Teaching Strategies
Correct teaching strategies are very important in making sure that the students are comprehending what is taught. There are many strategies that can be used, which can be modified for this unit when needed. For this unit, students will be required to be Teacher will use teaching strategies that will guide students to learn the most effective way. Here are some strategies that is incorporated into the unit lesson and a brief description to help one understand it.
Questioning and Experimenting (Higher Order Thinking Skills)
Bloom taxonomy is a concept of education reform that guides students to higher level thinking. Students vary a different level in the classrooms, teachers lean on these taxonomies to level students’ academic performance. According to Bloom’s Taxonomy, students learn best by taking them step-by-step from lower to higher level thinking and doing. The first step of the taxonomy is basically to understand and identify concepts. For example, naming objects such as flower parts, but not go into depth. The goal is to get to the level to where students can apply and create to problem solve. Teachers use questioning skills to be able to adjust to the level of the students. The goal is to get them to a higher-level thinking based on the taxonomy. In this unit, teacher will begin at a lower level to basically identify then to applying knowledge. As student progress in the activities, students too will begin use questioning skills in their assignments.
Visual aids or Nonlinguistic representation
Providing visual aids and using visual aids when teaching helps support learning for the students. This strategy enables students to conceptualized through metal images, physical models, and pictorial representation. Students that are ELL (English Language Learners) benefit the most and is very helpful in comprehension. If students cannot grasp the concept through auditory, the visual aids support them to make connection. Research supports that using visual aids provides interest, motivation, provides and establishes learning through thinking and ensures long term memory or knowledge through experiences. Students will remember the concept of what is being taught and make the connection. In this unit, students will be looking at some pictures from NASA, and or watch video to learn about space. Students may create an exoplanet to explain their character’s home and make a model of a hogan to understand the cultural perception of the universe.
Connect to Reading and Connect to real word situation
Through three strategies of making connections, students have to make meaning of what they are learning about. In addition, making real world connections will be more meaningful when learning a concept. Teachers need to make the connection of what skills or objectives they are teaching and give the “why?” to make it relevant and meaningful. The three strategies of making connections are: making Text-to-Self Connection, Text-to-Text Connection, and Text-to-World Connection.
As students are reading or listening to text read aloud during the lesson, the teacher will pause and have students make connection with the text. Through the lesson, the text or the information shared with students will be evaluated by students so they understand the purpose for the lesson. The students will be reading several children books to make a connection with from text to real world about space. Furthermore, lessons tied to the student’s background knowledge or familiar ideas or topics makes it more meaningful. For this unit, using the cultural perspective will make it more meaningful for the students.
Quick Talk; Quick Writes and Reciprocal Teaching
Through this lesson, students will make connections as they go along through the lesson. The teacher using the reciprocal strategy to help students think through questioning. The questions asked by the teacher or students allows the learner to comprehend what is talk. As students learned new concept, students can talk with partners or groups and write what they have learned. The students can be in the teacher role and share his or her knowledge to the rest of the group. For this unit, students can have conversation with parents, grandparents, or gain information from a text or video, they will be allowed to share their knowledge. For students, it also build confidence and build pride in their reading. Sometimes, they can’t wait to share because they love to talk.
Graphic Organizers
Use of cues and graphic organizers is a teaching strategy that is very helpful for students. It ensures the learner to focus and maintained important information or data. Using graphic organizers provides steps to recall and even mentally picture what concept was taught. It also helps compare different scenarios, topic identification, creating a mental picture, organizes the thinking process. Graphic organizers also provide experience similar to hand-on project. For this lesson, students will use KWL chart, Venn diagram to compare and contrast exoplanets to earth, and concept map. In addition, when sharing students can always refer back to their notes or organizers.
Grouping and Cooperative Learning
Using grouping allows students to be engaged and feel safe. Teachers can organize students into groups and creates roles so all students can participate. At times, teachers see students who shut down because they feel infuriated by teachers, they do not want to say anything so they lose a lot of learning time. Schools believe in-all students can learn and so leaving out students because they feel intimated will only make the student worse. To feel more comfortable, they relying on their own peers when they want to share and talk. Teachers also need to be aware on how to group students, hence, they have to preplan on how to group strategies such as pairs, tri, or whole group. Establishing grouping by creating variation of ways to group is fun for the students. Such as, name them by superhero names, by size, by gender, etc.
Differentiated Instruction
Students learning ability level varies. Some students need a different approach such as hands on or 1-1 approach. So teachers need to differentiate instruction on a lesson based on the student’s need. Students who are English Language Learners or Exceptional students are better instructed by modifying lesson in different ways. Differentiating instruction will meet the needs of all students. Students will comprehend and get to the required level of comprehension as they receive instruction from different perspectives. In this unit, especially if they are learning a lot of science information, some of the instruction maybe repeated if students are lost or confused by your quick assessment in checking for understanding. This may mean making lessons easier or adjusting at different level of language, worksheets, or presentation.
Technology
Technology use includes laptops, smartboards, tablets or even document camera. In addition, watching videos is a part of technology integration. Teachers use technology to connect to learning objectives. If students are unable to take a field trip outside of earth, the next best way is to do a virtual field trip. For this unit, the use of photos, videos and interactive games will be through NASA website. In addition, researching and creation of characters can be done through technology.
Gradual Release of Responsibility
Gradual release is a great method to use for teachers when students start of on ground zero. If new information is release to students and having student start applying can be difficult and confusing. You may get the result you didn’t expect after an hour of lesson. Gradual release model is just that, teacher gradually releases students to independency after teacher models and guides the students through the lesson. It involves teacher to first model, then work with students together by helping them or guiding them, and to finally releasing students to work on their own based on the demonstration that is modeled by the teacher. This model also referred as “I Do, We Do, and You do”. This is a joint responsibility between the teachers and the students.
In addition, the model can be shifted in reverse and start out with the students. That strategy begins with the students questioning by teacher presenting a simple statement. It opens up conversation of what the students know, i.e., prior knowledge. For example, for the lesson, I will begin with the statement, how did we get here on this planet? Where do we live and how do we live? Or We live on a planet that supports life. Students then in groups or pairs engage in a conversation that leads to many curious questions. Then students choose to learn, rather than teacher starting out all the time. It sounds sort of like a hook, but this allows students to engage more in conversation and take ownership of their own learning.
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