Lesson Plans
Most of the following lesson plans were all created for various classes in my teacher education program. While my cooperating teachers during student teaching encouraged me to write out my plans, they both let me practice writing the least amount I needed in order to get through a lessons successfully.
Click any lesson to open a .pdf version.
Click any lesson to open a .pdf version.
Math
"Fractions Between Fractions" is a lesson plan I wrote for my middle school math methods course. The instructor, a retired middle school math teacher, was one of the best teaching mentors I had during my teacher training program. This format is one he favors and required everyone in the class to try.
"10 as a Factor" was written with my placement partner for my elementary math methods course. While I do not think I will use this format in the future, it did require me to plan for everything.
Science
This series of science lessons, on the states of matter, was created to be taught with my placement partner but written individually (my partner also wrote her own plans). These were the first lessons I wrote for my teacher training program and I attempted to include everything I needed without the benefit of a given format.
Social Studies
This lesson, on the "Five Freedoms," was the only lesson written specifically for my cooperating teachers with no methods course connection. Some of the lessons I wrote for my social studies methods course follow, but this lesson, though written the night before the lesson was given, was the most successful. I feel its success was due to the knowledge I had about the students and their interests at the time I wrote it. The other lessons, while still fine, were written before I knew the students or the school well.
"Focus In: Who Lives in Indiana Today?" takes advantage of the technology available at my placement school. Each student could have an iPad or MacBook to use the US Census website.
"Teach for Inquiry: What Is Protest?" is about citizens' right to assembly. It incorporated the protests in Indianapolis at the time.
"Teach for Ideas: What Is American?" contains examples and non-examples to help students discuss what it means to be an American. This lesson was meant as a launch lesson for an entire unit covering the rights, responsibilities, and definitions of citizenship.
"Focus In: Should We Say the Pledge Every Day in School?" was designed to generate discussion and inquiry into the requirements of saying (or not) the Pledge of Allegiance in American schools today.
"Teach for Inquiry: Can I Say That?" is an exploration of free speech and students' speech rights in school.