This week Alisha and I taught our second science lesson. I definitely felt better prepared and less nervous than week one. Although our lesson this week wasn't as interactive as the Mystery Bag, it was still hands on and I think the class had a good time.
One of our focuses this week was starting the lesson off with a strong hook to engage the students. We focused on the fact that the caterpillars will be arriving next week, and because Alisha and I won't be there every day, we will need the students to be good observers. This made the lesson more relevant to them, because soon they will be hosting the caterpillars in their classroom. Hopefully this motivated them to learn to use the hand lens properly and to think about the different parts of the caterpillar. It definitely opened the door to a lot of stories and ideas about caterpillars, which was great.
Another important part of teaching is managing materials. A lot of this happened before we even got to the classroom. Last week, Alisha and I planned exactly what we would need and made sure we had plenty of supplies for everyone. When we got into the classroom we had a few minutes to lay everything out on a table in the order in which we would need them. We never had to dig around to find what we needed, so we didn't have to waste any class time. It was nice to have two of us coteaching the lesson so we could hand out materials more quickly and keep the lesson moving.
Finally, we really thought about how our lesson related to the state science frameworks. The frameworks are a great resource for lesson planning, because they guide you to what students should be learning at each grade level. Another reason it is important to keep the frameworks in mind is because there are so many lesson plans available online or through educational companies. It might be tempting to just follow along with the plan as it is. However, if the lesson doesn't fit with the frameworks, it might not be the best use of class time. It may be possible to just alter lessons a little bit to make them fit with the frameworks better.
All in all, I think we had a good week two! Next week we'll introduce the caterpillars to the class... just in time for Halloween. Scary!
HOw did the students enjoy learning about the body parts? this with what Mia and are going to be teaching about this week. Were the students excited when you told them about the caterpillars? We hinted to the students last week that we would be observing a "mystery insect" next week but they don't know that they are live insects! So I am very curious to see their reactions. Haha I am also a little nervous about bringing in the caterpillars on Halloween. My kindergartens were already supper hyped up about Halloween and it was still three days way! =/ Good Luck!!!
ReplyDeleteLindsay- I also had the same experience with materials management: it was very helpful to lay them out on the table beforehand in the order that we would need them and also with two teacher- one teacher can hand out the worksheet while the other teacher is explaining. It makes everything more timely and efficient....I hope we dont become to spoiled with having two people in the room..haha
ReplyDeleteLindsay,
ReplyDeleteNice job on stressing the importance to the students of being good observes once the caterpillars arrive. It reminds them that although they will be lots of fun, that they will still have to be good scientists! I also have seen how hard everyone of you butterfly kit girls have worked to get the butterflies in order. You all have had to make some interesting accommodations due to their late arrival and the snow storm. Excellent job staying positive and having amazing back up plans and sound lesson plans. Great teamwork on everyone's part!