifted,notall
ofthemwerebeinggiventheopportunitytomeetsomeoftheirgoalssetforthontheir504plans.
Afterreviewingtheplans,itwasclearthatthesetalentedstudentsneededanoutletfortheir
brilliantminds.
Isetforthaplanforinquiryandimmediatelybegantopullresourcesandmore
informationtohelpsupportmyteachingstrategies.AlthoughIknowthatdifferentiationis
necessaryforeverydaylessonplanning,Iwantedtogivethesestudentssomethingmore.I
wantedtogivethemaspotlighttoshowtheirinterestsandtalents.Eachstudents504was
different,buttheyallhadacommoncharacteristic.Throughouttheplans,areoccuringtheme
wasthatstudentsneededanopportunityforcreativethinkingandtodemonstrateresearchskills.
Basedonthisinformation,Iwasfinallyabletosetthefoundationformyinquiry.HowcanI
providecreativeenrichmentopportunitiesformygiftedstudents?
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LiteratureConnections
WhenbeginningmyresearchprocessIwondered,HowcanIprovidecreative
enrichmentopportunitiesformygiftedstudents?.Iwaspleasedathowmuchresearchwas
availableonthistopic.IfoundarticlesthroughtheUSFlibrarydatabaseandgooglescholarby
usingthekeytermsgifted,enrichment,andelementarystudents.
ThefirstarticleIfoundwascalledPrimaryEnrichmentProgramUtilizingParent
Volunteers.InthisarticleHall(1998)discussedaschoolwhichutilizedparentvolunteersto
workwithsmallgroupsofstudentsforenrichment.Teachersidentifiedstudentswhowereabove
expectationsandexpressedinterestinthespecifictopic.Thosestudentswerepulledonceaweek
andgainedenrichmentopportunitiesduringthistime.Volunteersreportedbacktoteacherson
progressanddevelopmentofstudents.Teacherswereabletousethisinformationforplanning
andstudentdevelopment.Thearticleexpressedaneedforprimaryyearsstudentstohave
opportunitiestoproblemsolveanddevelopcognativethinkingskills.TakingfromwhatIlearned
fromthisarticle,Iwasabletomakeadefinitivedecisionthatpullingoutmystudentsforan
enrichmentactivitywouldbebeneficialtotheirdevelopment.
Olthouses(2014)articlehelpedshapemyideasforcreatinganenrichmentopportunity
formygiftedstudents.Theauthorusedanecdotalnotestoanalyzetenstudentswritingsand
theirpreferencesinreadingandwriting.Theauthorwasabletomakeconnectionsbetweenat
homesupportandtheclassroomenvironment.Thestudentsinthecasestudyenjoyedcreative
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writingtoopenendedprompts.Thearticlegivesmanyexamplesofquestionstousewhenasking
studentsabouttheirattitudestowardswriting.Thishelpsguidemyowndatacollectionprocess
throughinterviewingandanecdotalnotetaking.
Gubbels,Segers,&Verhoeven(2014)articlewasaboutaTriarchicEnrichmentProgram
forgiftedstudents.Thisstudydescribestheeffectofanenrichmentprograminwhichstudents
arepulledoutofclassforextrasupportanddevelopment.Thearticlediscussestheprocedurefor
whichthestudytookplace.Itexplainsthatduringintervention,whilestudentswerepulledoutof
classinsmallgroups,theyworkedoncompletingproblemsolvinginvestigations.Thegroups
weretestedpriortoreceivingthisformofenrichment,andafterreceivingenrichmentattheend
oftheyear.Basedontheinformation,theyscoredbetterthanthecontrolgroup.Studentswere
successfullygiventheopportunitytousecreativeandcriticalthinkingskillsasaformof
enrichment.Basedonthisarticle,Ifeelmoreconfidentthatmystudentsshouldnotonlybe
givenclassenrichmentopportunities,butcouldbenefitmorefrombeingpulledoutofclassfor
enrichment.
