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Critical Assignment 1 - Designing A Technology-Rich Lesson

|Teacher: Ms. Catherine Merrill Subject: Science Grade Level: 3 |

| Lesson Topic: Diverse characteristics between various living animals. Time Required: 2 weeks |

|Sunshine State Standards, Benchmarks, & Access Points (Moderate Cognitive Level) |

|Benchmark: |

|*SC.3.L.15.1 Classify animals into major groups according to their characteristics and behaviors. (Major Groups: Mammals, birds, reptiles, |

|amphibians, reptiles, fish, arthropods, vertebrates/invertebrates, those having live births, and those that which lay eggs). |

|Access Points: |

|-SC.3.L.15.In.a Classify animals by a similar physical characteristic, such as fur, feathers, and number of legs. |

|-SC.3.L.15.Su.a Sort common animals by observable characteristics. |

|-SC.3.L.15.Pa.a Match animals that are the same. |

| |

|Benchmark: |

|S.C.3.L.15.2 Classify flowering and non-flowering plants into major groups, such as those that produce seeds or those that produce spores |

|such as ferns or mosses, according to their physical characteristics. |

|Access Points: |

|S.C.3.L.15.In.b Classify parts of plants into groups based on physical characteristics, such as classifying leaves by shape. |

|S.C.3.L.15.Su.b Sort common plants by observable characteristics. |

|S.C.3.L.15.Pa.b Match plants that have the same name. |

|Instructional Analysis - Prior Knowledge |

|Declarative Knowledge - Students should already know that… |

|1. Animals are separated by groups. |

|2. There are various animal groups. |

|3. Not every animal has fur/feathers. |

| |

|Students should already know how to… |

|1. Distinguish between invertebrates and vertebrates. |

|2. Tell the difference between each major animal group. |

|3. Use their textbooks, computers, and other resources to help with this assignment. |

| |

|Prior Knowledge Assessment Plan |

|Prior to starting this lesson, the students will take a non-graded quiz that will outline their strong suits and weaknesses on animal |

|groupings. Post quiz, there will be a class discussion and everyone will be free to ask questions and submit information to the whole class. |

|The teacher will then review the various groups of animals with the students by using a Power Point presentation. These different groups will|

|be shown to the class on slide just before the assignment is scheduled to begin. |

|Instructional Analysis – Declarative Knowledge |

| |

|In this lesson, students will learn that…. |

| |

|1. All amphibians are four limbed vertebrates. |

|2. An arthropod’s body is covered with an exoskeleton. |

|3. Mammals took over many habitats that once belonged to amphibians when their numbers began to decrease. |

|4. All reptiles are cold blooded. |

|5. Reptiles evolved from amphibians millions of years ago. |

|6. Mammals have a four chambered heart. |

|7. Fishes were among the first vertebrates to evolve. |

|8. Mollusks are a highly diverse group of invertebrates. |

|Instructional Analysis – Procedural Knowledge |

| |

|In this lesson, students will learn how to…. |

| |

|1. Classify each animal based on whether or not they are an invertebrate or vertebrate (using their prior knowledge of the definition). |

|2. Place the animals into their correct categories based on their characteristics. |

|3. Tell the difference between amphibians and reptiles. |

|4. Compare and contrast differences in animal groups. |

|Interdisciplinary connections: Science/Reading |

| |

|Common Misunderstandings or Misconceptions: The teacher will discuss the differences between the animal groups so that there is no confusion |

|on the topic. The teacher will also discuss the difference between vertebrates and invertebrates for the purpose of review for the |

|assignment. It will also be discussed that while certain animals look as if they belong in a different group, they very well may not. |

| |

|Plan to address these: The review of the subject matter will address any confusion the students may have on the topic. The Power Point |

|presentation will also show examples of animals belonging to a certain group; this will give the students a visual example as well as an |

|auditory example of the various groupings. |

|Learning Objectives: |

|Knowledge - The students will write a short essay on each different animal group. In that essay they will be required to give at least three |

|examples of animals that belong to each group. The students will prove their knowledge of the subject by submitting a short essay. Students |

|will be scored 1, 2 or 3. |

| |

|Comprehension – Students will express their comprehension on the subject by separating into small groups. Each group of students will be |

