WV State Standards: Science: SC.9.4.6  SC.10.4.14  AB.4.30  AB.4.31 Technology: 21C.O.9-12.2.TT3, 21C.O.9-12.3.TT2  National Standards:  Science: 1 Blooms Taxonomy: Application, Analysis, Synthesis 21st Century Skills: Problem Identification, Formulation, and Solution, Thinking and Problem-Solving, Information and Media Literacy, Interpersonal and Collaborative

Objective(s)

Students will use the materials requested to build a scale model of their Martian environment.  Students will also prepare a PowerPoint presentation in which they describe their environment and justify their decisions.

Time Required

90 minutes

Pre-Requisite Skills

Students should be familiar with PowerPoint presentation software

In this lesson students should have access to computers with PowerPoint presentation software.  A digital camera should also be available for students to use to capture an image of their model for use in their presentation.

Students will need access to the materials for model construction.  These materials my be provided by the teacher or students at the instructor's discretion.  Students may also be provided with Student Handout 5 Presentation Guidelines  in order to help them with completing their PowerPoint presentation.

In this lesson students will work in their research teams to construct a three-dimensional model out of the available materials.  Students will also be completing a PowerPoint presentation in which they justify their design and describe how their mission will meet the requirements.

1. Begin this lesson by meeting with the class as a large group.  Discuss the objectives for the day.  Ask several students to identify their roles for the day, the goals and the final product.  All students should have a general idea of the objectives as completion of the PowerPoint presentation and model.  Students may need help identifying the specific requirements of the PowerPoint.  In order to provide some additional guidance, you may wish to distribute Student Handout 5 Presentation Guidelines .  This optional handout describes the main topics that should be addressed in the presentation and will be used in student evaluation.  It also provides some general presentation guidelines while using PowerPoint.  If students require assistance in making their presentation, several online tutorials exist which may be useful.
2. As students work on their presentations, check to make sure that the color scheme and font size are conducive for presenting in your room.
3. Make sure that students have created a digital image of their model and incorporated the image into their PowerPoint presentation.
4. At the end of the lesson, remind students that they will be presenting during the next class meeting.  Tell students they should practice their presentation without looking at their slides or notes.  Stress that eye contact should be maintained with the audience and that each team member should make a significant contribution during the oral presentation.
5. Provide students with the final evaluation rubric that will be used to evaluate the entire project.  Go over each aspect of the rubric requirements to answer any questions that arise (e.g. you may wish to describe the meaning of professional dress).

It may be helpful to assign roles to each student to maximize the individual contribution.  In this activity, some students may be assigned to model construction and other the PowerPoint.  Students in the group should be encouraged to help one another in accomplishing each task.

Ideally, students who are weak in PowerPoint are encouraged to complete the PowerPoint presentation, while those who are more familiar with the software will provide assistance in its construction.

One camera is sufficient for this activity.  Students should have access to it after the construction of their model.  During this lesson, students may be working on their model and the PowerPoint simultaneously.  If this is the case, make sure that the model materials do not damage the computer equipment.  An alternative would be to have the PowerPoint production and the model construction on two different days.  Although the presentation guideline handout is optional, all of the requirements mentioned will be used for evaluation.

Students will have completed an accurately scaled model of their environment and completed a PowerPoint presentation.