How can we choose an engaging project-based learning topic?
Launch PBL Series
EP1: How can we create an impactful PBL experience?
EP2:What is project-based learning?
EP3: What are the benefits of project-based learning?
EP4: How can we write a quality driving question for a PBL unit?
EP5: How can we foster academic risk-taking during PBL?
EP6: How can we assess students during project-based learning?
EP7: How can we use milestones to track students’ progress during PBL?
EP8: How can we choose an engaging project-based learning topic?
EP9: What is the teachers’ role during project-based learning?
EP10: How can we plan a project showcase without feeling overwhelmed?
EP11: How can we use effective feedback strategies to enhance students’ public products?
EP 12: How can teachers improve their PBL experience through reflection?
EP 13: How can we shift students from presentations to presentations of learning?
I've heard from many educators who have become acclimated to the new schedule, routine, and logistics of teaching during a pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, educators were scrambling to figure out how to adapt to the unprecedented changes in education. I spoke with several teachers who shared that they wanted to focus on adapting their instruction for an in-person, blended, or hybrid learning environment, taking the instructional practices they were familiar with and converting them to an online learning format.
Some teachers were not interested in exploring new instructional practices during this time, not because they found professional growth unimportant, but because they were trying to prevent themselves from feeling overwhelmed. In speaking with teachers, something else I found was that teachers who had tried project-based learning (PBL) in their classrooms in the past were still invested in this student-centered model because it kept instruction interesting to them and their students.
Many teachers eventually began exploring project-based learning by finding professional learning opportunities through webinars, workshops, books, and podcasts. Now it’s time to put theory into practice and plan a project-based learning unit.
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Planning a project-based learning unit
As you begin thinking about your project-based learning unit, it's important to reflect on the essential elements of a quality project-based learning experience. You're most likely stuck on one or two phases, either choosing a topic or trying to figure out how to integrate the learning standards with your learning objectives. The Impactful PBL Roadmap™ is a planning guide and PBL framework that I created and thus recommend that educators use to craft high-performance project-based learning experiences with their students.
This article will focus on Phase II: Mapping the scenario and crafting a driving question. First, let's explore what I mean by a scenario, which is sometimes called the project prompt. The technical definition of a scenario, according to the dictionary, is an outline of a plot that includes scenes, situations, and characters.
In a project-based learning unit, the scenario provides a short story about what students will explore, the question students are trying to answer, and why answering that question or tackling that challenge is valuable. Ideally, the scenario should spark students' interest and transition to the driving question. However, before developing the scenario, you must first determine a topic.
How to brainstorm an engaging project-based learning topic
To discover a project topic, explore the answers to these twelve questions.
What are students interested in? One teacher noticed that her students talked about soccer all the time: what happened at the soccer game, what was going to happen at the soccer game, what they were going to do once they got to the soccer game, and what soccer games they watched on TV. She decided to integrate soccer into her force and motion unit to create a project-based learning experience. Students enjoyed it because the teacher used a topic of interest to them. Is there something your students are interested in that aligns with any upcoming standards?
What are you interested in? We often talk about project-based learning as being student-centered–it’s all about student voice and choice–but your insight is valuable as well. When we're interested in something, we tend to focus on it, and we have more knowledge to share with students. For example, I'm interested in financial literacy. As a math teacher, it was easy for me to think of topics about financial literacy. My students completed a project that involved designing their ideal life where they chose an apartment, car, lifestyle items, etc., within a given budget. They had to utilize the math skills we were learning in class to create their ideal life. What are you interested in that you think students may also be interested in that aligns with the standards you are teaching?
What authentic audience and experts do you have locally? Do you live near a university, hospital, or organization known for particular research? Can you reach out to those organizations and ask if they're willing to contribute guest speakers or resources to enrich your project? Students tend to be more engaged and produce higher-quality work when they know an authentic audience will see it.
What tools or resources do you have? Typically, when I say this, many educators immediately think about a lack of resources, such as how they don't have a makerspace or access to technology. What resources do you have on your campus that you can utilize for an upcoming PBL unit?
Analyze your school campus and take inventory of common and uncommon resources you may have. For example, if your school has a garden, are there any science standards that align with cultivating a garden? If your school has a playground, are there any standards or project topics that could align with the resource?
