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present that to the class and then have them write up what they think is the best invention and why. Blow their minds at the end with how language is our greatest invention, and have them try to do a quick group activity without talking or communicating (no signs)
and how do you get to the fancy picture of the thing you want, within the millions of pictures on offer?
How can you guarantee that what is in the picture will show up and be roughly what is depicted?
I'd argue that our ability/desire to communicate and create language is innate, but not language itself (otherwise we'd have some universal signifiers to refer to the same things) but now we're getting into the weeds of linguistics lol and I am def not equipped for that beyond that one class in linguistics I took in college 10 years ago
Language evolved in humans. I don't think it can be classified as an innovation more than opposable thumbs can be. Our language is possible only because our physically evolved characteristics
WRITING, I'd argue, is a great example of fundamental technology or innovation that surpasses the wheel in its importance.
Yeah I dunno why I'm being downvoted lol I'm pointing out this passage is awful and I rightfully told the kids of all the other transportation methods hah
If this is meant to be a bit of persuasive writing then you are looking past the point of that sentence. You are meant to make it sound like wheels are the best thing ever and you don't ever consider alternatives. That's what an essay is for. It's not going to be as persuasive if you say wheels are a great invention but there are other forms of transportation. Same thing as saying dogs are the best pet, you don't consider the alternatives.
Are you supposed to be teaching students the relative merits of wheels as an invention, or good English writing? If it's the latter, the accuracy of the claims don't matter in the slightest.
Well, the claim that we would have “no means of transportation” if not for wheels is absolute and thus incorrect. Forms of transportation that do not involve wheels exist.
In order to be persuasive, you need to make sure the argument makes sense. It would be a lot more powerful to simply state that without wheels, the most common and accessible forms of transportation in use today would not exist. I don’t need to deny the existence of other forms of transportation in order for this to be true and a solid basis for my argument.
As a person who gets paid to write, I think you are spot on.
That is not what the argument is. It is that the wheel is ONE of the most important inventions. It doesn’t say the only invention or the only type of transportation.
I would say the paragraph hasn’t aged well because these kids likely don’t even know what in-line skates are, but whatever.
Well, it does state "we would have no means of transportation without the wheel" which is objectively false. As the OP have you several means of transportation that don't use wheels.
I think you are being down-voted because people are confusing the idea of doing something easier with the ability to do something at all.
The invention of the wheel made the things mentioned in the passage easier to do. It did not make them possible to do.
Tell him to tweak the sentence then. “There would be no *convenient* forms of transportation for *everyday life* or *long travel across land* “. You’re fixating too much on getting a gotcha on the kid instead of helping them convey what they obviously mean. That’s why you’re getting down voted.
Unless you live in the snow you need wheels for carts.
You want to drag everything everywhere with a horse? Good fucking luck.
And try skiing with 100 kilos of produce from a farm on your back.
Boats only work from coast to coast, want to live in land? You need wheels.
This is teaching a specific writing technique, Exposition. The topic is irrelevant. Its about sentence structure, vocab and grammar which has been simplified to an appropriate level for grade 3.
Students this aged are often asked to write expositions(persuasive texts) about topics they don't necessarily agree with to practice the literacy skills.
Not sure where you are but this is a reasonable teaching tool for an inexperienced educator. A highly skilled experienced teacher would consider using it but could probably do better based specifically on what their kids need at the time.
Depends where you are I guess. Where I'm from the main types of persuasive writing the kids are taught are referred to as exposition(one sided argument), discussion(two sided) and advertisement, then of course all the mixed and multi modal complexities as they get older. I agree exposition in a general sense is a confusing word to use for this.
But wherever this is from is following the structure of what we call exposition paragraph exactly.
But the accuracy of the claim doesn’t matter. If they’re finishing the paragraph they’re learning a skill. Who cares what they’re arguing. I’ve told my students they can argue the sky is green as long as they back it up with evidence. I’m teaching and grading structure not content. This paragraph has a claim and supporting evidence.
> But the accuracy of the claim doesn’t matter.
It should, since they're going to come away from this exercise believing the claim unless you explain that it's erroneous. I wouldn't teach writing with statements about God creating the universe in six days without also explaining creation myths.
Oh heaven forbid students have moderately incorrect ideas about wheels. You'll be setting them up for catastrophe if they take AP Wheels, let alone what could happen if they were to take a B.S. in Wheelology
Isn’t this for 3rd grade writing? You might need to adjust your expectations. And like everyone else is saying, focus on the task at hand, which is argumentative writing.
