Biology Common Lesson Plan NAME _________Katie Morehouse________________DATE____04/09/14_____ Activity Name: The Cycles of Life Unit Grade Level

of children: 10th Grade; Developmental Level- 1st to 4th Major Concepts to be covered: Water Cycle, Oxygen & Carbon Dioxide Cycle, Nitrogen Cycle, Pollution Solutions, Greenhouse Effect. Materials, Resources and Technology needed for the lesson: Charts: Evaporation and Weather Weather in a Cup print out (see in unit documents folder) o Two clear cups o Food coloring o Shaving cream o Water o Worksheet Bill Nye Video: Pollution Solutions (23:01)

Rationale: J has a cognitive disability with an IQ of 50. His zone of proximal development is around a 1st- 2nd grade level. For this reason Biology is being done at the fourth grade level. His Individualized Education Plan highlights needs in phonemic awareness, sight word recognition, and fluency. These directly affect his reading comprehension because if you cannot read a word correctly, you will be unable to understand the meaning of that word. For this reason the teacher reads aloud the chapter materials and questions on assignments. According to NICHCY immediately providing feedback helps the students make a connection between their answers, behaviors, or questions and the information. Adequate time is given to J to work on assignments in class so that he can have immediate feedback for questions and reinforcement for correct answers. Many of the abstract concepts in Biology take longer for J to understand and extra time is given for review to help reach mastery of key concepts. According to NICHCY students with intellectual disabilities learn best when instruction involves concrete, observable information rather than the abstract. For each chapter the teacher utilizes videos, figures, and images to help make many of the ideas more concrete for the student. To create personal connections to the material in this chapter, the teacher relates the life cycles to how they affect life on the farm. Js post-secondary goal is to work on his family farm so this information will be beneficial for his future career as a farmer. Objectives: Standards-National and/or State- Third Grade Nature of Science- Indicator 2: Apply the skills necessary to conduct scientific investigations - Fourth Grade Physical Science- Indicator 1: Describe structures and properties of and changes in matter.

o 4. P.1.3 Students are able to differentiate between the states of matter caused by changes in temperature using water. Fourth Grade Earth Science- Indicator 1: Analyze the various structures and process of the Earth Systems. o 4. E.1.1. Students are able to describe the basic stages of the water cycle o The student will create a model of the water cycle

Observable Objectives- The student will o Explain the water cycle verbally o Create a model of the water cycle o Chart the weather each day during the course of the unit. o Explain the importance of the oxygen and carbon-dioxide cycle o Describe how bacteria change nitrogen into nitrates for other organisms o List at least two pollution causes o List at least two pollution solutions Assessment: - Pre-Assessment is a verbal assessment of the vocabulary on the first day of the unit. This gives the teacher an idea of how much the student knows prior to beginning the chapter and allows for the student to practice his conversational skills by asking and answering questions. - Charts for the weather and evaporation level - Chapter worksheets - Completing labs and discussing them - Chapter Review worksheet - Chapter Test

Procedure:
Teaching Strategies: - One-on-One instruction - Verbal praise for staying on-task and engaged in the lesson - Immediate feedback - The teacher reads aloud the material to aid with comprehension - Images, Figures, and Videos to make abstract concepts more concrete Anticipatory Set - The student will chart the weather - The student will chart the water level Input For this unit the student will need to have prior knowledge of ways to describe weather (sunny, cloudy, rainy/snowy) which help make connections to key terms in the water cycle. The student needs to previously know the process of photosynthesis which plays a large role in the oxygen and carbon dioxide cycles. For the nitrogen cycle the student needs to previously know that the digestive system is the breaking down of food and the process that plants use to get nutrients. Students need to previously know that pollution is bad for the environment.

Model For the experiment follow these instructions: 1. You will need 2 plastic cups. Fill both of them with water to the top. 2. In the first cup place shaving cream on top of the water. Place the label that describes the first part if the water cycle. 3. Then add food coloring into the shaving cream until it starts to fall down into the water. Place the label that describes the second part of the water cycle. 4. Now in the second cup you will need to add a little food coloring to make the water blue. 5. After the water is mixed set this cup outside in a sunny spot. Leave it there and return to check it at the end of the day. 6. Label the cup with the last step of the water cycle. - Discuss the water cycle and how the shaving cream is clouds (condensation), the food coloring is rain (precipitation), and the bottom of it is accumulation. - Watch the Bill Nye video. Check for Understanding - If the shaving cream is clouds, what is the name of that step in the water cycle? (condensation) - If the food coloring is rain, what is the name of that step in the water cycle? (precipitation) - If the rain is gathering together, what is the name of that step in the water cycle? (accumulation) - What happened before condensation? (precipitation) Guided Practice/Independent Practice - The student will complete a worksheet about the weather in a cup experiment. The teacher will read aloud the questions to the student. Closure (Finish) The teacher will review the learning objectives with the student. At the end of class the teacher will ask the student: o What are three types of pollution? o What are three solutions for that pollution? Modifications for special needs or cultural differences: This unit is designed for a student with a cognitive disability. Adequate time is given in class to work on assignments to provide immediate feedback for questions. Videos, images, and figures are utilized to make abstract ideas more concrete. Written material is read aloud because Js listening comprehension level is higher than his reading level. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Complete after the lesson is taught. Analyze the learning experience ReflectionAlways check materials before beginning the lesson! For this lesson we had to use green food coloring because the blue was all dried out. Luckily we were still able to do it! This is

typically geared toward younger learners, but because of Js learning level I hoped this would be fun for him. He really seemed to enjoy this activity and it made details behind the water cycle more concrete. After this experiment, he began to fill out the weather chart more quickly. This I believed was a result of having a chance to observe and create hands-on a mock water cycle. J scored 100 % on his worksheets for this lesson. He was able to name three causes of pollution and two solutions for pollution by the end of class. Upon reflection, I feel it was beneficial for J to create his own water cycle and hear from Bill Nye about pollution.