AnotherarticlebyAljughaimanandAyoub(2012)wasusedtoshapemyinquiry
methods.Thisarticlediscusseshowtheintegrationofanalytical,creative,andpraticalabilities
representapivotalcomponentincurriculmtaughttogiftedchildren.Astudywasdoneonforty
twostudentswhoweretestedbasedontheiranalytical,creative,andpracticalabilities.An
enrichmentprogramwasdesignedbasedonthistest.Duringtheenrichmentperiod,students
wereexposedtoproblembasedscenariostheywouldhavetosolve.Studentsworkedtoprefect
theirworkandtoaddtheirowncreativewaytopresentinformation.Therewerenostatistical
differencebetweenthecontrolledgroupandtestgroupofstudents,buttheirweresignificant
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gainsinanalyticalabilitiesperthepretestandposttest.Evidencefromthisarticleassistsmein
developinganenrichmentopportunitytargetedtomeetmystudentsneedsbasedontheirpresent
abilities.
VantasslesarticleontheCommonCoreStandardsandgiftedstudentsreallyhelpedme
togainagreaterunderstandingofhowthestandardsworkinregardstomygiftedstudents.The
misconceptionexiststhattheCCSS(CommonCoreStateStandards)aresufficientlyadvanced
enoughforthegiftedstudents,sothatnoextradifferentiationisneeded.Thisarticledescribes
theneedsanddevelopmentofgiftedandtalentedstudents.Giftednessisdevelopedovertime
throughtheinteractionoflearnerspotentialwithnurturingenvironmentalconditions.
(Vantassel,2015).Thisarticlehelpedmetounderstandhowimportantitistocontinueto
provideenrichmentopportunitiesanddifferentiatedlessonsformygiftedstudentssotheycan
growanddevelop.
ThearticlewrittenbySmart(2011),dicussedapersonspointofviewworkingthrought
hedesignandimplementationofamathenrichmentprogram.Eventhoughmathwasnotmy
areaoffocus,Itwasabletogivemeagoodperspectiveonthebenefitsofagrouppullout
method.Smallgroupswerepulledforanhouraweektoworkonengagingmathrelated
enrichmentopportunities.Iwasalsoabletorelatetotheauthorsreflectionsonherprojectwhen
shedescribedherstudentsreactionsandresponsestodirectionsandactivities.Thiswassimilar
towhatInoticedinmygiftedstudentswhenIarrivedintheclassroomforinternship.
ThelastarticleIhavefoundisbyRenzulli,Gentry,&Reis(2004)titledATimeanda
PlaceForAuthenticLearning.AuthenticLearningoccurswhenstudentsfindandfocusona
problem,identifyrelevantinformation,categorize,criticallyanalyzeandsynthesizeinformation.
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Thearticledescribeshowtobeafacilitatorandmentorduringstudentsinquiryprocesses.
Allowingstudentstheopportunitytochooseatopicthatmeansomethingtothem,andthen
counselingthemduringtheirresearchandprojectdevelopmentiskeytoauthenticlearning.It
explainstheprocessforhelpingstudentschooseatopicthatwillmeansomethingtothem,
guidingthemthroughaninvestigationandresearch,andthenfinallycreatingaproductto
representtheirlearning.Thisarticlehasbeenthemosthelpfulinshapingmymethodsfor
investigatingmywondering.
Eachofthesearticleshavehadafewcommonalities.Allofthearticlesdiscusswaysto
providestudentswithanenvironmentforcreativityandcriticalthinking.Theyalsoprovidedata
thatindicatespositiveacademicgainsfrombeinggiventheopportunitytobeinapullout
enrichmentprogram.Thearticlesalsomentionhavingstudentschoosetheirlearningtofocuson
andexplore.Thearticlesdefendthatstudentsintrinsicmotivationwillbestongeriftheyare
interestedinthetopicinwhichtheyarelearning.
Basedonthearticles,Iwasabletobrainstormwaystoprovidemygiftedstudentsan
opportunityforenrichment.Sincetheresearchindicatespullingoutstudentscanbebeneficial,
thatisthemethodIwillbeutilizingfortheenrichmentopportunity.Theresearchalsostates
studentsshouldhavetheopportunitytochoosetheirlearning.Iwillbeallowingstudentsto
researchandlearnmoreaboutatopicofinteresttothembasedontheevidencefromthearticle.
