Dinosaur Project

Learners

Students at Cambridge A2 Flyers level

Objectives

• Practise reading comprehension and summarizing information

• Practise teamwork

• Practise writing (an end-of-project reflection)

• Practise technology skills (filming a video of the final product)

• Develop creativity through the final product

Project type

• Cross-curricular project: history, biology and art

• Group work in Sessions 1–2; final products made individually

Project Week sessions

• Session 1: reading comprehension and summarizing information (two groups summarize information about dinosaurs on a poster)

• Session 2: reading, grammar and building a story about the extinction of the dinosaurs; extension: making a stop-motion animation video

• Session 3: sharing reflections on what was learned, followed by an art project that captures the beauty of dinosaurs

• Session 4: field trip to a dinosaur park

Preparation

The teacher prepares:

• Short texts about dinosaurs: Group 1 uses information from Wikipedia; Group 2 uses Little Kids First Big Book of Dinosaurs (Hughes, 2011)

• Slides that guide students through making a stop-motion animation video

• Phones with the apps Adobe Spark Video and VivaVideo

• Dinosaur models, sand, model trees, glitter and modelling clay

Students prepare:

• Highlighters and sticky notes

• A draft film plan

• A portfolio of each group member’s strengths

• A task assignment chart

Session 1: Reading comprehension and summarizing information

• The teacher opens with a “mystery topic” activity that leads into discussion and introduces the task.

• The two groups do “speed dating” to learn about each member’s strengths.

• Each student is given a role before the reading and summarizing task.

• The teacher hands out the texts and explains the requirements.

• By the end of the session, each group completes a summary of the reading text, a group discussion and an infographic summary.

Session 2: Reading, grammar and building a story about the extinction of the dinosaurs (extension: stop-motion animation)

• The teacher guides students to create an idea web for a story about the extinction of the dinosaurs.

• Students list key words related to the topic and build sentences with them.

• Students are encouraged to use computers to search for information and get ideas from existing films.

• The teacher walks students through the steps of making a stop-motion animation.

• Students draft their ideas, practise, revise and complete their product.

Products completed by the students at the end of the session.

Session 3: Sharing reflections and creating an art project that captures the beauty of dinosaurs

• The teacher and the class review the products from the two previous sessions.

• The teacher hands out materials and asks students to create an art piece in their own way.

• Students are encouraged to photograph and film their finished work.

Handmade products created by the students.

Session 4: Field trip to a dinosaur park

• The teacher takes students to the park to observe life-size (1:1) dinosaur models.

• Students discuss and reflect on what they have learned.

• Students are encouraged to take notes and list questions for next time.

• Photos and video are taken as material for the next project.

Approach and Source

This project follows a project-based learning approach: students work towards a clear final product over several sessions. It brings history, biology and art together with English language learning, and each session is built around a meaningful task.

Hughes, C. D. (2011). National Geographic little kids first big book of dinosaurs. National Geographic Kids.