Problem Based Learning in a
High School Classroom
Content Area: Technology Literacy
Grade Level: 9-12 / Author Information:
Name: Lisa Tauscher
School: Union County Vocational-
Technical Schools
District: Union
County: Union
Student Learning Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1. Use a word processing program to describe information gained from Internet research.
2. Construct a spreadsheet and graph to generate data related to estimated costs and expenditures for bedroom items.
3. Create an oral presentation using a multimedia software program for the bedroom decorating project. / NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards
Content Area / Standard / Grade / Strand / CPI
Technological
Literacy / 8.1
8.1
8.1 / 12
12
12 / A
A
B / 1,6
3, 5
9,12
Mathematics / 4.5 / 12 / A
B
C
F / 1,2
1
4
1,2
Language Arts Literacy / 3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5 / 12
12
12
12
12
12
12 / H
C
C
D
D
A
C / 1
1,2 3,4
1,7
1-8
1,2
1,3
Purpose and Overview:
The purpose of this lesson is to present high school students with an everyday problem and have them generate possible solutions.
Students receive a budget of $4000 to redecorate an existing bedroom that was previously shared with a sibling. How will they design this new bedroom? What items need to be purchased to furnish this room? How much of an expense will it be?
Instructional Activity:
1. Explain to students that the purpose is to: “Pretend that your sibling has just moved out of the house and you now have your own bedroom. Since you would like to decorate this room with the items and colors you prefer, how might you start?” Ask students to draft a bedroom design, along with a “wish list” of the kinds of furniture and other items they might purchase. Of course, the drawback is that they only have $4000 dollars to work with on this decorating project. Optional: Students can use graph paper to visualize furniture measurements for their bedroom design. An alternative is to use quarter inch graph paper and furniture templates from magazines or Internet sources.
2. Next, ask students to use the Internet to visit stores and gather pricing information from websites on “Designing a Bedroom Project Worksheet #1.”
3. After researching and compiling this information, students will then create a spreadsheet and graph that indicates prices and types of items to be purchased. Teacher should model for students and demonstrate how to complete a spreadsheet and graph their findings.
4. Additionally, students will use a word processing program to answer questions from the attached document in activity #1. These questions pertain to decorating colors, items, furniture, and equipment.
5. Next, students will use a word processing program to write a four- paragraph document describing their new bedroom and its changes.
6. Finally, students will prepare an oral presentation using a multimedia software program to showcase how they have designed their bedroom, within the budgetary constraints of this activity.
Assessment Strategies:
· Project Worksheet Handout #1
· Multimedia Project Rubric --Handout #2
· New Jersey Holistic Writing Scoring Rubric GEPA/HSPA -- Handout #3
Additional Information:
Home Improvement Webquest
http://gal-220.org/homeimp.htm
Measure It Activity
http://www.funbrain.com/measure/index.html
Graphing activity
http://www.funbrain.com/co/index.html
Arrange a Room
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jhtml?categoryid=/templatedata/bhg/category/data/arrangearoomtest.xml
Design a Bedroom Project Worksheet #1
Activity: You will get a budget of $4,000 to redecorate a bedroom you once shared with a sibling. Use the Internet to visit stores and get pricing on bedroom merchandise for your “wish list.” Then use Microsoft Word or other word processing program to type and print out answers to the following six questions. Next, enter your research data into a spreadsheet format and calculate the associated item costs. Remember to stay within the required budget. Additionally, create a chart and graph related to these expenditures and costs, and printout your data and graph. The culminating project requires you to create a multimedia oral presentation of your findings to the class, including a detailed description for how you plan to decorate your new bedroom.
1. Using the Internet or magazines, decide what kind of furniture you will buy. Then select any items you plan to purchase; provide a short description; and estimate the cost of each item. See the following web sites:
Ikea
www.ikea.com
Rooms to Go
www.roomstogokids.com
Levitz Furniture
www.levitz.com
Target
www.target.com
2. Draw a floor plan to scale of your new bedroom. Decide how your furniture will fit appropriately into this bedroom space. Remember to think about the size and dimensions of your bed, as well as other furniture measurements. Use graph paper to create your original design.
3. What kind of furnishings will you buy? Copy and paste pictures of bedding, linens, and other materials you plan to purchase, along with their associated costs. Research this information on the web (see sample web addresses below) and save your pictures in a file folder where they can be easily retrieved.
Linens n’ Things
www.lnt.com
Target
www.target.com
4. What colors will you paint your room? Investigate why ceilings are often painted a different color from the walls. Which do you prefer and why? Next, copy and paste the selected colors for your new bedroom in a file folder for easy retrieval. Then compute the amount of square footage needed to be covered by the paint for walls and ceiling. Based on the web’s advertised coverage of paint, determine the number of gallons of paint needed for purchase and approximate costs. Also, think about your existing room’s colors, and whether more than one coat of paint will be needed. Also, based on individual preference, decide if wallpaper is a better option. Compare costs of installing wallpaper to painting a room. Remember to consider any skills/aptitudes you or family members have or whether an expert fabricator or painter should be hired to perform the job.