Studentswillalsogetthechancetodisplaytheirlearninginacreativewaythatisindividualized
towardstheirchoosentopic.Ithinkthatinprovidingtheseaccommodationsandopportunities
forthesegiftedstudents,Ishouldbeabletoarriveataconclusionformywondering.
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Methods
Togaininsightintomywondering,therewereafewstepsItookinordertohelpmy
studentsbesuccessful.First,Ilookedoverthesevengiftedstudents504plans.Thisgaveme
ideasaboutcommonalitiesthateachofthestudentscouldbenefitfromduringenrichment.
Amongthesecommonalitiesweregivingthestudentstheopportunitytoproblemsolveandbe
creative.ThenextthingIlookedatwasthestudentswritingscoresfromthesecondgrading
period.Writingwasanareathatallthestudentsintheclassstruggledwithandneededtoshow
improvementbytheendoftheyear.Basedonthisandmyresearch,IdevelopedthePassion
Project.Ihadseensimilarthingsusedbefore,butitwasnotexactlywhatIhadwanted.Iwanted
tohelpguidedmygiftedstudentsinthewritingprocesstomakethemstrogerandmoreconfident
writers.Icreatedthepassionprojectpacketbasedonguidingthemthroughinformationawriting
whilegivingthemcreativefreedom.Thepacketincludedanintroductiontotheproject,idea
brainstorming,creatingguidingquestions,topicvocabularylist,anindependentstudycontract,
gradingrubric,andaselfassessment.Allofthesewerelabeledintostepsforguidingeach
individual.Istartedwithpullingthestudentsforagroupconference.DuringthistimeI
explainedwhattheprojectwas,andaskediftheywantedtoparticipate.Allofthestudentswere
veryexcitedtobedoingresearchonatopicofinterest.Thenextstepwasforstudentstobrain
stormafewtopicideas,andthennarrowitdowntooneofficialtopictoresearch.Astheteacher,
Ihadtosignoffandapprovethesetopics.Studentsleftthefirstmeetingwiththetaskofbrain
stormingsomequestionsthattheywantedtoknowabouttheirtopics.Thesecondmeeting
studentsbeganfillingouttheirindependentstudycontracts.Thispaperallowedthestudentsto
decidewhattheduedatesforeachsectionoftheproject.Theyalsoreadthepledgeatthebottom
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ofthecontractthatstatesthattheywoulddotheirbestworkandnotplagiarize.Aftereach
individualstudentchosetheirduedatesandsignedtheircontract,IthensignedthatIagreedto
theirproposal.Ikeptthesepapersforreferencesfortheremainderoftheproject.Afterthefirst
twomeetings,eachweekIwouldindependentlyconferencewithstudentstocheckonprogress,
andtheirfeelingsontheprojectthusfar.Ialsolookedforareasofconfusiontohelpguidewhole
classwritingworkshops.Duringwholeclasswritersworkshopstheclassreviewedpunctuation,
paragraphstructure,andhowtouseaRANCharttoguideinformationalwriting.Studentswho
wereworkingonthePassionProjectwereallowedtogetonthecomputerorworkontheproject
iftheyfinishedworkearlyduringtheELAtimeblock.Asstudentsfinishedtheroughdraftof
theironepagewritingontheirtopic,studentsagainconferencedwithmeandmadecorrections
totheirwork.AsStudentsfinishedtheirfinalwritingpieceandthepresentation,theypresented
theirlearningtotheclass.Studentscouldchoosetoreadtheirwriting,makeaposter,diorama,
model,oruseacomputerpresentationwhilepresentingtotheclass.Afterstudentsweredone
presenting,theywereaskedtofillouttheirselfassessment,addinganycommentsinregardsto
theprojectitself,andtoturninthewholepacketofworkwiththeirfinalwritingpiece.
