Proposal Statement and Presentations
Students will develop a presentation for locating a new Wal-Mart Supercenter in the greater metropolitan Lehigh Valley area to have minimal impact on the environment. Students will plan to communicate "smart growth" principles to their audience in a simulated planning commission meeting.
- Ask students: What are some responsible development strategies the Wal-Mart Corporation may want to consider when they select a site for a new Wal-Mart Supercenter to have minimal impact on the environment? Discuss responses.
- Divide students into teams of two students that have selected the same site recommendation. Tell students that their team will develop a short, 5 minute PowerPoint presentation that clearly describes why their development plan is the best plan for the Wal-Mart Corporation to have minimal impact on the environment. Tell students they are trying to convince the Wal-Mart Corporation that their site selection is the best plan. Their presentation needs to be factual and persuasive as possible. Emphasize that they should make claims clearly and support them with facts and evidence.
- Instruct students to read through the guidelines for the proposal presentation. See #5 on the handout, Where Should We Build The New Wal-Mart Supercenter? If needed, show students how to take a screenshot of Google Earth and how to insert the image into their presentation file.
- Distribute the Proposal Presentation Rubric to each student. Have students read the rubric. Tell the students that their presentation needs to address each rubric criteria.Helpful implementation idea:- In classes with lower level readers, read each criterion on the Proposal Presentation Rubric to the students. Clarify any vocabulary terms they might have difficulty with and provide explanations as needed.
- Tell students they will have one and a half class periods to develop their presentations.Helpful implementation idea:- Allow students to use their Analysis Form to help them organize and assemble their presentation.
- Provide students with the remainder of the class period to develop their presentations and provide support as needed.Helpful implementation idea:- To promote individual accountability and deter social loafing within groups, provide each student with a group peer-assessment sheet to rate each group member's contribution to develop the presentation. Peer assessment allows team members to assess other members of the team as well as themselves. You may wish to consider using a peer assessment sheet to provide data that might be used in assigning an individual grade component for developing the presentation.
Materials Needed:
Handouts
Where Should We Build The New Wal-Mart Supercenter? (PDF / MS Word)
Proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter Analysis Form (PDF / MS Word)
Google Earth file
Assessment Information
Proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter Analysis Form Assessment (PDF / MS Word)
Proposal Statement Rubric (PDF / MS Word)