Contextual Factors

The 6th grade class I am working with is at Central Middle School, in Cape

Girardeau, Missouri. The Cape Girardeau School district is located in the southeast part of the state, in a rural city of around 36,000 people. Recently the district was named one of the top 100 schools in the nation. Poverty status is determined for 92 percent of the population and the median family income is $44, 445. The largest percent of the work force is employed in management, professional and related occupations. The other major job type is sales and office services, and the majority of the population is employed by the civilian labor force. The majority of the population is Caucasian, and the primary language spoken at home is English.

Central Middle School has 5th and 6th grades only, with around 640 students enrolled. Around 0.90% of the school population is Asian, 29.40% Black, 1.60%

Hispanic, and 68.10% White. The school now has Title One status, as they have 50% of the school population receiving free and reduced lunches. Graduation rate is near 86% and the rate of attendance is near 95%. Student to teacher ratio is 1 to 15, and the student to classroom teacher ratio is 1 to 22. The average teacher salary is $33,424. The average teacher has around 11 years of classroom experience, and 37% of teachers have a Masters

Degree or higher.

The average per pupil expenditure is $7,220.08. There are special services offered, including; special education, early childhood special education, parents as teachers, vocational education, gifted or enrichment services, and at the high school level even AP courses. The community is involved in the classrooms and there is fund raising

1 on a constant basis for science supplies. The buildings are all well kept and there is a new high school building.

In my classroom of twenty five students, there are nine African American students and the remaining sixteen students are Caucasian. There are twelve male and thirteen female students, with the mean age of twelve. Three students receive special services and are allowed to go to the learning resource center to get help with assignments. Two students have broken arms, one with a broken leg, and another broke her tail bone a few months ago. One student has communication delays. Students are reading around a fourth grade level and the teacher designs many lessons to meet MAP expectations. Two students are reading on an eighth grade reading level, and one of those students goes to a gifted program once a week. The rest of the students appear to be at a normal level of development in areas of writing and speech.

Parental involvement is limited, but the teacher makes a great effort to stay in contact with parents. Parents come to school with problems and concerns, or parent/teacher conferences. If a student is missing an assignment they receive a letter home, and if they have below a C in a subject they also get a letter home. She begins each day by taking attendance and having each student come up to her desk if they have their weekly folder. This provides the students a chance to also speak with her one-on-one with any questions about the day. There are many other forms that she gives to students relating to behavior, so parents are constantly aware of how their student is performing.

To complement this, there is also a school wide behavior system of 10 strikes and a behavior chart is displayed so each student just pulls their card of their corresponding number.

2 For good behavior students are given a movie at the end of the month, providing they don’t have any strikes. Students also are allowed to be the line leader for recognition for behaviors such as student of the week, or simply reaching their Accelerated Reading goal. My cooperating teacher gives notes to students complimenting them on their good behavior, and these notes are sent home in their weekly folder so the parents can see as well. A newsletter is generated for the entire team of four teachers, with information in it on each subject, including special days and spelling lists.

Students spend the first half of the day on Science and Social Studies with one teacher and then they switch to another teacher to get Language Arts instruction. In the afternoon they have Math, in which they are divided into four groups based on ability levels. There is also an Accelerated Reader program implemented, and students have an opportunity to read in the afternoon after lunch. Throughout the week the children go to a variety of special area classes, including; music, P.E., art, library, and computers.

The classroom is arranged with the teacher’s desk on the side of the room, and the white board and SMART board in the front. Some students are arranged in pairs and rows, but four students are just in a separate row without a partner. This creates an environment that supports cooperative learning and sharing, but yet makes it easy to get students separated for exams and such. This arrangement also fosters social development and creates a relaxed atmosphere where students feel they can speak freely and contribute to class discussions.

There is a SMART Board at the front of the class, which is linked to a computer that students use for AR (Accelerated Reading). The teacher also has her own personal computer, so there are two computers with internet access in the classroom. A computer

3 lab is available in the library if one reserves a time. Other resources in the classroom include; overhead projector, dry erase boards (for each student), two worktables in the middle of the classroom, and a set of encyclopedias. Students are issued only a social studies and math textbook. Recently my cooperating teacher received a $250 grant from

General Electric to use in her classroom, which she is spending on a class set of dictionaries.

The most dominate learning style is Kinesthetic, but there are also a few visual and auditory learners. All the learner types are supported in the various instruction using manipulatives, visual aides, and opportunities to move around. Students work well with inquiry based science projects, and they are familiar with whole group reading and communicating their ideas. Most students are able to make well developed paragraphs, and many are able to read and interpret graphs. Students are disciplined and able to work independently, but are also mature enough to handle the responsibility of working in groups as well. The class hasn’t had any experience working on the computers on a one- on-one basis, and many have never done a web quest. Students are not very familiar with the specific names and systems of the human body; they are, however, very familiar with how the body functions together. Students are aware of how they can help maintain their body systems and are able to define organs when given a definition.

Through my unit on the human body, students will explore the body systems and how the function together. I will use cooperative learning, and in my inquiry activities I will build on students’ prior knowledge of how the body functions together. Each learning style will be supported through the reading materials, discussions, and activities.

I will allow the students with learning disabilities to go to the learning center to get help

4 with the writing activities. For the students that are reading below their grade level, I will provide vocabulary activities throughout the unit. Specially, each student will have a human body dictionary that they can constantly refer to. I will also add large words to the word wall so there is no confusion with spelling. I will assess students’ progress before, during, and after teacher the lesson. I will ask questions to access prior knowledge before, and during I will also have discussions. During the activities I will also assess informally by seeing if the students are making the correct models, and correcting misconceptions.

After the unit I will evaluate the results of my post assessment. When I notice areas that need improvement I will modify my lessons accordingly.

