Curriculum Mapping
Student ConnectionThis substantially impacts the students I will be teaching because I can plan my lessons with their readiness levels in mind and plan my expectations of them accordingly. This translates to them being able to succeed in my class because they are being taught on their level rather than them having to try to play catch up during instructional time. Students are also affected by this idea because it gives them a purpose. Sometimes students get bogged down in the idea of "when will I ever need this information again?" If you have prepared a concept map, you will be able to show them how what they are learning connects to other things throughout their curriculum as well as the fact they will use what they are learning in the future.
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Teacher ConnectionIn order to be an effective teacher, you need to adequately plan out what you will be teaching and the method by which you will teach it. In order to do this, teachers need to know not only what they come to you knowing, but also what they will need to learn next. This is because you do not want to teach children with the idea of "this is what they need right now". However, teachers need to be intentional in their lessons by preparing students for the next step. Concept mapping also has the capability to save time for teachers in that they may notice that three indicators are directly related to one another and could be combined into one lesson rather than three separate lessons.
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-Effective Lesson and Assessment Planning-
Dissecting indicators and determining the amount of time needed to teach them is worthless if you are unable to plan lessons to teach these topics or assessments to tell you if they understand. Lessons need to be intentional, not just "fun" activities you find online. Yes, fun is good, but if they are not effective lessons, then it will not be beneficial to your students. Also, if you create assessments that do not give you usable data on the lesson, then they, too, are worthless. For instance, if you are teaching about the solar system, assessing their knowledge on simple machines is not going to be useful data for that lesson.
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Indiana Science Initiative
Student ConnectionThe Indiana Science Initiative is effective for students because it gives them a new way to learn about science. The design itself leads to exciting and interesting lessons that allow students to use their hands and stretch their minds. Student Inquiry is a high priority within this curriculum, so it should never be boring for the students because they are constantly trying to figure out what is going on. This can be what the topic is, how to set up the experiment, what is going on, why it is working that way, and much more. The design also prompts students to not be satisfied to simply understand what they are learning at the moment, but it leads them to want to know even more about each topic.
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Teacher ConnectionThis program is great for teachers because it pre-plans everything for you. You are given lessons, materials, and assessments to go along with the activities. This is useful because teachers are able to focus more on the implementation rather than the planning itself. Teachers are able to alter the material as necessary, but the general idea is already prepared for you. It also creates a natural connection among the various indicators that you are required to teach so that you can simply analyze the various activities and determine how much time you need to focus on each to be able to cover everything throughout the year.
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-Science Notebooking-
Science note booking is the idea that can bring everything together. Having materials and a framework is not enough to really make a spectacular lesson. However, if you can make the lesson matter to your students, that is when a lesson truly comes to life. Science note books encourage students to take ownership and develop pride in their work, especially when you can allow them to organize it in a way that is pleasing to their individual brains.
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THE BIG PICTURE
-PART TWO-
Engineering
Student Connection
Engineering projects allow students to engage their creative handiwork. These projects do not come with an instructional manual, which means that the students have to think critically about the task at hand so that they can complete the assignment to the best of their ability. It also provides a natural flow for the lessons so that students have a specific cycle to follow that can be repeated when needed until the project is complete. It is also based on second chances and improving, which can allow students to not fear their mistakes because they know they will have a second chance to fix any errors that arise.
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Teacher Connection
This approach gives students the opportunity to use their hands and learn content through materiel rather than class lecture. The environment is more conducive to kinesthetic learners, and it encourages both creativity and teamwork. Not only do these activities meet the engineering standards, but they can very easily become cross curricular. For example, one design could include math for the redesign in that students could use "money" to buy material, or they could calculate work in the higher grades. You could also incorporate ELA by asking students to write about the project, or writing a letter to their client explaining what they are building.
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-Design Briefs-
If you give students a list of requirements, without any type of backstory, they will not become invested in the assignment. However, if you make it interesting and relevant for students, they will be eager and willing to be highly invested in their school work because they will have a defined purpose in their projects.
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5E Lesson Design
Student Connection
When lessons follow the 5E model, students are encouraged to discover explanations on their own through critical thinking and activity. This allows them to take more ownership of their work because they know that their work will lead to them discovering the answer to a question they may have. The 5E Lesson Design gives students a goal to reach and opportunities to challenge their minds to discover the answer to questions they have.
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Teacher Connection
There is a defined process to guide your lessons. This model allows you more freedom in your lesson planning because it gives you a rough estimate as to what you need to include within each lesson. The 5E model creates a natural flow of the educational process so that learning is both unique and meaningful.
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