Purpose 9: Communicate with Diverse Audiences

This is the guiding packet for a research PBL (project-based learning experience). When deciding their topic for the PBL, students will be asked to determine their audience as well. For example, if a student were researching a school policy that they wanted to change, they would be encouraged to think about what language(s) their presentation should use to best communicate to their audience. The final presentations can then be delivered in the language(s) most appropriate for their determined audience.

For each chapter of our Animal Farm unit, students are asked to write a chapter summary independently to demonstrate their comprehension of the reading. This idea comes from a student: he enjoyed the book so much that he would go home and tell his mother about it after each chapter. Since his mother does not speak English, he would retell the chapter and explain the key ideas to her in Spanish. While students can write the summary in any language, this activity invites them to take it a step further and explain what happened in the chapter to a family member at home, using their home language. If a student completes this task, the family member signs the summary to show that this communication happened.