1.INTRODUCING THE PROJECT.

This project will be part of the Natural Science subject and is intended for sixth graders. It consists in doing podcasts in order to inform their peers about the weather forecast across Spain.

Children will work in groups of 3. All students will collaborate by informing about different aspects, called sections, related to the weather in a specific community:

Student 1: Weather forecast Section 1: Temperature and humidity.

Student 2: Weather forecast Section 2: Water levels (general lake levels, alerts...) and precipitation.

Student 3: Recommendations Section 3: activities and clothing.

Every lesson students will upload their podcasts to the list created in soundcloud and we´ll listen their audios in classroom. Additionally, we´ll publish our podcasts in our blog.

2. PROJECT ORGANIZATION.

Grouping: students will work in groups of 3 already arranged by the teacher. 

Timing: we will use six lessons (two weeks) to develop the project.

In the first lesson they´ll collect information about the different sections in their specific community (agreed with the teacher in advance). In the second lesson they will plan the draft and select the information. In lesson 2 the teacher will explain the steps to record the podcasts. In following sessions, lessons 4 and 5, they´ll record their podcasts and, in the last session, lesson 6, we´ll listen the podcasts in great group.

3. RESOURCES AND DEVICES.

Students will use the following resources to develop the task:

1. Textbooks.
2. Dictionaries.
3. Maps of the different regions.
4. Laptops.

We´ll also need to use the ICT Class when recording the podcasts to use the microphones and all the electronic devices needed. Students will use the audio recorder of the computer, an online platform Soundcloud to upload the audios.

Students will be encouraged to find out information at home by watching the weather section in the news in order to get some ideas for their task.

4. OBJECTIVES.

• To be aware of the relevance of the weather in our daily lives.
• To realise how useful predicting the weather is.
• To Know and interact with the natural world.
• To start collecting data in order to compare and analyse them.
• To use the ICTs, the different tools and platforms properly.
• To create entertaining podcasts to show different information.
• To use key vocabulary and structures accurately.
• To learn how to license their own podcasts by using Creative Commons.
• To be able to work collaboratively, respecting other opinions and reaching agreements with the other group members.

5. BASIC COMPETENCES.

• Digital competence: students need to use digital resources, laptops and other devices in order to accomplish the task.
• Linguistic competence: listening, reading, speaking and writing skills are developed through this project. Students take notes, make a draft, record the podcast, read textbooks, consult websites, express opinions and share ideas with the other members in the group.
• Mathematical competence: Students will need to handle dates and numbers (temperature degrees) in order to talk about weather conditions. By taking into account the assigned time for both, the complete task  and subtasks, students will develop this competence.
• Learning to learn: students work independently and in groups when searching and selecting the information to develop the task.
• Social and civic competence: students will have to collaborate with their groups, listen to others opinions and reach agreements.
• Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship: While researching students will access to a wide variety of resources, make decisions and  use different devices in order to create their own podcasts.
• Cultural awareness and expression: students will locate and spot regions and detect their regular weather conditions while researching to complete the task.

6. PROJECT PLANNING.

Project-Based Learning: The Climate. Weather forecasting.

When studying weather and its effects on the environment and lifestyle during two weeks in several Autonomous Communities of Spain, students will share their daily work using soundcloud so the rest of the class can hear the data collected. At the end of those two weeks all the groups will analyze the differences between the selected communities

Step 1: Setting the Stage with Real-Life Examples

The teacher will show a real-life example of a weather podcast that they will have to do on their own later on. They will brainstorm the main ideas about the podcast and how would they do their own for the project.

Step 2: Grouping and Taking on the Role of Project Designers.

Each member of the group will take a role. Each member will be in charge of collecting different kind of data.

One will search for humidity information and its measurement, another one will be in charge of temperature and the third member will have to collect precipitation data.

Step 3: Discussing and Accumulating Necessary Background Information.

Students will collect all the information including humidity, temperature and precipitation, and put it together in groups creating daily podcasts that will be shared with the rest of the class.

Step 4: Accumulating the Necessary Materials.

The students will decide what kind of materials are going to use to create the podcast. Some materials could be: paper and water bottles filled with rice to simulate the sounds of the rain, storms, etc.

Students will have access to the internet with tablets and computers to collect the data and research. They will also will be able to get information from different resources like newspapers, radio, etc.

Step 5: Creating the Project.

Students in each group worked on preliminary sketches until they decided on a final design. During this stage, the teacher will be moving from group to group to guide the students' work. As the teacher does so, he or she will be asking themselves the following questions:

• Do the students have a clear understanding of the task?
• Does each student have ownership of her role within the group?
• Are the students attentive and working together cooperatively?
• Are the resources that students use geared to their comprehensive level of understanding?
• Are any groups stumbling in a way that is blocking their work due to heightened emotions?

Step 6: Preparing to present the Audio Project.

The students in each group prepared for the final stages, discussing whether or not the presentations needed to be rehearsed, or whether display cards had to be written. They also made note of the following:

• Design and built the podcasts´ script.
• The time consumed on recording
• What made their audio appealing.
• What they thought was unique about their audios.

Step 7: Presenting the Audio Project.

During this stage, students become aware of the ways their presentations meet the criteria of assessment. The teacher observes how engaged they are in presenting their projects. Each group will explain to the class, how the audios were achieved. And they will listen to them.

Step 8: Reflecting on the Process and Evaluating the Process.

In this simulation, the students discuss what they enjoyed about working in small groups, and how one student's idea would spawn another student's idea. Students share their reflections to note what they had in common and what was special to them.

7. ASSESSMENT.

Teacher´s Assessment: 70% of the mark. The teacher will take into account the following aspects:

• The use of the digital tools and platforms (20%).
• Knowledge and variety of contents learned (20%).
• Accuracy of vocabulary and structures used (10%).
• Spelling mistakes, pronunciation and fluency (10%).
• Creativity and interest in the activity (10%).

Self Assessment: 30%. Students will complete a survey about the use of digital resources, learning through podcasts and their experience developing the task cooperatively.