Instructional Unit
Kimberly A. Williams
SPED 53313
Spring 2001
Instructional Unit Sections
· Unit Organization
o Academic Subject
o Unit Objectives
o Curriculum Materials
o Classroom Information (# of classes, length of classes & number of students in the classes)
o Language and cognitive (i.e. learning) goals for one student in the class
· Lesson Design
o Unit Segment
o Lesson’s academic objective(s)
o Lesson’s curriculum materials
o Lesson’s student evaluation
o Lesson’s student homework
· Unit Feedback
Unit Organization
Academic Subject: Geography
Unit Objectives:
*Note: The following unit objectives were derived from a 4th grade curriculum unit. The reason that these unit objectives are at the 4th grade level is because of the fact that the 7th grade students at my practicum are functioning well below the 7th grade level. I have looked at the 7th grade unit objectives and the students in that class are nowhere close to achieving the unit objectives at the end of the unit. I have looked through the other unit objectives at different grade levels and I truly believe that the 4th grade unit objectives are somewhat close to their level. I do not expect the students to be able to meet all of these unit objectives after the completion of this unit. The design of this unit is only expected to have the students to achieve some of these unit objectives. In order to achieve all of these unit objectives listed; it would be necessary to develop another unit that has a different topical focus. This unit primarily focuses on the topic of water and specifically Great lakes.
1. Develop map skills:
· Point out major reference points, parallels, and meridians on maps and globes - North and South Poles, Equator, Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, and Arctic and Antarctic Circles
· Use maps to locate major landforms and bodies of water in Ohio, the United States, and other nations in the world
· Use a number/letter grid system to locate places on a map
· Locate places on maps and globes using latitude and longitude
· Utilize map keys to understand map symbols
2. Use maps as a source of information
· Recognize continents by their outlines and define their characteristics
· Define the characteristics of major landforms
· Define the characteristics of major bodies of water
· Obtain information from maps to describe climate, natural vegetation, and resources
· Examine maps and globes to note physical and/or human (cultural) differences between places - Landforms, ecosystems, population densities, ethnic distributions
· Determine the impact of technology on Ohio
3. Demonstrate the relationship between historical events in Ohio, the nation, and world
4. Describe the location of Ohio relative to other states, nations, and physical features of the world
5. Describe factors that helped influence the location, growth, and development of places in Ohio and compare with sites in other states
6. Create tables, charts, and graphs to compare climate, vegetation, and resources in Ohio with other states and nations
7. Recognize that the government of Ohio deals with governments of other nations - Sister-state relationships, official trips by the governor or members of the General Assembly to other countries
8. Recognize the interdependence of Ohio's economy with nations around the world
Curriculum Materials:
The fourth grade global unit objectives that were listed in the unit objectives section were derived from the State of Ohio Curriculum Guide in Social Studies. A copy of the State of Ohio Curriculum Guide in Social Studies can be found at http://w3.iac.net/~pfilio/.
Ideas that were used in the lesson plans in this unit, this web address, http://www.lerc.nasa.gov/WWW/K12/Summer_Training/LincolnParkES/PROBLEMS.html, was used in order to develop lesson plans for this unit.
A videotape, Great Lakes: A Bitter Legacy, produced in 1992 by the National Audubon Society, Turner Broadcasting System and WETA-TV, was used in this unit in order to expose the students about the Great Lakes.
Classroom Information:
There are 3 students (two boys and one girl) in this class. They are in the 7th grade class. They are performing at approximately between second and fourth grade levels. This is the main reason why the unit objectives of this section were derived from the fourth grade section. They have social studies class during the first period on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. The first period lasts from 7:40 a.m. – 8:22 a.m. This geography unit primarily focuses on the bodies of water particularly the Great Lakes. It approximately takes about 2 to 3 weeks to teach the unit about bodies of water and specifically the Great Lakes.
Number of students: 3
Number of classes: approximately 10-11
Length of classes: approximately 40 minutes (7:40 a.m. – 8:22 a.m.)
Language Goals:
*Note: The function of the language goals and the cognitive goals that are listed below closely resembles the function of the objectives rather than the goals. The ultimate goal is to have the student achieving these goals at the end of this unit, which is about few weeks. These goals are not expected to be achieved fully but the goal is to have the student to be able to do that from time to time throughout the unit through the opportunity to practice during the instructional unit.
The student will be able to increase the expression and the reception of language through ASL and written English.
The student will be able to specifically state the topic of the conversation before engaging in a conversation with students or teachers.
Cognitive Goals:
The student will ask a specific request when he does not understand the teacher or the written English.
The student will be able to self-correct his form of questioning or sentences if he is having a difficulty communicating with students or teachers.
Lesson Design
Unit Segment: Introduction
Academic Objective(s):
The students will be able to list at least 2 things that they wish to learn about bodies of water during the K-W-L activity.
The students will be able to express at least one thing that they know about water in general during the K-W-L activity.
The students will be able to express at least two things that they learned from the field trip.
