Fourth Grade Takes A Position

"Wait, what do we need to know?" This is the question that was shouted across the library as students gathered with urgency around a computer. Normally yelling across the room makes me close my eyes and breathe deeply, but this time I lit up with joy. This was the exact right question for the group and the passion is something teachers dream of their students bringing to their learning. The fourth grade started 2019 with their first in depth media literacy project. The parameters of the project are simple: each class is split into two groups and given one side of a topic to research and support. Karolye's class is debating the Philadelphia soda tax, Mohan's class is debating bear hunting in Pennsylvania and Shana's class is taking on Inuit whaling. The groups must organize themselves,  and their information. Students must find a minimum of three facts to support their argument and the facts must come from a reliable source, read they can't simply say "I already know this." They must point to a reliable source, whether it be from a text or online. They also must cite their source at the end of the project.
Some of the skills embedded in this project are how to:

• find information
• create a good research question
• vet information
• get back on track
• work together
• resolve conflict
• present information 

Below is a short movie with snippets from some of the conversations students are having. In the first two videos students can be heard finding focusing questions to support their arguments. Students in the third video discuss using Wikipedia, and then make a face because they know they will have to find two other sources. After the video, students question if they are moving in the right direction. You can see the students sharing what they learned if they ever run into a bear, but is this relevant to their argument? In the final video students are extrapolating information about the effects of the soda tax in Philadelphia. They are forming arguments and asking questions based on what they are learning.