Lindsay+Clatterbuck

For this week's application, we were asked to d evelop a lesson plan that introduces students to the problem you have selected and outlines the steps students will take once they understand the problem. For my lesson, I want my students to learn about the culture and customs of Tennessee as well as other countries. I will present this problem to my students: What if Dr. Pewitt came to class and told you that in one month you would be a foreign exchange student in another country. This means that you will be living in another country with another family. What would you do to prepare? I think that this would be a great question to get their little minds working. It would be relevant to them because we often have students enter our class from other countries who struggle to fit in. Not only would they be imagining what it would be like to travel to another country, but they will also be learning the content as well. This project can span across the curriculum, and I can think of ways to tie it into all subject areas.

Here is the link (The boxes changed sizes when I did cut and paste)

Here is my lesson plan for the first part of the project:

Social Studies 2.1.01: Understand the diversity of human cultures b. Recognize communities have customs and cultures that differ. c. Recognize patterns of cultural traits such as language, religion, and family structure. 2.1.02: Discuss cultures and human patterns of places and regions of the world. c. Understand that Tennessee’s culture has ties to other cultures in the world. ||
 * ==Daily Lesson GAME Plan== ||
 * =====**Lesson Title:** Culture and Customs Around the World===== |||| =====**Related Lessons:** Famous citizens, landmarks an landforms===== ||
 * =====**Grade Level**: 2nd===== |||| =====**Unit:** Plate Understand the Diversity of Human Culture===== ||
 * ====GOALS==== ||
 * ====**Content Standards:**====
 * ===ISTE NETS-S===

Instructional Objective(s):
The students will work in collaborative groups to conduct research on different countries. The students will be conducting online research to identify the culture and customs of the country they are assigned. The students will complete a worksheet about their country while they conduct their online research. In following lessons, the students will share their responses to the problem statement on a blog. They will create a PowerPoint presentation or VoiceThread to share their information with the class. To tie the lesson into the Reading/Language Arts curriculum, the students will create a digital story about what it would be like to live in a foreign country. || I will need to book the computer lab for my students to use during the length of the lesson. Additional help will also need to be scheduled to help with the online research. Since this is a problem-based learning lesson, I will need to create a problem that will allow my students to learn the content as well as higher order thinking skills (Laureate Education, 2009). I will need to prepare a KWL flipchart for the Promethean board for our warm-up activity of listing what we know about culture and customs. I will also need to create the worksheet my students will use as a guide while they complete their online research. ||
 * ====ACTION==== ||
 * ===Before-Class Preparation:===
 * ====During Class==== ||
 * ====Time==== |||| ====Instructional Activities==== || ====Materials and Resources==== ||
 * =====5 -10 minutes===== |||| The teacher will introduce the students to the vocabulary words: culture and custom. As a whole class, students will fill in a KWL chart on culture and customs in the United States. || KWL Flipchart created with the ActivInspire software ||
 * =====5- 10 minutes===== |||| Introduce the problem: What if Dr. Pewitt came to class and told you that in one month you would be a foreign exchange student in another country? This means that you would be living in another country with another family. What would you do to prepare? || ActivInspire flipchart of the problem presented to students ||
 * =====15- 20 minutes===== |||| Have the students brainstorm different things they would need to find out about the country they will be traveling to. Create a list of these items as a whole class. || List of information about countries ||
 * =====10- 15 minutes===== |||| On a map, show the students the 4 different countries that they will be learning about. Ask the students if any are familiar with these countries. Pass around a hat and have each child choose a country to research. After each child has chosen, they will get into groups with the other students who have chosen the same country. Dr. Ertmer states that one of the challenges of problem-based learning is grouping the students (Laureate Education, 2009). Choosing from a hat can eliminate fights and having all students choose the same country. || Promethean Planet flipchart- world map, Hat and strips with country names ||
 * =====30 minutes-1 hour===== |||| After each child has chosen a country, they will be given a worksheet to fill out containing questions about the culture and customs of their country. The students will use this worksheet to guide them as they complete their online research. || Computer lab, Country worksheet, Internet access ||
 * =====**Notes:** This lesson will probably take place over the course of 2-3 days. It takes the little ones a bit longer to conduct their research because for many of them this is the first time they have done this. Also, I teach the inclusion class so these students need extended time on most assignments. This problem-based learning project will be carried out over a two-week period. In following lessons, the students will use a blog to respond to the problem statement, create a PowerPoint presentation or VoiceThread, and create a digital story about what it would be like to live in a foreign country.===== ||
 * ====MONITOR==== ||
 * ===Ongoing Assessment(s):===

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The students will be observed as they give their oral answers to the questions asked at the beginning of the lesson. The responses will be recorded on a chart to be kept in the classroom during the course of the lesson. As the students are conducting their research, the teacher will monitor the students and offer assistance to those who need it. The teacher may conference with individual students that she notices are struggling. The worksheets will be taken up and graded to see if the students are gathering the correct information about their country.=====

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Since I teach in the inclusion classroom, there are many accommodations that will be made. I will need to be sure that I have assistants in the room with me during the Internet research to offer help to all of the students who need it. For my struggling students, I may shorten the assignment and only have them find the answers to a few of the questions on the worksheet. I can pair them up with a stronger student to help them gather the remaining information that they were not required to find on their own. For my gifted students, I may give them the option of finding the answers to additional questions they have about their country.=====

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If the computer lab cannot be booked at the time I need it, I can try to check out the COW. (Computer on wheels) This would allow us to still complete the project, but in our own classroom. If this is not available, I can pair students up on the 4 classroom computers. However, they would have to conduct their research staggered throughout the day rather than all at one time which would make it harder for me to monitor and get assistants to help me. If all else fails, I can teach another lesson and move this one to another day when the lab is available.===== ||
 * ====EVALUATION==== ||
 * ===Lesson Reflection and Notes:===

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At the completion of the lesson, I will assess how it went and record any changes to be made to this lesson if the future. If I notice that the students were taking longer than expected to conduct their research, I may plan to extend the time, or only give a few questions per day so that they do not feel as overwhelmed in the computer lab. The students will be assessed throughout the course of this project. They will not be assessed on their learning of the content until the completion of the project. After they share their presentations and digital stories, they will be given a quiz using the ActivExpressions. This is how I will gauge if the content was mastered or not, and I will be able to go in and make modifications as necessary.===== || Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). //Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach//. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
 * **References:**

Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas (2009) Spotlight on Technology: Problem-based Learning Part 1 (Laureate Education, Inc, CD-ROM, 2009 Release).

Integrating Technology Across the Content Areas (2009) Spotlight on Technology: Problem-based Learning Part 2 (Laureate Education, Inc, CD-ROM, 2009 Release).

*Lindsay, I almost went with a culture unit as well. I really like this lesson and love how you posed the problem. I think it is soooooooo important for our students to understand other cultures and not just think that what they are acustom to is all there is. This lesson is also going to lead great into your next lesson using online collaboration. -Jennifer

Lindsay, I really like your lesson and feel that their is a lot of technology that you incorporated into it and it will really fit into the future lessons that we will have to do. Will the students work together to gather the information and then create their own products? If so are you worried about too many of the same information being repeated? Nicole

Nicole, Thanks for your question. The students will all be completing their own research sheet. They will then use the information they find to create either one VoiceThread or PowerPoint presentation. This way they will be comparing and contrasting the information they have found and choose what to use in their final presentation.

Lindsay, I love your lesson. I think it is awesome to include different cultures as much as possible. That is so important for our students to know and understand. Your students will be using so much technology! Have fun doing this lesson!! ~Brooke ||