Each lesson uses a distinct teaching strategy. All lesson plans are based on the Hunter Model by Madeline Hunter. The literacy standards used are based on the New York State P-12 Common Core Learning Standards for
English Language Arts & Literacy and the content standards are based on New York's standards for biology. Only one lesson plan is visually sampled; the rest only give a preview with the lesson description with a file attached below for the full plan. The files are named after the strategy the plan uses. Enjoy!
Non-Linguistic Strategy Learning Experience Plan
Subject: Biology Grade level: 8
Unit: The Endocrine System Theme: Fear
Topic: The “Flight-or-Fight” Response Lab Experiment
This particular lesson is designed to allow students to connect math and science and become familiar with creating graphs and other mathematical data to experimental results. Because we have already discussed the symptoms of the “flight-or-fight” response, students will know what to expect but will also verify the information given to them by mimicking the response. They will do this by running and recording their heartbeat rate. Heartbeat rate can be measured by counting the beats per minute (simply putting pressure below the jaw line or wrist and counting each pump felt in one minute). They will do several trials, one at resting heartbeat (the control) in which will be compared to the independent and dependent variables. The dependent variable is the heartbeat rate during running, jogging, and while the student views “scary” content. I do not want to truly scare my students, so I will use PG-13 content! (NOTE: At this point, students have already completed several experiments and know what the scientific method is and should be able to define terms such as control, dependent variable, and independent variable.
This Lesson’s Connection with Some of the 21st Century Skills Middle Schoolers are Learning:
· Collaborate with others; use teamwork:
o Students can bounce ideas off of each other during a possible class discussion. Disrespect towards others during class will not be tolerated. Students will work together in pairs recording data off of each other as well as taking turns performing each experiment. They will learn to work effectively because they will be timing each trial.
· Think critically:
o Students will be developing critical thinking skills by converting their data into graphs, which they then have to interpret and summarize in their lab reports.
· Be autonomous:
o Students will work independently on their lab reports. This assignment will be due a week later.
· Ask questions (be inquisitive):
o Students will be encouraged to ask questions relevant to the material by participating in or initiating class discussions before, during, and after the direct instruction part of the lesson. They are also eliciting the “purpose” for the experiment. In addition, they are going through the scientific process as they complete the experiment.
· Become aware and informed of current events:
o Students will personally become aware the physical effects stress and fear has on the body. They will connect this experiment’s results with personal experiences and/or other ideas.
· Collect research and information from credible sources to use in expository writing:
o Students will cite evidence from their own findings (their results) to base their lab report on. They will mention this and all of the other aspects of the scientific method in their lab reports.
Subject: Biology Grade level: 8
Unit: The Endocrine System Theme: Fear
Topic: The “Flight-or-Fight” Response Lab Experiment
This particular lesson is designed to allow students to connect math and science and become familiar with creating graphs and other mathematical data to experimental results. Because we have already discussed the symptoms of the “flight-or-fight” response, students will know what to expect but will also verify the information given to them by mimicking the response. They will do this by running and recording their heartbeat rate. Heartbeat rate can be measured by counting the beats per minute (simply putting pressure below the jaw line or wrist and counting each pump felt in one minute). They will do several trials, one at resting heartbeat (the control) in which will be compared to the independent and dependent variables. The dependent variable is the heartbeat rate during running, jogging, and while the student views “scary” content. I do not want to truly scare my students, so I will use PG-13 content! (NOTE: At this point, students have already completed several experiments and know what the scientific method is and should be able to define terms such as control, dependent variable, and independent variable.
This Lesson’s Connection with Some of the 21st Century Skills Middle Schoolers are Learning:
· Collaborate with others; use teamwork:
o Students can bounce ideas off of each other during a possible class discussion. Disrespect towards others during class will not be tolerated. Students will work together in pairs recording data off of each other as well as taking turns performing each experiment. They will learn to work effectively because they will be timing each trial.
· Think critically:
o Students will be developing critical thinking skills by converting their data into graphs, which they then have to interpret and summarize in their lab reports.
· Be autonomous:
o Students will work independently on their lab reports. This assignment will be due a week later.
· Ask questions (be inquisitive):
o Students will be encouraged to ask questions relevant to the material by participating in or initiating class discussions before, during, and after the direct instruction part of the lesson. They are also eliciting the “purpose” for the experiment. In addition, they are going through the scientific process as they complete the experiment.
