Lesson+4+I+can+make+a+difference

Pictures and Student Work
 * Lesson 4: "I can make a difference!"**


 * Purpose: **The purpose of this lesson is for students to understand that, even as second graders, they can make a difference in their community.


 * Pre-Assessment: **Students were pre-assessed based on three ways they felt they could change their community for the better. The majority of students responded by saying “reduce, reuse and recycle.” I was looking for more thoughtful answers therefore I felt that teaching this lesson was necessary for students to understand as a second grader there are many other ways to positively change their community.


 * Objective: **Students will be able to recognize that anyone can make a difference in their community in their own way. Students will also be able to think critically about problems that affect the Waverly community and possible solutions.


 * Assessment: **Students will be informally assessed based on their ability to work cooperatively. Students will be formally assessed based on their ability to create “public service posters” that address problems at Waverly and how they could be solved.

Topic C. **Conflict, Cooperation and Compromise a cooperative group, such as sharing concern, care and respect among group members.
 * MSC: Standard 2.0 Peoples of the Nations and World
 * Indicator 1.** Analyze ways in which people interact
 * Objective a.** Identify and demonstrate appropriate skills necessary for working in

- markers/ crayons/ colored pencils - card stock - paw prints
 * Materials: **- clean chalk board


 * Preparation:** Brainstorm some school problems to prompt the class with if necessary.


 * Technology:** There will not be any technology used for this lesson.


 * Procedures: **

1. Welcome students back from math.

2. Instruct GT students to join Miss Kimmel. Instruct the rest of the class to DEAR.

3. 2:45 have students clear their desk and join me on the front rug.

4. Sit in a circle and pose the question “What are some problems at Waverly?” Have students share around the circle. Give option to pass if students can’t think of something. *Record their ideas on a scrap piece of paper. Circle twice, or until students are unable to think of more ideas. [Modified Critical Friends Group ice breaker]

5. Create a class web on the board with the best ~5 ideas. Brainstorm together ways to solve the problems added to the web.

6. Directions: “When I say go, you are going to quietly choose a partner, pick a problem and solution, create a poster to share with the class. Be sure to use color and include a sentence that says what the problem and solution are. If you do not want to work with a partner that is fine. Please make sure that each person is contributing to the poster.

7. Circulate to check for team work and productivity of the partners. 8. Monitor volume. “snap once if you can hear me…” if necessary. Give time checks: “4 minutes left…”

9. Collect the posters when students are complete. Find a spot in the classroom to display the posters.


 * Differentiation: **ZG had a differentiated matching worksheet focusing on problems and solutions with picture cues. Some problems included bullying: tell a teacher, trash: throw away. The activity was modified by the special education team.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Adaptations for students with special needs: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Time was adjusted for students who work more slowly. BW chose his own partner (KL). His choice required him to complete the majority of the work and keep his partner on task, this is the reverse of usual partner work for BW.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Extension for early finishers: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Students who finish early will be able to work on another poster or DEAR quietly at their desks.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Homework: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> No homework will be assigned for this lesson.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Analysis: **

· <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">5 partner groups earned //independent// grades for the poster activity. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 partner groups earned //with assistance// grades for the poster activity. The two groups were unable to finish their posters in the allotted time. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">All students’ present earned participation points for this lesson. Reflection: ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Back to Rationale
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Timing worked perfectly. DEAR at the beginning of the content block was a smart idea. My lesson would not have filled up the entire hour content block.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Students were able to work well with the partners they chose. GT students were out of the room so the class size felt smaller and more manageable for this lesson.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I should have started the circle of ideas to get students in the right frame of mind. They seemed to have a little trouble deciphering between problems and solutions in the circle. Some students could not think of problems at Waverly.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I thought it was a good idea to keep the brainstorming on “their level”. I felt that by choosing problems that affect the 2nd grade class made it easier for them to see how they could make a difference in their community.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Thinking about multicultural considerations, this would have been a good lesson to potentially discuss including all students or even racial issues. This group of students is diverse but I have never observed any behavior that implies the class is aware of the cultural differences.