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I agree with the Clairvoy values, which must be present in any type of community. At the same time it is true that as long as these values are honored, teachers can express honest feelings even if they are negative. I think that Clarivoy provides a safe and convenient environment for teachers to share ideas and experiences. I truly believe in teacher collaboration with teachers within the school as well as with teachers from other schools. As 4tune8lyme commented lesson plans alone are not as valuable as examples of good strategies used by other teachers. Good teachers should always look for new and effective strategies that meet the needs of their children, and that includes adapting the strategies they learned from other teachers.

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

Science Virginia Standards of Learning

K.6 The student will investigate and understand basic needs and life processes of plants and animals. Key concepts include:

a) living things change as they grow, and they need food, water, and air to survive;

National Fine Arts Standards

Visual Arts:

NA-VA.K-4.1 Students use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner

NA-VA.K-4.2 Students use visual structures and functions of art to communicate

ideas

I. Objectives

· Students will create an element of the plant lifecycle (e.g. sun, air, water, soil, plant) using different materials.

II.Materials

Construction paper of multiple colors

Glue

Crayons

Straws

Paper plates

Magazines

Popsicle sticks

Paper Towel Tub

Yarn

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1) Visual Arts Center (20 mins)

a.In this center students will choose to create one of the elements that make the plant lifecycle possible, such as the plant, sun, soil, air, and water.

b. This center will run all week and 5 different students will work at the center each day.

c. They can choose which of the elements to create and what materials to use.

2) Extensions

This center can remain and be used to create the animal lifecycle for the following the next week. Other materials can be added.

IV. Assessment

Students will create a visual representation of the elements that make up the lifecycle of a plant.

V. Differentiation

Provide additional assistance to S, W, and O. Allow them to use simple materials to create their products.

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

Science Virginia Standards of Learning

K.6 The student will investigate and understand basic needs and life processes of plants and animals. Key concepts include:

a) living things change as they grow, and they need food, water, and air to survive;

b) plants and animals live and die (go through a life cycle)

English Virginia Standards of Learning

K.1 The student will demonstrate growth in the use of oral language.

a) Listen to a variety of literary forms, including stories and poems.

c) Participate in creative dramatics.

K.8 The student will demonstrate comprehension of fiction and nonfiction.

a) Use pictures to make predictions about content.

c) Discuss characters, setting, and events.

National Fine Arts Standards

Drama:

NA-T.K-4.2 Students assume roles that exhibit concentration and contribute to the

action of classroom dramatizations based on personal experience and

heritage, imagination, literature, and history.

I. Objectives

Students will dramatize the life cycle of a plant using props they created.

II. Materials

Book: Carle, E. (1987). The Tiny Seed. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

Props created by the students at the Visual Arts center (Plants, Sun, Water, Soil, Air)

Video camera

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1) Lesson Introduction (approximately 2 minutes)

a. Remind students about the previous lessons about plants.

2) Instructional Strategies (35 minutes)

a. Read the book The Tiny Seed aloud.

b. Stop occasionally to relate the story to what they have learned about the parts of a plant and about the plant’s lifecycle.

c. Ask comprehension questions.

d. Create groups ahead of time based on what they created throughout the week at the Visual Arts center. Each group will only have one “sun”, and must consist of at least one of each of the rest of the elements of the plant’s lifecycle (water, soil, air, plant).

e. After reading the book, assign the students to groups.

f. Ask students to position themselves in a scene based on their role.

g. Ask them for ideas on how to dramatize the plant growing, the soil on the ground giving nutrients, the air blowing, the sun shining and the water pouring over the plant. Help them decide on ways to dramatize the different actions.

h. Record the moving scenes of each group.

3) Summary (2 minutes)

Review what they have done during the week and reinforce that they have learned a lot about one of the living things they share the planet with.

4)  Extension

a. Students will watch the video of their lifecycle scenes the next day.

IV. Assessment

Students will participate in the read aloud by asking and answering questions.

Students will dramatize the lifecycle of a plant using the props they created.

V. Differentiation

Provide additional scaffolding and guidance for W., K., W., and S. in the drama activity.

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

Science Virginia Standards of Learning

K.6 The student will investigate and understand basic needs and life processes of plants and animals. Key concepts include:

a) living things change as they grow, and they need food, water, and air to survive

English Virginia Standards of Learning

K.1 The student will demonstrate growth in the use of oral language.

b) Participate in choral speaking and recite short poems, rhymes, songs, and

stories with repeated patterns.

National Fine Arts Standards

Music:

NA-M.K-4.1 Students sing expressively, with appropriate dynamics, phrasing, and interpretation.