|assigned an animal group. The students will make Power Point presentations on that animal group. The presentation will include the |

|definition, whether or not the animal is a vertebrate/invertebrate, their habitat, and at least 4 examples of animals. Students will be |

|scored 1, 2, or 3. |

| |

|Application – Using their textbooks, library research, and classroom computers, the students will choose the information and sources they |

|would like to use for their Power Point presentations. They will make a separate slide at the end of their slideshow stating where their |

|information (pictures, facts, definitions) were taken from. |

| |

|Analysis – Students will compare and contrast invertebrates and vertebrates. The students will then take their separate information |

|(vertebrates and invertebrates) and analyze those both groups. They will compare and contrast the animal based on their physical |

|characteristics. |

| |

|Synthesis - The Power Point presentations that will have been previously submitted will all be compiled into one large Power Point |

|presentation. This presentation will be turned into the library for each student and classroom to use if and when it is needed. This |

|slideshow will provide the definitions and details of each animal group. To make the larger slideshow, the classroom will work together as a |

|whole with the teacher. |

| |

|Evaluation - The students will evaluate each other’s slides. They will rate them on a scale of 1, 2 or 3. The students presenting will get |

|positive feedback from the teacher and peers. The students that are watching the presentation will point out any missing details in the |

|group’s presentation. This evaluation process will also include a discussion on whether or not the animals could exist in a separate group. |

|Learner Analysis: |

|Age Range & Gender – Males and females. Ages 8-9. |

|Race - White, African American, Asian, Hispanic |

|Socio-economic background - Mixture of lower and middle class students. |

|Learning Style Preferences – Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic. |

|Disabilities & Exceptionalities – Various (Low reading comprehension, learning disability, etc.) |

|Motivation – The idea of constructing a large Power Point presentation that each student will be involved in will motivate them to complete |

|these assignments with utmost attention. They will be motivated to complete what is asked and want to share it with the rest of the school. |

|Cognitive Skills (concrete, abstract, etc.) - Concrete thinking skills. |

|Assessment Plan |

| |

|Formative: |

|1. Pre-lesson quiz to receive feedback on student’s prior knowledge (non-graded) |

|2. Teacher will review logged hours of library research each week. |

|3. Monitor groups while they gather information for their slideshow. |

|4. Evaluate their written essays. |

| |

|Summative: |

|1. Grade their slideshow presentations on a scale of 1, 2, or 3. |

|2. The students will take the same quiz taken prior to this assignment, this time for a grade. |

|3. The students will take part in a class discussion and share with everyone one thing they learned about each animal group. |

|Instructional Strategies: |

|How will you introduce the lesson? |

|This lesson will be introduced with a Power Point presentation. The slideshow will keep the child’s attention with various pictures of |

|animals and sound clips of the sounds they make. There will also be a non-graded quiz that will question the students on the knowledge they |

|currently have on animals and their classification groups. |

| |

|How will you teach concepts during the lesson? |

|The students will learn concepts by using a WebQuest. They will also be taught concepts by our class discussions and reviews. The students |

|will be able to access their slideshows whenever they choose to. Once all of the smaller slideshows are completed, as a whole, the class will|

|make a large slideshow and upload it onto the internet and onto our school’s library research database. This will allow the students to learn|

|how to use technology to make a slideshow, upload it to the internet, and repeatedly access it when needed. |

| |

|How will you conclude the lesson? |

|The students will put their essays onto a classroom blog. This way, each child’s essay, slideshows, and the class slideshow will all be |

|available for viewing post-lesson. The teacher will use a large class discussion as means of review before and after the final graded quiz. |

|This will conclude our assignment. |

| |

|Classroom & Technology Management Strategies: |

|To ensure that each child is on task, behaving, and using the supplied technology effectively, I will make sure to continuously monitor each |

|child in the classroom. While we are working on this assignment, I will walk around the classroom to offer my help and suggestions, all why |

|keeping an eye on what it is that they are doing with the technology given to them. The teacher may also ask random students what they are |

|learning/doing at that moment. |

|Learning Activities: |

| |

|During the introduction of the lesson, students will: learn about the Power Point program and how to construct a slideshow of their own, all |

|while learning about animal groups. The teacher will refer to each slide as she works through the textbook as well. |