5 Learning Goals

Learning Goals Show-Me Type of Goal Level of Goal Standards A. The students will G 1.4-use Knowledge, Comprehension, explore the systems technological tools Performance Application, and organs of the and other resources Analysis human body. to locate, select and organize information

S 1-characteristics and interactions of living organisms

S 8-processes of scientific inquiry (such as formulating and testing hypotheses) B. The students will G 1.5-comprehend Knowledge, Knowledge, investigate how the and evaluate Performance Application, body functions written, visual and Synthesis together. oral presentations and works

S 8-processes of scientific inquiry (such as formulating and testing hypotheses) C. The students will G 3.3-develop and Knowledge, Comprehension, explain things they apply strategies Performance Evaluation, Analysis can do to keep a based on one’s own healthy body. experience in preventing or solving problems

6 S 8-processes of scientific inquiry (such as formulating and testing hypotheses)

Justification of Alignment with State Standards:

Learning Goal A: This goal is aligned with G 1.4 because the students will be doing investigations to analyze the systems of the human body. Students will use the World

Wide Web and non-fiction books to investigate and organize information about organs, and then explain why the organ is vital to the body. This goal is also aligned with S 1 because students are investigating characteristics of a human body, which is a living organism. Specifically students will do activities simulating the performance of the skeletal and nervous systems. Lastly, this goal is aligned with S 8 because students are formulating hypotheses by using their data collection from experiments related to the human body systems to understand characteristics of the human body systems.

Learning Goal B: This goal is aligned with G 1.5 because students will present information about the organs and then use that information to decide why that organ is vital to how the body performs. After reading a trade book, students will also label the bones in a human body. Since the body is a living organism, this goal is also aligned with

S 1. Students must know the characteristics of the human body (such as the nervous, skeletal, and digestive systems) in order to explain why the organ is vital to the entire body. This goal supports S 8 because students are formulating a hypothesis; specifically students will hypothesize other parts of their bodies that have nerve endings that can receive and send messages.

7 Learning Goal C: This goal is aligned with G 3.3 because students will use the simulated activities about the nervous and skeletal systems to find ways that they can keep their body healthy. They will use information gathered from discussions and the activities to create a plan of how they can keep their body healthy. This goal is aligned with S 1 because students will use the characteristics of the human body (a living organism) to decide what things they can do to keep a healthy body. Lastly, this goal is supported by S 8 because students will investigate through activities and then communicate their ideas of simple things they can do every day to help their body systems.

Appropriateness of Goals:

Development: These goals are appropriate for the students because most of the students are visual and kinesthetic learners, who need hands-on and visual activities to reach the learning goals. Since most students are in the formal operational stage, they will be able to think abstractly and reason how the body functions together. The simulated activity of the digestive systems will allow students to move and see how the body works together, and the activity for the skeletal system will allow students to feel the importance of having a skull. A variety of instructional strategies are used; including laboratory investigations, observations, the World Wide Web, and non-fiction and fictional trade books. The goals are aligned with the state standards, Show-Me standards (which are directly aligned with the national standards), and the local district standards. The goals are aligned with the science standards for Central Middle School because students are studying the body systems and applying this knowledge to understand how the body functions together.

8 Pre-requisite knowledge/skills: Students are not very familiar with the specific names and systems of the human body; they are, however, very familiar with how the body functions together. Students are aware of how they can help maintain their body systems and are able to define organs when given a definition. Students work well with inquiry based science projects, and they are familiar with whole group reading and communicating their ideas. I will build on this knowledge by using discussion and activities to reach the learning goals. By using the activities and simulations, students will have to use high order thinking to complete the tasks, and assessments will be ongoing to monitor the progress of students learning.

Other needs: There are three students with IEPs in the class, and I will allow these students to go to the learning center to get help with the writing activities. These students will complete many of the same tasks, but with the help of an aide or the learning center teacher. They will complete their goals, but according to their individual needs. They will also be assessed on the goals, but under different measures, such as reading to them or answering orally. The ESL student will have his aide with him, and she reads many of the assignments to him, which will help reach the learning goals. Lastly, the students with broken limbs can still be involved in the kinesthetic activities by participating in the non- mobile sections. All students with other needs will still reach the learning goals, but perhaps in different ways.

9 Assessment Plan

Learning Goals Assessments Format of Adaptations Assessments Learning Goal A: Pre-assessment Questionnaire of The ESL student The students will matching, true/false, will have the explore the systems listing, and short questions read to and organs of the answer questions him by his aide, human body. based on unit topics students with learning disabilities are able to go to the learning center to get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all Formative Oral question/answer students. assessment sessions before, during and after I will give more activities, as well as wait time for observation of students to answer. students’ performance during the activities about the digestive, skeletal and nervous systems.

Students will create a diagram of the The ESL student skeletal system and a will orally tell the story of a sandwich story of how the going through the sandwich makes the digestive system. path of the digestive system. Post-assessment Questionnaire of matching, true/false, listing, and short The ESL student answer questions will have the based on unit topics questions read to him by his aide, students with learning disabilities are able to go to the learning center to

10 get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all students. Learning Goal B: Pre-assessment Questionnaire of The ESL student The students will matching, true/false, will have the investigate how the listing, and short questions read to body functions answer questions him by his aide, together. based on unit topics students with learning disabilities are able to go to the learning center to get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all Formative Students will make a students. Assessment presentation of why their organ is vital to I will be helping all the human body, and students in the then all students will classroom, and add their organ (as students are allowed well as a caption of to talk to other their function) to the classmate’s during human body poster. the investigative After the stage. presentations we will have an oral question/answer session about how the human body functions together.

