| MAGNOLIA | |
Educator's
Name: Pamela Himebrook
School: Forest Elementary School
School
District: Forest Municipal School
District
Student
Grade Levels: 4 (can easily be adapted for many grades)
Subject: Language Arts
Title
of Lesson Plan: Building a School Community
Competency
Number:
6: Participate cooperatively while engaging in
small group activities to analyze and interpret information, to make decisions,
to solve problems, and to produce a given product.
Objectives:
A.) Participate in team building through
concrete and abstract activities.
B.) Continue to develop strategies for listening
and speaking that respect the rights and
contributions of others.
C.) Analyze, evaluate, and compromise to arrive
at consensus.
Instructional
Format: Small,
cooperative groups
Prior
Preparation:
The
teacher will need to work with the appropriate school personnel (counselor,
office staff, principal) to develop a method for feasibly implementing this
plan.
Materials
Needed:
Various
school documents (appropriate to particular school situation)
Computer/printer/paper
Brown
or white lunch bags
Various
treats/supplies
Plain
white paper
MAGNOLIA
access for each student
Duration
of Activity:
Initial
planning -- one to two weeks
Implementation
and follow-up -- ongoing
Activity:
Each
student will be logged onto MAGNOLIA.
They will go to "SIRS Discoverer" and click onto "Kids
Corner." Once there, students will
click onto "Things to Make and Do: Social Issues Projects." Students will then scroll down to the
article written by Current Health (April/May 1999) "Be a Team
Player." Students will then have
an open-class discussion about the importance of working together to arrive at
a solution to greeting new students.
Students
will be divided into small, cooperative groups (2 to 4 students) to develop a
plan for orienting/welcoming new students to their school/grade level. They will work in 5 stages to complete a
plan of orientation/welcome.
Explore
Activity:
This
listening/speaking exercise will help students get to know one another. Students interview classmates and then
introduce their partner to the class.
Students will work in pairs.
They will then take turns interviewing each other, using the following
questions as a guide. Teacher will
encourage students to create more of their own questions and obtain more
details with respect to answers given.
The whole class will discuss the characteristics that determine a good
presentation of a speech. Students will
help their partners prepare speeches for the class by providing information,
helping with the editing of the draft copy, and then providing encouragement
for the speech preparation.
Individual
students will be academically evaluated, based upon their written submission of
the interview and speech, and upon their oral presentation of the speech. Each pair of students should meet after the
speeches have been completed and determine two things they did well together in
preparing for this activity, and one thing they could improve upon. The whole class will discuss what they
learned about interviewing, speaking, and listening to one another.
Directions
for students:
Interview
your partner, using the following questions as a guide. Feel free to add your own questions. Then, individually write the draft copy of a
speech you will use to introduce him/her.
Once your draft copy has been completed, sit down with your partner and
help each other edit your work for the final copy. Then do your final copy.
Practice what you are going to say with your partner. Then you will be ready to present your
introduction to the class.
Formal
Assessment:
Teacher
is evaluating students on their ability to work collaboratively in groups.