SINGLE SUBJECT CREDENTIAL PROGRAM

EDSC LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE

Revised 4.15
For directions on how to complete this form, see EDSC Lesson Plan Directions and Scoring Guide in the SSCP Handbook at
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Name
Olivia Pipala
Class Title
Earth Science

CWID
894490812
Lesson Title
Evidence for Continental
Drift Through
Argumentation

Subject Area
High School Earth Science

Unit Title
Plate Tectonics &
Sea floor
Spreading

Grade Levels
10-11

Total Minutes
45 minutes

CLASS DESCRIPTION
This Oceanography class is full of ethnically and socioeconomically diverse sophomores and juniors that
include ELL and students with special needs. Out of 38 students, there are 5 English Language Learners and 2 students
with special needs. The proficiency level of the ELD standards for 3 of these students is Expanding and 2 are
considered Bridging. Students with special needs are both considered as ADHD with anxiety troubles. The specific
needs of these students are for them to sit up in the front of the class to inhibit distractions from other students. Due
to their anxiety, they are allowed extra time on exams, homework, and classwork. The classroom environment is suited
for learning, where inspirational and educational posters are posted along the walls, as well as student projects that
build anticipation for future lessons. However, there are days when the students are more rambunctious than others,
which allow for specific classroom instruction on those days to manage the class.
STANDARDS AND LESSON OBJECTIVES
CCSS Math, CCSS ELA & Literacy History/Social
Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, NGSS, and
English Language Development Standards (ELD)
Content Standards
NGSS- HS-ESS1-5- Evaluate evidence of the past and
ELD Expanding- 1.Exchanginginformation/ideas
current movements of continental and oceanic crust and
the theory of plate tectonics to explain the ages of crustal
Contributetoclass,group,andpartnerdiscussions,sustaining
rocks.
conversationsonavarietyofageandgradeappropriateacademictopics
byfollowingturntakingrules,askingandansweringrelevant,ontopic
CCSS ELA/Literacy- RST.11-12.8- Evaluate the
questions,affirmingothers,providingadditional,relevantinformation,
hypotheses, data, analysis, and conclusions in a science
andparaphrasingkeyideas.
or technical text, verifying the data when possible and
corroborating or challenging conclusions with other
3.Supportingopinionsandpersuadingothers
sources of information (HS-ESS1-5).
RST.11-12.8- Cite specific textual
Negotiatewithandpersuadeothers(e.g.,bypresentingcounter
evidence to support analysis of science and technical
arguments)indiscussionsandconversationsusinglearnedphrases(e.g.,
texts, attending to important distinctions the author
Youmakeavalidpoint,butmyviewis...)andopenresponsesto
makes and to any gaps or inconsistencies in the account
expressanddefendnuancedopinions.
(HS-ESS-5).
11.Justifying/arguing
a.Justifyopinionsandpositionsorpersuadeothersbymaking
connectionsbetweenideasandarticulatingrelevanttextualevidenceor
backgroundknowledge.
b.Expressattitudeandopinionsortemperstatementswithavarietyof
familiarmodalexpressions(e.g.,possibly/likely,could/would).
Bridging:
1. Exchanging information/ideas
Contribute to class, group, and partner discussions,
sustaining conversations on a variety of age and gradeappropriate academic topics by following turn-taking
rules, asking and answering relevant, on-topic questions,
affirming others, and providing coherent and wellarticulated comments and additional information.
3. Supporting opinions and persuading othersNegotiate
with or persuade others in discussions and conversations

in appropriate registers (e.g., to acknowledge new

information and politely offer a counterpoint) using a
variety of learned phrases (e.g., You postulate that X.
However, Ive reached a different conclusion on this
issue) and open responses to express and defend
nuanced opinions.

