Unit 3: Research Presentation and Genre Determination

Title: Unit 3 Research Presentation Assignment

Objective:

The purpose of this assignment is to showcase and communicate the research findings from your Unit 2 project in a creative and engaging manner. You have the freedom to choose any presentation method that you believe effectively conveys your research insights, such as a podcast, TED talk, letter to an editor or politician, blog post, brochure, or a PowerPoint presentation. The assignment must include a written component of at least 500 words to provide a comprehensive overview of your research to an audience needs to know what you have learned. Additionally, this assignment should include a works cited page that references the sources utilized in your Unit 2 project.

Instructions:

Select Your Presentation Format:

• Choose a presentation format that aligns with your personal strengths and the nature of your research. Options include:
  • Podcast
  • TED talk
  • A Basic Plain Vanilla Academic Essay 🙂
  • Letter to an editor or politician
  • Blog post
  • Brochure
  • PowerPoint presentation
• Prepare Your Content:
• Utilize the research conducted in your Unit 2 project to develop compelling content for your chosen presentation format. Ensure that the information presented is clear, concise, and effectively communicates the key findings of your research.
• Written Component (At least 500 words):
• Alongside your chosen presentation method, provide a written component that expands on the key points covered in your presentation. This written component should be a minimum of 500 words and must include:
  • Introduction: Briefly introduce the topic and its significance.
  • Research Overview: Summarize the main findings and insights gained from your Unit 2 research project.
  • Connection to Sources: Discuss how the sources cited in your works cited page contributed to shaping your research.
  • Personal Reflection: Share your personal insights, opinions, or reflections on the research process and its impact on your understanding of the topic.
• Works Cited Page:
• Include a works cited page that follows a recognized citation style (e.g., APA, MLA). List all the sources used in your Unit 2 research project. Ensure accuracy and consistency in citation formatting.
• Submission Guidelines:
  • Submit your presentation in a format that allows for easy access and viewing (e.g., provide a link, upload a file).
  • Clearly label and organize your works cited page to facilitate easy verification of your sources.

Evaluation Criteria:

• Content: Depth of research, clarity of key findings, and relevance to the chosen presentation format.
• Creativity: Originality and effectiveness of the chosen presentation method.
• Writing Quality: Clarity, coherence, and adherence to the 500-word minimum for the written component.
• Citation Accuracy: Proper citation of sources in the works cited page using a recognized citation style.

1. Genre: Whatever you choose must actually fit in that genre. A video that’s just a single picture for two minutes isn’t a video because it doesn’t move; it doesn’t engage us the way a video/film should. When you write your proposal, you’ll have a chance to set up what the rules and conventions are for that genre.
2. Appropriateness for audience: If you’re doing something for 4^th grade students, it shouldn’t be full of graduate school words. Appropriate means word choice, approach to topic/issue, use of visuals if you use them – does the way you “wrote” your genre piece fit what would work best for this audience?
3. Effectiveness of message: We’ll share these in class so you’ll get a chance to see if you got your point across. Did it fulfill your purpose?
4. Length/Timeliness: The genre piece can be whatever length it needs to be based on the conventions of the genre.
5. Reflection: Did you thoughtfully reflect on your process, even if things didn’t turn out quite how you wanted?
6. Clarity: sentence structure, grammar, and punctuation

Helpful resources for composing in various genres: 

The NYT has an entire list of “Mentor Texts” that help you write articles like a sports article and a personal health column. It’s quite useful.  It can be found here: https://www.nytimes.com/column/learning-mentor-texts

The New York Times on creating a Podcast:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/learning/making-a-podcast-that-matters-a-guide-with-examples-from-23-students.html

More resources for creating texts:

Free music: https://www.purple-planet.com/

Free sound effects: http://soundbible.com/free-sound-effects-1.html

Copyright safe images (photos, clip art, etc): https://search.creativecommons.org/

Stock videos (and photos): https://www.pexels.com

Illustrations you can manipulate: https://undraw.co/illustrations

https://www.canva.com/ is a mostly free (especially if you upload your own images) design program that does everything from posters and banners to storyboards and comic strips. A real go-to tool for a lot of people.

Posters, infographics, etc.:

•  https://www.canva.com/ The images with crowns on them are extra, but Canva is free if you use your own images.
•  https://piktochart.com/ The free version has a 40MB image upload limit.

Online comic maker: https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/

Audio creator/editor:  https://www.audacityteam.org/ [easy to use with a full range of tools, lots of videos about how to use it]

•  Here’s a review about free audio editing software https://www.techradar.com/news/the-best- free-audio-editor

Screencasting/video recording:

•  https://screencast-o-matic.com/ Screencast-o-matic is free if you want to do screen capture videos from your laptop (note: 15 minute max time).
• YouTube Studio will give you lots of tutorials about how to create videos