a Project...
She'll Probably Ask for your Help!
A writing project for 3rd graders of E-CASE schools
______________________________________________________________
Introduction / Resources / Task / Process / Evaluation / Conclusion
______________________________________________________________
Introduction
If you give a pig like Greta a project, she'll probably ask for your help. It's not that she's lazy, it's just that Greta is a flying pig...with a few problems!
First, she has to write about neighborhoods on the east side of Cincinnati, and Greta lives on the west side of town. She knows nothing about Norwood,
Pleasant Ridge, Oakley, Hyde Park, East Walnut Hills, Mt. Lookout, Madisonville or any of the other east-side neighborhoods. She's never even visited them!
That leads us to her second problem. Greta misplaced her wings so she has to walkall the way over to the east side. That's hard even on Greta's little piggies!
There's more. She has directions to cross the "The Western Hills Viaduct" to get to the east side, but once she arrives...she'll be lost.
Can you help?
It will be your quest to show Greta around "your neck of the woods" and teach her about your community. Think of this project as giving a tour. That makes you the tour guide!
The Task
As the tour guide for your community, work with classmates to gather all of the information you can about the neighborhood(s) surrounding your school.
You will explore:
the history, including important people
popular landmarks
geography
businesses
Resources
That's a lot of information for you to research. So it's always good to have resources. A resource is something, someone, or somewhere you can go to get answers to your questions. That definition describes what you are to Greta. By providing her with some of the facts she needs for her report, you serve as a resource for Greta. Lucky for Greta!
Before you start your section of the writing project, think about all of the resources available to you to help you gather the information you need. Maybe jotting a few down will be helpful!
Resources
Something Someone Somewhere
_________________ __________________ __________________
_________________ __________________ __________________
_________________ __________________ __________________
Here are three good resources every writer should use:
1. Books... don't forget the dictionary (It "spells out" a lot.)
2. Internet... there are may good websites loaded with information on your specific questions. (Try looking up Cincinnati Flying Pigs and see what you can find out about how Greta got the name: a Flying Pig.)
3. People... anyone who knows about your topic. Someone like a teacher, neighbor, librarian, event planner, or even a politician, can be a good resource.
(Be sure not to overlook the real person as a resource. If you only use the internet, you can miss out on great personal stories and memories that, sometimes, you can only discover by talking directly to your resource!)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Process
There are many exciting facts you can teach Greta. Choose who will research and write on the topics listed above in the TASK section. Your job is to use different resources (books, websites, people) to find out:
History
1. When was your neighborhood founded? What was life like at that time in our history? How did people get around?
2. Who were the main people who founded your area?
3. What else was happening at that time? Was there a war going on?
4. How did your neighborhood get its name?
5. Why do you think your neighborhood is a good place to live?
Landmarks
Every area has landmarks of interest. Cincinnati, for example, has a popular landmark called Fountain Square, located right in the middle of our downtown. The Tyler Davidson statue, which stands in the middle of Fountain Square, was a gift to the city of Cincinnati by the French.
1. Name at least two (three would be better) landmarks you know about in your community. If you need to better understand what a landmark is...
use your dictionary!
2. Who or what does the landmark represent?
3. If the landmark represents a person, why is that person important?
4. Name at least one (two would be better) special place in your neighborhood that everyone knows and talks about? (a restaurant, a special park, or a building)
Geography
The Geography section should include facts to help Greta better understand how your neighborhood looks. Is it hilly? Does it have a lot of woods surrounding it? Is it located next to a creek or valley? For example, the city of Cincinnati is compared to the seven hills of Rome. Why do you think that is? Cincinnati, like Greta, sometimes uses the title " Flying Pig" in the name of events or in decorations. Maybe you have seen the statues of flying pigs on top of tallstack pillars at Cincinnati's Serpentine Wall on the Ohio River. Cincinnati also hosts the Flying Pig Marathon, a fun event for runners every year. Why do we use the
Flying Pig name? Look into Cincinnati's early history of slaughter houses and river transportation of the products.
1. List any special geographic information about your community.
2. Has your neighborhood changed its "look" over the years?
3. How and Why has the look changed? For example, are there buildings (businesses or homes) where there once was farmland?
4. Is your neighborhood one of Cincinnati's seven hills?(Can you name all seven?)
Evaluation
How do you know if you have done a good job on your neighborhood project?
Ask yourself (and your classmates) if you know something now that you did not know before. Hopefully, after looking in books and on the internet...and then talking to people... you learned several facts about the history, landmarks, and geography of your neighborhood.
It's always better to do a little extra work on a project. For your neighborhood project, you might write a poem or song about being a tour guide for Greta!...or about your neighborhood, or just about Greta herself. (You can use the tune to a song you already know and just change the words!)
You can also include pictures, ones you draw or take on a camera.
Here's how to learn even more!
You and your partners can learn more than just facts about your neighborhood. You can discover interesting facts about Cincinnati in general by going back and reading about Greta. Remember reading that Greta had to cross the Western Hills Viaduct to get from the west to the east side of Cincinnati?
1. What is a viaduct? __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________Boy... the dictionary is a good resource, isn't it?
2. Explain why Cincinnati uses the title, "Flying Pigs." __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Why is Cincinnati compared to the seven hills of Rome?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Why and when did the French give Cincinnati the statue on Fountain Square?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Conclusion
Now that you, along with Greta, have researched, learned, and written so much about your neighborhood, you're ready to know about the next big step. The report you wrote will be sent to an editor who will prepare it - as well as information about other neighborhoods written by 3rd graders from all E-CASE grade schools - for publication!
That's right, Greta not only learned more about your neighborhood, she found her way around other east side neighborhoods , as well. By being Greta's tour guide, E-CASE 3rd graders helped to create a book about the east side of Cincinnati!
Third graders all across the city will be thankful when it's their turn to study neighborhoods! But pigs like Greta will probably be the most grateful, because remember....If you give a pig a project, she'll probably ask for your help! It's not that she's lazy. It's just that she's a flying pig with a few problems!
Just a Thought: Who knows if Greta will ever find her misplaced wings? Maybe she'll decide to relocate to the east side because walking all of the way back over to the west side is hard even on a pig's piggies!
If you're walking down the street one day and hear a little snort followed by the words: "Excuse me, can I ask you a question?" chances are it might be Greta!
To learn more about Cincinnati and its neighborhoods, visit the following web sites...and any other sites you discover:
http://www.geocites.com/ecaseneighbors/
click on the bottom section to get neighborhood information.
www.CincinnatiLibrary.org (Click Kid's Space, then Cinti Stuff)
Search under Cincinnati neighborhoods, then click on Other Cincinnati Neighborhoods
www.hydeparkcincinnati.org
click on The Hyde Park Neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio
click on Other Cincinnati Neighborhoods (bottom left side)
Also remember to look for books and talk to people.
And please, don't forget to have fun learning!