TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines

Lesson Plan Template

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Title: Content Lesson Plan with Internet Author: Chris Roe Proficiency level: _____ Beginning __x___ Intermediate _____ Advanced

Grade level Higher education – student teacher preparation Teacher Education

Skills Please check all that apply and mention related subskills (e.g., Speaking/pronunciation, or Reading/scanning): __x___ Reading __x___ Writing __x___ Speaking __x___ Listening __x___ Grammar __x___ Vocabulary

Related subskills ________________________________ Related subskills ________________________________ Related subskills ________________________________ Related subskills ________________________________ Related subskills ________________________________ Related subskills ________________________________

Content area Please note content or subject areas that may apply (e.g., literature, social studies, science, technology, economics, mathematics, life skills, art, health, English for specific purposes, English for academic purposes, etc.). ____Any Content area_______________________________________

Objectives o

Students will be able to create lesson plans based on standards to include the content area desired and use technology to enhance student learning. Differentiation must be included to accommodate all learners’ language skills and academic needs in order to make the content comprehensible.

Duration One class period.

Materials and technology Cards with varying language levels and special needs to represent students’ learning needs Computers connected to internet

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TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines

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TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines

Include worksheets or other documents for this lesson and specify any technology needed. You can insert them here or upload them as separate documents.

Procedure

One activity I did recently in my Social Studies/Visual and Performing Arts methods class was as much fun for me as it was for the students. Since technology is a part of every student’s life and a required part of our program, this activity was right on target for listening/speaking/reading/writing skill development and content instruction. Their group 3

TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines work turned into great lesson plans that could be used in classrooms the next day. Also included in the lesson plan were accommodations for English learners and special needs students, which are also part of our Teacher Performance Assessment exit exams in California. At home reflections capped off the evening and were posted on the discussion board of BlackBoard. I have one class per semester where we meet in the computer lab and spend an hour or two surfing websites that relate to our topic of social studies or performing arts. We have explored Google Earth in the past as well as any number of sites that would be of interest to students in the K-6 classroom setting or that are a part of the unit my credential students are preparing for their final class project. Prior to coming to class, students had to research six websites that related to our class and bring them in with a paragraph descriptor of each. On this night, students were asked to bring their laptops to class to bring this activity to the next level. Of the thirty students, nine laptops were brought to class. Groups of three were formed (one group used mine) and we were underway with the lesson plan. After a brief introduction, I handed out this assignment sheet for them to begin their surfing activity. It read as follows: Web Exploration: Tonight, you are going to explore a website and design a lesson plan related to the site, then, modify it based on the ability level of the persons you are focusing on for their special needs and English learner status. I have prepared cards with English language levels and special needs populations. First: In groups of two or three (depending upon the # of lap tops we have tonight) you are going to visit a few of the sites you brought and share your favorites. Share with your group why you liked a particular site and how it would relate to our course and the learning needs of the specific population. Next: You are going to decide on the website you want to create a lesson plan around. Using the 5-step lesson plan form provided, write out the lesson plan as you would teach it to a class of the grade level you choose. Then: Address the special needs and English learner you have as part of the lesson plan. What accommodations will you make for these students? How will it differ from the instruction for the rest of the class? Will there be an alternative assessment? Finally: Share out what you have done (briefly) that will make the content comprehensible for the English learner and special needs student. And then: Write a reflection to post on BB about this experience. What did you learn? Why did you need to do this? How will it make you a better teacher? What did the English learner do that was different from non-English learners? What was 4

TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines different for the special needs student that students without special needs would do? Submit this by Friday. Each group was given a language level card, based on the California English Language Development Test (CELDT) results from Beginning through Advanced. The groups were also given a special needs card representing a student’s need in either reading or writing. The lesson was successful on many points. Students were engaged throughout the activity because of the discussion of their website choices, the lesson plan writing and formulating the accommodations for the English learner and the special needs student. A sample of a lesson plan from a colleague (below) reflects the inclusion of all points discussed in class. This lesson can be adapted to any content area for teacher preparation programs. The fact that they were able to engage with technology, people and create a product made for a very enthusiastic class with positive, productive results. Assessment The written lesson plan submitted by students was required to include one strategy for English learners and one strategy for the special needs population. The written reflections, below, testified to the power and significance of this assignment.

Student Comments: “This activity was a great experience both for learning to use internet resources and for writing a lesson plan that includes adaptations for both ELs and students with special needs. It made me think about what particular students would need.” “Our group struggled quite a bit with the format of the lesson plan because it (lesson planning) was something we were not familiar with. We made it much more difficult than it needed to be.” “We had a student who had trouble reading because he had vision problems. Some solutions we came up for this issue were to make sure he wore his glasses, make the font on the website larger, and possibly having one member of the group be the one to read everything out loud.” “…Another aspect that I liked about this lesson was that my group incorporated meaningful activities that used technology. Since most Americans live in a high-tech environment we believe that it's important to start building students knowledge about computers and other types of technology. That's why my group wrote a lesson where students would read an article online, watch a related online video, and then answer a worksheet that was also found online.” Extension or Follow up References Useful links

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TESOL Resource Center – Resource Templates and Guidelines

[email protected] - lesson plan resource

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