KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

LESSON PLAN FORMAT

Teacher Candidate:

Erin Orth and Alyssa Sedor

Date: April 2, 2015

Cooperating Teacher: Dr. Varano

Coop. Initials

Group Size:

Allotted Time: 1 hour

Grade Level: 3rd

Pollution

Section

25

Subject or Topic:

STANDARD:
4.5.3.C: Identify different types of pollution and their sources.
S4.B.3.3.5: Describe the effects of pollution (e.g., litter) in the community.
I. Performance Objectives (Learning Outcomes):
A. The third grade students will understand some sources of water pollution and
the impact it has on the environment.
B. The third grade students will be able to discuss details of the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch.
C. The third grade students will be able to describe the difficulties related to
reversing water pollution.
II. Instructional Materials
Pre-made bin of contaminated water (water with oil, coffee grinds, and various
pieces of garbage)
Video about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Guided notes sheet
Ten medium-sized bins
Water
Rubber gloves
Five Strainers
Ten small zip lock baggies
Ten large zip lock baggies
Ten spoons
Ten sponges
Twenty coffee filters
Plastic bags, cut into small pieces
The Great Class Garbage Patch worksheet (see attached)
III. Subject Matter/Content (prerequisite skills, key vocabulary, big idea, outline of
additional content)

A. Prerequisite skills
1. General understanding of pollution
2. Fine motor skills required to manipulate tool
B. Key Vocabulary
1. Debris- Scattered fragments, typically something wrecked or destroyed
C. Big Idea
1. The impact of water pollution, particularly in reference to The Great
Pacific Garbage Patch
D. Additional content
1. How scientists collect data about water pollution
IV. Implementation
A. Introduction
1. The teacher present the PowerPoint slides with images of clear water
2. The teacher will ask students to do a think-pair-share about their
observations about the water
3. The teacher will present the PowerPoint slides with images of contaminated
water.
4. The teacher will ask the students to do a think-pair-share about how the
water in these images compares to the previous images.
5. The students will have time to think about their answers, share their
answers with a peer, and then share their answers with the class.
B. Development
1. The teacher will continue the PowerPoint presentation
2. The teacher will explain what can cause water pollution and how the
students can work to eliminate water pollution
3. While the teacher is going over the PowerPoint, the students will fill in the
blanks on their guided notes sheet
4. The teacher will explain that water pollution can also be cause by debris
that has floated out into the ocean
5. The teacher will explain that any material left on the shore line or in the
water at the beach is eventually washed out to sea
6. The teacher will explain that much of this debris eventually meets up in
one point in the ocean
7. The teacher will explain that one of the areas where the debris meets is in
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and that this is a specific example of
water pollution
8. The teacher will play the video about The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
9. The students will complete the guided notes sheet while watching the
video
10. The teacher will ask questions to prompt the students to review the videos
main ideas
a. What kind of debris is found in The Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
b. Where does the debris come from?

c. How are scientists trying to reduce the amount of debris being

added to The Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
11. The teacher will discuss how difficult it is to clean water once it has
already been contaminated, referring to the images of contaminated water
from the beginning of the lesson
12. The teacher will break the students into teams of five
13. The teacher will pass out The Great Class Garbage Patch worksheet and
instruct students to fill it out as they complete the inquiry
14. The teacher will give each team a bin of clean water and a second bin full
of trash items, rubber gloves, a strainer, zip lock baggies, spoons, coffee
filters, and a sponge
15. The teacher will instruct the students to place the garbage materials into
the container of clean water
16. The teacher will explain that this mirrors The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
17. The teacher will instruct the students to use the tools they were given, to
return the water to its clear state
18. The students will work with their teams to clean the water using only the
tools they were given
19. While the students work, the teacher will announce that there has been an
issue with run-off of chemicals from a local farm, polluting the water
supply
20. To mimic the effects of run-off, the teacher will pour coffee grinds into
each bucket of water
21. The teacher will wait a few minutes, and then repeat steps 18-19 using oil
instead to mimic an oil spill
22. Along the way, the students will answer questions on The Great Class
Garbage Patch worksheet
23. The teacher will circulate and assist as necessary
24. The teacher will bring the class back together and lead a discussion about
the activity, asking questions that relate the inquiry to the information they
learned about The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
a. Did any groups perfectly restore the water?
b. Was it difficult or frustrating to work without finding a solution?
c. How do you think this experiment is similar to the real life issue of
water pollution?
25. The teacher will review the worksheet with the class
C. Closure
1. The students will paste the Guided Notes and The Great Class Garbage
Patch worksheet into their science notebooks, to be used as a summative
assessment
2. Students will participate in a Three Ws quick write to be turned in to
the teacher, to use as a formative assessment
a. The three Ws are What did we learn today?, So what?
(Importance or usefulness of the lesson), and Now what? (How

does this lesson fit into what we are learning, how does it impact
how we think, can we use this lesson to predict future lessons?)
D. Accommodations/Differentiation
1. Guided notes and detailed instruction will be provided to all students
2. To accommodate Johnny, a boy who is completely blind, his materials will
be provided is braille and tactilely.
3. Strategic grouping will be used to create groups that work well and have
both advanced and struggling students
E. Assessment/Evaluation Plan
1. Formative
a. The Great Class Garbage Patch handout
b. Teacher observations/check sheet completed during inquiry
2. Summative
a. Science journals will be collected at the end of the unit

V. Reflective Response
A. Report of Student Performance in Terms of Stated Objectives (Reflection on
student performance written after lesson is taught, includes remediation for
students who fail to meet acceptable level of achievement)
Remediation Plan
B. Personal Reflection (Questions written before lesson is taught. Reflective
answers to question recorded after lesson is taught)
How could this lesson be improved?

Are the students able to generalize information about the Great Pacific Water
Patch to the issue of water pollution as a whole?
Are all students actively engaged throughout all parts of the lesson?

VI. Resources (in APA format)

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ773hCN2sU