Hey, everyone! This past week my classmates and I practiced our teacher skills in a 15-minute vocabulary lesson for our Literacy course. For my lesson, I aimed to build a solid foundation about triangles in order to deepen my students' understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem. Click here if you want to critique my teacher presence and/or learn how to classify triangles based on their side lengths, and click here to view my lesson plan.
For my lesson, I focused on the following terms: scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, right triangle, and hypotenuse. I chose these terms because they are crucial to understanding the various types of triangles and how they relate to the real-world. According to “The Power of the Word,” these are important terms to teach because they are representative, repetitive, and transportive to other class projects, and make up a tolerable cognitive load.
I started writing my lesson plan after I decided which vocabulary terms I wanted to teach. I began with the rationale, which justifies the vocabulary words I chose. Then I reviewed my unit essential question and focusing questions and outlined which questions fit directly with the lesson. Next, I chose a standard from my unit to connect to. Although my lesson plan does not directly meet the standard listed, I chose it because the lesson provides foundational knowledge about triangles that students will need to meet the standard at the end of the unit.
After stating the standard, I created my objective. Once my rationale, standard, objective, and desired results were finished, I focused my attention on the learning plan. I knew that I wanted to present the terms in a clear way, so I created an Emaze presentation. I decided to briefly explain the terms leg and congruent at the beginning of the lesson so that my students could fully grasp the new terms defined.
As a future mathematics teacher, I hope to make connections between mathematics and the real-world so that my students can see how relevant math is. Therefore, I incorporated an activity at the beginning of class where students made paper airplanes and then unfolded them so that they could see the triangles made by the folds. While the students made the paper airplanes, I had them discuss where they see triangles in everyday life.
Next, I explained each vocabulary term with words and visuals. To draw connections between the individual words, I had students fill out a Venn diagram comparing isosceles and right triangles. I asked students the following question: can an equilateral triangle also be a right triangle? Why or why not? This question was posed in order to get students to use the vocabulary terms in new ways. The students then classified cut out triangles as isosceles, equilateral, scalene, or right triangles. At the end of the learning plan, I listed the assessment that the students would complete.
Throughout the process, I became more comfortable with the parts of a lesson plan. I also learned how to make activities that are relevant to the content being taught. I think that it is important to create time periods where students can engage with new material while staying away from "activity land." Overall, I enjoyed creating the lesson and I believe that I learned a lot about myself as a future educator.
The vocabulary lesson relates to Performance Criterion (P.C.) 3.1, P.C. 4.2, and P.C. 7.1. P.C. 3.1: Active Engagement says, "Candidates design learning environments that support individual learning marked by active engagement." My vocabulary lesson incorporated multiple strategies to involve students through active engagement. For example, by creating paper airplanes and discussing how triangles are found in the real-world, students learned about various applications of the types of triangles. By filling out a Venn diagram that compared isosceles and right triangles, students were able to draw connections between the two terms. Lastly, by categorizing paper triangles into the four different types of triangles discussed, students were able to work with the content in a hands on approach.
P.C. 4.2: Common Misconceptions says, "Candidates accurately address common misconceptions of the discipline." During my lesson, a student illustrated a common misconception for isosceles right triangles. She identified the congruent legs to be the hypotenuse and another leg of the right triangle. Students will often have this misconception especially before learning the Pythagorean Theorem. As a future educator, I wanted to quickly correct the misconception by explaining how the hypotenuse cannot be one of the congruent legs in an isosceles right triangle due to the positioning of the congruent base angles.
P.C. 7.1: Knowledge of Content Area says, "Candidates plan instruction by drawing upon knowledge of content areas to meet rigorous learning goals." During this vocabulary lesson, I defined and explained the terms scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, right triangle, and hypotenuse in order to meet the standard chosen. I used my knowledge of the content area to choose the terms that would increase students understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem later in the unit.
I have learned a lot about myself as a teacher in general from this process. I learned that I enjoy making lesson plans and creating interactive assignments where students can engage with the content. I learned that I am much more comfortable in the front a class than I was before this semester. I also learned that I need to work on projecting my voice as well as slowing down when explaining complicated concepts and terms.
