Lucia Gracia 9/20/13 Teaching Social Studies Unit Analysis Justification of Unit Goals 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

. My learning goals were aligned with Iowa core Understand that people often choose to dress, talk, and act like their friends. Understand that people often choose to do certain things their own way. Understand that telling and listening is a way that people can learn from others. Understand that disagreements occur between friends. Understand how to reduce the number of disputes. Its important to learn basic skills of being a good friend. Problem solving is important for the student in the long run. Learning how to solve problems is essential at this time in their lives. It is valuable the child learns how to resolve disputes at an early age. This will result in healthy friendships/relationships. In the unit we taught everything that encompasses a good friend and will result in having healthy relationships in the future. The questions were relevant to the students lives. The questions allowed them to think beyond superficial answers. Because the questions pertained to their lives the students felt more comfortable. The objectives aligned with each lesson. The goal was for students to learn the proper most efficient ways to resolve disputes. This is something students at this age encounter throughout their life inside and outside of the classroom. The final lesson encompassed the entire unit and there were clear results of the students knowledge on this subject. Some of the lessons included skits that included all the students. Covering teasing introduces how to properly solve disputes with peer. One of the lessons that demonstrated this included watching a virtual book online. This book covered teasing and ways to solve disputes in a healthy manner. The lesson that followed taught the kids to talk to each other in

a manner they could understand and resolved problems in a peaceful way. An important factor of disputes is not accepting others for who they are. Covering acceptance can teach students to think beyond the superficial and understand the world as a whole. Doing skits such as acting scenarios and working together to detach from a human knot was very engaging. These activities gave the students an opportunity to experience the knowledge and brainstorm ways to resolve real life problems as a group. The students went beyond learning and they understood why some things should be dealt with in a specific manner. It was really gratifying to see the students so engaged, especially when they came up with brand new ways to resolve disputes. This demonstrated their transfer skills.

Explanation of Learning Activities The learning goals were aligned with the understanding I wanted the students to absorb. The activities each had several steps of understanding. First learning the lesson, brainstorming and acting on their knowledge. The activities were hands on so the students can grasp the knowledge on a deeper level. The activities that I chose were dramatic and engaging. A visual book was appealing and they can relate it to their own lives. For each lesson students were able to demonstrate their understanding through a skit or activity. I believe learning the concepts through sharing, acting, and having higher thinking questions really pushed the students to go in depth for each lesson. The lessons included. The students felt they were part of the teaching and learning process. Giving the students an opportunity to be involved cultivates the motivation to participate in the lesson.

Analysis of Student Learning and Differentiation Half-way through each lesson I took the time to review and test the students understanding of the new knowledge presented. We had engaging open discussions. At the end of the lesson I reviewed. The students all volunteered answering and expressing an important aspect of the lesson. The learning goals were met. The students demonstrated it through their actions and expressive answers. The majority of the lesson included the students to demonstrate their understanding through performance. The students had many interactive activities with their classmates teaching and talking to each other about the lesson. They say the ultimate way of learning something profoundly is to teach it. The interactive skits and team building activities were effective because the students were involved in the teaching and learning process of the lesson. Learning Goal: Understand how to reduce the number of disputes. Question: If you were upset with your friend, what could/ do you do? Score: 3= Above average 2=Meets Goal 1=Below Average
Student/Grade PreAssessment PostAssessment Jack/1st N/A 2/3 Tristan/1st N/A 2/3 Niko/1st 2/3 3/3 Ravi/2nd 3/3 3/3 Danny/2nd 2/3 3/3 Chaiden/2nd 2/3 2/3 Ousman/1st 1/3 3/3 Miles/2nd 3/3 3/3

Average Score: 2/3 Self-evaluation I think this unit needed some more emphasis on evidence of the students understanding. This unit had an assessment in the beginning and end. Having a checklist for each individual student throughout the year or a month or so after the unit wouldve given the teachers more evidence of the transfer skills and understanding. This way the teachers could see at the students progress. During and after the progress the chart

couldve pointed the areas of improvement. For a unit such as friendship its a long-term social skill. Observing the students for more accurate results should be taken place for the school year or a month or two after. As far as classroom management I need to work on a firmer voice. I dont want to be intimidating so I have a tendency to speak very low. Working on my voice will help me at the appropriate times. When theres a fun active activity younger students tend to be very energetic. I will work on perfecting my tone of voice for the most efficient classroom management. For example, on the last lesson of the unit the students had high energy levels. It was almost time for them to go home. One of the students named Chaiden was celebrating his birthday right after my lesson. The anticipation of all these factors drove the students to have higher energy levels than usual. They were required to perform skits for their peers to demonstrate their competency of the entire unit. I knew coming in I would need something that would captivate their attention. I brought a whistle and gave clear directions. The students were required to freeze so I could grab their attention and they would listen to my instruction. It turns out the whistle wasnt successful. I realized around the end of the lesson when I stopped using it and started speaking in a clearer more assertive tone. The students looked up and heard the firmness in my voice. I didnt need the whistle by the end of the lesson. I got lucky that time because they subconsciously realized I wasnt using the whistle. Next time I will master and use the tones in my voice to guide me through instruction.