· Become aware and informed of current events:
o Students will personally become aware the physical effects stress and fear has on the body. They will connect this experiment’s results with personal experiences and/or other ideas.
· Collect research and information from credible sources to use in expository writing:
o Students will cite evidence from their own findings (their results) to base their lab report on. They will mention this and all of the other aspects of the scientific method in their lab reports.
Learning Experience Outcomes
Students will: · Follow the scientific method in a lab experiment · Follow directions in a procedure · Determine heart rate of their partner · Convert technical information into a bar graph · Compare heart rate when running to heart rate when jogging. · Connect that comparison to intensity of response. · Create examples of when a person could be doing either during a possible flight-or-fight response. · Investigate heart rate during a mimicked “flight-or-fight” response. · Summarize their findings in their lab reports · Connect their results to any personal experiences or observations outside the classroom · Relate the experiment’s importance by identifying the purpose |
Learning Experience Assessments
· Lab Report · Ability to work together – assessed through observation and accuracy of results · At least one graph and its interpretation per group will be collected at the end of class. This allows the teacher to know what to expect on their lab reports. |
Differentiation for Students
Approaching
Students with the poorest math skills will work with stronger students; Each team of two will be assigned based on strengths and weaknesses known by the teacher. In addition, these students will find the lab report guide especially helpful in writing their report. |
On-level
Students already on the level will be supplement their learning by reading past notes to include background information on the lab report which will not be due until a week after. |
Beyond
Students beyond the standards may be expected to start their lab reports during class time. |
Curriculum Integration: Math, Psychology
Materials/Resources:
- Chalk/White board
- Timers/Stopwatches
- The gym
- Lab report rubric
- Graph paper
- Lab Report Guide handout
- Scary pictures (choose one)
- Chalk/White board
- Timers/Stopwatches
- The gym
- Lab report rubric
- Graph paper
- Lab Report Guide handout
- Scary pictures (choose one)
Procedures/Strategies:
Sponge Activity (activity that will be done as students enter the room to get them into the mindset of the concept to be learned)
As students are walking into class, a blank definition frame with “flight-or-fight” response in the middle will be up on the board with directions to complete it in their notebooks. This should take about 5-7 minutes.
Completed Definition Frame (Frayer Model) is displayed here:
Sponge Activity (activity that will be done as students enter the room to get them into the mindset of the concept to be learned)
As students are walking into class, a blank definition frame with “flight-or-fight” response in the middle will be up on the board with directions to complete it in their notebooks. This should take about 5-7 minutes.
Completed Definition Frame (Frayer Model) is displayed here:
Anticipatory Set (focus question/s that will be used to get students thinking about the day’s lesson)
Student elicited possible aims:
How can we discover more about the effects of the “flight-or-fight” response to the body?
How does the “flight-or-fight” response show in a person?
How can we mimic the “flight-or-fight” response to investigate its effects on the body?
Activating Prior Knowledge (what information will be shared with/among students to connect to prior knowledge/experience)
Do-Now: Which body system is associated with this response?
A: Nervous and Endocrine are the main systems, but through them the response affects almost the entire body including blood vessels (circulatory system).
Direct Instruction (input, modeling, check for understanding)
Today we will be performing an experiment that tests our heartrate while we mimic the flight-or fight response.
Q: How can we mimic this response? How can we do this without literally stressing or scaring ourselves based the effects we already know?
A: We can run, or jog (flight response)
Q: How can we mimic the “fight” response?
A: We can watch a scary movie.
There is no time to watch a scary movie, but students will investigate one of the known effects on the body from the flight-or-fight response (heart rate in beats per minute) from the following trials:
1. Resting heart rate – The control.
2. Heart rate while running – Dependent variable 1.
3. Heart rate while jogging – Dependent variable 2.
4. Heart rate while looking at scary picture – Dependent variable 3.
Students are shown how to take the pulse of their partner (Gently press index and middle finger together on wrist of partner and count each pump which is considered the heartbeat.)
They will also be shown how to use the stopwatch properly.
Q: Why are we measuring heart rate here?
A: Because there is an artery there and arteries carry blood from the heart.