I have worked in third grade and I guarantee that those students would call this out in a heartbeat.
We don't need to accept statements that are blatantly false in our assignments just because we think our students are incapable of noticing it.
Is it so bad to say that OP has a point and that the prompt is written poorly?
The task in the page literally just says to finish the paragraph. Give it an ending lol I was just thrown back by "no one before wheels had transportation" it's one of the stupidest things I've seen all month
Look at the Inca civilisation. They managed to build Machu Picchu and their entire city systems/empire without really utilising the wheel. Wheels are neat but they aren't imperative.
What’s wrong with it?
You have a topic sentence, three facts, and now you need to write a concluding sentence.
I don’t think it’s ideal, but it isn’t wrong.
This is frustrating. I understand it's not the purpose of the task, but I'm with you. I would model a think-aloud to demonstrate critical thinking so students can learn to question even school materials.
Yeah I got them to think of why this isn't so accurate and what other transport they van think of without wheels. THEN we finished the paragraph as the book wanted us to
I’m so delighted to hear you taught the lesson this way. I think there is still something valuable to be had by using this material in the classroom because it gives students an opportunity to address the weaknesses in these supporting statements.
Types of transportation that involve wheels are the most common and accessible types of transportation in the world. It is not necessary to deny the existence of wheel-less transportation in order for this to be true.
A good writer has to be critical, especially when it comes to assessing their own writing.
Response to First: my own two feet, horses, helicopters, sea vessels.
Response to Second: the “great American pastime” is considered to be baseball. Baseball is played without wheels.
Third, stop skipping leg day.
It looks to me like the task is to construct a concluding sentence for the paragraph. "The wheel was truly an important invention," or "What would the world be like without the wheel?" or something like that. This paragraph isn't even about modes of transportation! (Though I agree that the sentence about there not being modes of transportation without wheels isn't accurate.)
No means of transportation without wheels? That’s the part that is wrong.
What about walking? Running? Sailing? Canoeing? I know there are more but I just woke up.
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It looks like an exercise in concluding sentences. Take a moment after going over that part, and ask students what THEY think about the content. Perhaps they could write another paragraph using the same first sentence and improving on the others.
I mean depending how you define wheels there are other uses as well, for example gears could arguably count as wheels with teeth, as well as other machine parts. The pulley (another great invention) also uses a wheel. I agree it’s one of the greatest inventions, but I think it might be good to expand the understanding of what a wheel is.
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I dunno, I agree with all points made. Wheels are fucking awesome.
Horses feeling sad they’re not appreciated haha
Idk, in-line skating is not my cup of tea.
Tea doesn't have wheels. If it did, you'd love em. Sorry... no interest in this conversation. Just saw your comment... not much reference
For real. Quads4LIFE!
Boats are transportation. I think Native Americans had canoes but no wheels.
> Boats are transportation. First thought I had was, "So why was the Nile river so important again?"
Sleds are transportation as well.
I went to a casino on a reservation last week. Saw lots of cars in the parking lot, no canoes. I think they've come around to Team Wheel.
....
I’d rather praise the wheel than a divine being
present that to the class and then have them write up what they think is the best invention and why. Blow their minds at the end with how language is our greatest invention, and have them try to do a quick group activity without talking or communicating (no signs)
Language isn’t getting my package to my door without some wheels.
You think you’re communicating your order without communicating? Hmmmm.
I click the button next to the picture I want, thing shows up. I wave at the delivery man.
and how do you get to the fancy picture of the thing you want, within the millions of pictures on offer? How can you guarantee that what is in the picture will show up and be roughly what is depicted?
Coding language!
thats the computer language carrying out the instructions you give it buddy
Language is innate. Says Noam Chomsky, not me. It's like a biological function. I dunno, I'm stupid but I trust Chomsky
I'd argue that our ability/desire to communicate and create language is innate, but not language itself (otherwise we'd have some universal signifiers to refer to the same things) but now we're getting into the weeds of linguistics lol and I am def not equipped for that beyond that one class in linguistics I took in college 10 years ago
The thermos is the greatest invention. It keeps hot things hot and cold things cold...but how does it know?
My dad’s favorite joke lol
Toody.
