Technology Integration 101 – Example # 1
Sample Lesson Plan Narrative: Solar System
The teacher who developed this lesson plan was responsible for teaching a seventh grade unit on the solar system. She needed to cover several educational standards. In the past, she gave students a reading on the planets, showed a film on the solar system, and conducted discussions on the solar system using a solar system model in her room. This was followed by a test. The unit before this one was on studying the earth including geologic features and life cycles. She was not satisfied that the current lesson was very interesting or that the students were learning much beyond memorizing the names and orders of the planets. She decided that the lesson needed some enhancements.
Thinking about the lesson, and using the WELES reflection tool, the teacher wrote down the lesson objectives and standards and began to think about how to make the lesson more exciting and motivating. Some students had commented on a news story with pictures from Mars so she thought that sharing such pictures with her students would be a good start. She added a demonstration with an astronomer she met at a teacher workshop. And planned collaborative projects where students worked together to create descriptions of each planet and then as a class create a representation of all the planets. Standards addressed included:
| MS&T: Science | Students will understand and apply scientific concepts, principles, and theories pertaining to the physical setting and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in science. |
| MS&T: Interconnectedness: Common Themes | Students will understand the relationships and common themes that connect mathematics, science, and technology and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning. |
| MS&T: Interdisciplinary Problem Solving | Students will apply the knowledge and thinking skills of mathematics, science, and technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions. |
The following lesson planner documents her specific thoughts on this Solar System lesson.
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