Students learn how to gather information, synthesize it, and create and communicate information.
The students find books to read by the author and explore the variety of media found to learn about the author s life and writing. In small groups the students create a drama or reader s theatre presentation based on a story they read by the author. They use a video camcorder to record their presentation to the class. The teacher then uses concept-mapping software to categorize and classify information the students share about what they know of the author and what they need to know. The next step is for the teacher to plan a video or online conference with the author.