Episode 28: Orbital Studies
REFERENCES:
180 Days of Practice by Shell Education a subsidiary of Teacher Created Materials https://www.teachercreatedmaterials.com/shell-education/series/180-days-of-practice-206/
Abraham Lincoln Elementary School in Palm Desert, CA one page handout on orbital studies https://b5c85b91d8.cbaul-cdnwnd.com/6ee51b5495a166b81f98acb86dc0ea5a/200000082-dc8a9dd874/projectorbitals.pdf?ph=b5c85b91d8
PBLWorks rubrics https://www.pblworks.org/download-project-based-learning-rubrics
Stevenson, C. (1992). Teaching ten to fourteen year olds. New York, NY: Longman.
Stevenson, C. (1997). An invitation to join Team 21! In C. Tomlinson (Ed.), In search of common ground: What constitutes appropriate curriculum and instruction for gifted middle schoolers? (p. 31-62). Washington, DC: Curriculum Studies Division of the National Association for Gifted Children.
Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
***I may receive some compensation for these materials on Amazon.com.
INTRO:
In today’s episode I’m going to talk about orbital studies. I mentioned in passing the term “orbitals” otherwise known as “orbital studies” in Episode 22. I am a firm believer that in the field of education, we use and speak of many different terms and acronyms without fully and completely knowing what they mean, what they are, and how and when to implement them into our teaching practices. This episode will again break that trend.
CONTENT:
Let’s begin today by defining the term “orbital study”. An orbital study is an independent study or investigation of a topic from a current unit of study. Orbital studies are extensions of the content within a unit based upon additional questions a student has about the content. Picture an atom nucleus with an electron swirling around it in 3-D. The atom’s nucleus is the unit’s content and the electron is the orbital study.
The orbital study must be grounded in the essential understandings and/or standards for which the unit is based upon. So the students completing orbital studies are not just picking a topic/s at random, rather, the topic/s of the orbital study propose a deeper understanding using additional questions the students are asking about the topic/s to uncover a more in-depth learning. Not extra work, deeper work on something that is already being studied. Using the atom analogy again- the orbital study as the electron is related to the atom’s nucleus i.e., if the atom is for carbon, then the orbital study is in the same carbon atom that allows for another atom, say oxygen, to stick to it and make carbon dioxide.
Ok, enough of that analogy- you get the picture.
Orbital studies are independent work tasks, meaning the student or students are working on them alone or paired but not with the whole class. In practice, a class full of students completing different orbital studies looks like individual students and pairs of students buzzing around a classroom like bees in a hive- using the resources as needed, conferring with others or the teacher to complete tasks, and talking to experts via computer or phone.
During the orbital study process, the teacher acts as the guide, director, and coach- a point of reference for places the student/s can go for additional information to their orbital study question. This means that the teacher needs to know what each of their students are studying, but the teacher doesn’t need to know all of the information about each of the students’ orbital studies’ content- that’s impossible! Rather, it is important for the teacher to assist the students in finding the information they need. It is the student who goes through the learning process, however.
The teacher should also assist the student/s with creating and following an overall plan, rubric for the orbital study, and method and outlet of presentation of the question or topic of the orbital study. Let’s break down each of these points in the next few minutes and explain them in more detail.
Planning out the orbital study is, I believe, about as important of a process as completing the orbital study itself! Helping students plan for a project can actually be done in a whole group format, if needed. Each student gets a calendar-like worksheet (with squares for each day of the project) or a worksheet with blank lines to write out lists- I’ve included some examples with the handout at the end of this episode. As a whole class, you can discuss the process of completing various tasks in order to get a larger-type project completed. Each student can write or draw their own steps, keep logs on their time, the resources they used, and reflections of what was learned, but the overall process is the same. Then students can use their planning sheet to begin their first task and get to work! Teachers can check in periodically or have a scheduled time of each day when he/she can check in with students on their progress. Like a mini-conference to ensure everything is going to plan-or maybe that the plan needs to be changed and how to go about that in order to continue working toward a finished product.
Rubrics are the most effective way to evaluate an orbital project because they have the ability to show how effectively a student planned for, completed, and presented the orbital study. Rubrics also allow for a universal assessment; meaning, the rubric can stay the same for all of your students regardless of the content being studied. The majority of the rubric can be reused over and over again with some small modifications for the teachers to change content assessment pieces that are specific for each student. So I would make content column in the rubric but not fill it in until you know what the student is actually going to be studying. But the rest of the rubric could be reused over and over again. My favorites are the Self-Directed Rubrics for all grades K-12 from an organization called PBLWorks. The link is here in the show notes. There are other rubrics here for the taking- did I mention they’re free? These can be used and modified to add a content column specific to the student’s orbital project.