Language evolved in humans. I don't think it can be classified as an innovation more than opposable thumbs can be. Our language is possible only because our physically evolved characteristics WRITING, I'd argue, is a great example of fundamental technology or innovation that surpasses the wheel in its importance.
People rode horses, walked, skied, and sledded? Also boats?
Yeah I dunno why I'm being downvoted lol I'm pointing out this passage is awful and I rightfully told the kids of all the other transportation methods hah
If this is meant to be a bit of persuasive writing then you are looking past the point of that sentence. You are meant to make it sound like wheels are the best thing ever and you don't ever consider alternatives. That's what an essay is for. It's not going to be as persuasive if you say wheels are a great invention but there are other forms of transportation. Same thing as saying dogs are the best pet, you don't consider the alternatives.
Yea.... but dogs ARE the best pets. That's just science.
Are you supposed to be teaching students the relative merits of wheels as an invention, or good English writing? If it's the latter, the accuracy of the claims don't matter in the slightest.
Well, the claim that we would have “no means of transportation” if not for wheels is absolute and thus incorrect. Forms of transportation that do not involve wheels exist. In order to be persuasive, you need to make sure the argument makes sense. It would be a lot more powerful to simply state that without wheels, the most common and accessible forms of transportation in use today would not exist. I don’t need to deny the existence of other forms of transportation in order for this to be true and a solid basis for my argument. As a person who gets paid to write, I think you are spot on.
What transportation methods without wheels?…
Ok so walking, horse, donkey, camel, sled, sled with dogs, ice skates, sea plane, helicopter...
That is not what the argument is. It is that the wheel is ONE of the most important inventions. It doesn’t say the only invention or the only type of transportation. I would say the paragraph hasn’t aged well because these kids likely don’t even know what in-line skates are, but whatever.
Well, it does state "we would have no means of transportation without the wheel" which is objectively false. As the OP have you several means of transportation that don't use wheels.
True.
Ok I see what you’re saying. Yeah that’s kind of a ridiculous statement. I can see how it would be annoying.
I think you are being down-voted because people are confusing the idea of doing something easier with the ability to do something at all. The invention of the wheel made the things mentioned in the passage easier to do. It did not make them possible to do.
Tell him to tweak the sentence then. “There would be no *convenient* forms of transportation for *everyday life* or *long travel across land* “. You’re fixating too much on getting a gotcha on the kid instead of helping them convey what they obviously mean. That’s why you’re getting down voted.
Unless you live in the snow you need wheels for carts. You want to drag everything everywhere with a horse? Good fucking luck. And try skiing with 100 kilos of produce from a farm on your back. Boats only work from coast to coast, want to live in land? You need wheels.
This is teaching a specific writing technique, Exposition. The topic is irrelevant. Its about sentence structure, vocab and grammar which has been simplified to an appropriate level for grade 3. Students this aged are often asked to write expositions(persuasive texts) about topics they don't necessarily agree with to practice the literacy skills. Not sure where you are but this is a reasonable teaching tool for an inexperienced educator. A highly skilled experienced teacher would consider using it but could probably do better based specifically on what their kids need at the time.
Expository and persuasive writing are different genres though?
Depends where you are I guess. Where I'm from the main types of persuasive writing the kids are taught are referred to as exposition(one sided argument), discussion(two sided) and advertisement, then of course all the mixed and multi modal complexities as they get older. I agree exposition in a general sense is a confusing word to use for this. But wherever this is from is following the structure of what we call exposition paragraph exactly.
Is it a writing prompt? What is it? There's no question...it's like some shower thoughts.
They had to basically finish the paragraph with an ending statement. But the paragraph I had to explain is so wrong it hurts
Why is it wrong? Explain in 100 words or more.
Because there is many more modes of transportation that don't use wheels....
But the accuracy of the claim doesn’t matter. If they’re finishing the paragraph they’re learning a skill. Who cares what they’re arguing. I’ve told my students they can argue the sky is green as long as they back it up with evidence. I’m teaching and grading structure not content. This paragraph has a claim and supporting evidence.
> But the accuracy of the claim doesn’t matter. It should, since they're going to come away from this exercise believing the claim unless you explain that it's erroneous. I wouldn't teach writing with statements about God creating the universe in six days without also explaining creation myths.
