Think Ready Task

1. Think Ready Task Wellness Wish List

2. Imagine that your local parks and recreation department plans to open a new Fitness and Wellness Center to serve the health, fitness, and recreation needs of your community. The Task

3. The parks and recreation department has invited community members to make recommendations on equipment, classes, and services that they would like to see offered in this new Fitness and Wellness Center. The Task

4. The center could include: • a gym • exercise equipment • sports facilities • a demonstration kitchen • sports teams • nutrition classes • or other services that would promote wellness in your community The Task

5. For this task you will assess the wellness needs in your community. • Think about the population of your community • You might consider looking at the prevalence of obesity and diabetes • Does your community need services to support elderly people or families with young children? The Task

6. Once you have determined the issues that face your community, use your findings to recommend two (2) things that the new Fitness and Wellness Center could offer to address those needs. The Task

7. Write a business letter to the Parks and Recreation Department outlining your recommendations and justifications for services to be offered at the new Fitness and Wellness Center The Final Product

8. This portfolio is a record of all your work for this project. • You will demonstrate how well you solve problems, research information, and communicate your ideas. Think Ready Portfolio

9. Save all of your work as you complete the sections of this project. • Organize your portfolio in the order presented in the directions (by Key Cognitive Strategy). • At the end of the entire task, you will submit all of your work. Think Ready Portfolio

10. Solving problems often involves considering more than one possible solution. • First, you need to understand what the task is asking you to do – then make a plan to accomplish the task. Problem Formulation

11. In this section, you will think about the task and choose a topic to research. • Write a hypothesis that contains a cause-and-effect or thesis statement. • Be sure that your hypothesis is written in a manner that it may be able to solve the problem in the task. Hypothesize

12. In this section, you will explain your plan to gather information and how you will complete the project. • Be sure that your strategy or strategies address the problem in the task. • Remember that this plan is a starting point for your work and may change as you complete the task. Strategize

13. When you begin a task, consider all your options for finding information. Research

14. In this section, you will explain your plan for finding information. Identify

15. What do you need to know to be able to solve this problem? • What sources will give you the information that you need? Identify

16. How do you know if a website is a reliable source of information? Website Validity

17. Is the site professional? • Sites that end in .org; .edu; .gov; and .wa.us • These sites tend to be more reliable than .com; .net; etc. • Avoid Blogs • Does the website have an author? • If so, check their credentials. Website Validity

18. Does the site have advertising on it? • It is more likely to have questionable information on it. • Look for sites without advertising. • Trustworthy sites should not be trying to sell you something. Website Validity

19. Does the site have information that can be verified on other trusted sites? • Are there any links to other professional sites? • Cross-reference your findings. Website Validity

20. Be sure to record your plans for collecting data…the websites or other sources you will use. • Be sure that you choose enough sources to adequately address your hypothesis/thesis. Identify

21. In this section, you will collect and record your information in an organized way. • Make notes from your sources in a way that you can easily analyze later. Collect

22. What kind of graphic organizer will you use to organize your information. • Be sure to utilize trustworthy resources when collecting information. • Be sure to collect enough information to adequately address your hypothesis/thesis. Collect

23. Attach your source information (author, date of publication, etc.). • Attach the notes that you take from your sources. • Do NOT attach any actual documents you find. Collect

24. Highlight any information that serves as PROOF that a particular need actually exists in your community. • Look through the notes that you have taken to this point. • What notes relate directly to meeting the needs in your community? Progress Check

25. How did you find that information? • What have you discovered so far? Progress Check

26. In this section, you will analyze your evidence. • Label this section of your project – Analyze. Interpretation

27. Start your analysis by organizing your notes/ideas so that you can see patterns/relationships. • You may use any analysis method that you are comfortable with. Analyze

28. Think about what you have learned about the needs of your community… • What patterns or relationships are you noticing? How do your findings connect? • Does this evidence support or challenge your thesis? Analyze

29. Label this section of your project – Evaluate • Based on the grouping of information created in your analysis, write your conclusions. Evaluate

30. Select findings that will help you complete the task when writing conclusions. • Put your findings together in a way that you believe will effectively address your hypothesis/thesis. Evaluate

31. At this point, you should be able to determine whether you have sufficient evidence to support your thesis. • Do you? If not, you may need to collect additional evidence and/or adjust your hypothesis/thesis. Evaluate

32. If your thesis has changed, record your new thinking and add your ideas to your hypothesize section. Evaluate

33. To this point, you should have researched the fitness, health and recreation needs in your community. • You should have determined how the new Fitness and Wellness Center could serve these needs. Communication

34. To communicate your conclusions clearly, you will first need to create a rough draft. • This will provide you an opportunity to receive feedback from others. Communication

35. You may start with an Outline or Shaping Sheet. • What will you discuss? • In what order will you discuss your findings? • How many paragraphs will this take? • Consider an order that will be the most persuasive. Organize

36. Label this section of your project “Construct”. • Read the original task again to make sure that you remember what you are supposed to produce. Construct

37. Be sure that you use the result from Problem Formulation, Research and Interpretation in your final product. • Use the information/findings that you uncovered! Construct

38. You will have an opportunity to receive feedback on your rough draft. • Be sure to consider the feedback when writing the final draft. Construct

39. Begin a new section in your Think Ready Portfolio and title it “Precision and Accuracy”. • Part of making the best final product means taking the time to check your work. Precision and Accuracy

40. In this section of the project, you will monitor your work. • This will include making and recording a plan for editing your work. • Describe what methods will be used in this editing phase (e.g. spell check, reading aloud, and/or peer editing). Monitor

41. In this section, you will edit and confirm all parts of your work. • Check for technical and grammatical accuracy. • Double check that you have followed all task directions. Confirm

42. Collect all of your work. • Organize it in the order presented in the directions (by key cognitive strategy). • Review all sections of your Think Ready Portfolio to be sure that they are complete, legible, and your best work. • Check that your name appears on the cover page ONLY. Remove your name from all other pages. Steps for Submission of project