Orbital studies last approximately 3-6 weeks. In my opinion, an orbital study length is dependent upon two factors: the age of the student and the depth of the question. By all means I would encourage your Kindergartner to engage in an orbital study if it’s appropriate and good for that student but I don’t always see a 5-year-old spending 3 weeks studying the same question or topic. Not to say that couldn’t happen- just that it’s less likely than a 4th or 5th grader who may have the capacity to keep the learning going for longer.
Whatever your setup is for orbital studies, one thing remains poignant in my mind- making sure the students present their study to an authentic audience (or one that is as authentic as possible). Students need to know that their study counts for something and that it matters. The only way this happens, I found, was when students were able to present their ideas to others. It could be in a gallery format, formal presentation, letter to someone, Skype/video call to someone involved- whatever!
Before I get to a few examples of orbital studies for grades K-5, I wanted to mention one more thing. Sometimes the student will get stuck on finding research, how to synthesize information they are collecting from the Internet, not plagiarizing, or writing a report. Here, the teacher may opt to have “mini sessions” during the time students are working on their orbitals. Say for example, yesterday’s conferences with a handful of students yielded some information about report writing- meaning, many of the students were really stuck on how to set up a final report of their findings using the format of a 5-paragraph essay. Since you, the teacher, now knows this, you can mention aloud before everyone breaks for orbital time that you will be reviewing the 5-paragraph essay format for report writing somewhere in the classroom for about 6 minutes. Any student who wants to join you, they can. And if you know a few students that should, you can take the opportunity when you break to nudge them toward your review session. This is a “mini lesson” and students love it! They are able to self-select what they need, when it’s offered, and learn. And, you’re not wasting some other students’ time because they already have the 5-paragraph essay format down pat!
Here is an example of an orbital study for each of the grade levels K through 5. The topics I have selected are general unit topics taught nationally at these particular grade levels. Your curriculum may be slightly different, however, hopefully you can still gain an understanding of how to approach an orbital study with your students at any elementary grade. I have elected to use Social Studies and Science topics but you may find topics related to a Language Arts book connected to your Social Studies or Science unit or a math unit too. These examples are for instructional purposes only and act as suggestions to help students find/discover orbital studies for themselves.
Kindergarten: In Social Studies, Kindergartners often study US national holidays (what they are and when they are honored). An orbital study might be why a particular US national holiday came to be (i.e., it’s process of fruition), the process of a holiday becoming a holiday (how the government determines and makes a holiday one that appears on the calendar), and/or if there is a similar/same holiday in another country (not the US), how it is celebrated, and how it came to be there.
Grade 1: Often this year has a fair amount of money learning, and counting and making change in mathematics class. I used to incorporate these concepts into the Economics lessons on goods, services, wants, needs, producers, and consumers. So possible orbital studies here may include: investigation of another country’s currency and its relationship to the US dollar; how the US determines, produces, and distributes currency; an understanding of an Ancient civilization’s economic system; you get the gist.
Grade 2: Students in Grade 2 are studying many things in science class including plants, life cycles, water, properties of matter, and the earth and its many different topographic formations. Students can plant, grow and study different plants in various environments. They can find water near the school or their home, find out where it comes from, test it, and determine its safety for consumption. If it’s not safe, the student(s) can write or present to the local government their results and possible solutions. Many models can be made of earth but students can also get into changing earth formations over time- like during Pangaea and the time of the dinosaurs or early man- in their local area.
Grade 3: Social studies class in Grade 3 has a wealth of topics for orbital studies. Historically, students are studying various people and explorers- but not everyone or even their complete stories. Students can consider a lesser-known explorer and find out more about this individual. Or, students can dig deeper into a well-known explorer to find out more about him or her. This in-depth study may cause some controversy and should be navigated in tandem between the teacher and the student(s). In addition, helping the student learn about the challenges this individual faced within their own time, i.e., putting the individual into their context and not today’s context, will help navigate this process in a positive and high-quality learning manner.