| |

|During the lesson, students will: students will learn things about each animal group while taking part in WebQuest. The information the |

|students will find useful is on WebQuest and is supplied by teachers themselves. Everything they are seeing and learning is safe and approved|

|by the teacher. |

| |

|At the conclusion of the lesson, students will: add their essays to the classroom blog. They will be able to post questions/comments on each|

|other’s blogged essays. This will help tie up any loose ends the students may have with a particular aspect of the assignment. This will |

|also give the students the thrill of “teaching” each other through the blog discussions. |

|Materials & Resources: |

|Supplies: |

|- Paper |

|- Textbook |

|- Library book |

|- Pens/pencils |

|Technology tools (Software and hardware): |

|- Computers |

|- Online articles students found useful |

|- WebQuest |

|- Classroom blog |

|- Power Point |

|-Internet access |

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|URL’s you will use: |

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|Self-Evaluation: |

|Teacher NETS addressed: |

|1. I plan on facilitating and inspiring student learning and creativity by promoting inventiveness to the students. I will urge them to be as|

|creative and original as possible while making their slideshow. |

|2. I will engage the students in using technology to promote their capacity of knowledge on the animals and their various groups. |

|3. The student’s learning activities will be customized to fit their learning styles. There will be auditory lessons, visual lessons, games,|

|etc. |

|4. WebQuest, blogs, and other various internet resources will be used to enhance the learning experience of the student. |

| |

|Student NETS addressed: |

|1. Students will be creative and innovative in developing their assignments while using technology. |

|2. WebQuest, blogs, Power Point, internet resources, etc. will all be used as creative ways to expand their knowledge. |

|3. Students will create their own original work while making slideshows of their animal groups. |

|4. Students will work in groups to conduct a group slideshow project. |

|5. Students will communicate and collaborate with the peers that are in their assigned groups. They will give each other ideas and build |

|their slideshows with everyone’s participation. |

|6. Students will use their technology resources to gather materials and ideas for their essays, slideshows, notes, etc. |

|7. Students will practice safe use of technology with digital citizenship. |

|8. Students will understand technology and the proper uses for it. They will know how to troubleshoot systems and use applications |

|successfully. |

| |

|Lesson Strengths: |

|1. Students will learn leadership as well as group roles while working on this project. |

|2. Students will learn what they need to know about animal groups, all while learning how to effectively use technology. |

|3. Students will practice writing skills while working on their essay. |

|4. Students will learn to give positive feedback while posting to each other’s blogged essays. |

|5. Students will have a sense of pride knowing that their own personal work will be put into a big project for all of the school to utilize. |

|6. Students will become fluent in the use of various forms of technology (blogs, Power Point, WebQuest, internet searches, etc.) |

| |

|Lesson Weaknesses: |

|1. Teacher could find a way to incorporate math into the lesson since the lesson already has reading, writing, etc. |

|2. Classroom may be hard to control at certain times given that the students will be separated into groups; groups often become louder and |

|rowdy. |

|3. Teacher will need to make sure that each child in the group is doing their part. |

| |

|Possible Solutions or Action Plan for Improvement: |

|1. Teacher could utilize math worksheets and try and incorporate them into the lesson. |

|2. Teacher could attend workshops or seminars on the topic of different learning styles to familiarize with each one. |

|3. Since ESOL requirements need to be met as well, teacher may need to keep herself updated on their regulations/rules. |

|4. By comparing the pre-quiz and post-quiz, I will be able to identify how well the students grasped the concept of the assignment and I will|

|be able to pay more attention to their weaknesses. |

CHARACTERISTICS FIVE TYPES OF INVERTEBRATES

| |How It Breathes |Body Covering |Born Alive or Eggs |Warm or Cold Blooded |Something that makes |

| | | | | |them distinctive |

|Insects | | | | | |

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|Arachnids | | | | | |

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|Crustaceans | | | | | |

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|Annelids | | | | | |

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|Mollusks | | | | | |

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FIVE TYPES OF VERTEBRATES

| |How It Breathes |Body Covering |Born Alive or Eggs |Warm or Cold Blooded |Something that makes |

| | | | | |them distinctive |

|Amphibians | | | | | |

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|Birds | | | | | |

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|Fish | | | | | |

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|Mammals | | | | | |

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|Reptiles | | | | | |

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