Lesson’s Curriculum Materials:
Lunches
Digital Cameras
Poster
Markers
Papers
Pencils
Lesson’s Student Activities:
A) Field Trip
Duration: One day
In this introductory lesson, the students will be involved in several activities in order to introduce them to the concept of bodies of water, which will lead up to the concept of lakes. A field trip would be the first activity for this unit. It would be more effective if the students were to be able to get hands-on experience by going on the field trip and then coming back to class and discuss about the field trip. It will be a good start for this unit because the students are all on the same page because they all have seen one of the Great Lakes.
This field trip is going to take place in Cleveland. The students will be going to see the Lake Erie. The teacher will make the arrangements for the students to go on Goodtime III, which is a huge boat traveling on Lake Erie. The field trip will take almost the entire day. Therefore, the students will spend most of the school day cruising on Lake Erie. The students will be asked to bring their lunches so that they can eat on the boat while riding. The students will be exposed to Lake Erie. During the trip, the students will be engaged in a discussion about Lake Erie. The teacher will give them a piece of paper for the students to write down their thoughts and insights while cruising on the boat. Also, all of the students will have an opportunity to use the digital camera to take pictures of any aspects of Lake Erie or the environment surrounding the Lake Erie. The pictures that the students take will be eventually posted in the classroom. This is the very first activity that the students will do in this unit. The field trip will not take up the entire day. The students will be leaving at 8 a.m. in the morning and they will be returning by 1:30 p.m., which gives the teacher one hour to do the next activity.
B) K-W-L activity
Duration: 1 day – same day as field trip
Once the students return from the field trip, the teacher will post a poster and tape it to the board. The teacher will ask the students what do they know about water in general. The teacher will also ask the students what they have learned from the field trip today. The teacher may ask them different questions such as: what are the different bodies of water? Have you seen a lake, ocean, sea, or any other kind body of water besides Lake Erie? Have you gone swimming before? The teacher will also ask them to share their knowledge about lakes. From there, the teacher can see how much knowledge the students have about water in general and specifically the Great Lakes. The teacher will give students the opportunity to share their experiences with water. All of the students’ comments will be recorded on the poster. After that, the teacher will ask the students about what do they want to learn regarding to water in general. The teacher will also ask the students what do they want to learn about the Great Lakes since part of the unit will be focused on the Great Lakes. After this activity, the teacher will have a better understanding of how much the students understand when it comes to the concepts of lakes. At the end, the teacher will give the students a checklist for them to complete evaluating themselves based on today’s lesson. Also, the teacher will tell the class what the homework assignment will be.
Lesson’s Student Evaluation:
The teacher will be observing the students. The teacher will be observing to see whether if the students are actively participating in the discussion. The students will be evaluated based on their behavior, which includes:
· paying attention
· making eye contact with the teacher and their peers
· participating during the discussion
· taking pictures on the field trip
· completing the homework
· filling out the self-evaluation paper
· asking questions during the field trip or classroom time
Lesson’s Student Homework
The students would go home and ask their parents or a family member that lives with them some questions related to their experiences about the Great Lakes or bodies of water in general. The students are expected to find out what kind of experiences does that certain family member has when it comes to the Great Lakes or any bodies of water in general. The students will be asked to write down the responses that their family member gives them. The students will be asked to share the information with the class on the next day.
Lesson Design
Unit Segment: Exploration
Academic Objective(s):
Each student will be able to compare and contrast the difference between freshwater and saltwater by explaining to the teacher or one of the staff workers in the deaf education classroom.
Each student will be able to define and sign these words: length, depth, and replacement time with 100% accuracy.
Each student will be able to state at least one similarity or difference based on all of the summaries that the teacher wrote on the board from the students’ presentations.
Each student will be able to express at least one concept that they have learned from this lesson at the end of this lesson plan.
Lesson’s Curriculum Materials:
Baby pool
Water
Chalk
Chalkboard
Measuring Tape
Worksheets
Cups
Water
Salt
Computers
Internet
Digital Cameras
TV
VCR
Videotape: Great Lakes: A Bitter Legacy
Lesson’s Student Activities:
A) Using manipulatives
Duration: 4 days
This is an exploration time for the students in related to the concept of lakes. First of all, the teacher will give students the pictures from the field trip the day before that the students took using the digital cameras. The teacher will give students few minutes to tape the pictures on the Great Lakes bulletin board that the teacher has developed for this unit.
After that, the teacher will have each of the student present their information that they have gathered from homework the day before. The students will be asked to stand up in the front of the class and share with their classmates about what they have learned the night before when they were asking their family member questions about their experience in relation to the bodies of water or the Great Lakes. The teacher will write a brief summary for each of the student’s information that he/she gathered for homework. After that, the teacher will ask the students to compare and contrast all of the summaries that are presented on the board.
Then, the teacher tells the class that they will be playing with different materials in class in order to learn more about the lakes. First, the teacher will be bringing in a baby pool. It is the kind of pool that is not very deep at all and small. The teacher will fill up the pool with some water and leave it in the middle of the classroom. The class will be engaged in a discussion about the concept of lakes. The class will be discussing different things that make up a lake. The students will be encouraged to actually put their feet or hands in the baby pool. That way, the students will be having some kind of hands-on experience with the water and baby pool. The teacher explains that the baby pool can be considered a very small lake. It may not be an actual lake but you can consider it to be a very small lake. The students take a picture of the baby pool. That way, the picture will be posted on the board. Eventually, the students will be posting different pictures of different “lakes” on the board.