Folio A

Created by: Sharla Bazen

4(j) The teacher understands major concepts, assumptions, debates, processes of inquiry, and ways
of knowing that are central to the discipline(s) s/he teaches.
Curriculum Area: [English] Language Arts
The area of discipline that I feel most competent in teaching is English Language Arts. Although ELA is
my content major, the subject of English itself came easy to me as a child and I always excelled in it. It
wasnt until Grand Valley that I actually announced any kind of direction toward an English degree
though, so for that I am eternally grateful. I had forgotten how much I loved ELA and so choosing just
one or two examples to make my work stand out was rather difficult, until I remembered that my lesson
I taught while being observed went extremely well so I decided to go with that particular lesson plan.
Artifact one is my lesson plan that I just presented for my observation at Kenowa Hills Alpine
Elementary in second grade. The lesson was surrounded on how writers SHOW not TELL in their
writing. Overall the lesson went very smooth and scholars were actively engaged throughout.
The goal was for scholars to write a few sentences using the Show not Tell strategy and to add
details (senses, emotions, dialogue, and sounds words) to their writing. Then this knowledge will
(hopefully) then transfer over to their writing in their journals and they will work on revising or
adding information to their writing, since we are publishing a piece of their writing for
conferences coming up this month.
o After I show and review one of the sentences we did last week (I Do), we will do number
one together (We Do). When we finish number one, scholars will go with their partner
to do Collaborative You Do together with their partners and will work on completing
numbers 2 and 3. Once they have completed numbers 2 and 3 they can return to their
seats and individually work on finishing and revising a piece of their writing (You Do).
Then we will all come together and will share some of our writing master pieces, and
will take one last look at our I CAN statements and the scholars will rate themselves
on how they feel they did.

