Week 7: Task #2: Science Lesson

Science Lesson

Lesson Topic: Identifying Minerals

Grade: Earth Science Grade 9

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to . . .

1.       Test minerals using different methods provided and explained.

2.       Identify accurately different minerals given in lab.

3.       Discuss different features of tested minerals.

Common Core Skills:

1.       Use a flowchart to identify rocks and minerals.

2.       Conduct a series of tests to identify rocks and minerals.

Standards:

3.1. Students will understand and apply scientific concepts, principles and theories pertaining to the physical setting and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in science.

3.1a. Minerals have physical properties determined by their chemical composition and crystal structure.  Minerals can be identified by well-defined physical and chemical properties such as cleavage, fracture, color, density, hardness, streak, luster, crystal shape & reaction with acid.

Vocabulary:

I found this chart at the link listed below. This would be explained as a whole class, each piece of identifying evidence that will eventually lead them through testing each mineral for identifying them.  We would go over the definition of each of the physical properties listed in the chart. I did alter the chart to remove any advanced testing.

Minerals: naturally occurring, inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition and a regular, internal crystalline structure. (http://facweb.bhc.edu/academics/science/harwoodr/geol101/labs/minerals/)

Mineral Physical Properties Chart
PHYSICAL PROPERTY	Definition*	Testing Method
Cleavage	Breakage of a mineral along planes of weakness in the crystal structure.	Examine the mineral for areas where the mineral is broken. Look for areas where the light reflects from planar surfaces. This can be easily confused with a crystal face and is the most difficult properties for students to master.
Color	Visible light spectrum radiation reflected from a mineral.	Look at the sample and determine its color - white, black, green, clear, etc.
Crystal Form	Geometric shape of a crystal or mineral.	Examine and describe the geometric shape of the mineral - cubic, hexagonal, etc. Not commonly seen in most introductory lab samples.
Fracture	Breakage of a mineral, not along planes of weakness in the crystral structure.	Examine the mineral for areas where the mineral is broken. Describe the breakage as either irregular or conchoidal (has the appearance of broken glass)
Hardness	Resistance to scratching or abrasion.	Use minerals of known hardness from the Mohs Hardness Kits. Scratch the unknown mineral with a known hardness to determine which mineral is harder. Continue doing this with harder or softer minerals from the kit until the hardness is determined.
Luster	Character of the light reflected by a mineral.	Look at the sample to determine if the mineral is metallic in appearance (looks like a chunk of metal) or non-metallic (doesn't look like a chunk of metal).
Magnetism	Electromagnetic force generated by an object or electrical field.	Use a magnet to determine if the magnet is attracted to the sample.
Streak	Color of the mineral when it is powdered.	Grind a small amount of a mineral into a powder on a porcelain streak plate and determine the color of the powder.

* Definitions simplified or modified  from Bates, R.L. and J.A. Jackson (eds.), 1987, Glossary of Geology. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA, 788 p.

Materials:

-pen, chart, graphic organizer, streak plate, magnet, Mohs Hardness Kit, magnifying glass.

Do Now/Motivation:

The desks will be arranged in groups of 4. Students will be asked to line up in the front of the class and count off. They will be asked to be seated in given groups.  When they sit, they will notice the different minerals in a box, as well as the different tools.  Each of the testing tools will be explained.  The minerals will be numbered.  I will then hand out a graphic organizer.  Along the left side will be each of the different physical properties we have discussed.  Across the top of the page will be numbers corresponding to each of their minerals. They will be told to conduct each of the tests listed on each of the minerals given in the boxes.   They will work together to identify each of the minerals. 

The students will be asked to fill out the chart as a group and at the end they will compare as a whole class. We will discuss which attributes led them to their conclusions.  Which tests were most difficult to use to identify the minerals? And how some groups identified wrongly, what they misunderstood? 

Week 7 Task #1: Backward Design for Science Lesson: Plant Cycle

Stage 1: Identify Desired Results:
What essential Questions will be considered?
-What different types of plants exist?
-How to plants form?
-Are seeds living things?
-What is pollen? What is it's purpose?
-Do plants have "parents?"

What understandings are desired?
Students will understand that . . .
-Plants do, in fact, have a life cycle.
-The different stages of the cycle.
-The way the cycle is similar/different compared to an animal life cycle.
-The importance of a seed.
-The way a plant reproduces.

What key knowledge and skills will students acquire as a result of this unit?
Students will know . . .
-The plant life cycle.
-A seed is a living thing.
-The importance of pollen.
-The importance of a flower/fruit.

Students will be able to . . .
-Identify the different parts of a plant.
-Identify the order of the life cycle of a plant.

Stage 2: Determine Acceptable Evidence:
What evidence will show that students understand?
Students will complete a chart, illustrating the different stages of a plant life cycle.
They will converse in groups, discussing the different phases the plant goes through as it grows.
They will then present their illustrations to the class, explaining the different stages of the plants' life cycle.

