On this page you will find a video from my third field at New Berlin West Middle/High school, my lesson plan, supervisor feedback, connections to Wisconsin Teaching Standards 5, 2, and the Alverno Education Ability Integrative Interaction.
Lesson Analysis: This video was carried out at New Berlin West Middle/High school in a seventh grade classroom. My objectives are developed from the Common Core State Standards. In this lesson I focused on developing student vocabularies based on figurative language they were exposed to in their reading. The goal of this lesson for students to gain confidence in their understanding of specific figurative language so they could work with and identify figurative language in the future reading and writing. Since the use of application of figurative language was a clear learning goal for these seventh grade students I planned for students to not only demonstrate their knowledge through writing and orally, but through visually representing figurative language in an artistic way. Through incorporating the arts in this lesson students had to make deeper connections in order to visually create their figurative language. Prior to the lesson I set clear expectations for the students, this lesson was going to involve small group collaboration so I wanted group thinking to be focused on on task. I modeled for students to use their figurative language definition charts to aid in their brainstorming of a visual. I modeled aloud how to compare my visual with the definition of specific figurative language. Students were assigned a figurative language word and as a group they had to create a visual to represent it. Students shared their visuals as a whole class to build off peer knowledge. Students were encouraged that creating visuals was a way to further engage and connect with figurative language.
WTS 5: The teacher creates an engaging learning environment that supports individual and group motivation that ensures positive interactions for successful student learning.
As this was middle school focused instruction, creating an engaging learning environment is key in order to maintain motivation. A characteristic of middle school students is their need and want to be heard. Allowing students to collaborate on their learning to a great strategy to maintain engagement. I wanted students to have positive response from this learning experience involving figurative language, instead of asking students to identify specific types in reading passages I thought integrating the arts and creating visuals would not only solicit a positive response from students but also sustain engagement. This group of students were always very excited and eager to learn and try new activities. In order for group work to be positive I had to set clear expectations to serve as a guide for their collaboration process. Also, I took the time to model my thinking behind creating my visual to serve in their small group brainstorming process. To further promote the classroom environment to feel like a community of learning I had students share their small group visuals with the whole class. Students took ownership of their work while also benefiting from engaging with multiple figurative language visuals. This lesson promoted students to engage and think creatively about ways to visually represent their thinking. Expectations were clear so group work was purposeful. This lesson demonstrates how students are motivated through sharing their learning and engaged through interactive activities.
WTS 2: The teacher knows how children best learn so she provides opportunities that allow her to guide student development intellectually, socially, and personally.
In this lesson I demonstrate my understanding of how middle school students learn best. With my middle school students in mind I created a learning experience that students could collaborate on, connect with, and use creativity. I created clear expectations so each student knew what they had to accomplish. Connections vary from student to student because their prior knowledge, or schema, is individual to them. I engaged students prior knowledge first academically in relation to figurative language, and then personally through creating a visual to represent figurative language. Each students connection will vary. I supported students intellectual development through focus on figurative language and through modeled aloud my process for creating a visual. As students created their visuals in small groups they used their social and collaborative skills to brainstorm possible ideas based on their background knowledge academically through the definition and personally to the connections they saw fit. I supported their learning through positive reactions as they were brain storming and supported their thinking when students shared their finished products. In this video you will see how I guide students in their social abilities to stay on task. Students self confidence in their learning also grew because they were able to take ownership of something they created. I had two students who insisted on taking their visual home with them because they were proud of their creation.
Integrative Interaction: The teacher is a situational decision maker that creates a positive and successful environment to best meet students needs.
Through this lesson I am able to successfully make situational decisions in order to meet student needs. During the lesson I make quick decisions involving proximity to students who were off task, and redirecting discussion as needed. Middle school students love to express themselves orally which is why in this lesson I had to direct student attention to recording the visuals as examples in their definition chart to ensure respect was shown to those students who were sharing to the large group. This video demonstrates my ability to make decisions based on classroom behavior to ensure the environment is positive for all students. I facilitated student centered collaborative that was successful through my use of re directional focus, reminders of expectations, time allotments, and added directions to retain student focus as needed. The student learning was maximized from my ability to make decisions to ensure engaging learning was exercised.
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