Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities

Lesson Idea Name: WeExplore

Content Area: Science
Grade Level(s): 7
Content Standard Addressed:
S7L4. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to examine the interdependence of organisms with
one another and their environments.
c. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for how resource availability, disease, climate, and human
activity affect individual organisms, populations, communities, and ecosystems.

Technology Standard Addressed:

7b.
Students use collaborative technologies to work with others, including peers, experts or community
members, to examine issues and problems from multiple viewpoints.

Selected Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity: WeExplore.com

URL(s) to support the lesson: Inspiration from: https://we-explore.com/expedition/1681

Describe how you would incorporate an Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity in your
classroom:
The website WeExplore is an online publishing opportunity that students can post their final projects in for
this lesson. Students would get the opportunity to choose what region of the world that they want to student
(which provides an opportunity for them to choose a place that is meaningful to them). They would research
how resource availability, disease, climate, and human activity affects the individual organisms, populations,
communities, and ecosystems in that environment.
Once the students are finished with their projects they will present in class to get a chance to get a final
round of feedback before they publish their final findings onto WeExplore.
What technologies would be required to implement this proposed learning activity in a classroom?
Computer with internet access.
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: When students post onto the site they can also see other people’s projects as well as other
collaborators’ projects from around the country and around the world.

b. Student-centered learning and knowledge creation (creating original data and or producing original
products as a result of engaging in a project): Students would gather data from collaborators’ projects
and data then would use that knowledge when presenting their data. Because the students can choose
their region that they want to present on this project is very student-centered and personal for them.

c. Higher-order thinking: Higher order thinking is taking place because the students are creating and
presenting these projects for a wider audience (not just for their class of 20 or so people) so they must
take extra care in making sure that their work is credible and engaging.

d. Students publishing their original work to others who will use/care about their product: Students will
be publishing their work to students and teachers on the WeExplore platform that are from around the
world.

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):

Spring 2018_SJB
 Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities
☐ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☒ Applying ☒ Analyzing ☒ Evaluating ☒ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration (LoTi Level):

☐ Level 1: Awareness ☐ Level 2: Exploration ☐ Level 3: Infusion ☐ Level 4: Integration
☒ Level 5: Expansion ☐ Level 6: Refinement
Universal Design for Learning (UDL):
Engagement: Optimize individual choice and autonomy by letting students choose their region of choice to do
their presentation on.
Representation: Clarify vocabulary and symbols by reviewing some terms that they had trouble on in the past
so there is not any confusion when starting this larger project.
Action and Expression: Support planning and strategy development by providing prompts, guides and
checklists to help plan this larger projects.
Lesson idea implementation and Internet Safety Policies:
Luckily the private policy and terms of conditions do not state an age requirement for using the platform you
just have to have register with an email address. If the email address is an issue my class would do a class
project together and would post it under my account stating that it’s my class and there are no individual
student names or email addresses needed. Parents and admin will always be notified before the project is
assigned.
Reflective Practice:
This lesson impacts student learning by having students choose their own topic which could be personal for
them. They also get to show pride in their work by publishing their findings onto a website where it can also
be appreciated. The only thing that I think would further extend the lesson is having the student’s actually
collaborate with experts in the field BEFORE it gets to the publishing website.

Spring 2018_SJB