DurningthisprocessIwasabletocollectampleamountsofdatatotrackmystudents
progressaswellasbeingabletoseetheiroverallgrowth.FirstIgottheir504plansandtheir
secondnineweekswritingscores.Fromthisinformation,IknewwhatdirectionIneededtogoto
guidethesestudentsenrichmentprocess.DuringthefirstPassionProjectmeetingItook
anecdotalnotestogaugestudentsinterestandtohaveanideaofwhattopictheywouldchoose.I
thenhadstudentsdoashortwritingassignmentformorningworktogetasampleoftheirwriting
beforeworkingwiththem.Thesecondmeeting,Itookthestudentsindependentstudycontracts
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inwhichtheygavemeatimelineforprojectcompletion.Itookmoreweeklyanecdotalnotes
whileindependentlyconferencingwithstudentsabouttheirprogressonthisproject.Afterthe
fifthweek,Ihadstudentsagaindoashortwritingassignmentformorningworkandthenpeer
edittheirshoulderpartners.Thiswastotrackwritingprogressandalsogetstudentsreadyforthe
editingprocessthatwewoulddotogetherontheirroughdraft.Finallythelastpieceofdata
collectedwasthestudentsfinalwrittendraftofthePassionProjectalongwiththeirfolder,which
includedtheresearchstepstheytook,rubricfortheclasspresentation,andtheirselfassessment.
Afterdatahadbeencollected,allstudentsworkhadtheirnamesremovedandtheywereassigned
anumberwhichwasplacedontheirscoresandwork.Thiswastokeepstudentworkanonymous
tooutsideviewers,butallowgrowthtobeseenwithintheirwork.
DuringthePassionProjectIusedmyresearcharticles,anecdotalnotes,writingsamples,
andstudentspreviousgradestoguidemyindependentconferencesandwholeclasswriting
workshopinstruction.Asstudentsfinishtheirpresentations,andselfreflectIwillbeableto
beginanalyzingtheirindependentgrowthduringthroughthisenrichmentproject.Icancompare
howtheirwritingwasatthebeginningofFebruarywhenwestartedtohowitisafterthesix
weeksofwritingenrichment.Iknowthatduringthewritingprocess,Iwasabletoseesmall
developmentsandimprovementsoverthecourseofmyindependentconferences.Icannotwait
toseetheoverallgrowthmysevengiftedstudentshavemadethroughthePassionProject.
Findings
Asaresultofanalyzingmydata,threeimportantthingsIwasabletolearninclude:
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Learningstatement1Icanprovidecreativeenrichmentopportunitiesformygifted
studentsthroughtheuseofapassionproject.
LearningStatement2Mygiftedstudentsbennifitedfromthepulloutmethodprovided
throughtheenrichmentopportunity.
LearningStatement3Thestudentswithgiftedaccomidationsshowedimprovementsin
writingthroughinstructiongivenduringthepassionproject.
LearningStatement1:Icanprovidecreativeenrichmentopportunitiesformygifted
studentsthroughtheuseofapassionproject(AppendixA).Throughtheprocessof
implementingthePassionProject,Iwasabletogivemygiftedstudentstheopportunityto
exploreanareaofinterest.Whenanalyzingmydatafromstudents504plansIwasabletosee
commonalitiesthatspreadacrossthestudentsaccomidations.Studentsneededenrichmentthat
allowedthemtobecreative,problemsolve,anddemonstrateresearchskills.Thesenotescanbe
foundinAppendixC.BasedonthisknowledgeIstartedbrainstormingenrichmentideasforthis
groupofstudents.InmyresearchIwasabletofindarticlestosupportmyideatohavestudents
beinvolvedinthepassionproject.Challengestudentstosolveeverydayproblemsina
meaningfulcontexts,andthelearningwilltakecareofitself.(Renzulli,J.S.,Gentry,M.,&
Reis,S.M.,2004).Thisarticlebroughtmeaningtomyprojectidea.Allowingstudentstobein
chargeoftheirlearningandprovidingmeaningfulguidancethroughtheprocessmadethe
studentsexcitedtolearn.
DuringfirstmeetingwithmygroupofsevenstudentsIwasabletotakeanecdotalnotes
onstudentsreactionsandideasfortopicsthattheywantedtolearnmoreabout(AppendixF).
