Lesson Plan #4

Exploring With Our Sense of Hearing

Curriculum Outcomes: Science 1.1 Become aware of the five senses 1.2 Develop and use vocabulary associated with the five senses

      

Materials: *8 cleaned out soup cans, each numbered with a number 1-8 *8 small items, put 1 item in each can. I used a dinky car, a foam block, a cube-a-link, a small rock, a q-tip, a small wooden popsicle stick, paper clips, and pennies *A Guessing Board, as shown in above photo, (I used velcro dots to hold photo cards in place on the game board) *An Answer Key for the Guessing Board, as shown in above photo *8 photo cards of the objects that are placed inside the cans, (I used velcro dots on the back to hold the photo cards in place on the game board) *8 squares of foil to cover the tin cans *8 elastic bands to hold the foil in place

Description of Activity: This game can be played in small groups as we explore the sense of hearing and the vocabulary associated with it. I cleaned out 8 empty tin cans and numbered each can 1-8. In each can, I placed an object, from materials listed above. I then covered each can with a square of tin-foil held in place with an elastic band. Each child in the group will be given a turn to choose a can, shake it, and try to determine which object is hidden inside. As they guess, they choose the photo card that illustrates which object they think is in the can and place it in the corresponding number space on the Guessing Board. (For example, in can #7, there are paper clips, the child may pick the photo of the paper clips and place it on #7 of the guessing board) The children may seek support from their classmates. The game continues until all eight squares on the guessing board are full. The answer key can be used to check if the guesses were correct. The educator may ask questions such as “Why do you think the ____ is in the can?”, “Tell me why you think that…”,“What makes you think that?” If there are errors, the educator may ask a questions like, “why do you think you chose ____ instead of the ___?”  The educator may use anecdotal notes to record awareness, vocabulary, or questions associated with the sense of hearing (or any of the five senses) that each child may have.

Reflection #4- Exploring With Our Sense of Hearing

 I had a lot of fun planning and preparing this activity, anticipating the reaction of the children as we explored our sense of hearing. It was my first time doing this activity so I practiced on two of my children at home (who are much older than five). As we played at home, I realized that I needed to have concrete objects for the children to manipulate before using picture cards of the objects.

          The children were eager to participate in this activity- they could not wait to start shaking the cans! I explained at the beginning of the game that they not only had to guess what object was in the can, but that they also had to explain to the group why they thought what they thought. I was hoping to record the children using words that described what they were hearing. I discovered that some of the children were struggling trying to describe the sounds. Perhaps we could create a word-bank to describe sounds and post them on an anchor chart with visuals for the children to refer to.

          During the first two groups that visited the work station, I had asked the children to not speak out of turn, hoping to allow the child taking his/her turn the opportunity to guess without pressure from the others. When the third group arrived, the dynamic in that group allowed the flexibility for discussion to occur within the group. When this happened, the group worked together, made changes to the guessing board, and actually were able to correctly identify all eight items correctly. I am not sure that could have happened in the other groups…

          I felt that this was a great science game and that there are many extensions from this activity.

Lesson Plan #3, Spring 2012

Rainbow Math

Curriculum Outcome- Early Numeracy 1:3  Count to determine the  number in a group 0-10

Materials:  Two number cubes, game sheet as shown on cover page, and crayons

Description of Activity:  Each child is given a game sheet in this small group activity. Each child takes turns rolling two dice. They are to count the dots, add them together, and color in the appropriate number on the rainbow sheet using a variety of colors. The game continues until the children complete their rainbow.

Assessment: As the game is being played, the educator may take anecdotal notes to record the child’s behaviors, questions, strengths, and challenges. The educator may also record any scaffolding that occurred or suggestions for the next time the game is played. Please see suggestion for anecdotal note-taking in the photo below.

Reflection #3- Rainbow Math

          This numeracy activity supported the intended curriculum outcome and some incidental learning outcomes as well. At first, what appeared to be a very “straight-forward” game, actually was more complex than originally thought. The children not only had to count one-to-one correspondence and add the two numbers that they rolled, they also had to identify the number on the rainbow, in its printed form.

          A few children needed assistance with one-to-one counting. At first, I was using a sharpened pencil to point to each of the dots as the child counted (with my support, if needed) After a few rounds of helping one student in particular, I realized it would perhaps be better if I guided her finger to touch the dots on the dice, having her feel the indents of the dots as she counted. One of the children in the third group that visited this work station knew how to “count-on.” I was waiting eagerly to see if any of the students would, as we had introduced counting-on a few weeks ago at another work station. Part-part-whole discussions also arose as we played the game. When one boy rolled a 4 and a 4 and got 8, and on his next turn rolled 5 and 3, the door was opened for this number combination discussion. There are definitely many extensions that can occur with this activity.

          I felt the children understood the directions and expectations of the game. At one point, a student asked me why I was making him tell me what he was thinking, or tell me why he thought something. I answered by explaining that I could not read his mind and I needed him to explain his thinking to me. I had neglected to tell him that by verbalizing his thinking, he is helping himself to think about his own thinking (meta-cognition).  Perhaps that would be a good class discussion to have!

