Running Head: DEVELOPMENTALLY 1

Developmentally Appropriate Instruction

Robert Frazier
Regent University
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Developmentally Appropriate Instruction in the Classroom

For my lesson that included figurative language and “The Bird Came Down the Walk,” I

used many strategies and forms of instruction appropriate for the 10th grade level. In the

anticipatory set, I had a see-think-wonder activity, which is appropriate for nearly any age. This

activity prompted deep thinking about the subject and also seemed to get many of the students

engaged with the lesson. During the instructional phase, I related figurative language to the

bigger picture and the Bible. This appeared to catch the attention of most of the students and help

them see the importance of figurative language. I explained three of the forms of figurative

language; personification, metaphor, and simile, and had students take notes on these. When I

spoke about poetry, I connected poetry to rap, since many students are into this genre of music.

Then, to check their understanding of the subject, I had them do a four corners activity, which all

of the students enjoyed. When I told students to get out of their seats, some students were very

happy about this, since they had been sitting all day. This change of state also provided a

kinesthetic approach to the content, which is often missing from English classrooms. The 10th

graders perked up every time I said an example, as they were interested in doing well in this

activity. When there was a split decision, the students debated among themselves to try to figure

out the correct answer. The instruction and the four corners activity were appropriate for this age

group and the activity seemed to fully engage them with the material gone over in the

instructional phase. Next, I read through the poem in a dramatic way and challenged my students

to really listen for figurative language and write down the figurative language that they heard. I

drew popsicle sticks to see who would explain what they wrote down. They then were paired up

using food pairings and worked together to read the story themselves and find figurative

language. This was the only part that could have been better, as one of my classes took too long
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to find their partner and I had to get rid of the closure exercise to accommodate this time loss.

This was fixed when I added a 30-second timer for pairs to match. After this, I had students

explain their answers and then they worked on a 5-question worksheet with grade-appropriate

questions. I discussed this with the students, then had them read another poem, “I Wandered

Lonely as a Cloud,” and use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the two poems.

Surprisingly, the Venn diagram seemed to engage the students, even though it was independent

practice. Finally, I had students write a 4-dollar summary of the figurative language we

discussed. This was used as an exit ticket and showed me that a vast majority of the students

were paying attention during the lesson. Penn State University published an article titled

“Applying developmentally appropriate practice,” which explains that teachers need to “Offer

both child initiated and teacher-directed learning experiences, have thoughtful conversations that

builds on (students’) ideas, skills, and knowledge, plan for hands on experiences where children

learn by doing, and plan enough time for children to explore and become fully engaged” to

appropriately instruct students and meet their needs. Through the strategies I implemented in this

lesson, I was able to successfully adhere to these aspects mentioned by Penn State University,

while providing effective instruction and keeping the students engaged.

This lesson plan adheres to the criteria of some of the other 7 competencies, such as

Integration of Technology through using a PowerPoint and Classroom, Behavior Management

through the Classroom Management Strategies section, and the Student IEP and ELL needs

through graphic organizers and study guides. Though technology was not profusely used in this

lesson, a PowerPoint was used to show a picture to have students See-Think-Wonder about it and

it was used to provide students with the Instructional Input part of the lesson. Classroom and

behavior management were used throughout the lesson, such as allowing students to use the
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restroom only after the first 10 minutes of class, having a quiet signal to get students attention,

having set phone rules and referring to them, and providing appropriate responses to students

who answer correctly and incorrectly. Students with IEPs and ELLs (ESLs) were given a guide

for this lesson to help them understand the content and were given a graphic organizer through

the use of the Venn Diagram, which benefitted their ability to understand the content. Due to the

accommodations, students with IEP, ELL, and 504 needs were able to understand the content

and complete their work without any issues.

My faith is an important part to my teaching style, which was overshadowed at the public

school. Since I am at a Christian school, I can bring Biblical concepts into my lessons and relate

the content to the Bible, whenever I believe necessary. In this lesson, I related figurative

language to the Bible, as the Bible is rife with metaphors, personification, and similes. I brought

up many examples of figurative language in the Bible to show the importance of learning it.

Additionally, I asked the students about how difficult and confusing it would be to read the Bible

without understanding figurative language, which they replied that it would be very confusing.

Through connecting the subject to the Bible, these students seemed to realize the gravity of

learning it and became more engaged with the lesson. Regardless of age, connecting the material

to the Bible and to the Christian faith is one of the most vital aspects of teaching at a Christian

school. This environment allows for discussion on God and the Bible, so I plan to take every

opportunity to relate the content to Christianity as I can. My teaching philosophy also adheres to

the importance of bringing the Bible into the classroom and furthering comprehension of it. This

was one aspect of my faith and teaching philosophy I had to hide in public school but is now an

inseparable part of my teaching style.

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Data played an important role in helping me understand where the students were at with

figurative language and Biblical concepts. After discussing with my cooperating teacher, I

learned that, even though the students go to a Christian school, many of the students do not know

a lot about the Bible. This is one of the main reasons that I included many examples of figurative

language in Scripture, to help the students become more well versed with Biblical content. Also,

through the pre-assessment I could see that the students did not understand much about figurative

language, so I made sure to spend more time instructing on figurative language and had the

students take notes on it. Through my faith, teaching philosophy, and the data I collected, I was

able to greatly improve my lesson, while using developmentally appropriate instruction, and help

my students improve their understanding of figurative language and Biblical concepts.

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References

Penn State University. Applying developmentally appropriate practice. https://extension.psu.edu

/programs/betterkidcare/early-care/tip-pages/all/applying-developmentally-appropriate-

practice