Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

3-1 Assessment

Assessment is an essential tool for teachers to evaluate the degree of learning that their

students are achieving. There are many pieces that go into effective assessment over the

course of a unit. This essay will talk about how I wrote effective objectives that are measurable

and understandable/actionable for students, use effective types of assessments to measure

different types of knowledge, and make instructional decisions from the data collected.

The first step in using assessment effectively is to write lesson objectives that are

specific and measurable. The way I do this is to make a list of all the essential skills and concepts

that would be covered in a unit and then decide what kind of blooms verb is appropriate for

each. I try to use some verbs from every level of blooms taxonomy when writing lesson

objectives. I write my lesson objectives in the form of an I can statement that I share with my

students. This acts like a checklist that students can use to self-assess which better helps them

identify the concepts or skills that they need more help with when they come to me for

individualized instruction.

After writing objectives, the next step is determining what the best assessment type is

to measure learning for each type of objective. Objectives that require knowledge or

comprehension are easily tested by typical multiple choice, matching, or short answer

questions. Application questions require more work or lengthier explanations than short

answer questions. These kinds of questions include calculation problems or drawing pictures to

represent abstract ideas. Synthesis and Analysis questions require more time than a short

answer or calculation since they require students to draw on current and past knowledge to
Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

infer or predict something. Labs are excellent methods of testing synthesis level objectives

since students have to make predictions about phenomena and test them.

Once you have measured student learning via an assessment it is time to make a

decision on what it means and what needs to be done to maximize student learning. If every

student performs at a level that I have deemed acceptable then instruction can continue as

normal. If the majority of students have achieved the acceptable level of mastery but some

students have not, some individualized instruction is in order for those students to get them

the help they need without holding the rest of the class back. If the opposite is true where

some students reach the acceptable level of content mastery while the rest of the class does

not, then I should come up with some supplemental activities for the advanced student so their

learning doesnt become stagnant while addressing the needs of the rest of the class.

3-2 Unit Plan

Chemical Compounds and Nomenclature

Objectives:
1. Ionic compounds
a. Students will be able to determine the number of valence electrons in an atom.
b. Students are able to identify an ionic compound.
c. Students will be able to convert an ionic compound name into a formula
d. Students will be able to convert an ionic compound formula into a name
e. Students will be able to distinguish an ionic compound from a covalent
compound using measurable properties.
2. Hydrates
a. Students will be able to convert a hydrate name into a formula.
b. Students will be able to convert a hydrate formula into a name.
3. Covalent Compounds
a. Students will be able to convert a covalent compound name into a formula.
b. Students will be able to convert a covalent compound formula into a name.
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c. Students will be able to distinguish an ionic compound from a covalent

compound using measurable properties.
4. Acids
a. Students will be able to convert an acid name into a formula.
b. Students will be able to convert an acid formula into a name.
Lessons
1. Ionic Compounds and Hydrates- 3 days
a. Content delivery
i. Review Valence electrons using periodic table method (visual)
ii. Explain ionization using skits (kinesthetic/Verbal)
iii. Define Ionic compounds and show their properties (visual)
iv. Demonstrate How to right a balanced formula (logical/visual)
v. Explain Naming rules (verbal/logic)
vi. Show how hydrates and ionic compounds are related using 3D models
(Visual)
vii. Demonstrate How to right a balanced hydrate formula (logical/visual)
viii. Explain hydrate Naming rules (verbal/logic)
b. Technology Use
i. Online naming and formula writing practice
ii. Animated videos and visuals
c. Formative Assessment
i. Quiz covering Objectives 1a-d and 2a-b
2. Covalent Compounds 2 days
a. Content Delivery
i. Explain Covalent bonds using skits (kinesthetic/verbal)
ii. Explain Naming rules and number prefixes (verbal/logic)
iii. Molecular Speed Dating activity (kinesthetic/verbal)
b. Technology Use
i. Online naming and formula writing practice
ii. Animated videos and visuals
iii. Random molecular compound generator
c. Formative Assessment
i. Quiz covering Objectives 3a-b.
3. Acids 1 day
a. Content Delivery
i. Show how acids are hybrids of covalent and ionic compounds (logic)
ii. Acid naming Flowchart (visual/logic)
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b. Formative Assessment
i. Quiz covering objectives 4a-b.
c. Technology Use
i. Video showing why covalent bonds of acids dissociate in water like ionic
compounds.
4. Ionic vs Covalent Lab- 1 block day
a. Content Delivery
i. Students must use their knowledge of the properties of ionic compounds
to distinguish 5 white powders as ionic or covalent by measuring
conductivity of aqueous solutions. (logical/kinesthetic)
ii. Students will share their data and conclusions with the class.
(verbal/logical)
b. Formative Assessment
i. Lab is authentic assessment covering objectives 1e and 2c.
c. Technology Use
i. Conductivity meters
ii. Apple Airplay sharing of data
5. Review- 1 day
a. Content Deliver
i. Teams of students will play a virtual board game chemopoly that
practices writing names and formulas of all the types of compounds.
(verbal/kinesthetic)
b. Formative Assessment
i. Exit ticket
c. Technology Use
i. Tabloro.com: Online virtual board game website.
6. Unit Summative Assessment 1 day

