Rich+Inquiry+Activity

Sorry I posted this in the wrong place at first. I posted in Discussions and not a new page. Sorry again.

1)The activity was based around the creation of a new amendment to the constitution. The idea is to have already been reviewing the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Constitutional amendments then this activity concludes the review by having the students bring their knowledge of amendments as well as their logical thought process, creative thinking, and critical thinking skills in order to create a new amendment to the constitution. This activity was fun and did require research and critical thinking. The activity itself lost some of its luster since I did not have a group to discuss with or debate with to determine what “our” new amendment would be. I also did not have the chance to share my “presentation” with the class in order to explain the importance and need for the amendment to be added to the constitution.  2a) This activity does cover Social Studies standard 1, 2, and 5. This activity requires students to use their varied intellectual skill sets in order to develop a deeper understanding of major eras and turning points in world history, and more specifically those events and time periods affecting the United States. The activity also requires an understanding of government and the importance to have laws and amendments in order for our country to operate properly. 2b)The ISTE standards used with this activity are standards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. This activity embraces technology in a myriad of ways. It begins with basic research about amendments and continues through the communication and creation of a presentation. This type of activity can be done with simply using reference books and art supplies, however taking full advantage of integrating technology into the content area lessons is extremely important and a necessary process in order to give every student a full and balanced education in order to prepare them for their future beyond the classroom. 3)This activity is very useful since it operates on several levels. It requires the students to recall information about the Constitution and amendments, comprehend the reasons for establishing new amendments and its purpose in US government, to construct an entirely new amendment and give logical, rational, and reasonable supporting reasons, and finally the students need to evaluate their own ideas within the group, and then again when the entire class selects the best amendment that should be instituted going further. This covers many of Bloom’s Taxonomy categories including the lower level and higher level thought processes. The students must perform research and not only apply the knowledge but they must also create new thoughts and analyze current US problems to determine in what area and why a new amendment is needed. This type of activity allows students to be creative while operating in the arena of logical thought. This is important for not only school, as well as going forward in post high school. The ability to be creative while maintaining the ability to reason and provide logical support is a valued skill to possess.