Inquiry Lesson Plan Template (with Four Ways of Thinking connection)

Content & Title:

Grade Level:
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
4th Grade

Teacher:
Ana Pena
Standards:
4S C3-G4 PO4 -Describe ways in which resources can be conserved (e.g., by reducing, reusing,
recycling, finding substitutes)
Objectives (Explicit & Measurable):
Students will Identify and describe the difference between recycling and reusing materials.
Students will demonstrate how we can improve the environment by reducing, reusing and recycling
materials.
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable Assessment: formative and summative):
(Formative) Students will be assesed with an oral presentation relating the topic.
(Summative) Students will be measured with an oral presentation ralting to the topic.
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (steps that lead to completion of objective; sequence from simple to more complex):
Students will be able to identify the difference between recycling and reusing materials.
Students will be able to describe ways that recycling and reusing materials can improve the
environment.
Students will be able to demonstrate ways that we can improve the environment by reducing, reusing
and recycling.
Lesson Summary and Justification: (summary gives detailed information about what students are doing.

Justification why is this lesson being taught)

During this lesson, students will learn a better understanding of how futures thinking plays a role in our daily
lives when trying to achieve a better environment for our future. This is important for students to know
because it relates to their every day lives. It is also important for students to understand how we can improve
the environment by reducing, reusing and recycling materials.
Background Knowledge: (What do students need to know prior to completing this lesson)
Prior to completing this lesson, students need to have an understanding of the process of reduce, reuse and
recycle.
Misconception: (what possible misleading thoughts might students have?)
Students may believe that recycling and reusing may not have a big impact when they grow up. Students
may also have difficulty accepting that they can help the environment by reusing, reducing and recycling.
Process Skills: (what skills are you introducing or reinforcing)
Students will be introduced to the difference between recycling and reusing materials by locating information
from a video, books and computers through investigation. This may also be extended so that students could
bring old books that they no longer need into class. Then, Students could swap books.
Four Ways of Thinking connection: (Provide a complete explanation of how your lesson plan connects to futures,
system, strategic, or values thinking. Define the way of thinking you selected and used in this lesson plan. Remember, this
should be included meaningfully in the lesson plan.)

This lesson connects to futures thinking and values thinking. Values thinking is when we view the effects
that our values have on our decisions. Futures thinking is a way of thinking about how the past and the
present has an effect on the future. Students will learn a better understanding of how futures thinking play a
role in our daily lives when trying to achieve a better environment for our future. Students will be asked to
perform an oral presentation relating to the topic and they will also have to relate how the topic will affect
the future.
Safety: (what safety rules and items need to be addressed?)

Students will be given a brief overview of how to always be respectuful of the environment that surronds

them. Including their peers.

Inquiry Questions: (testable in the here and now.)
1. (to explore) What does reduce, reuse and recycle mean?
2. (to elaborate) How does reducing, reusing and recycling help the environment?
Key vocabulary: (list and define)
Materials: (list item and possible quantity)

Different found objects, such as movie stubs,

1. Reducing is to use less of something.
empty
egg cartons, cereal boxes, fabric, ribbon,
2. Reusing is to be able to use again.
food
wrappers
and containers, old t-shirts milk
3. Recycling convert (waste) into reusable
cartons, empty paper towel and toilet paper rolls,
material.
string, glue, and markers.
4. Resources is a source or supply from which a
benefit is taken out of it.
5. Environment- the surroundings or conditions in
which a person, animal, or plant lives.
Engage - In this section you should activate prior knowledge, hook student attention, pose a question
(IQ#1) based on your lesson objective that students will seek to answer in Explore.
Teacher Will: (hook)
Students Will: Describe and explain the
importance of recycling.
Teacher will say Do you know why we should reuse,
reduce and recycle? Today we are going to learn what
happens to everything that you throw away. And why
we should reuse, reduce and recycle. Teacher will then
introduce the objectives. Teacher will then use a short
video about a landfill to show students where
everything that they throw away ends up.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
Students will be paired according to Spanish ability in order to give support to Spanish Language
Learners.
The amount of writing required of Spanish Language Learners is less than that of more fluent writers.
Explore - In this section students should take the lead and actively use materials to discover information
that will help them answer the question posed in Engage. Teachers may choose to give steps to follow,
especially for younger students, but the goal is for students to discover some or all of the sub-objectives of
the lesson.
Teacher Will: (pose IQ #1)
Students Will: (list all steps)
Teacher will state the question Do you know why we
Students will get into groups.
should reuse, reduce and recycle?
Students will use various recyclable materials to
Teacher will then use a short video about a landfill to
build up something else that can be reusable and
show students where everything that they throw away
usable.
ends up.
Students will also give an oral presentation on how
Teacher will then ask students to gather information
and why they built their artifact relating to the
from prior day and from books that teacher will
topic of recycling.
provide about ways that they can reuse, reduce and
recycle.
Teacher will break students up into groups.
Teacher will ask students to build up something that
can be reusable from with varius recyclable materials
that teacher will provide.
Teacher will give students about 15 minutes to work on
their projects.
Teacher will walk around the classroom to make sure
students are on task and working.
Teacher will also help students with anything they may
need or questions that they may have.

Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes

Students will be paired according to Spanish ability in order to give support to Spanish Language
Learners.
Explain In this section students share what they discovered, teacher connects student discoveries to
correct content terms/explanations, students articulate/demonstrate a clear and correct understanding of the
lesson sub-objectives by answering the question from Engage before moving on.
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Teacher will provide time for each group of students to Students will also give an oral presentation on how
give their oral presentation on how and why they built
and why they built their artifact relating to the
their artifac relating it to the topic.
topic of recycling.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
Students will be paired according to Spanish ability in order to give support to Spanish Language Learners.
Elaborate In this section students take the basic learning gained from Explore and clarified in Explain
and apply it to a new circumstance or explore a particular aspect of this learning at a deeper level. Students
should be using higher order thinking in this stage. A common practice in this section is to ask a What If?
question. IQ #2
Teacher Will: (pose IQ #2)
Students Will:
Teacher will ask students What if no one recycled?
Students will raise their hands to respond to
Teacher will then have a discussion with students
questions that teacher is asking.
according to their answers.
Students will discuss as a group according to
Teacher will ask students what if everyone recycled? answers to questions.
Teacher will then have a discussion with students
according to their answers.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
Since students are seated and paired according to spanish ability students will only be asked to share/discuss
with their partner.
Evaluate In this section every student demonstrates mastery of the lesson objective (though perhaps not
mastery of the elaborate content). Because this also serves as a closing, students should also have a chance
to summarize the big concepts they learned outside of the assessment.
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Teacher will assess students with oral responses
Students will be assesed with an oral
during discussion.
responses relating the topic during discussion.
Closure: (revisit objective, IQs and make real world connections)
Teacher will read the objectives and answer each question in her own words. Teacher will ask students to
think about what changes can be made in their own lives or homes and how can they improve their future by
recycling and reusing materials.
**Best Practices List the Best Teaching Practices you will use to enhance
the learning outcomes. In each section where prompted, list the best
practice, how the practices will be used and the purpose.