Students will obtain information from a variety of sources including, but not limited to the Library of Congress website, www.loc.gov, biographies, and encyclopedias.  The information collected should not focus on the inventions, but also the life of the inventor, and if possible, the impact of the inventions on society.  Students will then organize the information and present it in a PowerPoint presentation.  Students will include in their presentation information about the inventor and/or inventions, photos and other primary sources.  Students capable of higher level thinking should be encouraged to include their reflections on why this inventor was important (how he/she impacted American society), and what can be learned from this person.

Procedures:

• Day 0 (approx. 1 week prior to beginning lesson):
            Introduce unit
            Explain purpose and give overview of unit
            Review primary sources
            Brainstorm or supply list of inventors and choose topics
            Have students begin to acquire books and references materials on topic
• Day 1: (students should be prepared to take notes on procedures or have
               handouts with procedures available)
            Review basic PowerPoint procedures (i.e. creating presentations, adding
                      new pages, copy and paste, inserting text, saving and opening files)
            Review MLA citation (supply students with copies of citation examples)
                      *Students should be encouraged to cite web sites, resources, and
                        photos as they are used.
• Lab 1: (If possible, labs should be done in small groups)
            Begin PowerPoint presentation (start prior to research so information and
                       photos can be placed directly into presentation with citation)
• Day 2: (students should be prepared to take notes on procedures or have
               handouts with procedures available)
            Explain procedures for navigating the LOC website
            Demonstrate how to locate pictures and other primary sources on the LOC
                 website
            Review students' progress on projects and answer questions
• Labs 2-3: (If possible, labs should be done in small groups)
            Research using LOC websites
            Take notes
            Insert photos/primary sources into PowerPoint (include citation)
• Day 3: (students should be prepared to take notes on procedures or have
               handouts with procedures available)
            Explain procedures for using search engines on the Internet
            Discuss determining reliable websites
            Review students' progress on projects and answer questions
• Lab 4: (If possible, labs should be done in small groups)
            Research topic using search engines
• Day 4:
            Review notes and progress
            Answer questions
            Discuss finishing projects
• Labs 5-6: (If possible, labs should be done in small groups)
            Complete PowerPoint presentations using information acquired from the
                 Internet, books, and encyclopedias
            Add reflections and student analysis of inventor (if applicable)
• Days 5-6:
            Share projects

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