Post-assessment Questionnaire of matching, true/false, listing, and short answer questions The ESL student based on unit topics will have the questions read to him by his aide, students with learning disabilities are able to go to the

11 learning center to get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all students. Learning Goal C: Pre-assessment Questionnaire of The ESL student The students will matching, true/false, will have the explain things they listing, and short questions read to can do to keep a answer questions him by his aide, healthy body. based on unit topics students with learning disabilities are able to go to the learning center to get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all Formative- Oral question/answer students. assessment sessions before, during, and after all I will give more activities with the wait time for digestive, nervous, students to answer. and skeletal systems. Students will create a poster of how to help keep a healthy nervous system.

Questionnaire of Post-assessment matching, true/false, listing, and short The ESL student answer questions will have the based on unit topics questions read to him by his aide, students with learning disabilities are able to go to the learning center to get help with all questions, and I will read aloud the questions to provide clarity for all

12 students.

Pre-assessment and Post-assessment Descriptions:

To determine my students’ prior knowledge, I will administer the same formal pre-assessment and post-assessment about the human body. By administering this assessment, I am collecting quantitative data that is needed for my teacher work sample requirements, as well as guiding my lesson planning. I will use this data to modify my daily lesson plans and instructional design to better meet the needs of all my students.

The ESL student will have all the questions on the pre and post-assessment read to him by his aide. The students with Individualized Education Plans will be allowed to go to the learning center, and I will read aloud all the questions to provide clarity for the students.

The questionnaire requires students to match the organ with the function, which is aligned with my learning goal that the students will explore the systems and organs of the human body. A true/false portion of the questionnaire covers topics on two of the three learning goals; the students will explore the systems and organs of the human body and the students will investigate how the body functions together. The listing portion allows me to assess specific knowledge about the skeletal and digestive systems, and is aligned with Learning Goal A. Lastly, the short answer portion of the assessment assesses

Learning Goal C, as students are required to name a specific way that they can keep a healthy digestive, skeletal, and nervous system. Each question is worth one point on this assessment and in the listing portion students are required to write in a complete sentence or they will receive no credit.

Formative-assessment Description:

13 All of my formative assessments use a variety of learning styles, including; artistic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, kinesthetic, visual, verbal, linguistic, and logical.

Though many of my students are kinesthetic and visual learners, my assessments provide the opportunity for all types of students to progress towards the learning goals.

To assess Learning Goal A, I will have daily oral question and answer sessions before, during and after all the activities. Students will be able to discuss the answers with their partners before being called on, and I will provide ample wait time for students to actively participate in the discussions. Many of the activities involve cooperative learning, so most often students will have a partner to work with as well. Lastly, as students are completing the activities and presentations, I will observe students to make sure they are progressing towards reaching the learning goal.

When students create a diagram of the skeletal system, they are required to write the definition of a skeleton, answer two specific questions about the skeletal system, and list what organs the skeleton protects. Students are then asked to label eighteen specific bones on the given human skeleton. In this activity there are a total of 24 points possible, a point for each answer/label. Prior to completing this activity sheet, I will read aloud

Dem Bones and we will play “Simon Says,” to give students an opportunity to become familiar with the skeletal system. As students complete this activity, a skeleton will be displayed that students can touch, thus giving the visual learners an opportunity to reach the learning goal.

Students must also complete a story of the journey of a sandwich through the digestive system, to assess Learning Goal A. Their task is to follow a sandwich as it journeys through the digestive system. A diagram of the digestive system is on the

14 activity sheet and prior to writing the story, I will have students label the diagram. The criteria for the story are that it is; neat and organized, has complete sentences, and takes the reader through all of the steps of the digestive system in the correct order. On the activity sheet students are given a rubric with letter grades and prior to turning the story in they must write what grade they think they’ve earned and explain why. Doing this allows my students to self-assess and encourages students to monitor their progress towards the learning goals. The ESL student will be required to try and write the story, but ultimately he will be assessed by orally telling me the story of how the sandwich makes the path of the digestive system.

To assess Learning Goal B, students will make a presentation of an organ and why it belongs in the human body. Students are given a prompt and an organ to investigate. Students will be graded on their letter to the Human Body Corporation using the scoring rubric, but they will also present the information to the entire class. I will be helping all students in the classroom, and students are allowed to talk to other classmates as they investigate their organ using websites and books. After the individual presentations, we will have a class discussion about whether or not the organ is vital to the human body. This oral discussion also allows me to assess my students’ progress toward Learning Goal B. The ESL student will be asked to write the letter, but he will be assessed as he gives his individual oral presentation. Students with IEPs will be allowed to go to the learning center to receive additional assistance.

Learning Goal C will be assessed by oral question/answer sessions before, during, and after all activities with the digestive, nervous, and skeletal systems. After a lecture about the nervous system, students will create a poster of something they can do to keep a

15 healthy nervous system. As a pre-writing activity, we will discuss ways that one can keep a healthy nervous system, and students can write these ideas down on the activity sheet.

Individually, students will create a poster that is neat, creative, promotes a way to keep a nervous system healthy, and has a caption that explains the way in more detail. On the activity sheet there is also a rubric, and before turning in their poster students will write on it the points they think they have earned. I will make sure to explain individually the prompt to the ESL student. Doing this allows my students to self-assess and encourages students to monitor their progress towards the learning goals.

16 Design for Instruction

Results of pre-assessment:

Learning Goal A: The average score for each student was 82% on questions regarding this learning goal. The lowest score was 45% and 4 students answered all questions correctly. Since many students did well on this goal, I will make sure to spend much more time on the other learning goals and only refreshing the topics on this learning goal.

Student B took the pre-assessment as make-up work and did not do it with the rest of the class, or even at school.