Stage 3: Plan Learning Experiences:
The classroom will be divided into small groups of students.  Each group is given a seed, a sprout and asked to compare and contrast them.  They will then plant a seed and over the course of the unit observe the different stages of the plant as it grows.
They will complete a chart signifying the dates that they observe different parts of the plants' life cycles.
As the fast seed grows, they will observe the changes, and eventually they will notice the plant begin to flower and produce another seed. They will present their findings in front of their classmates and discuss the different stages of the plant cycle.  They will then as a class discuss the importance of flowers/fruit and the role insects or animals play in plant reproduction.

ELA Writing Lesson

ELA Writing Lesson:

Topic: Informational Texts

Grade Level: 6^th Grade

A.      Learning Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to . . .

1.       Write informative/explanatory texts that convey ideas and concepts using relevant information that is carefully selected and organized.

2.       Introduce the topic of a created text.

B.      Common Core Skills:

1.       To write an informative text, conveying in an organized manor, their point of view about a specific topic they choose.

C.      Standards:

W.6.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts and information through the selection, organization and analysis of relevant context.

D.  Vocabulary:

1. Transitioning/Sequencing words: Words used in a piece of writing, to connect one idea to the next. They can direct the reader between main ideas, or they can indicate when things happened in a given sequence. Some examples: First, Second, Then, Initially, Lastly, In addition to, Therefore, etc. Prof. Campbell, Prof. Buckhoff, and myself, if you please, along with this link to Creative Commons license 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/>. 

2. Plot: The main events/ideas of a given piece of work whether it be a story, movie, poem etc.

3. Point of View: In order to express your point of view in your text about the movie/book you choose, you must consider the adjectives you’re going to use within your text. Certain context clues can lead your reader to assume you either liked or disliked the work you chose.

E. Materials would be: Smart board, notebook, pens, large display sentences on laminated pieces of poster board and highlighters.

F. I would have big, laminated sentences on the board, out of sequence. I would explain to the students that these sentences were how I would describe my routine of what I did before I came to school.  I would ask each student to read the sentences to themselves and think about the order in which they should be arranged for the story to “make sense.”

“I shut my alarm off.”                     “I watched the news.”                   “I graded papers during lunch period.”

“I brushed my teeth.”                    “I handed in my library book.”    “I ate breakfast.”

“I drove to school.”                         “I put on my green shirt.”             “I said goodbye to my husband.”

After the students analyzed these sentences independently I would ask for volunteers to move around the sentences in an order that would make sense.  Obviously some of the sentences can be placed in multiple ways and the story would still make sense.  Also, there are a couple details that don’t make sense for my story of how my day was BEFORE school.  This would exemplify how certain details are important and others are not.  When it came time to debate the order, I would ask the students to explain how I could reword the sentences so they would know specifically which order I did things. 

H. These words would be our transition words. I would have some transition words on poster board as well and I would place the words before certain sentences.  This would display that these transition words are ideal to help a reader understand sequencing/order in which certain plot points happened.  We would then discuss how I can introduce feeling into my story.  Together we could brainstorm certain adjectives that I can add to my sentences to make the students understand how I fell in the morning.  For example: “I tiredly shut my alarm off.” “I put on my favorite green shirt.” “I quickly brushed my teeth.” Etc. This would give the reader a better understanding of how my morning went.

I. Differentiation is present in the way I arranged the lesson from first independent thought, then visually and physically moving sentences in a sequence that would make sense.  It would also take a higher order to understand why or how certain sentences make more sense in a certain sequence, while others simply didn’t matter.  Also, brainstorming point of view context clues and sequencing words.

I would then have the students take out their notebooks and write a 10 sentence review of the movie/book they chose for homework the night before.  I would ask that they write a plot summary of the main ideas of the book/movie they chose. Remind them to use sequencing vocabulary to help the reader understand the order in which the events happened.  I would also have them review it and use the correct words to convey their point of view of the book/movie of their choice.  Once it was written, they would exchange their review with a classmate, where the classmate would read their review and guess what the author rated the movie.  Each reader would be equipped with a highlighter and a pen, to highlight the context clues that hinted toward point of view, and underline key points of the plot.

J. Higher Order Questioning:

What are some sequencing words?

 Can you tell if I’m a morning person, based off of how I presented the sentences in the beginning?

 What if I changed the sentences to; “I popped up happily and shut my alarm off.” “I eagerly brushed my teeth.” “I smiled and say goodbye to my husband.” How do these words make you feel about my point of view in the morning?

What are some ways I can add adjectives/context clues to make my morning sound less positive?

