Vision Quest 2nd Draft

Vision Quest

Coming Soon to the Greenhouse Channel!

"The supreme reality of our time is...
the vulnerability of our planet."
- John F. Kennedy

You cannot turn on the television today without seeing an announcement for a new reality show. There are battling survivors, dueling house mates, competing chefs, and the list goes on. Fueled by the success, the fame and handfuls of money these shows can bring to the creator, people all over the world are always racing to come up with the next best idea that will be the marketing concept sensation. Then there are those reality shows that make a positive impact, such as those that teach you how to survive in any climate, how to help build homes for those in need, promoting safety for young children, and encourage protection of animals that are almost extinct. It is the slant of the reality show that makes a difference.

What people may not realize are the ‘behind the scenes’ tasks and work that have to be accomplished before a “pitch” is heard by the producers of these television shows. The person with the idea needs to take the time and effort to research the idea. Television stations don’t just hand over a time-slot, so your job is to leave them with no reasonable alternatives.
Vision Quest is that next sensation! The slant is to invite and motivate your audience members to participate in a reality show that will positively impact the planet. You and your class will have the opportunity to bring this it to life! There are three elements to successfully submit your environmental show idea to producers – First you must become a decision-maker about what part of the Earth needs the most help. Secondly, you need to become the expert on environmental issues. Finally, you will be required to condense that research into a creative presentation that will promote your show idea to the producers.

Vision Quest bridges the gap between the classroom and the real-world, as students develop reading, writing, questioning, and research skills. Through the activities in this project, your students will have the opportunity to work in structured, cooperative learning groups to ask questions, conduct investigations, and complete activities that incorporate all levels of Bloom’s taxonomy and emphasize higher-order thinking skills. As they participate in this project-based learning experience, students will be able to make informed judgments and integrate problem-solving strategies through an in-depth exploration of how their lives and communities are impacted by issues and concerns encompassing justice.

Vision Quest is designed to work in conjunction with Compass Learning Odyssey:
* Research-based curriculum
* Award-winning, standards- aligned content
* Individualized learning and differentiated instruction
* Dynamic management and assessment tools
* Unsurpassed professional partnership services for
installation, implementation, maintenance and professional
development



The activities in this project require teachers to have an understanding of the highly-effective pedagogical strategies and techniques taught in these trainings. This project guide provides teachers with an opportunity to incorporate that skills learned in these educational workshops and to practice these skills in carefully planned, meaningful, curriculum-based experiences that engage and excite students.

As a result of their participation in this project, students will invest time, thought, and effort to produce meaningful products that exhibit creativity, comprehension, and critical thinking. As they work to meet or exceed local, state, and national content and performance standards, they will engage in social interaction related to learning objectives. They will learn to use technology to incorporate resources from the larger community into their work.

Vision Quest is a multi-disciplinary learning project and is driven by national standards of several disciplines, including English language arts, mathematics, social studies, geography, science, technology, information literacy, and the arts. The project can be adapted for learners of levels 6-8 and can be undertaken by a single class, multiple classes or grades, or as part of a whole-school initiative.

Specific instructions in this project guide will direct teachers to the appropriate the learning activities and strategies that target their particular needs. Teachers will be able use learning activities which are enhanced with grade-appropriate content, animations, and audio and video instructions. Teachers will guide students through three learning phases.

Phase I: Decision-makers
Students will work through the thematic unit: Where in the World to get a sense of where the continents are located while gaining an appreciation of how environmental issues affect every inch of the Earth. They will view a global map to gain perspective of the layout of the Earth’s continents and bodies of water. They will work as a whole class to create a list of as many environmental issues as possible. Students will then discuss these environmental issues and each impacts the world. As apprentices, they will evaluate each environmental issue on a scale of 1-10 which will lead to a consensus of the top 7-10 environmental issues that negatively impact the Earth. As student narrow down their focus they will build a Portfolio in Compass Learning as researching teams are being developed.

Phase II: Researcher
The team must decide on the roles of each member. Each member will utilize the Odyssey Writer to enhance the note taking process. As the research team develops a slant on an environmental issue, they will begin to investigate it. They will begin with answering investigative questions regarding the environmental issue. As an extension, students will analyze writing information articles, events in the news, along with how to collect data and statistics while working through the scientific process. As they gain more information, students will begin to organize their research while interpreting data and statistics. Students will be given the opportunity to evaluate the team’s productivity, leadership, self-direction, and initiative as they transition into the pitch phase.

Phase III: Pitch
Once the research has concluded and the team’s paper written in Odyssey Writer has been approved, then students will utilize the Language Arts Essentials which will enable students to learn about persuasive reading and writing. They will then begin to formulate their own ideas for presenting to the producers of the show. They will create a multimedia power point presentation where each member will be a designated expert on the team using visual aids such as charts or graphs as part of the presentation. The team will also plan out a thirty-minute segment of the Vision Quest show and evaluate what should be included while integrating a few lines of the Host’s dialogue as part of the presentation to the producers. Students will include their survey based on the blog they incorporated as part of their pitch. Finally students will reveal to producers their plan to promote their show idea with an example of their Environmental Public Relations Podcast that will persuade an audience to pick up the remote and tune into Vision Quest.

Vision Quest sets high academic goals and offers students the means to achieve them. A distinct component of the project is its adaptability. Teachers can adjust task difficulty, levels of support, time on task, and group size in order to meet students’ needs appropriately.

Vision Quest - Introduction

You cannot turn on the television today without seeing an announcement for a new reality show. There are battling survivors, dueling house mates, competing chefs, and the list goes on. Fueled by the success, the fame and handfuls of money these shows can bring to the creator, people all over the world are always racing to come up with the next best idea that will be the marketing concept sensation..
What people may not realize are the ‘behind the scenes’ tasks and work that have to be accomplished before a “pitch” is heard by the producers of these television shows. The person with the idea needs to take the time and effort to research the idea. Television stations don’t just hand over a time-slot, so your job is to leave them with no reasonable alternatives.
Vision Quest is that next sensation! And you and your class will have the opportunity to bring this it to life! There are three elements to successfully submit your environmental show idea to producers – First you must be familiar with the planet Earth. Secondly, you need to become the expert on environmental issues. Finally, you will be required to condense that research into a creative presentation that will promote your show idea to the producers.