Maddie Silber NancyLee Bergey Science Methods Term III Science Ms.

Settles Third Grade Class at Penn Alexander Lesson Plan Template Goals/Objectives Students will be able to classify a variety of leaves using a dichotomous key. Standards Three Dimensions of the Framework: Scientific and Engineering Practices: Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Materials and Preparation 2 whiteboard and easels and dry-erase markers lined paper flower pictures with tape on the back of them taped to the whiteboard with a piece of chart paper covering them bag of leaves or leaf pictures if needed pencils Classroom Arrangement and Management Issues I plan to perform this lesson in the third grade pod outside my classroom. I will use 3 tables set up so all students are facing me. In order to best manage my group, I will be sure to make my expectations as clear as possible. I will acknowledge our setting and the fact that there is an observer by saying, I know this is a different space than some of you may be used to working in, and there may be distractions of other classes walking by, but we need to stay focused on this lesson. Even if there are people walking by, I always know you are paying attention when your eyes are on me or on the task you are working on. The person sitting behind you is (Hope/Jake/Renata) and they are just here to observe me. Plan [5 minutes for getting settled in the pod and packing up at the end] Introduction: [4 minutes] We are going to be learning how to classify objects today. This is a practice that scientists use all the time to categorize things. But I bet youve seen some examples of classification in your everyday lives. For instance, when you go to the grocery store, you see that all the foods are arranged by category. For instance all the produce is set up together, and within the produce section, all the apples are together, all the tomatoes, etc. Can anyone else think of a time when they have seen things classified or categorized? (Book store, music store, library) Can you imagine trying to get through your grocery list in a store where everything was put randomly on the shelves? The chicken was in one corner and the beef was all the way in the opposite corner? Why is classification, therefore, important? (Because it makes peoples live simpler and keeps things organized.) Direct Instruction: [5 minutes]

We are going to create whats called a dichotomous key. Dichotomous just means divided in 2. So creating a key like this means you take a group of something and keep dividing it into categories of 2 until you each item is in its own category. Im going to demonstrate what I mean using flowers. (Show all flowers except the dahlia) Im going to start by dividing this group of flowers into two: Straight stems and bent stems. (Write out key on second whiteboard easel.) Now Im going to look at all the straight stemmed flowers. I need to divide them into 2 again. Those with purple and those without purple. Now the one purple flower, the fritillary, is in its own category. I will divide the other three straight-stemmed ones again: Those with petals pointing out and those with petals pointing in. Now the cosmos is in its own category. Now we need to divide the last straight-stemmed ones in 2 again: Those with orange and those without orange. Notice how I didnt say those with orange and those with yellow, because if we were going to add more flowers to this key, we could have a flower that doesnt have either color and then wed be stuck. So now the tulip and the rose are each in their own categories too. Guided Practice: [10 minutes] Now lets look at the bent-stemmed flowers. Can anyone think of a way to divide these into two? (Response given.) Does that work? Thumbs up if you agree. We will continue to divide the bent-stemmed flowers with student suggestions. If needed I will continue to model how I would divide the flowers. Lets add one more flower and see how we could classify it using our key. Show the Dahlia. Which first category does it belong to? (Straight-Stemmed) Now, does it have purple? (No.) Does this have petals pointing our or in? (Out.) Does it have orange or not? (No.) No we need to add one more rule to differentiate it from the rose. Take a 30 seconds and think about how you would classify this. Share with a partner your idea. Who can tell me an idea you or your partner came up with? (Add the rule.) Now lets do a final check. Lets classify the snowdrop again. Where do we start? (Go through until the snowdrop is categorized again.) Independent Practice: [12 minutes] I am going to split you up into 2 groups, 3 in each. (Risa, Ben, Finn & Annie, Eric, Stephen). You are going to each get a set of pictures of fall leaves and classify them by creating a dichotomous key. (I will advice them not to categorize by size because the pictures might not be exactly to scale. Who wants to volunteer to be the recorder in their group? (Choose 2 students) Remember that we are all working together. If you use one persons idea for one divide, use another persons idea for the second. Discussion: [7 minutes] Lets do a few tests of each groups key to make sure all the leaves end up in their own category. (If they dont, what didnt work?) Assessment of the goals/objectives listed above I will assess the students by seeing if the dichotomous keys they make work. I will also be assessing as we go by asking for students to come up with ways to categorize the flowers. I will be moving between each group while they work independently to listen to their discussions and assist if needed. Anticipating students responses and your possible responses

Management Issues I could see students potentially getting bossy during the independent practice, trying to assert their ideas over others. I will be there to mediate and encourage team participation. I will explain my expectations and ideas about what good group work looks like before they begin. I will also give stars to students (a method used in the classroom) for working well together, if needed. Response to Content of the Lesson I imagine students will find this to be a fun activity as its almost like creating a map or a game. I am a little worried about the timing of things but if I find that my flower guided practice is taking too long or they seem to get the point quickly (or start offering out ideas before I ask for them), then I might not complete the entire thing to make sure they have enough time to make their own. I will only do this if I can sense that everyone is understanding. Accommodations Accommodations for students who find the material too challenging Because this is all guided practice and group work, students who are struggling will be able to always ask me (during guided practice) or their group mates (during independent practice) for help. I might sit by them more for one-on-one help during independent practice if needed. I will pay close attention to see if everyone is raising their hand to respond during guided practice and try to get a change to call on each student. Accommodations for students who may need greater challenge and/or finish early? If one group finishes early, I will have extra leaves for them to add to their dichotomous keys. They can add more until the other group is finished. I also might ask them to check a few of the ones they already did. References: NSTA Dichotomous Key Lesson: http://learningcenter.nsta.org/files/tst0903_50.pdf NSTA Classification Blog: http://nstacommunities.org/blog/2009/02/23/classification-3/