Friends of Travis TAG Vanguard & Academy

Sharing the best kept secret in DISD.

IP Night for 6th graders includes creating costumes related to their chosen countries.

The Yearly Independent Project

School Phone: 972-794-7500

School Fax: 972-794-7501

E-mail: question@travistag.org

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The Independent Research Project– the part of their Travis TAG experience that no one ever forgets.

 

Recently, DISD has required that all students in TAG programs should do a yearly independent research project. At Travis, it’s: been there, already doing that.

 

At each grade level the focus shifts. In the intermediate program, the yearly focus is social studies based.

                 4th– Inventors/Inventions

                 5th– United States

                 6th– World geography

                 7th– historic Greenwood Cemetery

                 8th– world travel.

In the middle school, the focus has been social studies based as well, but the particular focus is being refined and may change slightly from year to year.

All levels involve the students in note-taking, report-writing, and the creation of some form of presentation. In the intermediate program, this is spread out over a great span of the school year and culminates with the presentation nights in the Spring.

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As an example, lets look at the 6th grade and their International Festival each March. Early in the year, students pick a nation to be an expert on and start acquiring information. Many write to embassies or consulates, others contact tourist boards, still others interview neighbors and relatives who have links to their chosen country.

All subject areas contribute and require IP related materials, making IP a cross-curriculum project.  The 6th grade teaching team works together to monitor and guide.

The students will write and design an IP binder for their country which might include: history, geography, native wildlife, cultural observances, national data (in report and data formats), climate studies, airfare research, and an exhaustive bibliography.

The students will then prepare an IP Night presentation which would include: a costume appropriate to their country, a greeting in the language of their country, a homemade national delicacy, computer presentations, and “the display” where 5 months of hard work, research, and endless rewrites come together visually for their audience.

At the end of the night comes the ritual chant that “it’s over”. And while they are still grinning from the accolades given by friends and relatives, they ARE glad it’s over for now. And no, they NEVER forget it.

 

Travis students do one of these EACH and EVERY year. With repetition and training come research and writing skills that they’ll need for high school and college. Skills that THEY will have while other students are still learning the ropes. .