Running Header: 2016-2017 Project Proposal

SED464
Mr. Smudde
2016-2017 Project Proposal
Grant Proposal for English Project Based Learning
Alexena Radway
Arizona State University

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Abstract

In this grant proposal I am requesting $2,766.98 for materials to begin a project based
lesson at my school in Tempe, Az. This project will help students connect what they learn in
from their research to the real world, it will help them grow into conscience young adults.
Students will research a specific country/region based on their ancestry, pull important valuable
information from three different sources, and create their own myth. Students will be given four
formative assessments and one summative assessment to monitor their progress throughout the
project. All materials needed and itemized and descriptions of each are provided

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School Environment Narrative

Grand Canyon Prepatory Academy
5301 S McClintock Dr
Tempe, AZ, 85283
Grand Canyon Prepatory Academy (GCP) is a smaller school with only 65 students
enrolled, therefore each classroom is equipped for 20 students at the most, while each class size
is between seven and 15 students. Each room has white boards, markers, tables, chairs, and a
desk for the teacher. The supplies are up to each student to bring daily. Grand Canyon Prepatory
Academy has been established since 1999 and is in the Global Renaissance Academy District
which was created in 1997. This districts only school at the moment however is Grand Canyon.
GCP enrolls grades 6-12, but only has 65 students currently enrolled. Of these 65 students, 64%
are Caucasian, 15% are African American, 14% are Hispanic, 4% are American Indian, and 2%
are Asian. The students at this mixed gender school have to wear a uniform; a shirt with the GCP
crest on the upper left side of the shirt, and khaki bottoms. Part of the uniform is to have natural
hair coloring, and girls can have up to one pair of earrings. Since the school is so small, they do
not offer any kind of free or reduced lunch, but the administration makes sure there is lunch
available to buy each day. There are also no bussing options, but since it is in the city of Tempe,
there are public bussing systems.

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There currently is not very much technology in this school, at least not enough to enhance
the learning of the students. There are TVs in all but one classroom which the teachers have the
option of connecting an HDMI to if they so wish. The school currently has about 10 laptops that
seem to never be charged when the students need to use them.
Although there are laptops available for the students to use, there are not enough for one
class to be doing research at the same time since they cant hold a charge. Having new laptops in
the school will promote student learning, and managing class time better because the students
can all be doing research at the same time if need be, rather than having half the class doing
research and the other half just on their phone or talking, and not utilizing class time.

Introduction
This project would benefit the students because they get to learn life skills, about the
world around them, and it would just keep their interest because they get to make choices and
different things rather than just follow what had been done year after year. Students often wonder
what theyre learning has to do with them, and if it will be applicable in the real world. This
project will give them a glimpse into that answer. Students get to learn about their ancestry while
creating original pieces that will be around forever, such as a paper, and a short video.

Applicant Bio
I earned my Bachelors degree from Arizona State University in Secondary Education
English and having been teaching for 10 years now. I taught at Mountain Pointe for two years
before I found my home at Grand Canyon Prep.

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Project Narrative

Need for the project

I think this project is needed because it can get the students at Grand Canyon Prep
more interested about the past, their community, and why things are the way that they are. The
students will create a paper and video for the ending of this project, those are necessary because
it captures the students interest, all the while teaching them real life applications. Writing
professionally, using multimedia, connecting things from the past to now, understanding the
patterns and how they shape everything, and communicating with the community. This is
important because not all students have access to these things through home, so helping them
learn at school will benefit them in the long run.

Project Impact
This project will be beneficial to students because they get to learn about the past,
the things that shaped today, and from that learn the patterns and what could shape the future.
The steps that the students go through for the final product of this project will help the children
learn life skills that will be a huge benefit in the professional field. Research, writing up reports,
and working with multimedia are good things to know, no matter the field of work they plan to
enter.
The students arent the only ones who will learn from this project, it will help me grow as
a teacher. It will give me more practice with leading these projects, giving me the chance to see
how well it works as individuals as opposed to a group. It allows me to learn more about how
students handle workloads, if I should give them more or less at a time. The impact on my career
is a good one in my eyes, it gives me continual growth and learning.

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Community has always been important, no matter what age it was. The children would
gain a closer connection with their community because they would understand where it came
from. The students would get to research how the community used to be in the time of their myth
and compare that to todays, looking at how the traditions formed, and the layout, ways have
changed. This could help bring the community closer as a whole if the students decided to give
presentations on their findings in their city, help other people get back to their roots.

