Social Constructivism

Social Constructivism

I can use cognitive apprenticeship in my 2-D geometry lesson plan. I will be the expert and guide my students toward gaining knowledge about the different geometry symbols. Students will first observe me using my body to demonstrate the different geometry symbols. We will then do it together and I will coach, provide feedback, and give reminders about the different symbols we are demonstrating through our body movements. I will use scaffolding while teaching by gradually modeling less and having students create the movements on their own. I then give them more responsibility in the Geometry says activity, and lastly I have them go search for the symbols around the room on their own. I will ask questions throughout the activity where students have to address what they are doing because of what they learned. Have students talk about what they have been learning and how their movements have improved throughout the lesson. Ill ask what movements we did together and where they took them from there. They then have to explore new ways to apply what they are learning. They have to create movements on their own. They then get to play Geometry says, where they have to be creative and come up with movements on their own. They then have to go around the room and find examples of the shapes, angles, and lines that they had been creating movements for. This will make them think deeper and make other connections. Some tools I will use is putting pictures of the symbols up on the board, for the students to see. When they use their bodies to create the symbol that is also a tool. I will make sure to know each and every one of my students so that when I am teaching I will be know how to reach all of their zones of proximal development. I will have prepared them with the material needed before this activity beforehand. After teaching the lesson I will refer back to this lesson many times, so the material learned will be maintained.

Virtual Tour

Location	Activity	Google Earth Content
1. Battle at Lexington and Concord	Read the poem "Paul Revere's Ride" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and then have students create a poem of their own about Paul Revere or the Battle	Arlington,MA (Middlesex county) Picture
2. Battle of Ticonderoga	Do a play where they take over the fort with no shots fired	Ticonderoga, New York Picture
3. Battle of Saratoga	Have students create a diorama or poster depicting their favorite part of the Battle at Saratoga	Saratoga, New York Picture
4.Battle at Valley Forge	Debate between George Washington and his troops. Washington wanted to keep fighting and the troops wanted to head home	Cache-Control: max-age

Virtual Tour Challenge

Social Studies, Fifth Grade, Standard 2, Objective 2a. Plot a time line of the key events of the Revolutionary War

Developmetnal Cognitivism

Developmental Cognitivism

Stage Based Learning

According to Piaget the students I am teaching (third grade) this lesson to are in the concrete-operational stage. This stage encourages a lot of “hands on” thinking. Students can realize that elements can be changed or transformed and still conserve many of their original characteristics. My lesson incorporates a variety of different ways to symbolize the geometry terms. For example, I have them show the symbols with their bodies, I then have them play Geometry says, and then have them look for the symbols around the room. The children are able to realize that even though each symbol is a different, size, shape, color, or medium that it still represents the same thing. This lesson is all hands on, it is the students and I working with lines, shapes, and angles in a variety of different interactive ways.

Uniqueness of Individual Learning:

This lesson allows for a lot of children variability and creativity. When representing the symbols by using their bodies they have the freedom to go as far as their mind will take them, or as simple as is comprehendible for them. When they walk around the room to observe the different symbols they can observe the most basic aspects or the most abstract aspects. By providing a variety of activities to teach about the geometry terms it is more likely that all of the students needs will be met in one way or another.

Experience that Involves Action

The entire lesson is full of action. They get up and move around to experience shapes, lines, and angles through the use of their body. This will help them to make connections with the terms and how they use their bodies to represent them. They get to play Geometry says where they move around have freedom. They then get to walk around the room and observe the geometry symbols all around them. By having these action activities students are able to make connections with their actions and the terms.

Necessity of Social Interaction

Throughout the lesson the students will have the chance to interact with one another. When they use their body to show the symbols they will all be in the same vicinity, where they can feed of each other’s ideas and energy. It will be great for them to even work together to create the symbols. When playing Geometry says it will be similar to the environment of the body activity. They will get to help and inspire creativity in one another. When making observations around the room they can work with each other and give each other ideas as well. Social interaction is crucial for student learning at their young age.

Adaption

In the 2-D geometry lesson assimilation and accommodation can be utilized by students to help learn the material. They use assimilation by connecting the new information into old schemes. An example of this is if any of the students have ever danced before they can make a connection between the movements they use in dance and the geometry terms. Another example would be to take what they know about different objects in the room and connect the geometry term to it. For example, they look at the white board and see 4 right angles. They are connectin g new information with schemes they already have. When students accommodate they create new schemes or adjust old ones in response to new information. An example of this is when they play Geometry says. Their prior knowledge of Simon Says is adjusted to be Geometry says. The rules then change in their minds because they have to show shapes, lines, and angles.

Disequilibrium/cognitive dissonance

At first when students are asked to use their body to show examples of terms that they barely know they will experience disequilibrium. The students will realize they do not fully understand so they will use assimilation and accommodation to learn the material. It is during this disequilibrium that students will learn the most.

Schemas

Throughout the lesson I will try and appeal to the student’s different schemas. I will help them create schemas by having them do different behaviors (actions). When they do the motions with their bodies, bplay geometry says, and record different objects around the room they will use different behaviors to create a schema. I also will appeal to their symbolic schemas by showing the symbols for everything on the board, having them use their bodies to show the symbols, and making connections to things around the room.

Discovery learning

Students will learn through their own discoveries. I will not tell them exactly what body part to use to make the shapes. They will have the chance to be creative and discover all the different ways to use their bodies to make the symbols. They also will go around the room and discover for themselves these objects.

Classification

I will group the terms into different categories so that the students will be able to classify the different groups and symbols within. For example we will first go over different lines. Then we will go over different angles. Lastly, we will go over different shapes. Students will be able to make these classifications. The more advanced they get on the terms they will then be able to make the connection that some of the classes fit into each other.