At this point, students will connect with their partner, gather necessary materials (stopwatch, notebooks and lab report guide and a pencil) and head to the gym where they spread out with their partner and begin their trials. While at the gym, students will be told the rules when they are to begin their running and jogging trials.
Do-Now: Which body system is associated with this response?
A: Nervous and Endocrine are the main systems, but through them the response affects almost the entire body including blood vessels (circulatory system).
Direct Instruction (input, modeling, check for understanding)
Today we will be performing an experiment that tests our heartrate while we mimic the flight-or fight response.
Q: How can we mimic this response? How can we do this without literally stressing or scaring ourselves based the effects we already know?
A: We can run, or jog (flight response)
Q: How can we mimic the “fight” response?
A: We can watch a scary movie.
There is no time to watch a scary movie, but students will investigate one of the known effects on the body from the flight-or-fight response (heart rate in beats per minute) from the following trials:
1. Resting heart rate – The control.
2. Heart rate while running – Dependent variable 1.
3. Heart rate while jogging – Dependent variable 2.
4. Heart rate while looking at scary picture – Dependent variable 3.
Students are shown how to take the pulse of their partner (Gently press index and middle finger together on wrist of partner and count each pump which is considered the heartbeat.)
They will also be shown how to use the stopwatch properly.
Q: Why are we measuring heart rate here?
A: Because there is an artery there and arteries carry blood from the heart.
At this point, students will connect with their partner, gather necessary materials (stopwatch, notebooks and lab report guide and a pencil) and head to the gym where they spread out with their partner and begin their trials. While at the gym, students will be told the rules when they are to begin their running and jogging trials.
Guided Practice (how students will demonstrate their grasp of new learning)
Students are given a maximum of 15 minutes to complete the procedure. As they do each step, they also complete answers in their lab report guide.
As the students are doing their lab experiment, they will record results and observations in their notebooks as well as the lab report guide worksheet. The worksheet functions as a guide for when they actually write the report.
The teacher keeps as close an eye as possible on the students and walks around to help and observe.
Students are given a maximum of 15 minutes to complete the procedure. As they do each step, they also complete answers in their lab report guide.
As the students are doing their lab experiment, they will record results and observations in their notebooks as well as the lab report guide worksheet. The worksheet functions as a guide for when they actually write the report.
The teacher keeps as close an eye as possible on the students and walks around to help and observe.
Closure (action/statement by teacher designed to bring lesson presentation to an appropriate close)
“On a separate graph paper with you and your partner’s name on it, draw at least the graph displaying your results. In one-three sentences, explain the graph. Do you see a pattern?”
Here, students will be asked for a preview of their lab reports by showing part of their results. They will be collected at the end of class. They will be allowed to work with their partner here, but lab reports will be graded individually.
Q: Why is the resting heart rate considered the control in this experiment?
A: Because it will be compared to the dependent variables. This is the normal heart rate of the person when they are not in the flight-or-fight response.
Q: Why are trials 2 and 3 considered the dependent variable? What is the variable and what does it depend on?
A: The variables are the heart rates and they depend on the intensity of the person running or jogging.
Independent Practice (what students will do to reinforce learning of the lesson)
The “Thought Questions” on the lab report guide. The lab report is an assignment to be independently worked on outside of class. Students will know that a lab report will be expected throughout the entire class time. (Please see rubric.)
NOTE: We probably will not have enough time to trek back to the classroom, so class will end in the gym and all students will be told to take all their belongings with them before they have left the classroom. Gym “procedures” (rules) will be announced before leaving to go to the gym.
Resources for this Lesson & Complete Lesson Plan:
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The following are the rest of the lesson plans in this unit:
Similarites & Differences
This particular lesson is designed to introduce the physical components of fear on the anatomical level. It is also intended specifically for Eighth graders because they are much more mature (both psychologically and physically) than their 6th and 7th grade counterparts. Most will go into high school after 8th grade, and they could be nervous or scared. Some also have already experienced or witnessed bullying, or are currently doing so.
By discussing fear and its expression in the brain, students will have a better understanding on why they feel scared at certain times or from certain things, people, or places. This will hopefully give them confidence and knowledge to tackle their fears and develop into stronger minded people and become fearless (yet cautious and inquisitive) of the world around them.
similaritiesdifferenceslessonfear.docx | |
File Size: | 167 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Summarizing to Comprehend
This particular lesson is designed to introduce the physical components of fear on the anatomical level. It is also intended specifically for Eighth graders because they are much more mature (both psychologically and physically) than their 6th and 7th grade counterparts. Most will go into high school after 8th grade, and they could be nervous or scared. Some also have already experienced or witnessed bullying, or are currently doing so.
