{"id":3309,"date":"2020-02-06T07:30:21","date_gmt":"2020-02-06T12:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/teachersfirst.com\/blog\/?p=3309"},"modified":"2020-02-05T09:56:55","modified_gmt":"2020-02-05T14:56:55","slug":"tech-tool-of-the-month-mission-us-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teachersfirst.org\/blog\/2020\/02\/tech-tool-of-the-month-mission-us-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Tech Tool of the Month: Mission US Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>In Part 1 of this blog<\/a>, you were introduced to <\/span>Mission US<\/span><\/a>. This free tool transports students to transitional times in US history and immerses students in historical settings. Students get to make decisions as the fictional characters. Yesterday we shared an overview of the tool. At the time of this post, there were five missions for students to play: <\/span>For Crown or Glory, Flight to Freedom, A Cheyenne Odyssey, City of Immigrants<\/span><\/i>, and<\/span> Up from the Dust<\/span><\/i>. We also discussed the application of both the SAMR model and the TRIPLE E Framework as you integrate Mission US into your instruction. Today\u2019s post offers detailed instructions about how to use Mission US and also shares many classroom use ideas.<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Use Mission US:<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

When you arrive at the site, you can preview a trailer of a mission or get started. If this is your first time visiting Mission US, click the <\/span>Register<\/span><\/i> link.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Registration is simple and student-friendly; it does not require any email, just a username and password, and some other basic information. We recommend not using any personal names\/nicknames. Consider assigning students numbers to use as their username. The \u201cWho are you?\u201d question is asking if you are a student, teacher, or other. <\/span><\/p>\n

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On the main page, you can Meet the Characters, view trailers, or find the mission that you would like to begin. <\/span><\/p>\n

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There are five ready-to-go missions. Read a brief description of each mission to see which topic\/story may match the content of your curriculum.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Once you choose the mission, students receive guided step-by-step instructions through this \u201cchoose-your-own-adventure\u201d activity. This activity is an example of a scenario that students may be presented with to determine what the next step will be. The site scaffolds the lesson and re-directs students back to better choices with an explanation of why the alternative option will produce a better outcome.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Below is another example of an interactive experience that the students may be asked to complete. For this activity, the main character is sent to be an apprentice in Boston. Students must view an example of a contract that was created for the apprentice. The task is to negotiate two of the items on the contract and also explain why they want it to be changed. The \u201cMaster\u201d offers rebuttals for the negotiated items. Explanations are provided about what items are of more importance to survive and thrive during this time in history.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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One treasure that you don\u2019t want to miss is the link for Educators. Here you will find Educators Guides for all five missions. There are also classroom ideas and videos to learn more and to share with your students. <\/span><\/p>\n

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The Educator Guides are rich resources to leverage the online activities. Along with background information, find learning goals, essential questions, standards alignment, and a Complete Classroom Guide. This one also has a link to a free webinar to learn more about the tool.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Background tab of the Educator Guide includes PDFs and Docs for educators and students to learn more about the characters, situations, and the historical periods presented in the mission. You can customize the Docs for differentiation in your classroom. <\/span>The Complete Classroom Guides <\/span><\/i>(for each mission) include all of the other documents – if you are going to print, you can click that link to print all materials for your students. <\/span><\/p>\n

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The Activities tab of the Educators Guide offers many prompts, activities, and review questions to use before the mission, during the mission, and after the mission. Use the activities to deepen students\u2019 understanding and create powerful connections to the missions and the past. <\/span><\/p>\n

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If you are looking for additional ways to enhance and extend learning beyond the missions, visit the Resources Tab for more primary sources, activities, printables, and more. <\/span><\/p>\n

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As you can see, the Educator Guide offers a wealth of information and is a great place to begin before you send your students to complete the missions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Classroom Use Ideas:<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

While this tool does most specifically connect to social studies curriculum and topics, it could be integrated into other subjects. Be sure to check out the Educator Guides for all missions to find many mission-specific discussion questions, writing prompts, classroom activities, and more. Find some additional classroom ideas to try with your students.<\/span><\/p>\n

Social Studies:<\/span><\/p>\n