Learning to Give, Philanthropy education resources that teach giving and civic engagement

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Social Action Project (The)

Unit of 6 lessons

6th-8th Grade

Subjects:

Language Arts, Library / Technology and Philanthropy

Key Words/Concepts click to view

Lesson 1 :	ELA:	Brainstorming; Reading; Reflection; Research
	PHIL:	3 genOn; Common Good; Nonprofit Organizations; Social Action
	SOC:	10 genOn
Lesson 2 :	ELA:	Brainstorming; Compare/Contrast; Graphic Organizer; Letter Writing; Writing Process
	PHIL:	Community; Nonprofit Organizations; Service Project
	SOC:	10 genOn
Lesson 3 :	ELA:	Brainstorming; Reading; Reflection; Research; Role-Play; Speaking
	PHIL:	Service Project; Social Action
	SOC:	10 genOn
Lesson 4 :	ELA:	Interview; Media Genres; Presentations; Research; Resources; Technology; Writing Mechanics; Writing Process
	PHIL:	Nonprofit Organizations; Social Action; Volunteer
	SOC:	10 genOn
Lesson 5 :	ELA:	Advertising/Marketing; Informational Genre; Persuasive Techniques; Resources
	PHIL:	Nonprofit Organizations; Volunteer
	SOC:	10 genOn
Lesson 6 :	ELA:	Audience; Compare/Contrast; Listening; Persuasive Techniques; Presentations; Response to Text/Others; Speaking
	PHIL:	Nonprofit Organizations; Social Action; Volunteer
	SOC:	10 genOn

Unit Overview:

The learner will:

Select a social issue that interests them.
Research a philanthropic organization that addresses their area of interest.
Participate in a service project with their chosen organization.
Prepare a presentation to inform the wider community of the work of the organization.

Unit Purpose:

Through this service project, students will have the opportunity to make a difference in their community in a meaningful way through a hands-on service project that will also enable them to learn civic responsibility. Students will employ language skills to expound on the roles played by service, service organizations to the community, and their own experiences as volunteers.

Unit Objectives:

The learner will:

Choose a social issue and research an organization that addresses this issue.
Provide volunteer service to the organization.
Interview an officer of the local chapter and create an original pamphlet for the organization.
Deliver a speech and prepare a visual presentation about this organization for the community.

Service Experience:

Although lessons in this unit contain service project examples, decisions about service plans and implementation should be made by students, as age appropriate.

Students will give service to an organization that addresses an issue in which they are interested.

Unit Assessment:

Students will write a research paper on the organization where they will volunteer their service, create a pamphlet to be used for promotional use by the organization, and make an oral presentation before peers, parents and community about their service work and the organization to which they gave service. They will also be assessed on extension activities in Science, Social Studies, Mathematics, and Computer Science.

Notes for Teaching:

Included in this unit are Language Arts lesson plans as well as extension activities for social studies, math, science, and computer science. The applicability of this project depends largely on the structure of the school. The more traditional, departmentalized junior high schools may find it more difficult to integrate all of the subject areas and coordinate multiple teachers than middle schools that are self-contained or which have teams and block scheduling. This project was designed as a language arts project with extensions in other subject areas, but it could be used as a cross-curricular project that addresses multiple content area curriculum standards.