This particular lesson is designed to introduce the physical components of fear on the anatomical level. It is also intended specifically for Eighth graders because they are much more mature (both psychologically and physically) than their 6th and 7th grade counterparts. Most will go into high school after 8th grade, and they could be nervous or scared. Some also have already experienced or witnessed bullying, or are currently doing so.
summarizing_lesson_plan.docx | |
File Size: | 1209 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Asking Questions & Using Cues
This particular lesson is designed to teach students about animals and their behavior in order for them to gain a better understanding and hopefully an appreciation of the other forms of life around them as well as an interest to learn about ecosystems near and far. Fear is integrated in this biology lesson by learning about animal behavior and their defense mechanisms, which will be connected to the human flight-or-fight response. Students will also use this lesson’s information to become more aware of conflicts in ecology.
This lesson is also meant to pre-conclude the integrated learning theme on fear. After this lesson, the students will be instructed to conduct a group research project. However, before they can prepare to do so, it is important that they reflect on their lives, and more specifically, their fears, which will be done in the independent assignment as homework. By discussing fear and its expression in the brain, students will have a better understanding on why they feel scared at certain times or from certain things, people, or places. This lesson allows them to understand that fear is a universal emotion felt by most, if not all, creatures as it is in itself a survival mechanism.
This particular lesson is designed to teach students about animals and their behavior in order for them to gain a better understanding and hopefully an appreciation of the other forms of life around them as well as an interest to learn about ecosystems near and far. Fear is integrated in this biology lesson by learning about animal behavior and their defense mechanisms, which will be connected to the human flight-or-fight response. Students will also use this lesson’s information to become more aware of conflicts in ecology.
This lesson is also meant to pre-conclude the integrated learning theme on fear. After this lesson, the students will be instructed to conduct a group research project. However, before they can prepare to do so, it is important that they reflect on their lives, and more specifically, their fears, which will be done in the independent assignment as homework. By discussing fear and its expression in the brain, students will have a better understanding on why they feel scared at certain times or from certain things, people, or places. This lesson allows them to understand that fear is a universal emotion felt by most, if not all, creatures as it is in itself a survival mechanism.
questionscues.docx | |
File Size: | 123 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Cooperating Learning & Technology - Using WebQuests
Link:
http://www.station05.qc.ca/css/ecoles/stmarg/als/memphrequest/index.htm
This WebQuest fits into the unit theme because it focuses on the mythology of lake monsters. It integrates ELA, technology and biology. This WebQuest also includes major themes in biology such as evolution and ecology. Although it is designed for grades 2-5, I would modify this to challenge 8th graders by giving more details associated with the ecology of the lake and what other animal(s) the “monster” could be misidentified as. In addition, groups would be assigned and they would focus on one of the three lake monsters. If I had access to laptops or a library with computers, I would use one double-period session and another period for them to complete this WebQuest. The students would ultimately relate their findings to why it is important to be aware of possible new species and how they affect and are affected by the surrounding environment. By researching the ecological traits of the lake, the students connect animal to environment and how an animal’s relationship with the environment affects humans.
Link:
http://www.station05.qc.ca/css/ecoles/stmarg/als/memphrequest/index.htm
This WebQuest fits into the unit theme because it focuses on the mythology of lake monsters. It integrates ELA, technology and biology. This WebQuest also includes major themes in biology such as evolution and ecology. Although it is designed for grades 2-5, I would modify this to challenge 8th graders by giving more details associated with the ecology of the lake and what other animal(s) the “monster” could be misidentified as. In addition, groups would be assigned and they would focus on one of the three lake monsters. If I had access to laptops or a library with computers, I would use one double-period session and another period for them to complete this WebQuest. The students would ultimately relate their findings to why it is important to be aware of possible new species and how they affect and are affected by the surrounding environment. By researching the ecological traits of the lake, the students connect animal to environment and how an animal’s relationship with the environment affects humans.
webquest.docx | |
File Size: | 123 kb |
File Type: | docx |