I. Objectives

Students will be able to learn the parts of a plant (seed, roots, stem, leaves, flower) by observing a real plant and singing The Plant Part Song.

II. Materials

Plant in a pot

Computer with speakers

Website: http://www.mrsjonesroom.com/songs/plantparts.html

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1)  Lesson Introduction (2 minutes)

Remind students about the previous lesson on the lifecycle of a plant.

Explain that they will learn more about the parts of a plant.

2) Instructional Strategies (35 minutes)

a. Show the students a real plant and ask them what each part is. (If the weather allows, do this activity outside and with a tree).

b. Ask them what they think each part of the plant is for and have a brief discussion.

c. Review what a plant needs to grow (soil, water, air, and sun).

d. Go to the website:

http://www.mrsjonesroom.com/songs/plantparts.html.

e. Introduce the Plant Part song first by reading it like a poem and using voice-print-match.

f. Sing it with the children several times using the background music from the computer.

g. Use hand gestures for each part of the song to help them remind the lyrics. For example, cup the hands in the last verse where it says “the fruit holds the seeds”.

h. Sing the song as a class using hand gestures.

3) Summary (2 minutes)

a. Review each part of a plant and ask comprehension questions.

IV. Assessment

Students will answer questions about the parts of a plant during a discussion.

Students will sing a song about the parts of a plant and their functions.

V. Differentiation

Point to the pictures as you sing the song so that students that cannot recognize letters can follow along.

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

Science Virginia Standards of Learning

K.6 The student will investigate and understand basic needs and life processes of plants and animals. Key concepts include:

a) living things change as they grow, and they need food, water, and air to survive;

b) plants and animals live and die (go through a life cycle)

National Fine Arts Standards

Drama:

NA-T.K-4.2 Students assume roles that exhibit concentration and contribute to the action of classroom dramatizations based on personal experience and heritage, imagination, literature, and history

I. Objectives

Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge of the lifecycle of a plant through drama.

II. Materials

Smartboard (or LCD projector)

Computers with the “Growing Plants” game on the desktop

BrainPop Jr.

BBC Website- http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/5_6/growing_plants.shtml

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1) Lesson Introduction (approximately 2 minutes)

a. Remind students about the previous lesson on living and nonliving things.

b. Explain that they will learn more about the lifecycle of plants.

2) Instructional Strategies (35 minutes)

a. Explain that they will watch a video about the lifecycle of a plant.

b. Briefly explain what a lifecycle is.

c. Show the BrainPop Jr. video Plant Lifecycle in full screen mode.

d. Pause the video on occasions to clarify concepts.

e. After the video review what they saw and ask comprehension questions.

f. Open the “Growing Plants” game and demonstrate how to play it.

g. Ask students to play the game on their own for a few minutes. (For time management purposes the computers will already be logged on and the link to the game will be on the desktops).

h. As a conclusion to the lesson, play Simon Says and ask students to act as if they were a seed in the ground. Then ask them to act as if they were a seedling or a young plant. Finally ask them to act as if they were a big adult plant.

i. Ask students to act as a group the lifecycle of a plant by starting as a seed and moving up to become an adult plant.

3) Summary (2 minutes)

Give a quick review of what they learned and explain that they will continue learning more about plants and the parts of a plant.

4) Extensions

Students can play the “Growing Plants” game at center time.

If K and S need an additional challenge they will play the next level of the game where they also control how much heat the plant gets.

IV. Assessment

Students will play a computer game where they will add water to plant to help it grow.

Students will dramatize the life cycle of a plant.

 V. Differentiation

Provide assistance to students with IEPs when playing the computer game.

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

Science Virginia Standards of Learning

K.6 The student will investigate and understand basic needs and life processes of plants and animals.

National Fine Arts Standards

Dance:

NA-D.K-4.1 Students demonstrate kinesthetic awareness, concentration, and focus in performing movement skills NA-VA.K-4.1 Students use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner

I. Objectives

Students will be able to identify living things and nonliving things.

II. Materials

Computers

Digital pictures of living and nonliving things

Computer game: Sammy Science – Sorting living and nonliving things

Cards with names and pictures of living and nonliving things

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1) Lesson Introduction (5 minutes)

Remind students about the previous lesson on sharing the planet.

Ask students what they think are some examples of living things.

Explain that they will learn more about the differences of living things and nonliving things.

