Saugus Iron Works Great Adventure - Teachers Information

The Task:
Students travel through the adventures of the Iron Works earning stamps for their park passport as they complete nine assignments. The goal is for each student to attain the status of “Park Ranger” by completing the passport assignments. Pending successful completion of all assignments, a Ranger Certificate is issued by the teacher and/or students design their own Junior Ranger Badge. The work can be performed in teams or individually on each assignment. Students maintain a portfolio of materials created throughout the unit.

Opportunities for further exploration are provided throughout the unit by clicking on the portfolio icon.

What can students learn from this unit?

As the student progresses through the unit, he or she will encounter lessons on the following subjects:

	“Travel the Time Warp”		Life in Colonial Times
___________	“Dig It”	_____	Rocks and Minerals
	“How Does It Work?”		Simple Machines

Students learn about colonial times and iron making as they take a virtual tour of the Saugus Iron Works. They see pictures of actual iron ore and the blast furnace. They learn how bog ore is converted to iron, leading to a general study of rocks and minerals. They will view pictures and a video of the actual machinery at the Iron Works, as they explore lessons on simple machines. Language Arts and Geography assignments are integrated into many of the lessons. This unit presents an opportunity for students to use the Internet to learn in an exciting and interactive way.

Assessment:
Assessment is ongoing throughout the unit. Assignments are designed to meet the needs of fourth and fifth grade students. Teacher created scoring rubrics are used to judge the quality of student work and offer scoring guidelines for the passport assignments.