Project URL: http://teachersnetwork.org/everywhere/Fonseca/index.htm

How it works:
And the Survey Says is a technology unit that introduces students to surveys. After visiting a website and answering some questions about surveys, students will utilize several application programs to create & type a survey sheet, survey 30 classmates, tally the results, graph the results using Excel, and create a presentation to present the survey results.

Standards addressed:  
Technology--Students will: use technologies to input, retrieve, organize, manipulate, evaluate, and communicate information; apply appropriate technologies to critical thinking, creative expression, and decision-making skills.
English Language Arts--Students will: read and comprehend general and technical material; demonstrate the ability to write clear and grammatically correct sentences, paragraphs, and compositions; communicate skillfully and effectively through printed, visual, auditory, and technological media in the home, school, community, and workplace.
Mathematics--Students will: collect and explore data through observation, measurement, surveys, sampling techniques, and stimulations; organize data using tables, charts, graphs, spreadsheets, and databases; read data from tables, charts, or graphs, and explain the source of the data and what the data represents.

Assessment:
Students are given individual grades on each of the five lessons that make up this project: (1) creating a survey/designing questions; (2) survey sheet; (3) tally sheet; (4) graphs; (5) presentation.

Overall value:
This interdisciplinary project incorporates technology, English language arts, and mathematics into a "fun" project for students. Students get to successfully use the computer as a research tool, a publishing tool, and a communication device via the Internet. This unit builds skills as well; students will learn how to use several application programs that will be useful in all academic subjects.
 
Tips: 
This unit also builds classroom community. Students will be required to interact positively with their peers when giving the surveys and also when presenting the results. This unit can also be easily modified for a classroom that does not have computers.

Teacher: Gwendolyn Fonseca

About the teacher:
Gwendolyn Fonseca is a teacher at Charles R. Drew Middle School in Detroit, Michigan.

Subject Areas:
Math
Language Arts  
Technology                          

Grade Levels: 
7th-8th grades