3-3 Instructional Strategies

Choosing instructional strategies that cater to different learning styles is an important

aspect of a teachers job. There many different strategies that teachers can use, but this essay

will focus 3 instructional strategies that I used to promote learning for students spanning a wide

range of learning styles.

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

The first instructional strategy that I try to use is modeling through acting. This

instructional strategy is great because it covers a lot of bases as far as learning styles go.

Kinesthetic learners get to move around, verbal learners get to orate while acting, and visual

learners get to watch other groups perform. An example of a lesson that I had students model a

concept was my lesson on intermolecular forces. I used a handful of students to model the

concept of London dispersion forces. If students are asked to come up with their own skits, this

activity becomes a great way to assess student learning without giving a quiz. This is because

students must use their knowledge to develop a product that conveys understanding in an

unconventional way. This requires a higher level of understanding than answering a multiple-

choice question.

Another instructional strategy that I use is exploratory or lab based activities. Kinetic

learners can touch and manipulate different aspects of the lab, verbal learners get to

collaborate with group members and share their findings, visual learners get to observe

different concepts in action, and logical learners get can analyze relationships and patterns. An

example of a lab activity that I used for a unit on molecular geometry was a molecule building

lab. This was a hands-on activity were students had to apply their knowledge of drawing Lewis

structures to determine the 3D shape of a molecule and its polarity. This activity lent itself well

to help develop student understanding of molecular structure because students were able to

physically build the molecules and see how the different components of a molecular compound

come together to form a molecule in three dimensions.

The last instructional strategy I use that will be discussed is demonstrations.

Demonstrations are great tools for introducing new concepts in which a particular situation or
Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

phenomenon models an abstract concept. Demos also offer a more expedient means of

viewing concepts in action than a lab activity, which is helpful on days when there is not time

for students to follow a lab procedure. Different types of demonstrations cater to different

learning styles. For example, demos that allow students to touch feel or physically experience a

phenomenon are especially impactful for kinesthetic learners. Demos that have students

observe a phenomenon cater more towards visual or auditory learners. I performed a demo

when teaching about intermolecular forces that correlated the physical property of evaporation

time/boiling point, which all students have experienced, to the varying strengths of the

different types of intermolecular forces. This made an abstract concept easier to understand by

association of the concept existing schema.

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

Entry 3 Artifacts

I. Lesson Objectives

a. These objectives, referenced in 3-1 Assessment, are some examples of specific

and measurable learning goals that I write for every unit.

[Back to 3-1 Assessment]

II. Blooms Taxonomy

a. This is image, referenced in 3-1 Assessment, is a list of blooms taxonomy verbs

that I use when writing objectives. Blooms taxonomy focuses on using specific

verbs that can be measured to indicate a certain level of understanding. The

learning hierarchy starts with knowledge as the lowest level concept mastery

and goes up to create which represents the highest.

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

[Back to 3-1 Assessment]

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

III. Assessment Type

a. These example questions, referenced in 3-1 Assessment, are some examples of

assessment questions I used to measure the varying levels of my students

concept mastery.
Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

[Back to 3-1 Assessment]

IV. Modeling Example

a. This video, referenced in 3-3 Instructional Strategies, is an example of modeling

that I used to portray the difficult concept of London dispersion forces.

[Back to 3-3 instructional Strategies]

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

V. Molecular Geometry Lab

a. This lab, referenced in 3-3 Instructional Strategies, is lab activity that I used to

help my students cultivate a deeper understanding of the structure of molecules.

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift
Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

[Back to 3-3 instructional Strategies]

Entry 3: Instructional Practice Ryan Swift

VI. Intermolecular Forces Demo

a. This video, referenced in 3-3 Instructional Strategies, is a demonstration that I

used to help make the concept of intermolecular forces relevant to my students.

[Back to 3-3 instructional Strategies]