Learning Goals and Outcomes

My main goals for the students is to relate how life was back in the times of Myth,
to how life is today and explain how theyre related. This will be accomplished by writing a
paper going over the background of their country/region where the myth is taking place, the
importance of the myth, what lesson can be learned from it, and how the past has shaped what
the world is today. The students will be able to create a short movie on their myth by the end of
this project. I would like the students to be able to master the skills of research, correlation
between two different times, how to piece it all together, presentations, and using visual aids.
The main question in this project is How, and that relates to understanding real world
skills and applying them. If the students can understand how Myths shaped the community, then
they can understand how things are done a certain way. That also leads to the question of Why,
if students can understand why the people in the communities let the myths shape them, they can
begin to study if that made a difference between the traditions/laws of certain countries (i.e
United States and Greece).

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The essential questions in this project are How have things changed, How can you
prove it, and Why is it important. The students will want to learn about a particular myth(s) in
a certain area of the world, look at their community and traditions, and be able to recognize their
importance in that same part of the world today.
Standards covered include:
Arizona Career and College Ready
(9-10.RL.6)Analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of
literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.
(9-10.W.1)Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using
valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. Section C: Use words, phrases, and clauses
to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships between
claim(s) and reasons, between reasons and evidence, and between claim(s) and counterclaims.
(9-10.W.2) B: Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended
definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the
audiences knowledge of the topic.
D: Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the topic.
F: Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or
explanation presented (e.g., articulating implications or the significance of the topic).
(9-10.W.3) Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a
vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters

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B. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, reflection, and multiple plot
lines, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.
D. Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture
of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
(9-10.W.5)Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or
trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and
audience.
(9-10.SL.4)Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and
logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development,
substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.
(9-10.SL.5)Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and
interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and
evidence and to add interest.
(9-10.L.6) Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases,
sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level;
demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or
phrase important to comprehension or expression.

ISTE Standards:
1. Creativity and Innovation
a. Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression
3. Research and Information Fluency

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b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a
variety of sources and media
5. Digital Citizenship
a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology
b. exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration,
learning, and productivity
c. Demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning
6. Technology Operations and Concepts
a. understand and use technology systems
d. Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies.

Activities
Students will engage in the following activities:

Researching on a specific region/country

Find three sources
Write a two page paper
Compose interview questions for their relatives
Select interview participants
Write a myth
Work to plan, script, and produce a digital account of their myth
Create a movie poster at the end

Assessment
The summative assessment for this project will include a final research paper on their
myth, and a short movie. The necessary elements of the paper is background information on the
region they chose, things that have changed from then to now, their importance, and how it has

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shaped the community today. The movie they create will be the myth they created. The research
paper will show that they have mastered how to properly find, sort, and source information they
need. The video is to show that the students understand how life has changed through time, why
that is important, and how the myth explains an issue and then solves it.
The formative assessments leading up to that will be a two page paper on the background
of the country/region the student has chosen to focus on, this paper will include 3 sources
properly cited, and incorporated. After that a quiz, where 85% of students pass, will be used to
asses if the students understand which knowledge will contribute to the value of the paper. After
the students know how to pull the correct information out of an article, they will move on to
making their own myth, with the background information they collected earlier. They must
include four of the common elements in a myth, as well as a problem in the community and its
solution. The final step will be shown through a video. The students will have to take their myth
and translate it over to video, and draw a movie poster to interest people in it.
Technology Support
Grand Canyon Prep does not have a designated group or person to handle IT situations.
Each teacher will have to acquire some knowledge so they are able to help their students.

Sustaining the Project After the Proposal Period

This project will be continued each year, perhaps as a creative writing exercise for the
myth creating. The part that will continue to help students learn is the paper. Comparing the past
to the present and explaining the changes, how they have helped the community.

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Innovation
This project allows students to learn about not only their past in their ancestry, but also
the past of their world and community. This is innovative because it lets the students see the real
world repercussions of the events that take place. It allows the children to understand the patterns
in the world and how it shapes communities and traditions, this gives them the chance to predict
what their life will be like when they have grown up.
Budget Table and Narrative
Order
Number

Item

1 Laptop
1
1
2
3
3
Order #1
Order #2
Order #3
Grand
Total

Warranty
(2yr)
S&H
Surge
outlet
Video
Camera
Warranty
(2yr)

Quant
ity

Unit
Subto
Tax
Total
Cost tal
173.9 1391.9
1504.
8
1.081
9
2
67
726.3
8 83.99 671.92 1.081
5
1 19.99
0 19.99
1

10.49

55.99

7.09

10.49
447.92
56.72

$0.85

11.34

447.9
2

56.72

$2,251.00
$11.34
$504.64
$2,766.98

The three orders that I want to place are for Laptops and warranties, a surge protector
outlet, and video cameras with their warranties. The laptops will be beneficial to the students
because it allows them to research information easily right when they need to instead of waiting
for one of the five working computers they have now. These laptops will help students learn by
teaching them how to use the internet effectively and search for the information they need, and
find it relatively quickly; these skills will transfer over into the real world whenever they get jobs

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and are asked to type up any kind of business report. The surge protector is so that the laptops
charging do not cause a shortage. The cameras will have use in allowing the students to have
practice in knowledge in creating videos, and working with editing software.

