MultiMedia Tools: Video

Lesson Idea Name: The Types of Soil

Content Area: Science
Grade Level(s): 3rd
Content Standard Addressed:

S3E1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the physical attributes of rocks
and soils. b. Plan and carry out investigations to describe properties (color, texture, capacity to retain
water, and ability to support growth of plants) of soils and soil types (sand, clay, loam).

Technology Standard Addressed: 1. Empowered Learner

Selected Technology Tool: AdobeSpark

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable):

https://spark.adobe.com/video/8wrrvYLA37P6t
Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):
☒ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☐ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☐ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration:

☒ Infusion Level: Students may work at a higher Bloom’s Level, but they do not have any “Voice or Choice”
during the activity and most of the decisions are made by the teacher.

☐ Integration Level: We would like to see ALL lessons/activities reach this level. The project is student-
driven. Students have “Voice and Choice” in the activities, selecting the topic of study and determining the
technology tool to demonstrate mastery of the standard. The teacher becomes more of a facilitator.
☐ Expansion Level: The projects created are shared outside of the classroom, publishing student work and
promoting authorship. This could be reached by showcasing the project on the school’s morning
newscast, posting the project to the classroom blog, or publishing via an outside source.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

The video used in this lesson will support all students by allowing them to listen to the video or read what is
being said. After students have watched the video, completed the in-class activity, they will be allowed to
create their own video. This will allow students to be creative with how they decide to present their video. By
using the video, it will support student engagement since it will be my own voice. It also provides pictures
that will keep the students interests.
Lesson idea implementation:

To introduce this lesson, I will send out a video over the weekend explaining the four different types of soils.
Students will watch the video in order to prepare for our class on Monday. Students will also receive a word
search to complete which has terms for the new unit on it. The video addresses the new standard we will
start on Monday and allows students to gain some background information on soil if they don’t already have
any. On Monday, I will go over the standard with the students again to make sure they know what they will
be learning. Next, I will ask questions like: What are the 4 different soil types? Can you tell me a little bit about
them? This will show me what students remember from the video. After we go over the standard and they
answer the questions, I will break students up into four groups. Each group will receive an activity sheet titled
SBooker, 2020
 MultiMedia Tools: Video
Types of Soil. On this sheet, it has the four different types of soils and a space for students to write what the
soil looks like, feels like, and some important facts. I will then pass out a different soil to each group. The
students will be allowed to touch the soil and record the information needed for their sheet. They will also be
allowed to use a water dropper to test out its capacity to hold water. After about 5 minutes, I will have
students move to another soil type and record information until all groups have experienced each soil. We
will then have a class discussion on what the soils look like, feel like, and any other important facts they
included. We will also go over the soils capacity to retain water and their ability to support the growth of
plants.

To allow students a chance to show what they learned, I will break students off into pairs to create videos on
the soils. Each pair will choose one soil they want to create a video on. Students will receive a self-check
rubric with what needs to be included in the video. The rubric will include: address the soils color, texture,
capacity to retain water, and ability to support growth of plants, use at least 3 pictures- no more than 5, a title
page, a citation page if using any copy righted material, and the video can be no longer than 2 minutes.
Students will have the remaining time of class to brainstorm and then choose which soil they want to do their
video on. On Tuesday, students will work with their partners to gather information and form a script for what
they will say in their video. Students will bring their finalized script to the teacher to be checked off. On
Wednesday, students will work on completing their videos. To conclude the lesson, on Thursday students will
present their videos. Students learning will be assessed based on the accuracy of the information included in
their video and how well they followed the guidelines on the rubric. Students will receive feedback in the
form of the rubric. I will use the videos to decide whether or not I need to re-teach the four different types of
soils.
Importance of technology:

I believe that using the multimedia tool is critical to this project to allow students an opportunity to show
what they have learned in a fun way. This project could be completed without the use of this technology but
it wouldn’t be as fun for the students. The students would lose the ability to take pride in what they created
and also the collaboration with their peers.
Inspiration (optional):

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Soil-Unit-Pack-Printables-Google-Classroom-Distance-
Learning-3020845 - I purchased this packet off of Teachers Pay Teachers. I will be using the Types of Soil
activity sheet for our soil activity. I will also be handing out the word search for students to complete. I also
used some of the information in the PowerPoint for my video.
Internet Safety and Student Privacy:

AdobeSpark is a free website that can be used to make videos. This website has a minimum age of 13 in order
to be used. However, there is now a way to get AdobeSpark exclusively for schools. With an exclusive
AdobeSpark school account, it is available to all ages and is consistent with COPPA laws. Teachers can also
supervise students use because they must sign in with the teachers account. With this specific activity, I will
help minimize risks for my students by not allowing them to show themselves and they will only use their first
names on the title page.
Reflective Practice:
After designing this lesson idea, I feel the activities used can allow students to gain a deeper understanding of the
material while making it fun. Students will have the opportunity to choose which soil they want to create their video on.
By allowing students the opportunity to choose, they will be more interested in what they create. Students will also be
creating a video showcasing what they learned on the soil chosen. This will allow students to feel a sense of
accomplishment when they get to show off their video to their classmates. To further extend this lesson, I will continue
teaching about the different types of soils and elaborate on why they’re important. To further enhance this lesson, I
could include a Kahoot! or a Quizizz on the different types of soils as a formative assessment.

SBooker, 2020