Famous American Projects

It's that time of year again that our Famous American projects are due! I was SUPER impressed with my students' projects this year! I have to admit, I had my doubts about whether some would bring them in, but they DID and they looked AWESOME! I am so proud of the effort my kiddos and families put into these!

Normally, I am all about the family projects, but the make up of my class this year is very different, and I realize that not many are able to have the parental support at home. So, I scaled back on the projects, but I decided to go ahead and do this one, since it's a tradition in our second grade.

My students had three weeks (two weekends...very important when you live out in the country!) to complete these. They then presented them orally in class, which I recorded with the Flip camera. I'll be editing it and transforming it into a movie for the class to watch on Monday. Of course, I can't take credit for the camera work. Once you presented your report, you became the "camera person" for the next up. It kept the kids engaged as everyone shared their project!

The idea came from one of my teammates, which had been passed down over the years (not sure where the original came from). We also include the rubric and a template for the written report, as well as a list of suggested Famous Americans, but my students are able to usually do anyone they want (I had one request to do Bethany Hamilton this year). On the list, I also suggest websites that are kid friendly. While some stick to the ones we talk about in class (Jackie Robinson was a favorite this year), we also had John F. Kennedy, Oprah, Ben Franklin, the Wright Brothers (check out the picture--too cute!), Rosa Parks, and more!

Five more will present on Monday (stomach bug and two forgot their projects) so I might add a few more pics then!