Teaching strategies
Group research project
Group research projects allow students to solve problems and learn by doing. It is an excellent tool for students to conduct their own research, synthesize ideas, and report results. Utilizing a group project works well to distribute the research workload, encourage cooperative learning, and promote social and emotional learning. Students will be given roles to aid group organization and a rubric on how they will be assessed.
Independent reading with scaffolding
A district-wide initiative is to increasingly expose our students to complex text. Many of my students score very low in standardized reading assessments, so I want to give them the opportunity to read about complex scientific topics but provide them tools that will allow them to be successful. Vocabulary will be pre-taught, and student notebooks will be available for scaffolding. Individual education plan (IEP) accommodations for reading will be utilized including translated text and text-to-speech.
Direct Instruction with Questioning
Much of the work will be completed through group projects and independent learning activities. The start of each lesson will involve a 15–20-minute section of direct instruction. A PowerPoint with translations will aid organization, and students will have access to the materials on Canvas, and a focus will be placed on vocabulary words. Students will complete a science notebook during this time. As I am teaching, I will use questioning techniques to increase student engagement and will have students volunteer to answer questions. I will give adequate waiting and response time, and push for deeper explanations than simple facts or yes/no.
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