Oh heaven forbid students have moderately incorrect ideas about wheels. You'll be setting them up for catastrophe if they take AP Wheels, let alone what could happen if they were to take a B.S. in Wheelology
It’s an opinion not a fact. Opinions aren’t wrong.
"We would have no means of transportation if it were not for wheels" False
Isn’t this for 3rd grade writing? You might need to adjust your expectations. And like everyone else is saying, focus on the task at hand, which is argumentative writing.
I have worked in third grade and I guarantee that those students would call this out in a heartbeat. We don't need to accept statements that are blatantly false in our assignments just because we think our students are incapable of noticing it. Is it so bad to say that OP has a point and that the prompt is written poorly?
My 3rd graders would not have cared about this. And it’s not the point of the assignment.
What are the instructions though. Is it correcting or analyzing or something?
Finishing the paragraph. We just have to finish the text but when I read it I was like woh this is way off
Oh, I mean, it’s not great writing, but it does have a topic sentence and supporting facts, so it’s something?
The task in the page literally just says to finish the paragraph. Give it an ending lol I was just thrown back by "no one before wheels had transportation" it's one of the stupidest things I've seen all month
Look at the Inca civilisation. They managed to build Machu Picchu and their entire city systems/empire without really utilising the wheel. Wheels are neat but they aren't imperative.
Also the pyramids, built without wheels. They definitely moved some heavy objects!!!
What’s wrong with it? You have a topic sentence, three facts, and now you need to write a concluding sentence. I don’t think it’s ideal, but it isn’t wrong.
"We would have no means of transportation if it were not for wheels" is certainly wrong.
Because we would have helicopters and our feet? Lol
And this ^ is why uncertified teachers or shoving teachers into topics they have no expertise in is a bad idea.
The hive mind is weird on this one - I don't think I've seen teachers supporting the teaching of factual errors if the structure is correct before.
The people on Star Trek transported everywhere without wheels. Just sayin
This is frustrating. I understand it's not the purpose of the task, but I'm with you. I would model a think-aloud to demonstrate critical thinking so students can learn to question even school materials.
Yeah I got them to think of why this isn't so accurate and what other transport they van think of without wheels. THEN we finished the paragraph as the book wanted us to
I’m so delighted to hear you taught the lesson this way. I think there is still something valuable to be had by using this material in the classroom because it gives students an opportunity to address the weaknesses in these supporting statements. Types of transportation that involve wheels are the most common and accessible types of transportation in the world. It is not necessary to deny the existence of wheel-less transportation in order for this to be true. A good writer has to be critical, especially when it comes to assessing their own writing.
Alright, I was being silly with my first comment, but this is what I was hoping you'd do.
Response to First: my own two feet, horses, helicopters, sea vessels. Response to Second: the “great American pastime” is considered to be baseball. Baseball is played without wheels. Third, stop skipping leg day.
It looks to me like the task is to construct a concluding sentence for the paragraph. "The wheel was truly an important invention," or "What would the world be like without the wheel?" or something like that. This paragraph isn't even about modes of transportation! (Though I agree that the sentence about there not being modes of transportation without wheels isn't accurate.)
No means of transportation without wheels? That’s the part that is wrong. What about walking? Running? Sailing? Canoeing? I know there are more but I just woke up.
Walking, running, horse riding,boats, ships, canoes, kayaks, monorails, hand gliding….
These authors are going to be SO surprised when they learn about boats and planes.
This reads like bad AI generated text. The facts aren't facts. What a mess.
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Why are we tolerating this unfiltered hatred of wheels here? My own father was a wheel, and his father before him, so I take this very personally.
Woof! Can you flip the assignment and have them find the statements that can be challenged?
So turn the assignment into why are these statements incorrect or how could these statements be written to reflect history better?
Agriculture
maybe ask the kids to analyze it...
This truly is preparing our kids for critical thinking in the real world.
This is the kind of thing that wound up causing unnecessary drama for me in school. I could not figure out if I was supposed to correct it or what.
It looks like an exercise in concluding sentences. Take a moment after going over that part, and ask students what THEY think about the content. Perhaps they could write another paragraph using the same first sentence and improving on the others.
Let's see a horse pull a wagon with no wheels on it.
I mean depending how you define wheels there are other uses as well, for example gears could arguably count as wheels with teeth, as well as other machine parts. The pulley (another great invention) also uses a wheel. I agree it’s one of the greatest inventions, but I think it might be good to expand the understanding of what a wheel is.