I had two questions that I identified to my group for feedback. The first question was, "How was the flow of the lesson?" Both students said that the flow worked well and that I had transitions that made sense. One student said that my ability to answer her questions helped. The second question was, "Was there enough emphasis on the vocabulary terms?" One student said that I did a good job reintroducing the terms in new ways throughout the lesson. I was proud of this response because I wanted to explain the terms in multiple ways in case students had trouble understanding the definitions. Another student said that there was enough emphasis and that she understood the terms when the lesson was over.
I learned that teaching vocabulary in mathematics is similar to teaching vocabulary in other content areas. I think that it is important to break down the terms and explain where they come from. Using general vocabulary strategies works well for mathematical concepts and terms. I think it is important to give students time to use the terms on their own. I also learned that teaching math terms involves placing a large emphasis on making connections and/or identifying the terms in examples.
I think that I was effective at teaching the terms scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, and right triangle because both students identified the correct triangles on the assessment. However, I think that I should have spent more time with the term hypotenuse because I only mentioned the term once. When it was time for the assessment, one of the students asked me to go back to the slide explaining hypotenuse. I think that I should have also spent more time explaining how right triangles can be scalene and isosceles.
Throughout the lesson, I made connections to the students' knowledge and/or experience, provided examples, examined the content, and used images to expand the definitions. I had students interact with the words through discussions, a Venn diagram, and through organizing/classifying the terms. I think that I was effective for these reasons but I also think that there is a lot of room for me to grow.
My next step is to continue practicing in front of students. I think that being comfortable with not only my content area but also with my presence as a teacher is crucial for effective instruction. I hope to connect the material with the real-world in order to make mathematics more relevant for students. In the next lesson I teach, I will strive to have my students interact with the material. I will also push my students to question the content on a deeper level.
For my lesson, I focused on the following terms: scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, right triangle, and hypotenuse. I chose these terms because they are crucial to understanding the various types of triangles and how they relate to the real-world. According to “The Power of the Word,” these are important terms to teach because they are representative, repetitive, and transportive to other class projects, and make up a tolerable cognitive load.
I started writing my lesson plan after I decided which vocabulary terms I wanted to teach. I began with the rationale, which justifies the vocabulary words I chose. Then I reviewed my unit essential question and focusing questions and outlined which questions fit directly with the lesson. Next, I chose a standard from my unit to connect to. Although my lesson plan does not directly meet the standard listed, I chose it because the lesson provides foundational knowledge about triangles that students will need to meet the standard at the end of the unit.
After stating the standard, I created my objective. Once my rationale, standard, objective, and desired results were finished, I focused my attention on the learning plan. I knew that I wanted to present the terms in a clear way, so I created an Emaze presentation. I decided to briefly explain the terms leg and congruent at the beginning of the lesson so that my students could fully grasp the new terms defined.
As a future mathematics teacher, I hope to make connections between mathematics and the real-world so that my students can see how relevant math is. Therefore, I incorporated an activity at the beginning of class where students made paper airplanes and then unfolded them so that they could see the triangles made by the folds. While the students made the paper airplanes, I had them discuss where they see triangles in everyday life.
Next, I explained each vocabulary term with words and visuals. To draw connections between the individual words, I had students fill out a Venn diagram comparing isosceles and right triangles. I asked students the following question: can an equilateral triangle also be a right triangle? Why or why not? This question was posed in order to get students to use the vocabulary terms in new ways. The students then classified cut out triangles as isosceles, equilateral, scalene, or right triangles. At the end of the learning plan, I listed the assessment that the students would complete.
Throughout the process, I became more comfortable with the parts of a lesson plan. I also learned how to make activities that are relevant to the content being taught. I think that it is important to create time periods where students can engage with new material while staying away from "activity land." Overall, I enjoyed creating the lesson and I believe that I learned a lot about myself as a future educator.