2) Instructional Strategies (30 minutes)

a. Explain that livings things need food; they grow and move on their own.

b. Show pictures of living and nonliving things on the Smart Board.

c. Ask students which ones they think are living things and which ones are nonliving things and why.

d. Play the Sammy Science sorting game with the students. Call volunteers to sort each living and nonliving thing under the right category.

e. Have a brief discussion about what they learned.

f. Volunteers will draw a card from a jar and make movements and sounds to represent the living or nonliving thing selected.

g. The rest of the students will raise their hands and guess what it is and whether it is a living thing or a nonliving thing.

3) Summary (5minutes)

Review the difference between living and nonliving things.

Explain to students that they will be learning more about living things in the next few weeks.

4) Extensions

Students will be able to play the living and non living thing sorting game during Center time.

IV. Assessment

Students will play a computer game where they will sort living and nonliving things.

Students will identify and act out different living and nonliving things.

 V. Differentiation

Ask leading questions during the sorting game to students who generally have difficulty expressing ideas.

Shy students can get a partner to act out as a pair.

I created a 5-day unit on plants for a kindergarten class. The subjects integrated throughout this unit include fine arts, technology, science and language arts. An overview of the unit and the Day-by-Day view of the entire unit can be accessed through the following link: Unit Plan

My unit is about plants and I was able to integrate technology in most of the lessons.  In my first lesson I decided to plan a read aloud to help students think about how we share the world with plants and animals and how important it is to take care of them. In the second lesson students will play a sorting game on the smart board while learning about the differences between living and nonliving things. I think this is a good idea because the game serves a teaching tool and can spark discussion. It is a visual tool and students will be more engaged than if they were just sorting living and nonliving things on a worksheet.

The third lesson plan is about the lifecycle of a plant and I think that showing a Brain Pop video will keep them interested and will be beneficial for both visual and auditory learners. They will then play a game individually where they pretend to water a plant and see it grow. This activity gives the students a hands-on experience and it can be differentiated by selecting different difficulty levels in the game and by providing additional assistance to students with IEPs.

The fourth lesson is about the parts of a plant. I will use the music and lyrics of a song from a teacher’s website.  Students will learn and sing the song along with the music. The lyrics and pictures on the webpage offer visual support to students that may have trouble following along the song and the music helps the students stay in tune. I plan on pointing at the pictures on the webpage as we sing the song so that students who cannot recognize letters yet can get clues from the pictures to follow along.

The last lesson and the Visual Arts Center do not have technology integrated. In the Visual Arts center the students will create the props they will use in the last lesson where they will act out the lifecycle of a plant.

Overall, I think technology will be very helpful in this unit and will help students grasp the concepts while having fun at it. Even though technology was not used in every single lesson, it is intertwined across the unit in a meaningful way. Also, since there is a technology center with 4 computers in the classroom, the games will be available so students can review these concepts after the unit is over during center time.

First Lesson on Plants

This lesson plan partially addresses the following standards:

English Virginia Standards of Learning

K.1 The student will demonstrate growth in the use of oral language.

a) Listen to a variety of literary forms, including stories and poems.

K.8 The student will demonstrate comprehension of fiction and nonfiction.

a) Use pictures to make predictions about content.

c) Discuss characters, setting, and events.

National Fine Arts Standards

Visual Arts:

NA-VA.K-4.1 Students use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner

NA-VA.K-4.2 Students use visual structures and functions of art to communicate ideas

NA-VA.K-4.3 Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate

meaning.

I. Objectives

Students will demonstrate knowledge about how they share the planet with plants and animals.

II. Materials

Book: Lindbergh, R. (2004). Our Nest. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

Paint of multiple colors

Small paintbrushes

White paper

Paper cups with water

Large paper to cover tables

Pastels of multiple colors

Crayons

III. Procedures for Learning Activities

1) Lesson Introduction (5 minutes)

Ask students why they think it is important to be good to animals and plants. After they answer explain that they will be learning about how we share the planet with animals and plants.

2) Instructional Strategies (30 minutes)

a. Ask students to join you in the carpet.

b. Do a “picture walk” of the book Our Nest. Ask students what they see in the pictures and to predict what is happening in the book.

c. Read the book aloud.

d. Have a discussion about what parts of the book show us how we share the planet with plants and animals. Refer to the pictures in the book as the students ask questions and make comments.

e. Emphasize that as the book shows, we are not alone in the world and that we have to take care of plants and animals.

f. Explain to students that they will create a mural showing what they feel or know about sharing the planet with plants and animals. Ask students to choose between using paint and pastels.

g. Students will go to the table where the coloring tool of their choice is and create their murals. Murals will be posted on the hall.

3) Summary (5minutes)

Ask students to sit in a circle on the carpet.

