Lesson Plan on the Example of the Elementary School Math Lesson - Essay Example

LESSON PLAN A lesson in the simplest and most basic sense refers to a categorical and detailed outline and description of class learning procedure for the classroom. The tutor or the teacher develops the lesson plan so as to guide him or her in discharging the teaching role and mandate to the students properly. In the conventional sense and aspect, tutors and teacher develop lessons plans so as to avoid any unwarranted surprises or frustrations that may accrue thereon if the plan does not progress as stipulated. Similarly, a lesson plan is beneficial since it helps the teacher or tutor to remain on track and on course without deviating from the objective. This is critical because learning process is a dynamic and involving task which may make one to lose focus albeit in a small proportion. It is also important to note and mention that a lesson plan offers a valuable guidance to the class to progress and proceed with the learning in any case the tutor or teacher may be absent. This is to say that the lesson plan provides an automatic guide and easy mode of progress even if he or she is a substitute teacher. In principle, the desired result or the total outcome stands to be realized even if the teacher is not physically present to deliver. It is also important to stress the fact that a lesson plan helps the teacher to gauge the positives in the form of a learning outcome with the aim of correcting the negatives (Tomlinson, 2014). This is to say that if by any chance there was something that was well understood by the learners or students, the lesson plan provides a framework for correcting such a situation. Conventionally, lesson plans are unique and different for each and every level of learners. It mentions that the lesson plan for an elementary school cannot be the same lesson plan that would be used for a middle school or a high school learning process. Thus, for the purpose of this essay and exposition, the paper will focus on the notion of an elementary school plan. Specifically, the Elementary School Math lesson: Bundles of Beans: A place value lesson. In principle, this is to say that this exposition will discuss the fundamental principles and tenets of the elementary school learning lesson plan. To begin with, mathematics is an interesting subject that requires a lot of attention from both the teachers and the students before any meaningful and gainful learning would occur. This is the reason as to why, it would be critical and imperative to gauge with utmost precision and accuracy the aspect and notion of student readiness. Student readiness in the brief implication refers to the current level of skills as compared to the subject and information being disseminated. In all fairness and respects, one would expect elementary learners to be green or relatively new to the subject of mathematics. Therefore, student readiness can only be pegged on the prevailing and current level of skills by the learner relative to the subject matter being discussed. In practical sense and implication, it refers to the wholesome mount of knowledge and information that elementary school learners have as far as the subject of mathematics is concerned. If the student is given bundle of beans, as the learning aid, it would be proper to first and expressly teach the learners on what the beans would represent for the purpose of this lesson. Similarly, it would be imperative to establish the level of skills of the learners in this subject: mathematics. In order to differentiate the learners, those who will exhibit a lesser degree of content familiarity would be given more attention and focus so as to bring them at par with the rest of the learners. Intuitively, the concept and notion of student interest entails the principles of background and choices. This is to mention that the academic background of the learners would be considered in this part and sector of learning process. Specifically, it calls on the family background of the learners, some of the learners may have an academic family where they were already exposed to math at home. In the same line of thought, it would be proper to gauge the interest of the learner based on the choice as an option. Choice in this respect and line of thought refers to the instance where it is a deliberate decision to learn basics of mathematics in this class. Another component of lesson plan that cannot escape attention is the student learning profile, which could be subdivided in terms of product or process (Das, Kirby & Jarman, 2013). From the outright and face value, it encompasses the intelligence quotient and ability of a learner. This specifically addresses the part of brain intelligence of a learner. Thus as a hypothetical or a prospective tutor, it calls specifically for one to discern the level of brain intelligence of a learner so as to device the most appropriate approach to use in the process of learning. For instance, in order to device the level of brain intelligence one could perceive the ease in which a person or a learner answers questions and engages in class participation. It may not necessarily be the highest intelligence quotient in the world, but rather, the relative ease with which a learner responds to issues. Innately, in order for the lesson plan to bear the maximum results and benefits, it would be proper that all the main components and benchmarks of learning processes are differentiated. This notion and logic implies that we must look for ways to differentiate content, different product and at the same time differentiate product relative to student learning profile, student interest and the student readiness. Accordingly, it is prudent and imperative to differentiate content by three major approaches namely differentiating content by interest, by readiness and by learning profile of the student or learner. For instance, a tutor or a teacher would gauge the level of engagement of the students by making them watch during discussion as tutor arranges the bundle of beans. This would imply that as the tutor arranges the beans in bundles and counting, the learners would watch and learn directly. In brief, content is differentiated in terms of interest, learning profile and readiness. In the same line of thought and breadth, it is imperative to differentiate the process of learning by use of things that would make sense to the learners. In principle, it refers to the diverse methods and avenues which would make sense to the elementary learners. For