Pre-assessment Scores for Learning Goal A

Student Results (%) A 91 B 45 C 82 D 73 E 64 F 100 G 100 H 82 I 64 J 91 K 91 L 91 M 82 N 91 O 100 P 82 Q 82 R 91 S 100

Learning Goal B: The average score for each student was 23% on questions regarding this learning goal. There were 5 students that didn’t get any correct and 4 students scored

17 45%, the highest students scored. Students didn’t do as well on this learning goal and I will make sure to spend more instructional time on it. I will also make posters of the organs the skeletal system protects, order of the digestive system, and the jobs of the stomach. By doing this, I am reaching auditory learners as we discuss it and I am also reaching visual learners by displaying the poster throughout the unit.

Pre-assessment Scores for Learning Goal B

Learning Goal C: The average score for each student was 5% on questions regarding this learning goal. 16 students didn’t get any points according to the rubric for this learning goal. 3 students only answered one question correctly. To help students reach this learning goal, I will make a poster with the class on ways that they can help keep the

18 digestive system, skeletal system, and nervous system healthy. By doing this, I am reaching auditory learners as we discuss it and I am also reaching visual learners by displaying the poster throughout the unit.

Pre-assessment Scores for Learning Goal C

Unit Overview

Day Topic Activity Learning Goal 1 Organs, Human Body Learning Goal A body systems Corporation, using organizer and books Learning Goal B to find information on the organ assigned, writing letter to Corporation

19 2 Organs, body Human Body Learning Goal A systems, body Corporation, functioning together presenting letters to Learning Goal B class, making a whole human body outline as a class 3 Nervous system Reading on the Learning Goal A nervous system, “Walking on Learning Goal C Nerves” activity, poster to keep a healthy nervous system 4 Skeletal system Read “Dem Bones,” Learning Goal A Simon says game, outline of skeletal Learning Goal C system 5 Digestive system Website/notes, Learning Goal A diagram of digestive system steps, write Learning Goal C story of sandwich

Activity 1:

On the first day of the unit, students will use books and website handouts to find information on a specific organ. To implement this activity I will need many books about organs and the human body. I also need the organizer of questions for students to fill out, and pencil and paper for each student to write the letter. After they find information on their assigned organ they will write a letter to the Human Body Corporation defending why the organ is important to the human body and should stay in the human body.

Students are expected to use correct grammar and explain where the organ is located, the systems of the body the organ works with, how the organ works with these systems, and list the other organs that their organ works with. Students must also describe the main functions of the organ, tell how the organ performs these functions, why the organ is important, and what would happen to the organ if it was gone. After writing this letter,

20 students will share their letter with the class and the class will vote on if the organ should stay in the human body (essentially all organs will stay). This activity relates to my instructional goals because I am able to teach information on many organs in one activity, as well discuss how the whole human body organs and systems work together.

The Human Body Corporation activity stems from my pre-assessment information that students know definitions and specific information about organs and organ systems of the human body. Since students did so well on the pre-assessment for this learning goal, I shouldn’t spend a lot of time on characteristics of organs, and this simple activity will help students reach the goal who have not yet. Some students are auditory learners and would greatly benefit from hearing the letters read to the class.

There are also a few students that are logical-mathematical students that I will reach through how they have to reason and justify why their organ will stay. Lastly, the linguistic students will benefit from using words and writing the story. All students will be formally assessed by writing the letter, using the given rubric. I will also informally assess students as I walk around the room as they fill out the organizer of questions and as students present their letters to the class.

Activity 2:

On day four of the unit students will study the skeletal system. After learning the names of basic bones of the human body skeleton, students will play Simon says. I will say the name of a bone and students will point to it or do an action with that bone. For example, I will say move your skull and students will move their head. If a student doesn’t do what “Simon says,” they have to sit down. For the first round, they will be

21 able to use the overhead of a skeletal system diagram and the second round students will have to just know the names from their memory. After playing Simon says, I will assess students on how they complete the diagram that was on the overhead, using the rubric. I am also informally assessing as students are playing the game. For this activity I will need the overhead of the diagram, an overhead projector, a copy of the diagram for each student, and a large space to make a circle. This activity relates to my instructional goals because students are learning specific information about a system of the human body.

This activity stems from my pre-assessment because not all students knew specific information about the skeletal system, specifically what organs the skeleton protects. If they know the names of the organs and the bones, then they will be able to answer those questions. Some of this activity will have to be modified for the student with a broken leg, but he can sit and play the game. Many of the students are kinesthetic learners and this activity involves a lot of movement and therefore would help them reach the instructional goal. As I say the bones aloud and then point to the bone, I am also reaching the visual-spatial and linguistic learners.

Activity 3:

On day two of the unit students will study the nervous system. After reading a short handout on the nervous system and a simulation, students will create a poster advertising a way to keep a healthy nervous system using the rubric. For the activity of creating a poster, I will need markers and large white paper for every student. For the activities prior to making the poster I will need a SMART board, computer with internet access, note cards, manila envelopes, and string. Many students were not able to name a

22 way to keep their nervous system healthy on the pre-assessment, and by creating their own poster and having the entire class’ displayed, I am helping all students make progress toward this goal. This activity relates to two learning goals, as they are investigating the nervous system, and explaining how they can keep their body healthy.

Students will be assessed using the rubric on the poster. The poster must be neat, creative, promote a way to keep your nervous system healthy, and have a caption that explains the way to keep your nervous system healthy. I will also informally assess students by discussing ways to keep your nervous system healthy prior to handing out the white paper and markers. Many of the students are kinesthetic learners, and by doing this activity of creating a poster I am reaching these learners. Students must also explain in words the way to keep your nervous system healthy, and by requiring this I am reaching the linguistic learners.

Technology:

I used the internet to find the lesson plan on the Human Body Corporation and I also used it to learn more about the human body so I would feel comfortable teaching it.

During the unit I will use the overhead projector in two lessons to make an outline and show a diagram. I will create a diagram of the skeletal to use as we play Simon says and to write the important jobs of the stomach for students to write in their science notebooks.

