Blog #7: Engineering Lesson

On Tuesday, Amanda, Lisa, Alicia and I taught an engineering lesson in a small group with four kindergartners. Our lesson focused on standard K-2-ETS1-2 that states, “Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.” This lesson had the students build a model house based off of the story, The Three Little Pigs. We integrated our lesson by incorporating literacy and science. During this lesson we read to the students the children’s book, The Three Little Pigs. This story was familiar to all the students, but we wanted to make sure the students knew the three different houses that were in the story and the materials that were able to withstand the big bad wolf. The students then used the variety of material provided to build their own houses that could withstand “the big bad wolf” or hair dryer.

When reflecting on how the lesson went, I think that the lesson went well and the objective was accomplished. What I think we did well in our lesson was how we accommodated for the ELL students or all the students in the small group. For example, The Three Little Pigs book was bilingual. If a different teacher that was bilingual was teaching this lesson, the teacher could use what she knows about the group of students to see if  reading the story in English or Spanish would more beneficial. By observing the students as Lisa read the story, I was able to see how well they could answer the guided questions. I could tell that the students were able to follow along in the story and its important details. Another way that we accommodated for the ELL students is by including many visuals and a hands-on activity that lined up with the standard. In this lesson, students were using the examples in the texts to test materials we provided to have the students build their own houses.  In addition to what went well in our lesson, I also would change some parts as well.

If I were to teach the lesson again I would have included more materials for student to build their houses with. For example, I would include lighter materials that would not be able to withstand the blow dryer in order to give students examples of less strong materials. I say this because in our lesson, all four of the houses that the students constructed all were able to withstand the blow dryer. We had planned to ask the students, what objects are the most strong and which are the least strong. It wasn’t until Amanda quickly constructed a house out of straws that a model house blew over.  After that example the student were able to answer the guided questions correctly. I learned from that example that the lesson may not go as planned, but it was a good that we were able to be flexible and think of an idea on the spot. When constructing their houses, it was helpful to have one-on-one attention with the little amount of kids in our small group. That allowed all of the teachers to see the student thought process and get to know the students better.

Throughout my time at Brigham, I had an ongoing goal that I tried to accomplishing as I spent more time in the classroom. My goal was to get to know the ELL students in order to accommodate for their needs. I think that teaching in a small group helped me get closer to my goal. After planning and teaching the lesson, I am able to check to see if my accommodations for the students were effective and beneficial. After observing the students engagement, I think that our planned accommodations were appropriate for the ELL students. Throughout my ISU classes and clinical experiences, I feel that I am now more comfortable teaching ELL students and know effective teaching strategies. I do think that I have more to learn as a student’s teacher, but feel my Brigham experience contributed to my confidence in the classroom. I am glad that I was able to get an opportunity to work with ELL students and realize that it is not as intimidating as I expected. 

Here is a blog link to our engineering lesson idea: http://sewingschool.blogspot.com/2011/01/he-huffed-and-he-puffed.html

Here is a link to more engineering lessons for kindergartners: http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=kindergarten%20engineering%20lessons&term_meta%5B%5D=kindergarten%7Ctyped&term_meta%5B%5D=engineering%7Ctyped&term_meta%5B%5D=lessons%7Ctyped

Exceeds: I wrote a 700 word blog. I also included a link to more kindergarten engineering lessons and included a link to our lesson plan idea.