KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

LESSON PLAN FORMAT

Teacher Candidate: Colleen Bagonyi & Taylor Della-Croce Date: 10/1/14

Cooperating Teacher: N/A
Group Size:

25

Subject or Topic:

Coop. Initials N/A

Allotted Time 1 hour Grade Level Third Grade

Gravity

Section

N/A

STANDARD: 3.2.3.B1. Explain how movement can be described in many ways.

I.

II.

III.

Performance Objectives (Learning Outcomes):

A. The third grade students will be able to describe gravity as a force that exists
between any two objects that have mass by performing experiments.
B. The third grade students will be able to demonstrate that all objects, regardless
of their mass, fall to the ground at the same rate by performing experiments.
Instructional Materials
A. Four Styrofoam cups
B. A cup of water
C. A cup of cola
D. A cup of juice
E. And a cup of milk
F. A pencil with a point
G. Medium sized bin
H. Hammer
I. Feather
J. Galileo on the Moon video
K. What is Weightlessness? video
L. Science Journal worksheet
Subject Matter/Content (prerequisite skills, key vocabulary, big idea, outline of
additional content)
A. Prerequisite skills
1. Fine motor skills
2. Gross motor skills
3. Knowledge of what a pull is
B. Key Vocabulary
1. Gravity- a force that pulls objects toward each other

2. Mass the amount of matter in something

3. Weight - a measure of the force of gravity pulling on an object
C. Big Idea
1. What are the types of force and how do they affect objects in the
world around us?
D. Additional Content
IV.

Implementation
A. Introduction
1. The teacher will shows the class a twenty-dollar bill.
2. The teacher will asks the students if they think they could catch the
$20 before it hits the floor using only their thumb, index finger, and
middle finger.
3. The teacher will choose a student to try the challenge.
4. The teacher will instructs the student to extend their arm
perpendicular to the floor and to make a pinching action using their
three fingers.
5. The teacher will hold the $20 lengthwise in between the open fingers
and instruct the student to try to catch it once it is let go.
6. The teacher will count down from three and let go of the bill.
7. The teacher will repeat this procedure with three other students.
8. The teacher will discuss what force prevents the students from
catching the twenty-dollar bill.
B. Development
1. The teacher will begin by dividing the students into groups of five.
Each group will receive a piece of chart paper.
2. The teacher will write the following questions on the board:
a) What is gravity?
b) Where is gravity?
c) What does gravity do?
3. The students will break up into groups to answer the questions.
4. The teacher will lead a discussion on what gravity is.
5. The teacher will show the What is Weightlessness video
a) The teacher will stop at 42 seconds for and ask the students to
share their predictions by raising their hands for each scenario.
6. The students will than perform the experiment in groups of four.
7. The students will have a tray with the following items:
a) Four Styrofoam cups
b) A cup of water
c) A cup of cola
d) A cup of juice
e) And a cup of milk
f) A pencil with a point
g) Medium sized bin
8. The students will begin by punching a hole on both two sides of each
empty cup.

9. One student will hold one cup with their fingers covering the hole.
10. Another student will pour water into the cup with the holes still
covered.
11. The student will release their fingers from the hole for about 3
seconds and observe what happens.
12. The student will replace their fingers to cover the hole and the
students will record what they saw.
13. The teacher will ask what happened and follow up by asking, Why
does the water pour out of the cup?"
14. The teacher will ask the students to share their answers one group at
a time.
15. The teacher will discuss the force of gravity and explains that is
acting on the water pushing it though the holes.
16. The students will than release their fingers and drop the cup into a
medium size bin observing what happens.
17. The students will record their observations in their science journals.
18. The teacher will show the rest of the What is Weightlessness
video.
19. The teacher will ask the students if they think the type of liquid
makes a difference.
20. After a class discussion, the students will repeat the inquiry on the
three other liquids provided and record their observations in their
science journals.
21. After the completion of the inquiry, the teacher will discuss the force
of gravity and how it acts on the cup and the liquids.
22. The teacher will hold up a hammer and a feather and ask the students
how they think gravity will act upon those items.
23. The teacher will ask the students if they think one will fall to the
ground quicker.
24. After hearing the predictions, the teacher will drop the items to
demonstrate.
25. After seeing the objects land at the same time, the teacher will
explain that weight does not affect how gravity acts on an object,
26. The teacher will ask the students to make a conclusion about gravity
in their science journal.
C. Closure
1. The teacher will show the video Galileo on the Moon to wrap up
what the students learned.
2. The teacher will ask the following comprehension questions
a) Why did the hammer and the feather land on at the same time?
b) Does the weight of an object make a difference of how long it
takes an object to fall to the ground?
c) If you could go to the moon, what would you drop?
D. Accommodations/Differentiation
1. To accommodate Sandy, with a hearing impairment, the teacher will
provide written directions of the activity, a written script of the

videos, and headphones for the videos. The student will be in a

group at the front of the classroom to increase his ability to hear the
demonstrations.
2. Guided notes and detailed instruction will be provided for all
students
E. Assessment/Evaluation Plan
1. Formative
a) The teacher will collect the science journals and focus on the
conclusion section.
2. Summative
a) There is no summative assessment
V.

Reflective Response
A. Report of Student Performance in Terms of Stated Objectives (Reflection on
student performance written after lesson is taught, includes remediation for
students who fail to meet acceptable level of achievement)
Remediation Plan
B. Personal Reflection (Questions written before lesson is taught. Reflective
answers to question recorded after lesson is taught)
1. Were the students able to see the relationship between gravity and
the water pouring out of the cups?

2. Was the science journal an accurate way to assess knowledge? Was

it too easy? Was it too hard?

3.

Were the students able to make their own observations while

participating in the experiments?

A. Resources (in APA format)

PBS LearningMedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2014, from

http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.ess.eiu.galmoon/galile
o-on-the-moon/
PBS LearningMedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2014, from
http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfw.zweightless
ness/what-is-quotweightlessness/

PBS LearningMedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2014, from

http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/phy03.sci.phys.mfe.lp_gravity/gr
avity-and-falling-objects/
Lesson Plans. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2014, from
http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/ntti/resources/lessons/gravity/b.html