I also used the SMART board and World Wide Web for the digestive system day to show interactive diagrams. Since students had no prior experience working at a computer alone, I choose not to do a web quest. If I had computers available for every student and they had prior experience, I would create a web quest for students to use as they create

23 the story of the sandwich through the human body. Instead, I will put on the overhead a diagram of the digestive system to complete together before writing the story.

24 Classroom Management

During my unit I will always display excitement and have a positive attitude for the subject of science and teaching. I will also make clear the importance of studying the human body to my students’ life, by relating the material to how they can keep a healthy body. When students have a question, I will answer to clarify. If I am unsure of the answer I will find the answer for them as soon as possible. I will also use praise throughout the unit, as I walk around the room and see students are doing I good job I will make sure to tell them. As I question students throughout the letters I will always make sure to use words such as “good answer” or “great idea.”

Since my students will be switching classes to come for science and social studies, I will have a routine in place so the transitions are smooth. Students will line up in their hallway order, and follow the directions for hallway behavior (stay facing forward, no talking, and on the third square near the locker). If the other class isn’t ready, then students will wait in the hallway until the class leaves. No student is to go in the room until the other class is completely out. I will make the transitions from subjects and in the lesson smooth by having a plan prior to teaching the lesson. Before students leave, if any materials are out, the student of the week will collect papers and I will ask other students to collect any other materials. There are no textbooks that stay in the classroom, so any materials that are out are usually the materials needed from the lesson. Upon students leaving the classroom though, all materials need to be put away and the area cleaned up. If a student does not listen to directions, clean up when asked to, or bring required materials for class, there will be set consequences for misbehavior.

25 My expectations will be displayed in the class and given to the parents at Open

House to be signed by both student and guardian before being returned. The rules are; (1)

Respect self, property, school, and others, (2) Be prepared for class, (3) Follow directions the first time they are given, (4) Work quietly, do not disturb others. Besides general rules and expectations, I will also have daily expectations of morning work, group procedures, hall way, and restroom breaks that are all displayed in the classroom. A newsletter will be sent home every week and in each letter I will always have the expectations written in.

This will serve as a constant reminder for both parents and students. During daily lessons

I will also explain my expectations. For example, I will give students a rubric for every formal assessment, this way my expectations for the assignment are known from the very beginning and they are able to refer to it before turning in. I will also make sure my expectations to receive awards are clear. For example, every day at the end of my lesson I will give candy to a girl and a boy who work hard and have good behavior. I will tell students my plans of this at the beginning of the first day of the unit. Lastly, I will share my expectations with the other teachers that my students work with.

To keep my students accountable in every class, the student of the week will bring a clip board to each class they transition to. On the clip board is a chart for each student, numbered 1-10 (for each strike), and an area to write why the student received the strike.

The system that will be in place has ten steps, and each set has a consequence that both student and parent will know of from the beginning of the year when they sign for the rules and expectations. The first strike is a warning and second strike students have to fill out a paper that analyzes their behavior and requires students to find an alternative better behavior. The third strike requires students to lose movie of the month, fourth go to

26 buddy teacher, fifth noon detention, sixth after school detention, seventh ISS, and eighth is at the discretion of the principal.

As students receive a strike, the reason they received the strike is written on the clip board and they have to pull a card. In the classroom each student is given a number and a pocket chart has their number and cards in each pocket for every student. There are only four cards and each card is a color representative for each level of the strike system.

Displaying the cards in the room allows students to clearly see what level of the strike system they are on. Right next to the pocket chart is a chart with the strike system consequences.

The strike system is in place for individual consequences, but for group behavior I will put up spaces on the board that spell a prize for the entire class. During my unit, I will put spaces to spell “candy”. If the class has good behavior for the entire class period, they will get a letter until they are able to spell the whole word. Once they spell the whole word the whole class will get candy. Lastly, I will monitor student behavior during my lessons by giving the “teacher” look, standing by students, and walking around the classroom during all my lessons.

I will have rewards in place for many of the lessons. Every day I will bring candy to give to a boy and girl that I feel has worked hard and has had excellent behavior. There will also be a prize for some activities, such as when we will Simon says with the skeletal system the last person standing will get a prize. At the end of the unit if students receive an A on the test I will send a personal letter home to their parents sharing how proud I am of their accomplishment. To extinguish negative behaviors I will deal with minor infractions in a way that is non-disruptive to the class. For example, if I see a student

27 drawing during my lesson I will go up to the student and put the notebook in a place where they are unable to reach it. If a student lacks the materials that are required for class every day since the beginning of the school year, the student is fully aware of the expectation to bring required materials to class, and they will have a strike.

28 Instructional Decision-Making

Modification 1:

During the first day of teaching the human body, students looked through books and printed off material to find information about an organ. Students were also expected to write a letter to present to the class on the following day. To aid in organizing the material, students were given an organizer to fill in as they found information. One of the questions asked students what systems of the body their organ belonged to, and as I walked around the room I realized many students were listing organs instead of systems.

This helped me realize that many students had no prior knowledge of what a body system was (i.e. respiratory, digestive, etc.), and I needed to teach this concept.

While students were researching, I asked everyone to go back to their seats so I could clarify something. On the overhead, I wrote at the top “Body Systems” and under it

I wrote “organs” in a form of a hierarchy. I explain to students that a body system is made up of a group of organs that together perform a main function for the human body. I then explained an example on the overhead, the respiratory system. At the top I wrote

“respiratory system” and asked students what the respiratory system does (helps us breathe). Then I asked students what organs help us breathe (lungs, nose, mouth). To check for comprehension, I put at the top “digestive system” and invited a student to write the organs that are a part of the digestive system. After the short lesson, to reach specific individual needs, students were invited to ask questions (some did) before resuming their research.

The short lesson explaining what a body system is helped students reach the objective that they were able to write a letter to the Human Body Corporation. It also

29 helped reach the learning goal that students will explore the systems and organs of the human body. Lastly, the short lesson improved overall student progress because students actually understood why their organ was part of a system and were able to explain in their letters why their organ is an integral part of the human body.