Lesson Objective(s)
Evidence
Students will be able to define continental drift and
give evidence as to how scientists know it happened.
Evidence of learning will be done through different
Students will investigate continental drift through
types of assessments throughout the lesson. The main
modeling landmass movements based off of rock types,
focus in this lesson is for students to be able to provide
glacial striations, ancient mountain ranges, and fossil
evidence and support the argument for continental drift. If
remains.
they are able to achieve higher order thinking from
Students will be able to justify their hypothesis by
Blooms Taxonomy, then mastery of content is achieved.
writing a persuasive essay explaining why their evidence
supports their argument.
STUDENT ASSESSMENT
Purpose/Focus of
Type
Implementation
Feedback Strategy
How Informs Teaching
Assessment
Having students answer
Feedback would be given
questions in their weekly
This informs my teaching
immediately once
learning log after
by seeing if students are
students participate in
The purpose of the entry- watching a video about
connecting their prior or
the think, write, pair,
level assessment is to
Alfred Wegeners Theory
background knowledge
share. After they discuss
engage students in the
of Continental Drift
to the content. If most
their answers with their
content as well as
would be the EL
students are completely
partners, they will share
activate prior knowledge
assessment. They will
lost, then this lets me
EL
with the class as well.
and background
answer to the following
know what specific topic
The teacher will be able
knowledge. This enables
questions: What did the
to elaborate on so that
to give feedback on if
the teacher to find the
other scientists say
the students understand
their answers were
content standing of the
about Wegener? Why did
the content. If students
correct, if anything was
class.
they not believe
do well, this lets me
missing, or possibly have
Wegeners Theory? What
know I can move on to
them elaborate on their
happened to Wegener in
the next topic.
answers.
1930?
The progress monitoring
assessments in this
This informs my teaching
lesson is done by
because it lets me know
Feedbacks from
facilitating questions
what topic needs in
questions are done
throughout the lecture
depth elaboration or
immediately in class
and having students
explanation, as well what
The purpose of the
where I am able to
discuss the content. If
strengths within the
progress monitoring
elaborate on student
students are filling out
content my students
assessments is to
ideas, or even pose new
the guided notes, this
have. Based on how well
monitor student learning.
questions to them. If
shows that not only are
they understand the
PM
This is done throughout
students complete the
they engaged, but they
content will also show
the class or unit through
guided notes packet,
are elaborating on their
through in their
activities, labs,
they are given a stamp
thinking and answering
summative assessment
facilitating questions,
and it shows that they
the questions noted.
project. Those who have
and through discussions.
not only were engaged in
Being that this lesson
trouble throughout the
class, they monitored
introduces students to
lesson will be the ones
their own progress as
the unit project, or
who I will focus on
well.
summative assessment,
throughout the project to
most of the focus is in
provide extra scaffolding.
the next assessment.
S
The purpose of this
The summative
Feedback will be given
This informs the teacher
assessment is to assess
assessment is a
based on points to
on how well the students
if the students reached
Continental Drift Project
receive a letter grade.
attained the learning
the learning goals of the
that includes many
The landmass activity is
goals of the unit.
unit. Tests, exams,
components. The first
worth 10 points, the
Students should do
projects, and essays are
component is doing a
questions are worth 15
overall well, because the
examples of this where
Landmass Investigation
points, and completing
progress monitoring
the students incorporate
where students piece
the brainstorm chart will
assessments throughout

everything that they

have learned in the unit
and synthesize the
information.

together continents
based on evidence. They
then answer questions
that organize their
thinking for the essay.
The students then look
over the essay prompt
and fill out the
brainstorm diagram.
Once they are completed
with that, they will either
hand write or type up
their persuasive essay
that connects all aspects
from the project. They
are to persuade the
scientific community as
to why their hypothesis
is correct.

INSTRUCTION
Instructional Strategies
Activating Prior and Background Knowledge
Weekly Learning Logs
Think, Write, Pair, Share
Discussions
Lecture
Guided Notes
Project
Investigation
Questioning
Persuasive Essay
Checklist Rubric
Lesson Introduction/Anticipatory Set
Time
Teacher Does
10 min.
As students walk into class, they will be able
to view the learning objectives posted on the
overhead projector. The learning objective states
What: Students will learn about the failed theory of
Continental Drift and the evidence that supported it.
Why: Understanding the evidence that supports
Continental Drift and its flaws will not only help in
understanding the larger Theory of Plate Tectonics,
but also the process of science
The teacher takes attendance and then goes
over the objectives and agenda for the day. She will
describe the continental drift warm-up video,
finishing lecture, and then the Inquiry project they
will be completing as a summative assessment.
Having everything written out and organized allows
ELs and Special Education students to have a
concise idea about what is expected for the lesson.
The teacher has students take out their weekly
learning logs and asks the following questions that
are presented on the board, What did the other
scientists say about Wegener? Why did they not
believe Wegeners Theory? What happened to
Wegener in 1930? She will then play the video and
discuss the answers after. The video also aids in ELs
and Special Education students because it gives
visual and auditory representations of the material
as well as allows focus and attention on animated
videos and music.

