This week Alisha and I planned to teach a lesson about adult butterflies, so we were really hoping that we would walk into the classroom and see lots of butterflies flying around their cages. Luckily, most of our butterflies emerged Monday morning before our class! The timing was perfect- our students were able to observe the butterflies up close for the first time during our science lesson.
Our two main focus points for this lesson were writing in science and the use of technology. These are topics that we have been including in many of our lessons, so it wasn't hard to incorporate them this week.
Our students have been keeping an observation journal for the last few weeks. Each class, they observed the caterpillar and then recorded their observations in writing and drawings. This week we changed the focus a little bit. We asked students to write about where they think their butterflies will go after they are released. The students wrote some really good ideas down. Some talked about how they think their butterflies will go find mallow leaves to lay their eggs on. Others mentioned migration. These ideas are going to help lead into our next two lessons on life cycle and migration.
The second focus was using technology. Alisha and I have been using the classroom overhead projector to show diagrams of caterpillars and butterflies. We give students their own handouts to have at their desks, but it is nice to have the larger image to refer to. Next week we plan on using the teacher's projector to watch a video. Presenting things in multiple ways definitely helps the students. Some need to see the larger images and just listen as we talk about the topic. Others need the page right in front of them to see it up close. By using both, hopefully we are reaching more students than we would with just one or the other.
Next week, the butterflies will be gone. I think the kids will miss having them in the classroom, but we've been lucky to have such a hands-on and interactive unit!
Lindsay,
ReplyDeleteSarah and I weren't sure if our butterflies would be emerged either! As you know, they were't! Thank you so much for sharing yours with us! Its a challenge to work with live insects! It was really a wonderful feeling to see the excitement on the children's faces as they got the see the butterflies. I think that the writing prompt you used was very imaginative and it allowed the students to think outside the box. Great idea! Also, like you said, the students have already allowed for a great transition into future lessons. I think its great that you two use technology weekly! It really does help get an idea across when it is presented in different ways! You're right, it will be sad to have empty classrooms soon! But, the butterfly unit is proving to be a lot of fun!
Hi Lindsay,
ReplyDeleteI like the writing topic you chose for your students to respond to this past week-that was a good opportunity for the students to make predictions based on what they have already learned. I also think that the butterfly life cycle and migration are good topics to end the unit with- the topic of migration in particular will probably bring a sense of closure to the unit as our classroom butterflies are released. I also think you made a good point about the benefits of using the overhead projector- I agree that incorporating different teaching and presentation methods definitely helps to reach more students. Well, good luck with Monday's lesson- I'm sure it will be fantastic!
Good job addressing both the writing in science and instructional technology aspects in your lesson. I know you and Alisha put a lot if work into planning. it's nice that the butterflies emerged to coincide with your topic. I like that the students have been keeping written observations with drawings. This is something they will be able to refer back to in the future.
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