Studentswereexcitedandengagedatthethoughtofcreatingtheirownprojectandimmediately
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startingtryingtodecidewhattopictochoose.Basedonstudentsreflectionsthattheycompleted
attheendoftheirprojects,Iwasabletoseehowmuchthestudentsthoughttheybennifitedfrom
theproject.Allsevenstudentsthoughttheydidgoodorexcellentandwereabletoexplainwhy.
Theyalsowereabletoexplaintheirbigunderstandingthattheygainedthroughtheproject.
ExamplesoftheirreflectionscanbefoundinAppendixL.
Studentsindividualendprojectsvarrieddependingonwhichcreativeroutetheychoose.
Somestudentschoosetodoapowerpoint,andonedidaposter.Therewereafewthatdecided
ratherthanmakeanextravisual,theywantedtoreadtheirresearchpapertotheclassandanswer
questions.Thiswasalsoanacceptablewaytoteachtheclasswhattheyhadlearnedthroughout
theproject.ExamplesoftheprojectscanbeseenintheAppendixM.WhilepresentingIuseda
rubrictoscorethestudentsbasedonhowIthoughttheydidthroughttheprojectbasedontheir
organization,creativity,productivity,andpresentation.Eventhoughthisprojectwasnotfora
grade,thescoreletthemknowhowtheyweredoingandwewereabletodiscussinwhatareas
theycouldshowimprovementinthefuture.Overall,throughthisprojectstudentsweregivenan
enrichmentopportunitytobecreative,researchanareathattrulyinterestedthem,andcreatea
projecttoteachotherssomethingnew.
LearningStatement2:Mygiftedstudentsbennifitedfromthepulloutmethodprovided
throughtheenrichmentopportunity.Duringthepassionproject,Iwasabletopullsmallgroups
tomeetonceaweektomentorstudentswhiletheywentthroughtheresearchprocess.While
doingthisIwasabletohoneinonwhatindividualswerestrugglingonandprovidesupport
whereitwasneeded.Basedonstudentswritingsamples(AppendixD),Icouldseethatstudents
struggledwithunderstandinghowtoputsimilarideasandtopicstogetherwhilewriting;
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paragraphsdidnotflowormakesensetoareader.Iattendedawritingworkshopinwhichthis
skillwasbeingtaughttoanotherclassofthirdgraders(AppendixE).Basedontheworkshop,I
wasabletothenteachmyclasshowtouseaRAN(Reading,Analyzing,Nonfiction)Chart.This
wasdoneasawholeclasswritingactivity,butthenpulledtosmallgroupforenrichment.They
wereencouragedtopulloutallthattheyhadresearchedontheirtopicsthusfarandsortthe
informationintocategoriesbasedontheircommonalities.Thegiftedstudentsgreatlybennifited
fromthiswhenitcametimetowritietheirroughdraftoftheirresearchpapers.
Anotheractivitythatwasdoingwithinoursmallgroupenrichmentwascreativewriting
exercizes.Theywouldtakethecreativewritingpiecetheywereaskedtodoformorningwork
andswitchwithanothergroupmember.Thestudentswerethengiventhetaskofpeerediting
eachotherswork.Basedonthisactivitystudentswereabletoanalyzeotherswriting,thenreflect
ontheirown.Theywereabletodiscusstheirstrengthsandweaknessesintheirwriting.
ExamplescanbefoundintheAppendixJ.Towardstheendoftheproject,Imetindividually
withstudentstofocusontheirindividualneedsandgetfeedbackfromthemontheirprogress.
DuringthistimeIwouldtakeanecdotalnotes(AppendixK).BasedonthisIwasableto
determinehowstudentswerefeelingtowardstheprojectandtheirprogress,whatelsethey
neededhelpon,andfinalizingpresentationdates.Overall,Ifeelthatstudentsdidbenefitfrom
thepulloutmethodofenrichmentinstructionbasedontheirfeedback,andparticipationingroup
activities.
LearningStatement3:Thestudentswithgiftedaccomidationsshowedimprovementsin
writingthroughinstructiongivenduringthepassionproject.AtthebeginningofJanuary,my
collaboratingteacherdiscussedthatstudentsstruggledwithwriting.Ibegancollectingwriting
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samplesandlookingattheirwritingscoresfromthebeginningoftheyear(AppendixBandD).