K.  How I would assess the class:

I would assess their grammar and use of context clues and transitioning words throughout their written review.  I would also assess the readers’ ability to read for point of view, when they exchanged reviews, by what they decided to underline and highlight.  The way in which the authors organize their main plot points and use transition words would allow me to assess their understanding of writing informational texts in an organized way.  The readers’ ability to guess the author’s rating would allow me to assess their understanding of how to assume point of view of a author.

L. Closure:

Were you able to guess the authors’ ratings?

How were you able to determine the authors’ point of views?

What are some key words that allowed you to understand the order in which things occurred in the book/movie?

ELA Reading Lesson

ELA Reading Lesson:

Topic: Informative Texts

AIM: To determine the main idea of an informational text.

Grade: 6^th grade

A.      Learning Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students should be able to . . .

1.       Analyze how key individuals, events, or ideas are developed throughout a text.

2.       Use a variety of strategies to determine word meaning in informational texts.

3.       Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in an informational text.

4.       Explain how an author’s point of view is conveyed in an informational text.

5.       Use a variety of media to develop and deepen understanding of topic/idea.

B.      Common Core Skills:

1.       To analyze and determine main ideas and author’s point of view from a given informational text.

C.      Standards:

1.       RI.6.3: Analyze in detail how a key individual, event or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (through examples or anecdotes).

2.       RI.6.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative and technical meaning.

3.       RI.6.6: Determine author’s point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.

4.       RI.6.7: Integrate information presented in a different media or formats (visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic/issue.

D.      Vocabulary to be discussed:

-Fiction vs. Non-Fiction: Fiction is a story that is based on fantasy and not something that actually happened.  Non-Fiction is something that actually occurred at some point.

-Informational text: A specific type of non-fiction, designed to inform a reader about a specific idea.

-Point of View: the feeling the author possesses about a given topic of writing.  Point of view can be determined through context clues within a text. 

         E. Materials: Notebooks, pens, highlighters, movie review(s), Smart board

         F. Do Now/Motivation: Ask students to discuss some of their favorite and least favorite movies.     Ask volunteers to discuss the main points of their favorite movie.  What made it their favorite?  Ask the room if anyone disagreed with the student’s opinion on the movie and why they feel differently.  When students walk into the room, I would have a display of some well known movie characters to spike their interest in what we would be learning for the day.

H. Then I would pull up on the smart board, a review of the harry potter movie: http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/harry-potter-and-the-sorcerers-stone and read aloud as a group.  Each of the students would get a handout of it after we read aloud.  Ask the students to read over the review in its entirety to themselves.  They would be asked to highlight certain words that indicate the author felt supportive of the movie.  Underline the main points of the movie.  And write a three sentence plot summary of their own, based on what they read.   I would then have volunteers come up and highlight on the smart board the words that indicated the author’s point of view and underline the key points of the plot.

I & J. Differentiate/H.O.T Questions:

Differentiation would be present in both the visual aspects of the smart board, the group read aloud and independent analysis of the review. 

What is the main idea of the movie?

What is the point of view of the author?

How can you support your understanding of the author’s point of view?

How do you feel about going away to school, like the characters did in Harry Potter?

What are some of the positive and negative ideas associated with going away to school?

K. I would assess the students by circulating about the room and seeing what words the students highlighted.  Also reading their three sentence summaries will allow me to understand whether the students are able to decipher between main ideas and supporting ones.  Finally, their ability to determine the author’s point of view will be apparent in our group discussion.

L. Do you agree with the author’s review? Why/Why Not?

IF you haven’t seen this movie, would this review make you interested in the movie?

Homework:

Go home and think of a movie/book that they feel strongly for, whether it is positive or negative.  Write it down on a clean page of their notebook to bring to class with them the next day.  Be sure to know main ideas of the plot of the chosen book/movie! Give this movie a rating of 1-10, one being the worst, ten being the best. Do NOT disclose your rating to anyone in the class.

        

Week 6, Task #1: Reader Response

Andrew Hossack seemed to be a very effective teacher, with a great mind to develop lesson plans! His ability to create a differentiated lesson that tailors to many different learners was obvious in the lesson we viewed.  His instructional procedure for closed reading I found to be interesting. I liked how he said it allows students to work on their perseverance and also have the ability to differentiate on their own.  The students got to decide when it was enough information to digest and when they should continue.  I especially like how he pointed out that some of the students had the text already broken down for them in specific sections.  This is smart, because a lot of students think they can handle a large about of text when it would be more effective to analyze less at a time.  The fact that he used the same text for the whole class, I love, because it gives the classroom as a whole a chance to discuss the assignment as well as smaller groups.

His instructional procedure of  reading, thinking, writing and talking is something I strongly agree with and would use in my own classroom, especially in that order.  I think its important to the learning process for students to have that independent time and direction from the teacher in the beginning of a new task/assignment.  Then allowing the students to reflect on what they've learned, both internally and verbally with writing and speech is a great way to further their understanding of a topic.  If you can read something and understand it, that's one thing.  But if you can read, understand and put forth an explanation or put something in your own words, it only makes the ideas that much more understood.

