A month of research, writing and imagination culminated in engaging digital projects on natural disasters by fourth graders in Kerri Schmitt’s class at Unqua Elementary School.
Students could pick which natural disaster they wanted to research among earthquake, tornado, tsunami, volcano, wildfire or – one they are quite familiar with – blizzard. They made their presentations in Book Creator and information had to come from at least three sources including a book, an article and an online database.
Ms. Schmitt said that regardless of which disaster they chose, all students had to find similar information including what the disaster is, where it commonly happens, who it affects, historical examples, causes, how to prevent it and how to prepare. Their digital books also included features such as photos, maps, diagrams with labels and fun facts pages. These research projects were part of a nonfiction reading and writing unit but also connected to the fourth grade science curriculum on the Earth’s features.
In March, parents will be invited in as each student will present his or her project. Ms. Schmitt commended her fourth graders for their hard work and creativity throughout the process