Modification 2:

On day four of the unit we explored the nervous system. First, students read about the system and then they had a simulation of how the system worked. I choose four students, one for the brain, left hand, right hand, and spinal cord. I had a secret message that was given to the left hand that said “left hand feels itchy.” Students were supposed to give the message to the spinal cord, brain, back to the spinal cord, and to the right hand so it could itch the left hand. However, the students gave the message to the spinal cord, brain, and then the right hand. I let students finish the demonstration and then I asked the entire class if what they did was correct. The entire class agreed that their peers sent the message the correct way, which told me that many did not understand that all messages went to through the spinal cord to get to parts of the body. Since the messages were passed without communication to others, this showed me that individual students were also confused about the topic.

I had all the volunteers sit back down and I decided to teach again the main parts of the lesson. I began by showing students the diagrams in books that showed the nervous system paths. I asked students if they saw any lines from the brain to the hands, and students said no. I then reread a portion of the reading packet that compared the spinal cord to a highway because it was the main road for the entire body. I asked the volunteers

30 to do the demonstration again, and this time they did it correctly. To check for comprehension, I asked for another set of volunteers and had them demonstrate a message that read “nose is about to sneeze.” Students passed the message in the correct order and I decided to continue with the lesson.

By re-teaching a portion of the lesson, I helped students reach the objective that they were able to display their understanding of how the nervous system works by simulating a message in the body. After explaining that the spinal cord was the only way that the message could reach the hand, students were able to successfully show another simulation with a new message. This modification in the lesson helped students also progress to the learning goal that they will investigate how the body functions together.

As students sent a message through the entire body, they understood that each organ is vital to the entire body.

31 Analysis of Student Learning

Whole Class

 Pre = Pre-assessment, Form = Formative assessment, Post = Post-assessment  Pre-assessment and post-assessments for learning goals A, B, C: The questionnaire of matching, true/false, listing, and short answer questions based on unit topics.  Learning Goal A Formative Assessment 1: skeletal system diagram  Learning Goal A Formative Assessment 2: story of a sandwich going through the digestive system  Learning Goal B Formative Assessment: Human Body Corporation presentation and letter  Learning Goal C Formative Assessment: post of how to help keep a healthy nervous system

Learning Goal A Learning Goal B Learning Goal C

Student A A A A B B B C C C Pre Form Form Post Pre Form Post Pre Form Post 1 2 A 91 90 100 100 27 87 100 0 100 100 B 45 0 0 82 0 50 27 0 0 0 C 82 90 100 100 45 93 100 0 95 33 D 73 100 100 64 36 50 73 0 100 67 E 64 93 100 91 27 88 73 0 90 67 F 100 80 100 100 45 75 100 33 85 67 G 100 93 100 100 45 75 100 33 100 100 H 82 93 100 100 1 100 100 0 100 67 I 64 100 100 91 0 100 100 0 100 100 J 91 95 100 91 27 88 100 0 95 100 K 91 95 100 100 27 93 100 0 95 100 L 91 93 100 100 0 100 100 0 95 67 M 82 75 100 100 36 93 100 0 100 100 N 91 100 100 100 45 88 100 33 100 100 O 100 95 100 100 0 75 100 0 95 67 P 82 75 100 100 1 45 91 0 85 67 Q 82 75 100 82 0 75 36 0 85 67 R 91 95 100 91 18 100 100 0 100 100 S 100 100 100 91 36 93 100 0 100 33

32 Learning Goal A

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 Pre-assessment 30 Post-assessment 20 10 0 I

E F J B D H K L N P R S A C G O Q

t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t n t n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n e n e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e d e d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d u d u u u u u t u u u u u u u u u u u u t t t u t t t t t t t t t t t t t t S t S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

Summary of Progress for Learning Goal A:

After reviewing the information in the table and graph, one can see that most students made progress toward the unit learning goal A. Two students (S and D) actually scored less on the post-assessment than the pre-assessment, and one student (J) scored the same on the pre and post-assessment. Eleven students received all the points possible for this learning goal on the post-assessment, and their scores on the pre-assessment were as low as 82%. One student scored 64% on the pre-assessment and a 91% on the post- assessment, which shows significant progress towards the learning goal. All students made significant progress on the formative assessments as well, with the lowest score being 75% on any of these assessments. One student was absent during this assessment, and didn’t make up the work, so I had no data for student B for formative assessments.

Individual student progress is represented in the individual data chart, and I feel that all students made progress toward learning goal A, except students S, D, and J.

33 Learning Goal B

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 Pre-assessment 30 20 Post-assessment 10 0 I

J F L A E P S C D G H K N O B Q R

t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n e n e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d u u t u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

Summary of Progress for Learning Goal B:

After reviewing the chart and graph for learning goal B, I see that all students made progress toward this goal. Four students received 0% on this goal on the pre- assessment, and on the post-assessment three of those students received all points possible. On the post-assessment, the lowest percentage students received was 27%.

Student H, who had received 1% on the pre-assessment, had 100% on the post- assessment. Student O received 0% on the pre-assessment and 100% on the post- assessment. Eleven students received 100% on the post-assessment for this goal, and the five remaining students all showed significant progress towards the learning goal. The formative assessment shows that students were making progress during the week, with the lowest score being a 45%, and that student was absent the day I taught the lesson. To me, the students showed a great deal of progress towards this learning goal, and all students but B and Q reached the learning goal.