Behaviorism

2-D Geometry: Behaviorism

The purpose of this lesson is for students to be able to demonstrate their understanding of Geometry by naming and identifying different lines, shapes, and angles through the use of their bodies and critical thinking.

Learning Task:
1. Show students different ways to use your body to show shapes,lines,and angles.
2. Have the students model what you are doing
3. Have students create the shapes,lines,and angles on their own
4. Play Geometry says with the students where they use their body to show the shapes,angles, and lines
5. Have students search for real objects in the room that are angles,lines, and shapes

Positive reinforcement

I will use positive reinforcement throughout the lesson to increase student’s behavior. When they are doing the right motions I will comment on them being correct. When students stay standing in Geometry says I will give them a reward.
When students are quietly making observations around the room I will make comments about what they are doing right. When students are giving good descriptions to one another they will get rewards for doing it correctly.

Reinforcement Schedules

By having the students play Geometry says I will use variable fixed-ratio. I will state the term and students have to demonstrate using their bodies the term. If students get it wrong they have to sit down. Students that continually stand up until the end get a reward. Students will realize that the number of times I say Geometry says will not be constant. I will try and make it unpredictable so students will try and stay in the game as long as possible, by doing the right symbols.

Premack Principle

By having the students do the movement activity, geometry says, observing the classroom, and descriptions for each other they are doing preferred activities. When I say preferred I mean that they are more fun for a child to do than worksheets and countless problems from the book. However, for homework they may need to do worksheets, so by doing these more preferred activities to begin with they serve as a reinforcer for the less preferred activities (worksheets, book work, etc.)

Vicarious Reinforcement

One way to help students learn the terms is to have them use their bodies to show what a shape, angle, or line looks like. When students are demonstrating the geometry symbols correctly then I will give them positive reinforcement. I will point out specific students and say why what they are doing is right. By doing this hopefully the students that are doing it incorrectly will observe what is correct.

Observational Learning

I will increase students learning by helping them observe myself and others. I will keep their attention throughout the activity by staying excited and keeping the pace up. So during the body movement activity I will model this behavior in hopes that they will model my behavior. By engaging all of their different senses it will help them retain the material better. I will use visuals, kinesthetic, and audio cues to help them retain the geometry terms. I will then have them practice what they learned through all of the different activities so they can master the terms. I will try and keep the students motivated by not staying on any one activity for too long and keeping the material upbeat. I will reinforce the students when they are doing things correctly so they will continually do it correctly.

PhotoMovie

2-D Geometry

Through the use of several different cognitive learning principles my lesson plan will stick in my students’ long-term memory.

Attention and Sensory Memory

One of the key aspects to an effective lesson is a hook. The main reason a hook should be used is to grab the student’s attention. Hooks get the students excited and prepared for what they are about to learn. Our sensory memory is the initial processing that transforms incoming stimuli into information so it will make sense to us. Having attention and perception are extremely important at this stage, that is why hooks are so crucial in a lesson plan. For the 2-D Geometry lesson plan the hook is demonstrating the geometry vocabulary words through body movements. I will create different body positions and movements and the students will mirror me. An example would be to use your arms to show what a right angle would look like. Then I would have them think of different ways to use their bodies to show a right angle. An activity like this keeps the students attention while they are processing the information.

Working Memory

Working memory has very little capacity. There are several strategies that can be used to turn working memory into more concrete. First off working memory needs to be kept activated to be retained. This concept is reinforced throughout the entire lesson plan. The lesson first focuses on ten angles or forms of lines when we do the movement activity. We then play Geometry says using the lines and angles vocabulary. Then the students explore different lines and angles around the room. The geometry vocabulary keeps getting activated throughout the lesson. Some strategies of retaining information in working memory are elaborative rehearsal and chunking. A way that elaborative rehearsal is used in the lesson plan is by having them go around the room and find the angles and shapes. This helps them make connections to things they already know. Another activity that encourages elaborative rehearsal is the Geometry movement activity because they are associating movements of their body with the angles or lines they make. Students are also able to use chunking to process the information they are learning. The first part of the lesson focuses on lines and angles. Then the second part of the lesson focuses on shapes. By chunking lines, angles, and shapes into their own categories it is easier for children to retain the vocabulary terms.

Long-Term Memory, Declarative Knowledge, and Procedural Knowledge

The two types of knowledge, declarative and procedural, are taught throughout this lesson plan. Declarative knowledge is taught by simply making the connection between the shapes, angles, lines and connecting them with the symbols that represent those terms. These geometry terms are simply declared through words and symbols. Procedural knowledge is taught about these geometry concepts because they are taught how to create these geometric patterns and symbols. They also use procedural knowledge when they correctly categorize the shapes, lines, and angles. By using all these different activities students are able to store information about these geometry terms and symbols both visually and verbally. One way to store things long-term is through elaboration, which we discussed previously. Another way that things are stored long-term is through organization. The way this lesson is arranged all of the concepts are very organized, which will help the students to store it in an organized fashion.

Mnemonics

Through the use of several mnemonics strategies the concept being taught will more likely stay in the student’s memory. One way to help the students remember the shapes, angles, and lines is by using the Loci method. The loci method is when you associate items with specific places. This is used in the lesson when I have the students go around the room to find the shapes, angles, and lines with objects in the classroom. These locations will also serve as “pegs.” By having the students categorize the terms with the locations they are using peg-type mnemonics. Another way that I could help my students remember the geometry terms is to create an acronym. An acronym I could use for the shapes would be “The Queen Painted Her Hen Orange” (triangle, quadrilateral, pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, octagon). Distributed practice is also a great way for children to retain memory. Distributed practice is when you practice in brief periods with rest intervals. I would reinforce these concepts over several days, so that the students have time to register the material, have a break, and then practice some more.