the case of the math lesson, it would be proper to allow the learners to count the bundle of beans for themselves so at to internalize the concept of math. Secondly, it would also be proper to allow the students draw the bean bundles on charts and then stick them on the walls. This would serve as a double benefit because as they draw and stick on the walls it would remind them about the same things that they would have learnt later on. In principle, this calls for differentiation of process where the intelligence and cognitive part of the learners would be involved fully. Thirdly, as a hypothetical or prospective learner, one would bring visual logic charts which would guide the students to enjoy the tenets and basics of mathematics. Visual logic charts would spur the interests of the learners so that when they see the colors change, they would be in a position to master what they would be learning while at the same time have a mental picture. It goes without saying that images have a profound impact in the learning process of the learners as compared to calculations which would just be done on the front boards. The visual logic charts would also guide the learners to draw what they would be seeing on the front wall. In terms of differentiation by content-slower students would be exposed to higher time with visual logic charts such that their intelligence would be sharpened. The drawing that the learners would do would help to increase their level of skills. For instance, continuous drawings would help them improve their level of skills so that in the long end it would equip them with better levels of skills. Similarly, fact that they would be allowed to count the bean bundles would help all the students have a strong background in the tenets and basics of mathematics. Lastly, a lesson plan must be differentiated in the form of product or the learning outcome. This is the technique that is used to gauge the level which the students have learnt and appreciated the learning of mathematics using bean bundles. In practical sense, at the end of the lesson, the tutor should give a quick quiz on what has just been learnt. This would be in recounting the bundles of beans that were just counted. This is critical to ensure that learning and gainful accumulation of knowledge would have occur proportional to each of the different groups of learners. In principle, this means that all of the learners must have some degree of ease to respond to the questions that would be asked. Secondly, interests would be established by the choices and background or foundation that would have been established during the learning process (Dettmer, Knackendoffel & Thurston, 2012). If the learners are asked questions they should have proper responses to give their tutor. In brief, they should have developed some degrees of interests and liking for mathematics after the lesson. At the very minimum they should have shown some degree and level of appreciating to work with the bundles of beans at the end of the learning process. This would be beneficial to gauge the learners who had a relatively lesser amount of interest in the learning of mathematics. The learners who had interest should also register an increase in the amount of interest in the concerned subject and learning outcome. The last form of differentiation would be concerned with increasing the learning profile or the intelligence of the learners. For instance, if learners have ease in arranging and counting the bundle of beans, implies it is a strength and thus learning would have occurred. Secondly, different test ought to be given to different learners, depending on their intelligence levels. Students who have ease in arranging and drawing on their charts would have a slightly different quiz such as could you arrange the bundles in fours then draw them. On the other hand, students who are relatively slower, may perform oral test on the visual logic such as what do they see, how many can they see or identify amongst other things. This means that strengths of learners is cemented while their weaknesses are improved. The quiz would encourage the learners and also gauge the accuracy of the learners in drawing the charts for the relatively stronger students. If an administrator visited during this lesson, he or she would find visual logic charts put on the walls of the classroom. It would be obvious that the classroom would be classified based on the things that the elementary learners would have drawn. The stronger students who would do their charts, would have them stuck close to where they sit, while the students who are relatively weaker and may not be able to do their own drawing would have the visual logic charts put and stuck next to where they sit. However, it would be common that all the students would have bundles of beans so as to help them do the lesson in a practical sense and aspect. The administrator would therefore notice each student would have bundles of beans which he or she would be arranging and counting with the progress of the lesson Conclusion The above essay has articulated and explained the chronological steps of differentiating a lesson plan based on the content, readiness and learning profile of the students. These are the basic segmentations for learners who would be in different stages of their learning process. In the same line of thought and reasoning, it has also articulated the aspects of content, product and process of lesson plans that are key. The irreducible minimum and line of thought in this paper and essay is the importance of a lesson plan for the teachers to help them achieve the learning objectives and outcomes for the learners. In details, the essay has also mentioned the relationship between the learners and what the teachers prepare. Namely, readiness-skills of learners currently, interest-background and choices and the learning profile which encompasses the intelligence of the brain of the learners. The teachers or tutors on the other hand would provide product-learning artifacts and evidence, process-means and avenues of introducing sense to the learners and content-access of materials for learning. References Das, J. P., Kirby, J. R., & Jarman, R. F. (2013). Simultaneous and successive cognitive processes. Academic Press. Dettmer, P., Knackendoffel, A., & Thurston, L. P. (2012). Collaboration, consultation, and teamwork for students with special needs. Pearson Higher Ed. Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). Differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Ascd. Read More