His assessments were more informal.  I liked how he told the students to read first for "flow" and then go back and circle and underline.  Its important for that first read to be specifically about just the article and the information given.  It sound be read continually so the students don't get confused as to where they left off or sidetracked with finding specific clues.  By going back after completion of the article it also gives the students a more generalized idea of what they read, and therefore allows them to better understand what would be considered "important" or "main" ideas rather than supporting text.  Judging where the students underlined and what notes they jotted down at the end of reading, is a way to assess that the students understood the meaning of the lesson.  Also through conversation at the end of the lesson.

Stage 3 ELA Reading & Writing Lesson Plan:

What learning experiences and instruction will enable students to achieve the desired results? How will the design implement the "WHERETO" format of the Learning Plan:

W- Help students know Where the unit is going and What to expect? Help teacher know Where the students are coming from and prior knowledge/interests?
      -Ask students to define key vocabulary words in reference to the lesson.
      -Assess the students' knowledge through group discussion of different types of writing, and point of                 view, context clues etc.

H-Hook all students and Hold their interest?
        -As the students entered the classroom, I would have on display either on a smart board/poster board            a picture from a well known film/book

E-Equip students, help them Experience key ideas and Explore issues?
          -We would read a review or explanatory piece about the work displayed before the class.
           -Point out in small groups if they can figure out the main ideas of the works and how the author                        viewed the piece.

R- Provide opportunities to Rethink and Revise their understandings and work.
            -Maybe issue another review of something they wouldn't be familiar with, and see if they can still                     answer the same questions based on the literary terms and context clues. They can then make a                     decision based on what they've read, if they would be interested in that movie/book and why.

E- Allow students to Evaluate their work and its implications?
            -This will be sought after they each write their own critical response/review piece and exchange with               classmates.  Their understandings of point of view through context they write themselves will allow                 the students to see whether they understand the concept of the lesson.

T- Be Tailored to the different needs, interest and abilities of each learner?
            -By changing up the learning environments from first visual and group discussion, to partnering up, to               writing and reflecting their own pieces, this considers all different intelligence's.

O- Be Organized to maximize initial and sustained engagement as well as effective learning?
           -Be sure to have the literary pieces ready and desks arranged appropriately from the minute the                      students walk in the classroom.  Make sure full understanding of prior knowledge is met by students              and they are all familiar with the key terms and what is expected.
           -Make sure that each stage of the overall unit is met and mastered before moving on to the next                      phase.

Week 5- Task #1 : Different kinds of "Smarts" / Multiple Inteligences

How are students "smart" in different ways?

Students are smart in different ways.  Often in a classroom alone, you could have a wide variety of learners.  Some learners are more traditional learners, and require notes and lecture.  Other students need more of a hands on approach to learning.  Some learners learn best by watching demonstrations while others like to experiment and are more eager to learn while performing tasks themselves.  Another way students are different kinds of "smart," is how well they learn cooperatively.  Some students learn best with a more individualized setting, where the teacher speaks and the child records or watches the lesson.  Others love working with groups, experimenting and coming up with answers and theories with their classmates.

How can teachers use multiple intelligence in the classroom?

Teachers need to be aware and get to know the different styles of learning that can be happening within each classroom.  The best way to use this theory of multiple intelligence is to incorporate different activities within one given lesson, that will engage every type of learner.  An effective lesson should touch each one of those different styles.  Incorporating some notes and lecture with some group activities and/or experimentation would be an ideal setting in a classroom.  Personal reflection or group debates are also effective to engage learners and make the lessons more memorable.  It allows every student to gather the new knowledge how they know best, however that may be.

Design in Action Task #2

http://screencast.com/t/xGooRUDiohI

Task #1, Week #4 Reflection on Stage 1, Backward Design

I identified the desired results from the standards listed for the given lessons.  With these standards in mind, I then focused on the "understandings."  Keeping in mind what specific tasks I wanted students to be able to complete, the understandings are the ideas and topics they would need to-well- understand in order to do so.  So I asked myself, for example, which tasks or information and details from the text, would the students need to understand in order to perform the given standards? Lastly, once those "understandings" were identified, I needed to reflect and think of which questions would prompt them to finding these answers.  The essential questions would be what steers the students in the right direction to come up with the desired understandings that they could then, apply to the long term learning targets.

The knowledge and skills the students would then acquire would be found in the given list of "Long Term Learning Targets." This would be the skills and activities that the student will learn in the given situation or classroom, but apply them beyond the class.  These tasks are those that a student should develop through their schooling career, and after.  The more realistic the tasks and information taken from a lesson, the more engaged and understanding a student will be, because it will have a true value to their actual lives.