Interview tips -
Wow! One family has already started interviewing while the time was available. :) As they did, please front load the loved one with the questions some time this week to think about the answers ahead of time. They will probably need some thinking time. :)
The goal is for your child to apply what was seen in the flipped video last week with the child interviewing the White House correspondent. There were no notes, so the goal is for your child to be familiar with the questions to guide the interview. The exact questions are not important, but the elements listed below are:
- positive tone to the overall content
- getting the person's description of what makes them happy (big idea: no one definition for happiness)
- what has changed in the world during their lifetime that they feel is important (big idea- change over time)
- advice for the children (big idea: respect our elders and understand multiple perspectives as people who are older have more life experience)
The questions are a guide to help your child understand the following:
- interviews try to have a positive tone
- the purpose is to inform or teach (like author's purpose only oral)
- interviews are usually planned ahead of time and take practice
- interviews have a natural flow with transitions from answers to next questions (since we don't know the answers only a flow among questions could be created)
- the person doing the interviewing needs to be ready to adjust the questions or ask something else based on what was answered
- the person being interviewed can use notes :)
- in real life both the interviewer and the interviewee have seen the questions before (add that President Obama even sees and approves of the questions ahead of time before calling on someone in an interview ;) )
- just like the president, your child can choose to change the questions ;)
Feel free to adjust, delete, or add to the questions as they match your family and loved one. Perhaps there is something amazing that your loved one has done that should be shared and is not in the questions.
As always, the process is most important. In this case however, the sum of the multiple pieces (processes) will potentially be even more important as the interview will become part of a very special project.
What can be used to record the interview? webcam on a computer, smartphone that connects to your computer (file will likely be too big to upload), videocamera that can upload to a computer. If you need to borrow something to record the interview, please let me know. ;)
Our timeline -
this week - practice in class with partners and give our questions to Don the Bookman; write autobiographies and begin reading biographies of heroes from the past
next week - note taking form with lines after each interview question will be sent home with the homework (to transcribe the interview or for the interviewee to take notes on - either way we need it for follow up writing) ; do the interviews including one with Don the Bookman if he is ready; biographies - reading and writing
weeks 3 and 4 - interview family members and upload the interviews; biographies of heroes of the past and present
weeks 5 and 6 - heroes of the present and future
Family (your) timeline :) -
1. your child interviews the loved one within the next 4 weeks
2. upload the interview it to the destination (will be posted) by Sunday, December 2nd (the sooner the better - tons of work after they are uploaded ;) )