What standards do you teach that easily connect to real life? Some standards easily connect to real-life situations to which students can apply their learning. For example, in math, the standard related to unit rates can incorporate comparison shopping and how students should be able to determine what's a better buy, making it easy to connect a project-based learning unit to that topic. Brainstorm some real-life situations that relate to your content?
What challenges exist as an opportunity for students to create something of value? For example, a teacher worked at a school that didn't have a student news program because they didn't have the technology or the infrastructure. Students decided to create pre-recorded videos, and the teacher played them on Monday mornings as their school news. Students worked together to overcome the challenge of not sharing information with their peers. What challenge can you think of that students can overcome on your campus?
What problems can students solve in their school or their community? A teacher noticed that their grade level had a negative culture. Students were unfriendly to each other, started exhibiting conflict, and engaging in bullying. The teacher decided to create a project-based learning experience around an anti-bullying campaign. Students learned about the impact and effects of bullying and how they could be part of the solution and not the problem. She was able to bring in guest speakers and design anti-bullying events. What problem can your students solve in their school or community?
What’s happening in your community or the world that has your students talking? A couple of years ago, in North Carolina, we had a hurricane that destroyed many homes in some communities. Students were either personally affected by the hurricane, they knew someone affected by the storm, or they saw it on TV. Creating a project-based learning unit around that event made it engaging because students already had background knowledge. What is happening in your community that would interest and engage students in learning?
What’s the topic of discussion when it comes to popular culture? Entertainment is a large part of many students' lives outside of school. For example, one teacher noticed that his high school students were fans of a popular show on Netflix, so he designed an ELA unit where students created and played various grammar games using the games on the show as a model. Are your students interested in any books, games, movies, or shows that you can connect to your content?
What events are happening in your school or community? One school site was hosting the Special Olympics, and to make the Special Olympics a teachable moment, they designed a project-based learning unit around the event. The event was already happening at their school, but students were able to learn more about the event's purpose while also covering content standards that they were going to learn anyway. Students were able to utilize the public products they created to help host the Special Olympics. Think about your local community. Do you live somewhere where there's a popular festival, fair, or other large events? Can you create a PBL unit that integrates with that event?
Where can you find ideas from other teachers creating project-based learning units? If you search PBL topics online, I'm sure you'll find many great ideas. Check out resources online that other educators or organizations are sharing. For example, some science organizations share PBL ideas that you can use to brainstorm new ideas. You will most likely have to adapt resources for your students and your situation, but it can help spark some ideas.
Are there any contests or competitions happening that are related to your content area? Organizations or companies host tons of competitions or contests each year, such as robotics competitions, art competitions, and science competitions. For example, a local science museum or history museum may host a competition or contest that students can enter. These typically have a specific theme, so you need to come up with a driving question and connect your standards to that particular theme. The great thing about those competitions is that the competition or the contest itself can be part of the student showcase.
Crafting a scenario and driving question for your project-based learning unit
Once you have a topic and specific learning objectives, it's time to craft a scenario and driving question. I will share two examples of how it looks when you pull it all together.
Example #1
Scenario: In September 2018, Hurricane Florence made landfall. Volatile winds, flooding, and thunderstorms severely damaged homes in some North Carolina regions. In some instances, entire communities were destroyed and needed rebuilding. A new home builder would like to create a community of smaller homes between 800 to 1000 square feet. Small houses are becoming popular for some families due to many factors, such as lower costs and reduced ecological impact.
Driving question: How can we use our math skills to help an architect design a floor plan and model for this new home community?
Example #2
Scenario: North Carolina has one of the fastest-growing populations in the state due to migration. The state has three main geographic regions: the Atlantic coastal plain, the central Piedmont region, and the Mountain region. Each region has a distinct weather pattern. The Raleigh office of the National Weather Service wants every child moving to North Carolina to be prepared to dress appropriately for the weather, so they’ve issued a challenge. They are asking second-grade students living in North Carolina to provide a resource for a welcome kit to children based on where they move within the state.
Driving question: How can we create a resource to prepare kids for North Carolina’s weather?
Do you notice how the scenario leads to the driving question?
Take action:
What topics can you think of that may provide a memorable project-based learning experience? How does the topic align with your content standards?