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** 7. Teachers are able to plan different kinds of lessons. ** The teacher organizes and plans systematic instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, pupils, the community, and curriculum goals.

Evidence 7:

Rationale 7: This lesson was created and used with my 8th grade classes. Towards the end of the school year my teaching partner (a language teacher) and I developed this unit as a way to allow students to work outside of their textbooks while still using practical math skills and learning new technology skills as well. In this unit the students planned a road trip. (Portions of this unit were done as part of the students language class.) They had to do comparison shopping for their car, plan a visit to a destination in each region of the U.S., and calculate all mileage and fuel costs for their trip. This particular lesson focuses on teaching the students how to organize their information into an Excel spreadsheet and set up formulas in Excel to perform their calculations for fuel costs. All of the calculations had previously been done with worksheets and calculators so they could see that the formulas work. They also practice representing their information visually by making graphs and charts in Excel. The lesson was a great way to get students practicing functions in a spreadsheet. Some of them had previous experience with this and others had none.

As a teacher I feel this lesson is important to my growth in many ways. I developed this at a point in the school year when the routines had become monotonous for my students. Finding a way to use the curriculum and get them out of the textbook was crucial to the success of all of my students. Also, this lesson was part of a unit that challenged me to show students more ways that mathematics are used in a realistic setting. My students enjoyed the project and many of them commented on how they were going to save their projects and use them someday for a real vacation. Some other students said they were going to show their parents and use a log for their own family vacations this summer. I feel that this enthusiasm shows that they made a connection to learning math that will stay with them for a long time.

KSD

7.K.2. The teacher knows how to take contextual considerations (instructional materials; individual student interests, needs, and aptitudes; and community resources) into account when planning instruction that creates an effective bridge between curriculum goals and students’ experiences.

At the end of the school year my students have a hard time staying focused on their work. They are thinking about their plans for the summer instead. By allowing them to be creative and plan a project around their own interests and experiences of summer, the unit gets them excited about their work and at the same time allows me to hit important parts of the curriculum.

7.S.2.: The teacher plans for learning opportunities that recognize and address variation in learning styles, learning differences, and performance modes.

Planning this lesson as part of the unit ensures that I am addressing differences in my students learning. Some of them learned by doing the worksheet/calculator work. Others are beyond that and learn better by experiencing how to make technology work for them. Showing information on graphs and tables allows the more visual learners to make connections with the work they have done.

7.D.2.: The teacher values planning as a collegial activity.

Planning this unit with my teaching partner was important to the success of the lessons. By combining the content areas we were able to make a more meaningful experience for our students.