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Work Cited

https://www.cdw.com/shop/checkout/guest/Review.aspx
http://www.amazon.com/Besteker-Rotation-Camcorder-Recorder-NonProfessional/dp/B019VS3WLK/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1461348699&sr=86&keywords=video+camera (prime)
http://www.grandcanyonprep.com/faqs.html
http://www.areavibes.com/tempe-az/demographics/

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Appendix A

Teachers: Alexena Radway

Inquiry Based Lesson Plan

Subject: English 9 (two day lesson)

Standard:
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective
technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences. (9-10.W.3) B.
Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, reflection, and
multiple plot lines, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters. D. Use
precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid
picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting,
or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a
specific purpose and audience. (9-10.W.5)
Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and
interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings,
reasoning, and evidence and to add interest. (9-10.SL.5)
Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and
phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and
career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary
knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or
expression. (9-10.L.6)
ISTE
1. Creativity and innovation- A. Apply existing knowledge to generate new
ideas, products, or processes. B. Create original works as means of professional
or group expression
3. Research and information fluency- B. Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate,
synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media
5. Digital Citizenship- A. Advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use
of information and technology. B. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using
technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity. C.
Demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning.
6. Technology operations and concepts- A. Understand and use technology
systems. D. Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies.
Objective (Explicit):
Students will be able to produce a narrative by creating their own myth and using that to solve a
problem in todays society.
Students will be able to adapt their myth into a video
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable):
They will create their own myth that has a plot, five aspects of a myth, and includes their family ancestry in
it. The students will also create a video which will be graded for the proper time length, historical accuracy,
knowledge they gained, as well as the impact (possible) on the community. I will use a rubric that I grade
their video with. The video is to make sure the students understood that every situation needs a solution, the

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past has an effect on today, and how things were shaped.

Sub-objectives, SWBAT (Sequenced from basic to complex):
SWBT recall past knowledge on any myths/mythological characters
SWBT select one idea to create their myth about
SWBT use a computer to gather information surrounding their myths area
SWBT show what research they have found
SWBT compare the past civilization to todays
SWBT contrast the past civilization to todays
SWBT identify certain aspects in the myth that might have shaped the community today
SWBT write an essay explaining how the myth changed society and if it was for the better

Elaborate

Explain

Explore

Key vocabulary:
Materials/Technology Resources to be used:
Myth
Video camera
Props
Heroic
Laptop
Lesson
Pencil/pen
Plot
Paper
Characteristics
Surroundings
Engage (Make content and learning relevant to real life and connect to student interest)
Ask if they know what myths are
Introduce myths by reading a part of a creation myth from the Nordic region
Teacher Will:
Student Will:
Ask students to define aspects of a myth
Define/explain the aspects on a piece of paper
Have students look at another myth and identify Read the new story and pick out the aspects
the aspects, and where they occur
Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation
Guided notes
Step-by-step directions
Other examples of myths
Teacher Will:
Student Will:
Pose a question for the class, Why are these
Listen to the questions
the aspects of a Myth? How does it add
Break into groups of 3
meaning/value?
Discuss with group and respond to the
Give 5-10 minutes to discuss
questions on a single sheet of paper (take a
Collect responses
picture of it so you have it)
Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation
Pose different levels of questions for various students
Allow them to work by themselves if need be
Give extra time if needed
Teacher Will:
Student Will:
Have students discuss as a class their answers
Research for 5 minutes on the difference
to the previous question
between epics, fables, etc.
Have students research epics, fables, etc.
Participate in fishbowl discussion
Explain how they are different and why
Begin doing research

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Explain their assignment/homework

Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation
Guided notes for epics, fables, etc
Draw/type/chart their differences
Graphic organizer
Evaluate
Looking at their ideas that they have written down for their own myth and checking that they align with the
properties. The goal for the day is to select what they want their myth to be about. They will continue
researching and begin brainstorming for their assignment (own myth) and bring in two or three questions to
gather background information for their story.