Therubricwhichwasusedtoscorestudentsusesthreedifferentcategoriestomeasurestudents
work.ThefirstisPurpose,Focus,andOrganizationanditsa4pointscale.Thesecondis
EvidenceandElaborationwhichisalsomeasureona4pointscale.ThelastisConventionsof
theEnglishLanguagewhichisonlya2pointscale.ThisrubricwillbeshowinAppendixG.
AfteranalyzingthescoresandthenotesIwasabletoseethateventhestudentsinmygroup
variedfromverylowscoresof111allthewaytothehigherendof332.Withsuchabroad
rangeofscoresItriedtonarrowdownspecificskillsthatcouldberefined.Ingeneral,students
hadinconsistentorganization,lackofstructure,missingelaborationorinsight,andstruggled
withgrammarandspelling.Throughthepulloutmethodofinstructiondiscussedabove,Iwas
abletoprovidestudentswithstrategiestohelporganizeandstructuretheirresearchpapers.
Throughouttheeightweekproject,Icollectedmultiplewritingexamplestotrackstudent
progressandmonitorimprovements.Youwillnoticeintheexamplesintheappendixthatsome
studentsdidnotusetheredguidelinesonthepaperintheverybeginning.Attheend,itshows
drasticimprovementsinsomeofthestudentsworkjustwiththeirhandwritingandusingthe
papercorrectly.Attheendofthepassionproject,studentsturnedintheirfinaldraftoftheirone
pageresearchpaper(AppendixL).Itwasonlyrequiredtobeonepage,butsomewentaboveand
beyondthisrequirement.Afteritwasturnedin,Iusedthesamerubricthatwasusedinthe
beginningoftheyeartoscorethestudents.
Bellowyouwillseeagraphthatshowsstudentsprogress.
Student
Student 1
Before (2/1)
2/2/1
After (3/25)
3/2/2
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Student
Before (2/1)
After (3/25)
Student 2
1/1/1
2/2/2
Student 3
2/2/1
2/2/1
Student 4
3/3/2
3/3/2
Student 5
2/1/1
2/2/1
Student 6
1/1/1
2/2/1
Student 7
3/2/2
4/3/2
Basedonthisdata,youcanseehowstudentsshowedgainsinthedifferentwritingfields.
Inolongerhadstudentswhocouldnotwritewithapurposeorfocus.Papersshowedsome
organization,andoverallbetterspellingandgrammarwasused.Moststudentsstillstruggledon
elaborationandmakingconnectionstotheirwriting.Thisisamorecomplexskillandoverthe
courseofayearcouldbedeveloped.Overall,Iwasabletoseegreatimprovementwithinmy
studentswritingoverthecourseofthisproject.
Conclusion
DuringtheinquiryprocessIwasabletoseemystudentsloveoflearninggrow,writng
improve,andshowcasestudentscreativetalents.Whenfirstenteringthisclassroom,it
disappointedmetoseemygiftedstudentstalentsgoingtowasteastheysatboredandfinished
withtheirindependentclasswork.Whilecompletingthepassionproject,Iwasabletoseethe
excitementthatmystudentsoncehadforschoolandlearningreturn.Theyknewthatwhenthe
hadfreetime,theywereabletoindependentlyresearchatopicthattrulyinterestedandinspired
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them.Vantasselsarticleexpressingthatenvironmentalconditionscannurtureastudents
giftednesstodevelopovertimesupportsthisinquiryconclusion(2015).Providingmystudents
withanenvironmentwhichsupportsinquiryandtheirpassionsallowedmystudentsto
demonstrateimprovementinthefieldofwriting.
Byengaginginthisinquiry,Ihavelearnedthatallofmystudentscouldbenefitfroma
passiondrivenprojectlikethisone.Givingstudentsachancetoshowcasetheirtalentsandto
findoutmoreaboutaselfchoosentopic,drivesthemtodotheirbest.Studentbecomeinspiredto
learnandtosharetheirknowledgewithothers.Basedonthis,Iplantousethisprojectinthe
futureandopenituptoallowthewholeclasstobeinvolvedintheinquiryprocess.Each
individualwillneeddifferentlevelsofsupportintheprocess,butwillbenefitfromtheoverall
learningexperience.MywonderingnowwillturntohowcanImanagetimetobeableto
accommidateforallmystudentsbeinginvolvedinaPassionProject?
