Online Projects, Collaboration Sites, and Publishing Opportunities

Lesson Idea Template

Name: Amanda Duff

Grade Level: 2nd grade
Content Area: Science
Standards Addressed:
S2L1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the life cycles of different living
organisms. a. Ask questions to determine the sequence of the life cycle of common animals in your
area: a mammal such as a cat, dog or classroom pet, a bird such as a chicken, an amphibian such as a
frog, and an insect such as a butterfly.

Title of Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity: Monarch Butterfly Migration

URL of Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity: https://journeynorth.org/

Describe how you would use the Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity in
your classroom:
The teacher will go over the life cycle of a butterfly. She will show them pictures and videos of the
stages. After the students have mastered the content, the teacher will present the class with an
online project. She will have caterpillars in the classroom and the students will be able to watch
as the caterpillars turn into a butterfly. This will be a few weeks worth of a project. As the
caterpillar goes through the stages, the students will be able to see and then document what they
see. At each stage the teacher will have them draw and color the stage and then label the stage.
They will talk about what the caterpillar eats and how it grows.

After the caterpillars turn into butterflies, they will release them outside at the school. They will
discuss what the butterfly eats and how it will lay eggs for the next caterpillar to become a
butterfly. They will discuss how they migrate. The class will go outside to see if they can find any
butterflies in any of the stages. The students will create a Word document and write about their
findings. Through Journey North, the students will be able to share their findings with other
students in other geographic regions. They will also be able to compare their findings with other
students. Sharing this will help Scientist know more about the migration of the monarch
butterflies in their region.

What technologies would be required to implement this proposed learning activity in a

classroom?
They will need desktop computers or laptops to access Word and Journey North
Describe how the following features are addressed in this learning experience (note: all of them
may not be addressed in the project, but most should be if you are reaching a high LoTi Level.):
a. Collaboration with peers, near-peers, mentors outside their classroom and often beyond
their school: Students are given the opportunity to collaborate with other classrooms in
other geographic areas and also scientists. The students will look at both sets of findings
and compare and contrast.
b. Student-centered learning and knowledge creation (collecting original data and or
producing original products as a result of engaging in the project): Each student will have
their own data about the butterflies that they will document as a Word document.

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 c. Higher-order thinking: They must analyze, compare and contrast their data to other
classrooms in other geographic areas about their findings.
d. Students publishing their original work to others who will use/care about their product:
Students will publish their findings as a document to the online project site. They will
collaborate with students and scientists in other areas and discuss their findings and how it
compares or contrasts.

Bloom’s Level of Critical Thinking Required (check all that apply):

See http://epltt.coe.uga.edu/index.php?title=Bloom%27s_Taxonomy
Remembering  Understanding  Applying  Analyzing  Evaluating  Creating
What Level of Technology Implementation best describes this learning activity and Why?
LoTi 4: Intergration: Students are able to communicate with other students from other
classrooms in other regions and scientists. They share their findings with an audience who finds
their report meaningful.
How could you implement this proposed learning experience and still comply with your district’s
Internet Safety and Student Privacy policies?
The teacher will seek parental permission from each parent by providing permission forms. If a
parent refuses to allow a student to participate, the teacher will provide another way for them to
complete the project. The teacher will also make sure students use pseudonyms when they
publish their work and make sure pictures are not uploaded with their report.