34 Learning Goal C

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 Pre-assessment 20 Post-assessment 10 0 I

J F L A E P S B C D G H K N O Q R t M

t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n e n e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d u t u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u u t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t t S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

Summary of Progress for Learning Goal C:

After reviewing the chart and graph for learning goal C, I determined that a majority of students made progress toward this learning goal. All students scored a 33% or higher on the post-assessment for this learning goal, excluding student B (who made no progress toward this learning goal.) Eight students received a perfect score on the post-assessment, seven students received 67%, and two students received 33%. The lowest score for the formative assessment was 85%, and student B was absent the days this assessment took place. To me, this data shows that sixteen students reached this learning goal, and three students did not reach this goal. Individual student progress is represented in the individual data chart, and all students except student B made progress toward learning goal A.

35 Learning Goal B Subgroup Data

80 Pre- 60 assessm ent 40 Post- assessm ent 20

0 Boys Girls

Subgroups:

I choose to analyze boys vs. girls as a subgroup because there are almost an equal amount of girls and boys in the classroom. The graph shows that this subgroup made almost an equal amount of progress toward this learning goal. On the pre-assessment, overall the boys had a 23% on this learning goal, and the girls had a 21%. On the post- assessment the boys and girls both scored 90%. This shows me that overall boys and girls both made significant progress towards this learning goal, and I can conclude that student progress toward this goal does not depend on student’s gender.

Individual Students:

In an effort to refine instructional techniques and meet the needs of all students, I will analyze two students’ achievement toward the learning goals. It is important to look at whole class data as well as individual achievements for the entire unit. I choose student

A because she exhibited low achievement on the pre-assessment for most of the learning goals. For learning goal A she had 91% of the questions correct, 27% of the questions for learning goal B, and she received no points for learning goal C. During the formative

36 assessments, she demonstrated progress towards all the unit learning goals. For learning goal A, she completed the skeletal system diagram and received a 90% for correctly identifying all but two of the bones in the skeletal system. She received all the rubric points for the digestive system story, which was also part of learning goal A. The letter to the Human Body Corporation is included in the appendix, and she received and 87% on this formative assessment for learning goal B. She lost rubric points for not stating the function the lungs perform, and how it performs this function. While she discussed the function in the letter, her discussion was not an accurate statement of how the lungs function together. Lastly, she received all the rubric points for the digestive system story, which was the formative assessment for learning goal C. On the post-assessment, she received a 100% on learning goal A, B, and C. Since this student was there for all the lessons in this unit, and received help from me as needed, I feel she is a good example of a student who made great progress toward this learning goal.

I choose the second student, referred to as student Q, because he received modifications during the unit. On the post-assessment, he answered the questions for learning goal A with 82% accuracy, but didn’t receive any rubric points for questions pertaining to learning goal B or C. During all of the formative assessments he went to the learning center, where an aide helped him do the assessment. The skeletal system diagram, a formative assessment for learning goal A, was 75% correctly completed. He misidentified many bones in the skeletal system, but answered all the questions on the front of the page correctly. The student sample in the appendix is the second formal assessment for learning goal A, and he received all rubric points for the story of the sandwich going through the digestive system. Even though his story was not long and

37 detailed, he wrote the steps of the digestive system in the correct order, and therefore received all points according to the scoring rubric. The formative assessment for learning goal B was completed with 75% accuracy. He used correct grammar, punctuation, but didn’t answer all the questions required for the rubric in the letter. During his presentation while he was not self confident, he did provide persuasive reasons for keeping his organ in the Human Body Corporation. Lastly, the formative assessment for learning goal C was completed with 85% accuracy, and he lost points for not finishing the coloring portions of the poster. On the post-assessment, Student Q had 82% accuracy for learning goal A, 36% for learning goal B, and 67% for learning goal C. Though he did not master learning goals B and C, he did make significant progress towards these goals.

This student had the post-assessment read to him, and I feel that this also contributes to his progress from the pre to post-assessment.

38 Reflection and Self-Evaluation

Reflection on your instruction and student learning:

After analyzing and reflecting on the unit and students’ data, I believe that one of the most effective instructional strategies was student-centered, especially when students listened to presentations about individual organs and then came to a conclusion about whether or not the organ was essential to the human body. The students worked individually to research an organ, and then presented their findings to the class. This allowed students to scaffold their new knowledge into meaningful material. Throughout this activity, students were required to formulate a hypothesis, find information, and make a conclusion before presenting the information. I believe this was an effective instructional strategy because it required students to use a higher order thinking skill, and synthesize the new information by writing a letter to the Human Body Corporation explaining why their organ should stay.

The next strategy (or activity) that was very effective was playing Simon Says to learn the bones of the skeletal system. This kinesthetic activity reinforced the scientific names of the skeleton. Since this was many students first experience with the names of the bones, it was reinforcing the lower level thinking skill of knowledge and comprehension. Students were able to look around at their peers and learn from each other, a very effective strategy according to Piaget. Lastly, I employed Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences in this activity by reaching the kinesthetic intelligence in movement, interpersonal by working with others in games, and the linguistic intelligence

39 by hearing the name of the bone. It is important to include activities that provide opportunities for all learners to excel during the unit.

Reflection on improving your practice:

The first greatest barrier in this unit on the human body was the lack of reading resources. Since there was no textbook available, I found it difficult to find materials that were appropriate for all students in the classroom. I brought in over twenty trade books that I used throughout the lesson, and they provided a lot of detailed material for the

Human Body Corporation activity. I still, however, needed more material about the skeletal, nervous, and digestive systems. For the skeletal system I choose to read Dem

Bones, a trade book that overviewed the functions and names of the bones in the skeleton system. For the nervous system reading I found in a teacher guide, but the vocabulary was too difficult for most of the students. I felt that due to the difficulty in the vocabulary, many students did not understand the information. Lastly, for the digestive system I explored part of a website on the SMART board. Even when using the website, I cut out a lot of detailed information and tried to focus on the overall concepts. I feel that if I had more appropriate material that was geared more towards the body systems, that the students’ performance would increase.