References:
1.
Aljughaiman,A.M.,&Ayoub,A.A.(2012).TheEffectofanEnrichmentProgramon
DevelopingAnalytical,Creative,andPracticalAbilitiesofElementaryGiftedStudents.
JournalForTheEducationOfTheGifted,35(2),153174.
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2.
17
Gubbels,J.,Segers,E.,&Verhoeven,L.(2014).Cognitive,Socioemotional,and
AttitudinalEffectsofaTriarchicEnrichmentProgramforGiftedChildren.JournalForThe
EducationOfTheGifted,37(4),378397.
3.
Hall,S.R.(1998).PEP:PrimaryEnrichmentProgramutilizingparentvolunteers.Gifted
ChildTodayMagazine,21(2),20.
4.
Olthouse,J.M.(2014).GiftedChildrensRelationshipsWithWriting.JournalForThe
EducationOfTheGifted,37(2),171188.
5.
Renzulli,J.S.,Gentry,M.,&Reis,S.M.(2004).Atimeandaplaceforauthentic
learning.EducationalLeadership,62,7377.
6.
Smart,A.M.(2011).Designingandteachinganelementaryschoolenrichmentprogram:
WhatthestudentsweretaughtandwhatIlearned.MontanaMathematicsEnthusiast,8(1/2),
227244.
7.
VantasselBaska,J.(2015).CommonCoreStateStandardsforStudentsWithGiftsand
Talents.TeachingExceptionalChildren,47(4),191198.doi:10.1177/0040059915569360
Appendix
AppendixA:PassionProjectpacketthatstudentsreceived:
Passion Project
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What is important to you? What do you care about? What are you interested
in? The answers that you give to these questions, could help you find a focus
for your passion project. This project is intended to give each student the
opportunity to explore your true passion in life. You will be responsible for
choosing a topic, researching, and creating a presentation for your research.
You also will be in charge of planning a timeline for completing this
assignment. Follow the steps below to successfully complete your passion
project.
Step One: Brainstorm
List some of the topics that you are interested in. Try to come up with at least
three to choose from.
1.
________________________________________
2.
________________________________________
3.
________________________________________
2._________________________________________________________________
3._________________________________________________________________
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Product Options:
Poster
Power Point
Model
Brochure
Other: Approved by teacher
Step Nine: Reflection
All good learners reflect on completed inquiries. After you have presented
you will complete a self assessment form which the teacher will provide after
you have presented to the class.
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______________________________________________________________________
My Promise:
I will select a topic that matters to me.
I will use at least three resources to find my facts.
I will take notes in my own words and not plagiarize.
I will keep a bibliography to show where I find my information.
I will put forth my best effort on this project
I will take my time and work hard to show my peers what I have learned.
I will carefully edit and proofread my work.
Student Signature:_______________________________Date:___________________
Teacher Signature:_______________________________Date:___________________
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Comments:
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Score: ________________________________
Name:__________________________
Date:_________________
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Not so great
23
Fair
Good
Excellent
Because:______________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________.
My BIG understanding:___________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________.
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AppendixB:WritingScores(January):
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AppendixC:GiftedAccommodations:
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AppendixD:WritingSamples(January):
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AppendixE:WritersWorkshopNotes:AppendixF:AnecdotalnotesfromGroup
Meeting:
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AppendixG:WritingRubric(Front/Back):
AppendixH:
AnecdotalnotesfromGroupMeeting(2/3):
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AppendixI:Studentsselfselectedcompletiondates:AppendixJ:Studentsgroupworksamples:
SamplesContinued:
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AppendixK:AnecdotalNotesfromIndividualConferences:
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AppendixL:
FinalPassion
ProjectWritingSamples:
ReflectionofStudent:
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AppendixM:Passion
Projectpresentation
samples.