Maybe the 3rd grader wants to know more about Economics and a system of currency, exchange, services, and distribution of goods from another country. Or students can dive deeper into government and local affairs. Maybe there is a major road in your town that is in desperate need of repair. Can the student(s) figure out the amount of damage, cost of fixing, the timeline, etc. and present this information to local authorities? Or is there something on the school grounds that is a hazard for students at the school? I once worked with a group of teachers who were getting complaints from students that there was a massive hole in the ground with a corroded pipe in it very close to the school’s blacktop and no one seemed to be available to fix it. This problem became one for the students to analyze and solve- and eventually they did! Social studies is an excellent content area for orbital studies in 3rd grade. The students can dive deeper into a wealth of content here for sure!
Grade 4: Often in science, this year consists of learning about animals (vertebrates/invertebrates), physical science topics, and earth science. In earth science, students learn about rock formations, wind power, and land erosion. Possible orbital studies include: learning about a part of your town, state, United States, or another country in the world that is affected in some way by rocks, wind, or land developments (in the positive or negative ways). Students can research this and how to possibly solve the problem that exists therein.
Grade 5: This grade usually has something to do with the People/Native cultures/human movement from one place to another. This grade is easy for an orbital study- I mean, take your pick! Dig deeper into one of the Native cultures that were here in the US before the English/Spanish/French, etc. came; find a culture on a different continent and follow their movement including why they moved in the first place; if possible, dig deeper into the reason for the move, for the conflict, for the discrimination. Continuing to ask questions about what is being studied at this developmental age is a good thing. We don’t want 5th graders going to middle school thinking what is in their textbooks is the only take on what has happened, right? Perspective building, becoming a sound researcher, and creating personal understandings is very important here and these students, due to their age, may be able to handle deeper-based questions that fall into the “gray” area of understanding.
BTW- these suggestions came from a book series on Amazon.com called “180 days of Social Studies” and “180 Days of Science.” These books are less than $15 each and can help you and your students find orbital study topics. They are easy to find on Amazon.com and are available for lots of grades and other content areas including Reading and Language Arts. These books are published by Shell Education, a subsidiary of Teacher Created Materials. I have put the link to this company in the show notes. ***I may receive some compensation for these materials on Amazon.com.
Some additional quick notes before we part:
Why choose Orbital Studies: Orbital studies involve students in the process of designing a short-term independent project in order to delve deeper into topics that they are already studying in class. The content, process, and product are differentiated by student choice rather than by teacher choice, leading to a much higher level of student engagement.
Benefits of Orbital Studies: Focusing on a topic of student interest related to some facet of the curriculum provides flexibility in student learning and engagement. Orbital studies are an ideal way to address both commonalities and differences among student learners (remember they can work in pairs) and something for students to focus on when in-class work is completed. Orbital study topics are challenging enough for gifted learners too.
Challenges of Orbital Studies: Some research indicates that much of the work on orbital studies is completed at home, which could be difficult if there is not adequate support at home. I’m not certain this always needs to be the case. Students can use class time when their required work is finished or time can be denoted during parts of particular school days (i.e., Fridays or alternating Wednesdays) to work on orbital studies in class. Orbitals can require a high level of teacher guidance, which could be a deterrent for some teachers and would definitely provide extra challenges for any busy teacher. But remember, the teacher need not know everything about the topic of the orbital. Just enough to point the student in a direction to find the information. Finally, teachers need to continue to hold students accountable for the orbital study throughout the project. Time meeting with the students and ensuring progress is being made, is time well spent.
Looking for a one-pager to discuss orbital studies with others? Thanks to Abraham Lincoln Elementary School in Palm Desert, CA, here it is!
In this episode, I promised to define orbital studies, describe the orbital study process, and provide some recommendations for orbital studies in grades K through 5.
Here are the 5 tips for working with students on an orbital study. They are:
Tip 1: Orbital studies are independent, self-selected, creative projects for students in any grade level.
Tip 2: During the orbital study process, the teacher acts as the guide, director, coach and point of reference for students.
Tip 3: All orbital studies need a plan that is written, monitored, implemented, and assessed by the student with help from the teacher including a calendar or list of tasks, research information, and rubric(s).
Tip 4: Orbital studies can last approximately 3-6 weeks depending upon the age of the student and the depth of the question or topic. And finally,
Tip 5: Orbital study presentations should be as authentic as possible.
OUTRO:
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Thank you again for joining me, Dr. Paige Hendricks in today's episode of Get Off the Dotted Line! See you next time!