Ask them how they think they can be good to animals and plants.

Explain that they will continue to learn more about plants and animals in the next lessons.

4) Extensions

a. Volunteers will share and explain their murals.

IV. Assessment

Students will participate in a discussion after the read aloud.

Students will create a painting demonstrating their understanding of how we share the world with plants and animals.

V. Differentiation

Define words such as “doe”, “fawn”, “marsh”, “brook”, “trout” to ensure that ESOL students understand the story.

Ask leading questions during the discussion.

Students with occupational therapy needs will be given the option to use crayons for their mural.

The Educational Leadership article shows that it is possible to use blogging for instruction purposes in a effective way. Since I have not seen this approach implemented or even discussed in my school it helps to know that it has been successful in other schools. After blogging myself and reading this article I can see blogging can encourage students to respond to text in a new way. A great benefit of blogging is the interactive nature of it. Many times students write on the reading logs at school and the teacher doesn’t even read the logs, they teachers simply put a check on it to confirm that the student did the homework. This is not meaningful because the students know that nobody is reading their responses. As the article shows students like feedback and they like to know that someone is reading their responses. Blogging is a convenient way for students to read each other’s responses, questions and recommendations. This process gives meaning to the reading and to the writing the students do, and it doesn’t feel like homework. I see how the blog comments would encourage students to read and write more, and get better at it. They know someone will be reading their work and wait with anticipation for comments . I would definitely want to implement this approach when I have my own classroom. Student interest is key in their learning and technology offers great tools to spark and maintain this interest in an authentic way.

I think that the differentiation strategies used with SL fit his needs well. He is getting a lot of support from the homeroom teachers as well as from other specialists in the school. During whole-class instruction the differentiation is less evident, but even when he gets the same tasks as the rest of the class he receives more scaffolding. As presented by G. Smith and S. Throne (2007), differentiated instruction encourages group work, but also relies on whole-class and individualized instruction to support group-driven activities. SL’s instruction is consistent with this approach since his instruction is differentiated by being assigned to a group that that meets his needs, but he also receives individualized support by Special Education teachers and he participates in whole-class activities. I believe the strategies used to meet SL’s needs are effective. He does not seem to perceive himself as different. He appreciates the help he receives and shows self-confidence.

The homeroom teacher always treats him like an important contributor and encourages him to participate in classroom discussions and activities. This positive environment, in conjunction with the differentiated instruction, helps get the best out of SL. It helps that he is a pleasant boy. He is receptive to instructions, even though it may take him a little bit longer than other children to understand them. The occupational therapy he receives will help him with his fine motor skills and the speech therapy will help him communicate better. His parents are supportive and accept the help from the school, which is a crucial aspect in the life of a special needs child. Even though SL has is below grade level, there has been some progress since the beginning of the year. This is as a result of the services he receives and the effort of the homeroom teacher. I believe that the differentiation that SL has experienced will help him in his academic and social life. Although he may never be at grade level, if the differentiated instruction continues to meet his needs he will be able to have a pleasant school experience where he can reach his full potential.

In the mornings, SL works with a computer program called earobics where he practices phonemic awareness skills. This program is required by the county for students that do not pass the Phonemic Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS). Since SL has not passed this test he uses earobics every morning for about 20 minutes while the rest of the class listens to the school morning news.

SL is in the lowest group in reading rotations. This group receives additional support by the teachers. For example, when reading some words the teacher helps them stretch the sounds in the word to identify the letters. The books used are leveled based on the students PALS score. The amount of text and the level of difficulty of the books are appropriate for their level.  

During writer’s workshop time, a special education teacher comes to help SL and other 2 students that have IEPs. He helps SL get started by asking him questions and getting him to understand what he needs to do. SL uses an alphabet card with pictures to assist him in identifying the letters he needs to write. Since SL cannot identify all the letters yet, he sometimes sings the alphabet while following the alphabet card in order to find the letters. The teacher also helps him stretch words for him to identify what letters he needs to write his words.

Since SL has continuously scored very low in math, he goes to the self contained Special Education classroom during math time. There he gets more individualized assistance from a Special Education teacher. His word study instruction is also differentiated. Since he has the most difficulty identifying letters and sounds, his word study program focuses on strengthening those skills using picture sorts of simple words.  

During content time, a Special Education resource teacher supports SL by keeping him on task and assisting him whenever needed. He has occupational therapy twice a week where he practices and refines his fine motor skills. He also receives speech support once a week since he has problems pronouncing many words. As described in his IEP, his testing is done individually and additional time is allowed.