The second barrier that I encountered during this unit was time. I tried to cover a body system a day and the Human Body Corporation activity took two days to complete.

Many nights during the week students had to complete the assessments at home, and I feel that had they had more time in class to work and ask questions, that many would have produced better work. To improve my students’ performance in the future I will

40 plan three days for the Human Body Corporation activity, plan two days to explore the nervous and digestive systems, and one day for the skeletal system.

Reflection on your teaching performance:

According to the TWS standards, I supported my students learning in a variety of ways. I impacted the learning of my students by specifically using information about student differences to set learning goals and plans for instructions, using multiple assessment modes aligned with learning goals, and designing instruction for specific learning goals and student characteristics. I planned the unit according to the time frame that my cooperating teacher provided me, and taught the concepts that she wanted to cover over the week. I sent a family letter to parents at the beginning of the week, and invited them to provide feedback that was directly related to learning goal C. To obtain the amount of materials that I needed for the unit I went to the community, and borrowed trade books from the Cape Girardeau Public Library and Kent Library at Southeast

Missouri State.

Reflection on how to access specialized services:

There are several steps to be completed and criteria to be met before a student begins to receive special education services. As a teacher, if I have concerns I should begin to document intervention strategies and then a team will consult the student’s parents. If the team decides the student should have an evaluation, the parents will be notified in writing. The next step is evaluation, where information is gathered about the student in order to understand his or her nature, personality, learning style and the areas of abilities, strengths and needs. If it is determined that an evaluation is necessary, an evaluation plan is developed. Before any evaluation occurs, a written consent (in

41 accordance with the IDEA requirements) from parents is necessary. For 45 days after the consent is given, the diagnostic staff and teachers assess the child in the areas of concern.

After the evaluation phase, an evaluation conference takes place with the parents of the child, evaluators, and other individuals with significant information discuss whether or not the child meets eligibility requirements. After the criteria are met, an Individualized

Education Plan is developed for the child, and updated annually according to IDEA requirements.

Reflection upon ethical practice:

I used many sources during this unit, but I always abided copyright laws and gave credit to the sources that I found information in. If I found a lesson plan online, I always made sure to give reference to the website and author (when possible) in the lesson plan references. When using the SMART Board and websites, I also checked the websites and links the morning or night before to make sure no inappropriate material was displayed. I never referred to a student by name, except to my cooperating teacher in private. Lastly, as I collected student work for my data, I always made sure the students name was not on the material.

Reflection on possibilities for professional development:

Two areas that are critical to improving my ability to facilitate student learning are motivation and classroom management. I will seek professional growth in these areas, which are related to the TWS standard that states “the teacher uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior.” I will attend seminars at the Missouri

National Educator’s Association conference, specifically a seminar entitled “I Can Do It:

42 Classroom Management.” Seminars such as these will provide me with proven strategies that directly effect student performance.

I can also consult other teachers for ideas about classroom management and motivation. I did this often before, during, and after teaching the unit of the human body.

Other teachers can provide insight to strategies that were and were not effective in the classroom. You can also ask another teacher to observe you (while specifically looking for insight to classroom management and motivation), and then you would have direct feedback on areas that you need to improve. Lastly, you can use content textbooks and read books that can improve your performance in these areas. There are countless textbooks on both subjects that one can obtain at relatively cheap prices or ask to borrow from a colleague. It is important to always seek professional growth and always continue to learn throughout your teaching profession.

43 Family Involvement Plan

Family and community resources: - Public library – I will use the public library to find books on the human body for the Human Body Corporation activity. - Information from the Health Center at SEMO – I will go to the Health Center and get pamphlets on ways to stay healthy during the flu season, coping with stress, and avoiding drug and alcohol dependence to share with the class. - Lab technician from an area hospital – I will have a lab technician come to class and discuss her job in the health field.

Family communication: - Family letter – I will distribute the family letter that describes the unit, gives a rationale, and tells the goals of the unit. The letter also lists a suggested home activity. If parents see their child practicing a healthy habit the parent is to write the healthy habit on the form in the letter and send it back to school for five extra credit points. - Class website – I will post on the class website the family letter and activities that students can do at home for an extension of each human body system. I will also provide links for students to explore the human body more. Websites: 1. www.kidshealth.org/kid/body/mybody.html (interactive trip through the human body) 2. http://www.netrover.com/~3384mary/science/science.htm (human organ, skeletal system, and inside the human body games) 3. http://www.imcpl.org/kids/guides/health/ (provides info guides for all the systems as well as suggested books for children to read) - Letters of success – If students receive an A on the final test, I will send a personal note home to the parents telling them how proud I am of their success on the unit.

Family involvement – School-based: - I will have a Science night where I have fun activities with the human body that students and parents can complete. Some of these activities would be; 1. Simon says with the organs (students can quiz parents on the bone names)

44 2. Creating a room sized digestive system (with a copy of digestive system parts and crayons and glue to color in) 3. Reaction time activity for the nervous system (an experiment keeping time of how long it takes one to react to a hot/cold touch) 4. Blind folding guessing games for the sensory systems (guessing what food is in front of you).

Family involvement – Home activity: - Families could do the activity called “A Hard Noggin.” This supports my learning goal that students are able to name a way to keep their skeletal system healthy, and uses materials that are available at home. All students do is simply put one ball of clay inside a plastic bag and put another ball of clay under a small bowl (your “skull”.) Then you drop a book on both balls and then report what happens to each ball. When students complete this activity they can bring it in for extra credit after answering the questions.

Family letter: - The letter describes my unit and gives a rationale for studying the human body (to know how to keep your body healthy). It also tells the goals of the unit by stating what the student should be able to do by the end of the unit. There is a section asking for parents to share when they see their child practicing a healthy habit. Lastly, the home activity can be completed with materials at any household and relates to the unit. The letter is in the Appendix.