5. Write a one-page description. Using a word processing program, describe your choice of wall coverings and reasons for the selections. Support your choices based on research findings, a “wish list”, and details of your existing bedroom.
Home Depot
www.homedepot.com
Lowe’s Home Improvement
www.lowes.com
Paint Ideas
http://www.paintideas.com/default.asp?HLG=GOO
Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic
www.shabbychic.com
Home & Garden TV Decorating
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/decorating
6. What kind of audio or entertainment equipment will you put in your room? Determine where you would like any equipment placed in the room. Also, generate a list of equipment needs with any associated costs. Remember, you may be able to utilize existing equipment that you or other family members possess.
7. What would you like to buy if you had a bigger budget and why? If given a much larger budget to work with, describe other furniture, materials, or room renovations you might purchase for your bedroom.
8. Culminating Activity: Oral Multimedia Presentation to the Class
Write a minimum of five, detailed paragraphs describing your new bedroom. Don’t forget to mention what your bedroom used to look like; what it looks like now; why you wanted it changed; how you will change it; and what you will buy, including the prices of the items. Summarize this information in a PowerPoint/ multimedia presentation. Display a poster or other graphic that shows furniture style, color scheme, and accent pieces in your presentation. Also, the bedroom floor plan should be shared in this multimedia presentation. Focus on your presentation skills and getting the key ideas across to your classmates.
Refer to the NJ Holistic Scoring Rubric, as well as the Multimedia Project: Designing a Bedroom Rubric #2. The presentation should be 10-15 minutes in length. Be prepared to answer two questions on your topic from the audience.
Multimedia Project: Designing a Bedroom-#2
Student Name: ______
Requirements / More than one requirement was not completely met.
Completed only 1-2 of the required steps for the design bedroom project. / One requirement was not completely met. Completed 2-3 of the required steps for the design bedroom project. / All requirements are met using specifications for 4-5 steps of design bedroom project sheet. / All requirements are met and exceeded using steps 1-5 from the design a bedroom project sheet.
Content / Content is minimal OR there are several factual errors. / Includes essential information about the topic but there are 1-2 factual errors. / Includes essential knowledge about the topic. Subject knowledge appears to be good. / Covers topic in-depth with details and examples. Subject knowledge is excellent.
Presentation/Delivery / Delivery not smooth and audience attention often lost. / Delivery not smooth, but able to maintain interest of the audience most of the time. / Rehearsed with fairly smooth delivery that holds audience attention most of the time. / Well-rehearsed with smooth delivery that holds audience attention.
Student Handout #3
New Jersey Registered Holistic Scoring Rubric - GEPA/HSPA
In Scoring, consider the grid of writtenlanguage / Inadequate Command / Limited Command / Partial Command / Adequate Command / Strong Command / Superior Command
Score / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6
Content & Organiza-
tion
/ · May lack opening and/or closing / · May lack opening and/or closing / · May lack opening and/or closing / · Generally has opening and/or closing / · Opening and closing / · Opening and closing
· Minimal response to topic; uncertain focus / · Attempts to focus
· May drift or shift focus / · Usually has single focus / · Single focus / · Single focus
· Sense of unity and coherence
· Key ideas developed / · Single, distinct focus
· Unified and coherent
· Well-developed
· No planning evident; disorganized / · Attempts organization
· Few, if any, transitions between ideas / · Some lapses or flaws in organization
· May lack some transitions between ideas / · Ideas loosely connected
· Transition evident / · Logical progression of ideas
· Moderately fluent
· Attempts compositional risks / · Logical progression of ideas
· Fluent, cohesive
· Composi-
tional risks successful
· Details random, inappropriate, or barely apparent / · Details lack elaboration, i.e., highlight paper / · Repetitious details
· Several unelaborated details / · Uneven development of details / · Details appropriate and varied / · Details effective, vivid, explicit, and/or pertinent
Usage
/ · No apparent control
· Severe/
numerous errors / · Numerous errors / · Errors/ patterns of errors may be evident / · Some errors that do not interfere with meaning / · Few errors / · Very few, if any, errors
Sentence Construc-
tion
/ · Assortment of incomplete and/or incorrect sentences / · Excessive monotony/ same structure
· Numerous errors / · Little variety in syntax
· Some errors / · Some errors that do not interfere with meaning / · Few errors / · Very few, if any, errors
Mechanics
/ · Errors so severe they detract from meaning / · Numerous serious errors / · Patterns of errors evident / · No consistent pattern of errors
· Some errors that do not interfere with meaning / · Few errors / · Very few, if any, errors