Artifact two is my Oder of Operations cheat sheet that I used to make sure I stayed on track and
in order. The best teachers want the best for their scholars so I set myself up to succeed right
from the start so that they succeed right from the start.
4(k) The teacher understands common misconceptions in learning the discipline and how to guide
learners to accurate conceptual understanding.
Curriculum Area: Math/PE
Artifact three is called Math Balancers and is a Math and PE integrated lesson. Math Balancers is
one of the many integrated lessons that can be found within my PED 266 Resource Binder (1.5
3-ring binder full of resources for my future). This lesson was designed for K-2 scholars and the
purpose of the activity is to work with balancing and to integrate math concepts with PE. A
common misconception I have seen in math with a K-2 group is that anything plus zero equals
zero. This is where I would really hammer out that misconception by having them literally do it;
take zero steps and then two more (0+2=2). It is impossible to educate the mind without
involving the body. Learning is thinking and movement integrated, which is why I would attack
 the misconception by involving movement and thinking together. Poly spots will be placed all
throughout the gym on the lines. The balancing boards will also be placed on the gym lines.
o First, scholars are to find a spot on a line. When they hear the music start, they will
begin to balance and walk on the lines.
o Math fact cards will be placed on the poly spots. When a scholar comes up to the poly
spot, they must solve the math problem. [I would begin by drilling them with 0 +__=__.]
The answer to the problem will be the number of seconds to balance on one foot while
on the poly spot. The answer will be on the back of the card for scholars to check. If the
scholar gets the math problem wrong, then they must still balance for as many seconds
as the answer was. On the math card will be either the letter R: right, L: left, or B: both.
The letter signifies what foot will be the one the scholar is balancing on; both is mainly
an option for Kindergarten. The balancing boards are on the floor and make it more
difficult to balance.
Variations:
o With lower level grades use simple addition and subtraction. For the upper level
elementary, you can use multiplication and division. Once they have mastered the
cards, slowly change the math facts to one double and one single digit. To vary the
balancing component, take the boards out and have them perform locomotor activities
(walking, running, skipping, and etc.) instead of just balancing.
5(l) The teacher understands how to use digital and interactive technologies for efficiently and
effectively achieving specific learning goals.
Curriculum Area: ELA/Science/Technology
Artifact four is a Science, Technology, and ELA integrated lesson plan on rock formations
designed for fifth grade. I have included a VoiceThread of the lesson as well as a paper-based
copy of the lesson. VoiceThread is an online interactive technology that essentially records your
voice as a blog and when you submit it you will hear your recording as well as everyone elses.
The teacher would record a prompt and then each scholar would record their response and
upload it, allowing each person in the group to listen to all of the recordings (acting like a
discussion). The lesson utilizes Google Filtered, Kidblog, and an interactive learning module that
teaches about rock formations and then quizzes the scholars on what they learned throughout
the module. The teacher can set it up to have all of the scores sent to him/her and can use the
scores as a formative or summative assessment if they so desire. After the learning module the
scholars will post a blog on Kidblog.org responding to the prompt on rock formations provided
by the teacher. Then they will comment on one post of their peers which will aid in getting the
conversation going (online and will be extended in verbal discussion in class). The specific
learning goal this lesson targets is the Michigan State Standard:
o 5-ESS2-1:
Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere,
hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. [Clarification Statement: Examples could
include the influence of the ocean on ecosystems, landform shape, and climate; the
influence of the atmosphere on landforms and ecosystems through weather and
climate; and the influence of mountain ranges on winds and clouds in the atmosphere.
The geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere are each a system.]
o See Artifacts 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3 [voice clip, lesson plan, and reflection]
5(o) The teacher understands creative thinking processes and how to engage learners in producing
original work.
Curriculum Area: Social Studies / ELA
Artifact five is a Social Studies Pledge of Allegiance Unit Plan. My goal for this unit plan is for the
scholars to be able to not only recite the flag and fill in the blanks to the Pledge of Allegiance,
but more importantly, to have a deeper understanding of what they are saying and what it
means. They will demonstrate their understanding by writing about what it means to be an
American and what the Pledge of Allegiance means to them on a personal level. I plan to
achieve my goal by beginning with an engaging hook and talk about the Pledge and what they
think it means. This is when we will take the Pre-Assessment so that I can see where they are at,
before the unit begins. This also allows the scholars to look back later and see how much they
learned from the unit. After the short pre-assessment we will talk more about what the Pledge
means to us as an American through an instructional strategy called Think/Pair/Share. As a class
we will begin to pull out words (directly from the Pledge) that we dont understand; which leads
us into our vocabulary lesson. Before we begin the vocab lesson we will stop for a quick Brain
Break (this can last for 30 seconds or 3 minutes depending on how much time you feel your
scholars need: longer than 3 minutes will make it harder to pull your scholars attention back in
though.) The vocab lesson will be connecting the new words to words already known, because
true understanding comes from making real and meaningful connections [to prior knowledge].
After we feel comfortable about the vocab we will move on to the three lesson plans. After
many activities and the three lessons, it is time to see what the scholars have learned!
Throughout the entire unit (and year) we will be learning to correctly recite the Pledge of
Allegiance as a class and by the end of the unit will understand why the Pledge is important on
an individual level for each American. The end of the unit calls for the Post Assessment: the
same exact fill in the blank that they filled out at the beginning of the unit and then on the
bottom or back of the page they will give at least one explanation as to what it means to be an
American and what the pledge means to them on a personal level. This should be a breeze for
them, but it will also show me if I taught the material well enough and gave enough examples,
practice, songs, books and activities for them to fully understand what the Pledge of Allegiance
means to us as American citizens. Creating conscious citizens starts at a young age. Since we
require our scholars to say the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of each day, it is vital for them to
understand what they are saying and why they are saying it. It is also important to teach them
how to be a devoted patriotic American citizen. This can be done by teaching about the
documents that freed us, the values and principles we hold as Americans, and the songs and
ways we celebrate our country. Our country is a rule for the people and by the people, therefore
dont you think it is important to educate our younger generations as soon as we can so that
they can be well educated about their country and their rights?