          The children seemed to enjoy playing the game. It did take longer than I originally expected; we had to stop after only filling in half the rainbow. We will revisit this game to complete it in the days to follow.

          I really liked using the index cards for my anecdotal note-taking. The lines helped to keep my notes neater and in order. I will place the completed index cards in the “Show Me What You Know” binder.

         

Lesson Plan #2, Spring 2012

Earth Day Sight Word Game 

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Curriculum Outcome: Early Literacy-Reading         &Viewing 3.8  Begin to recognize some sight words, environmental print, and words that have personal significance

Materials: Earth Day Sight Word game pieces downloaded from Teacher’s Pay Teacher’s web site. I selected  cards that are supportive of the sight words outlined in our Kindergarten curriculum and color words to provide extra challenge. Assessment page to document children’s ability to read sight words and/or need for teacher support.

Description of Activity: This game can be played in a small group of 4-5 children. The sight word cards are placed in a pile in the center of the table. Each child takes turns turning over one card and identifying the word written on the card. If the child identifies the word, the child gets to keep the card in their own pile. If the child is unable to identify the word, the word goes back in the pile. If a “plant a tree” card is drawn, the child can take a card from a friend. If a “recycling bin” card is drawn, the child may draw another card. If a “littered” card is drawn, the child loses his/her turn. The goal of the game is to accumulate as many cards as possible.

Assessment: The teacher can keep record of the sight words each child has correctly identified in the chart that is depicted below.

Reflection #2- Earth Day Sight Word Game

          The goal of this activity was to have the children recognize and read some sight words that are supported in the kindergarten curriculum. The game cards were downloaded from a web-site and tied in nicely with Earth Day, which would be occurring in the next week. The children seemed eager to visit the work station and to play the game.

          I thought I had clearly explained the directions and expectations for the game. As the first small group began playing, I quickly came to realize that I should have stated that the only person that should be reading the word is the person who turned over the card. Some children wanted to read other children’s cards and would not give them a chance to read it on their own. This sometimes became frustrating for the child who wanted to feel the success of receiving the card based on their own hard work and determination.  When the next groups came to play the game, I made sure to mention that we only read the card when it is our turn.

          When I chose which students to put in the small groups, I chose based on “mixed-abilities”. I felt that to keep the flow of the game, I would need to have some students that I knew would move the game along quickly, and have a student or two in each group that may require some support.

          The assessment tool I developed did not really give me enough room to indicate all the information I needed to write down. Originally, I wanted to use anecdotal notes, but decided to try something new this time. Perhaps had I used three columns instead of two (one for the actual word, one for the students response, and one for notes), I may have felt the tool was more useful.

          Overall, the game was effective and I think that the children enjoyed playing.

         

         

Lesson Plan #1, Spring 2012

Syllable Count  

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Curriculum Outcome: Early Literacy- Phonological Awareness 2.2 Begins to segment and blend words into syllables

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Materials:  Game pieces as shown in previous photo- *Question card-How Many Claps Do You Hear? *Small picture cards of items that children will use to determine the  amount of claps/syllables (pictures will be of items that have either 1,2, 3, or 4 claps) *Cards that are labelled 1 clap, 2 claps, 3 claps, and 4 claps *Clipboard  and sticky notes for assessment

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Description of Activity: This game will be played in small groups of 4-5 children. Children will each take turns selecting a picture card and clap out the syllables they hear. They will then place it on the corresponding number card indicating the number of claps. Always use both words- claps and syllables- interchangeably, so children will be aware of the language. Play until all the game cards are placed.

Assessment: As the Syllable Count game is played, the educator may take anecdotal notes to record the child’s behaviors, questions, strengths and challenges. The educator may also record scaffolding that occurred or suggestions for the next time the game is played. Please see suggestion for anecdotal note- taking in the photo below.

Reflection #1- Syllable Count

       I chose this activity knowing that the children in the class have had exposure to and experience with counting syllables in their own names and the names of the other children in the class. We had also taken the opportunity many times throughout the school year to count syllables during shared and guided reading, our morning message, and writer’s workshop.

          This was the first time I had played this game with the children. I really wanted them to feel successful, so I began the game with the children sorting their own names by the number of syllables. I then moved on to picture cards.

          As I was preparing for this activity, I tried to consider the many aspects I would need to ensure that I had communicated the directions and expectations clearly to the children. I felt that for the most part, the children understood what the game involved and they all felt, and were, in fact, successful. Some of the children experienced difficulty with the one syllable words. They tended to drag out a word to make it a two syllable word. I would ask questions like, “do we say da-ad?” the children would say, “no” and would re-do the clapping with only one syllable. This will be an area I will need to re-visit with the children throughout the remainder of the school year.

          The feedback that I offered the children was mostly verbal, with some non-verbal communication occurring throughout the activity as well. This seemed to work well for most of the students. I kept anecdotal notes as we played this game and placed each child’s “sticky note” outlining their participation in the game in the “Show Me What You Know” binder.

            Easter was coming a week down the road, so I decided to have the children place the picture cards in Easter baskets, labelled with the numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4. This added to the children’s enthusiasm and desire to have their small group visit this work station. Overall, there was a high level of engagement for this hands-on, fun   activity.