The vocabulary lesson relates to Performance Criterion (P.C.) 3.1, P.C. 4.2, and P.C. 7.1. P.C. 3.1: Active Engagement says, "Candidates design learning environments that support individual learning marked by active engagement." My vocabulary lesson incorporated multiple strategies to involve students through active engagement. For example, by creating paper airplanes and discussing how triangles are found in the real-world, students learned about various applications of the types of triangles. By filling out a Venn diagram that compared isosceles and right triangles, students were able to draw connections between the two terms. Lastly, by categorizing paper triangles into the four different types of triangles discussed, students were able to work with the content in a hands on approach.
P.C. 4.2: Common Misconceptions says, "Candidates accurately address common misconceptions of the discipline." During my lesson, a student illustrated a common misconception for isosceles right triangles. She identified the congruent legs to be the hypotenuse and another leg of the right triangle. Students will often have this misconception especially before learning the Pythagorean Theorem. As a future educator, I wanted to quickly correct the misconception by explaining how the hypotenuse cannot be one of the congruent legs in an isosceles right triangle due to the positioning of the congruent base angles.
P.C. 7.1: Knowledge of Content Area says, "Candidates plan instruction by drawing upon knowledge of content areas to meet rigorous learning goals." During this vocabulary lesson, I defined and explained the terms scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, right triangle, and hypotenuse in order to meet the standard chosen. I used my knowledge of the content area to choose the terms that would increase students understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem later in the unit.
I have learned a lot about myself as a teacher in general from this process. I learned that I enjoy making lesson plans and creating interactive assignments where students can engage with the content. I learned that I am much more comfortable in the front a class than I was before this semester. I also learned that I need to work on projecting my voice as well as slowing down when explaining complicated concepts and terms.
I had two questions that I identified to my group for feedback. The first question was, "How was the flow of the lesson?" Both students said that the flow worked well and that I had transitions that made sense. One student said that my ability to answer her questions helped. The second question was, "Was there enough emphasis on the vocabulary terms?" One student said that I did a good job reintroducing the terms in new ways throughout the lesson. I was proud of this response because I wanted to explain the terms in multiple ways in case students had trouble understanding the definitions. Another student said that there was enough emphasis and that she understood the terms when the lesson was over.
I learned that teaching vocabulary in mathematics is similar to teaching vocabulary in other content areas. I think that it is important to break down the terms and explain where they come from. Using general vocabulary strategies works well for mathematical concepts and terms. I think it is important to give students time to use the terms on their own. I also learned that teaching math terms involves placing a large emphasis on making connections and/or identifying the terms in examples.
I think that I was effective at teaching the terms scalene triangle, isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle, and right triangle because both students identified the correct triangles on the assessment. However, I think that I should have spent more time with the term hypotenuse because I only mentioned the term once. When it was time for the assessment, one of the students asked me to go back to the slide explaining hypotenuse. I think that I should have also spent more time explaining how right triangles can be scalene and isosceles.
Throughout the lesson, I made connections to the students' knowledge and/or experience, provided examples, examined the content, and used images to expand the definitions. I had students interact with the words through discussions, a Venn diagram, and through organizing/classifying the terms. I think that I was effective for these reasons but I also think that there is a lot of room for me to grow.
My next step is to continue practicing in front of students. I think that being comfortable with not only my content area but also with my presence as a teacher is crucial for effective instruction. I hope to connect the material with the real-world in order to make mathematics more relevant for students. In the next lesson I teach, I will strive to have my students interact with the material. I will also push my students to question the content on a deeper level.
Kayla, This is a very thorough post. You describe and then justify the choices you make in your lesson plan. You make great PC connections--I especially like your thoughts about misconceptions. This is important to consider for math. I am looking forward to your application of your learning to your next set of lessons!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Kayla on your teaching of the lesson plan that you created! I enjoyed reading about the reasoning that you used to create the lesson plan. I felt that by focusing on your unit question before writing your lesson plan you made it was easier for you to connect the lesson to your unit.
ReplyDeleteKayla! My favorite PLC Partner! you did amazing! I really enjoyed seeing your version of the lesson since we did very similar lessons. I really liked your paper airplane activity for students to be able to see the triangles involved within the folds. As we both know, it can be difficult to teach math vocabulary and I think you did an amazing job!
ReplyDelete