This week I created a lesson plan to help students understand gravity. My 8th graders tend to struggle with this concept as they have may preconceived notions of what they believe should happen when objects are dropped. One of the reasons this topic can be so difficult for them is the lack of interaction with the material, that is we do not have any photogates they could use to time objects that are falling. This is where my Makey Makey comes in though! Setting it up as a drop timer would allow students to time objects and use this to inform them as we learn about gravity.
To inform my lesson planning, I used Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe's Understanding by Design as a framework for the lesson. I also drew on Angela O'Donnell's ideas of constructivism as I created the activities and the outline for the lessons. Finally, I brought in the idea of personalized learning from Richard Culatta's Ted x Talk. Using these resources I was able to synthesize a lesson where students would be able to successfully meet the objectives presented.
My lesson plan spans 3 days and was guided by the principals of Understanding by Design (Wiggins and McTighe, 2005)). I began by identifying the desired results using the Pennsylvania State Assessment Anchors. From there I laid out the big ideas, or what students should be able to explain at the end of the lessons. Finally, I laid out activities that would allow students to make these connections in the end. Using the Understanding by Design allowed me to truly think about what I wanted students to gain from the lesson before I began thinking about what they would do in the lesson. Wiggins and McTighe point out that "our lessons, units, and courses, be logically inferred from the results sought, not derived from the methods, books, and activities with which we are most comfortable" (2005, p. 14). In thinking about my lesson, this was something that I worked hard to overcome. I did not want to simply use old activities because I had used them in the past and liked them. I wanted to push my thinking and planning to truly ensure students were able to make the connections to the material.
This plan is also an inquiry based activity, where students begin by sharing their own thoughts and prior knowledge before learning anything new. O'Donnell's description of constructivism was a part of my lead on creating these inquiry activities (2012). She points out a need for "social participation, scaffolding, authentic tasks, and tools to support learning" (2012, p 64). I kept this in mind as I planned activities for students where they could work in groups, partners, and engage in whole class discussion. I also included scaffolds that I could provide for those students who may struggle with understanding the material. O'Donnell also points out that "the task of teaching from this perspective is to provide the student with a clear and easily understandable representation of knowledge that in turn can be easily assimilated by the learner" (2012, p. 62). I kept this in mind as I created activities that students could interact with both physically and mentally using what they already know about the world around them.
I also focused on personalizing the learning. As Culatta points out in his TED x Talk, there is a need for personalized learning in today's classrooms (2013). I completely agree with this, as half of my classes are co-taught and my students benefit from curriculum tailored to their various needs. The worksheets provided through the lesson would be modified to meet the needs students and the second day is broken into two groups. Those groups are tailored to put the students who struggled the most with the post-assessment from the first day with me. I can use this time to go over misconceptions and assist them in making connections. They then reinforce the concepts we discuss on their own before we come back as a class to synthesize the information. While it is not specifically individual, this process does take into account that some students do need more scaffolding than others.
In all I believe that this lesson will be engaging for students, allow them to use their prior knowledge, analyze data they collect, and make connections to the new material, all while using maker technology!
References
Culatta, R., (January 10, 2013). Reimagining Learning: Richard Culatta at tedxbeaconstreet. [Ted x Talks]. Retrieved from http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/Reimagining-Learning-Richard-Cu
O’Donnell, A. (2012). Constructivism. In APA Educational Psychology Handbook: Vol. 1 Theories, Constructs, and Critical Issues. K.R. Harris, S. Graham, and T. Urdan (Editors-in-Chief). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
To inform my lesson planning, I used Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe's Understanding by Design as a framework for the lesson. I also drew on Angela O'Donnell's ideas of constructivism as I created the activities and the outline for the lessons. Finally, I brought in the idea of personalized learning from Richard Culatta's Ted x Talk. Using these resources I was able to synthesize a lesson where students would be able to successfully meet the objectives presented.
My lesson plan spans 3 days and was guided by the principals of Understanding by Design (Wiggins and McTighe, 2005)). I began by identifying the desired results using the Pennsylvania State Assessment Anchors. From there I laid out the big ideas, or what students should be able to explain at the end of the lessons. Finally, I laid out activities that would allow students to make these connections in the end. Using the Understanding by Design allowed me to truly think about what I wanted students to gain from the lesson before I began thinking about what they would do in the lesson. Wiggins and McTighe point out that "our lessons, units, and courses, be logically inferred from the results sought, not derived from the methods, books, and activities with which we are most comfortable" (2005, p. 14). In thinking about my lesson, this was something that I worked hard to overcome. I did not want to simply use old activities because I had used them in the past and liked them. I wanted to push my thinking and planning to truly ensure students were able to make the connections to the material.
This plan is also an inquiry based activity, where students begin by sharing their own thoughts and prior knowledge before learning anything new. O'Donnell's description of constructivism was a part of my lead on creating these inquiry activities (2012). She points out a need for "social participation, scaffolding, authentic tasks, and tools to support learning" (2012, p 64). I kept this in mind as I planned activities for students where they could work in groups, partners, and engage in whole class discussion. I also included scaffolds that I could provide for those students who may struggle with understanding the material. O'Donnell also points out that "the task of teaching from this perspective is to provide the student with a clear and easily understandable representation of knowledge that in turn can be easily assimilated by the learner" (2012, p. 62). I kept this in mind as I created activities that students could interact with both physically and mentally using what they already know about the world around them.
I also focused on personalizing the learning. As Culatta points out in his TED x Talk, there is a need for personalized learning in today's classrooms (2013). I completely agree with this, as half of my classes are co-taught and my students benefit from curriculum tailored to their various needs. The worksheets provided through the lesson would be modified to meet the needs students and the second day is broken into two groups. Those groups are tailored to put the students who struggled the most with the post-assessment from the first day with me. I can use this time to go over misconceptions and assist them in making connections. They then reinforce the concepts we discuss on their own before we come back as a class to synthesize the information. While it is not specifically individual, this process does take into account that some students do need more scaffolding than others.
In all I believe that this lesson will be engaging for students, allow them to use their prior knowledge, analyze data they collect, and make connections to the new material, all while using maker technology!
References
Culatta, R., (January 10, 2013). Reimagining Learning: Richard Culatta at tedxbeaconstreet. [Ted x Talks]. Retrieved from http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/Reimagining-Learning-Richard-Cu
O’Donnell, A. (2012). Constructivism. In APA Educational Psychology Handbook: Vol. 1 Theories, Constructs, and Critical Issues. K.R. Harris, S. Graham, and T. Urdan (Editors-in-Chief). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.