give 5 points. The essay

will be 20 points with the
opportunity for extra
credit. Students will
receive a grade out of 50
points based on accurate
answers and attempting
difficult problems.

the unit informed me on

how well the students are
learning where I
differentiated learning in
order for them to attain
the learning goals. If
students however do
poorly, they perhaps I
made an error in
completing the project or
included a concept that
students have trouble
reaching higher-level
thinking with. If students
do well, then they will be
able to build upon these
ideas in the next unit. If
students miss a
particular aspect, I will
have to revisit that
concept and facilitate
learning until students
master the content.

Student Does
The students walk into class and see the
objectives on the board as they settle into their
seats. After attendance is taken, they listen to the
teacher about the daily objectives and agenda for
the day.
Students will take out their weekly learning logs
as asked by the teacher and review the questions
they will look out for during the video. While
watching the video, students will answer the
questions and write them in their logs. They will then
discuss their answers with the teacher and their
classmates. Some may elaborate on others ideas.
Students then recall the main topics that were
learned from the day prior.

After watching the video, the teacher is able to

tie in how the video relates to finishing the days
lecture and beginning the project through a think,
write, pair, share discussion. The teacher then
transitions to the lesson body by briefly summarizing
what they did the day prior.
Lesson Body
Time
Teacher Does
The teacher will go over the last slides in the
PowerPoint about the evidence of Continental Drift.
The warm-up video prefaces Wegeners failed theory
because he could not give a mechanism on the
movement of plates. Before starting lecture, the
teacher passes out guided notes, which
accommodates special education students to give a
variety of learning styles (visuals, auditory, written,
and reading). These notes also aid in ELs because it
allows them to make connections on how to write out
sentences and fill in key scientific vocabulary. After
lecture, the teacher introduces their summative
assessment project on the last slide.

30 min.

The teacher explains that the students will be

given an investigation project. The students are to
synthesize what they have learned in the unit of
scientific processes and continental drift within the
project. The first aspect of the project is that
students will have to investigate a problem, which is,
Can I use different kinds of evidence to determine
if the continents have drifted apart after having been
connected to one another? Evidence you have
collected: Arrows- glacial striations, black areasancient mountains, dotted areas- ancient continental
shelves, x-mark- Mesosaurus fossil beds. They will
be able to work in groups assigned by the teacher
based on ability (an EL with a native speaker) for this
section of the project. In order to organize their
thinking and accommodate ELs and SPED students, a
chart is included in the prompt and the teacher
explains what is expected on how to fill it out. The
teacher then explains the second part of the project,
which is a persuasive essay that the scientist
(students) will write in order to persuade the
scientific community that their hypothesis is correct
about Continental Drift. Using their evidence and
visual model they made, they will justify their
argument as well include the key terms used in the
unit. It is not expected for the students to do the
second part during class, in fact they have until the
rest of the week to finish their essay.

Student Does

The students go over how the warm up video

relates to the days lecture and are informed that
they will be doing a summative project of the unit.
The students take out their guided notes and follow
along the last couple slides of lecture.
The students begin to mentally brainstorm about
what they learned in the unit and end of lesson and
recall the information for the project. They listen to
overall investigation directions and are assigned in
groups. The students are slightly disappointed that
they will not be able to work with their friends. They
are given the worksheets and directions for the
project. Students understand that they first piece
together landmasses based on evidence, answer
questions about the investigation, then look over the
essay prompt and fill out the brainstorm chart. As
they write their essay, they will refer to the checklist
rubric to make sure they include all aspects of the
prompt to receive full credit.

The teacher then hands out all of the activities

and goes over the directions with them. They are
then separated into their groups and begin the
inquiry project. The project has students engaged in
the 4 Cs where they are collaborating with their
groups, critical thinking about content and evidence,
creating by piecing together landmasses to form a
model, and communicating their scientific arguments
to support their hypotheses.
Lesson Closure
Time
Teacher Does
5 min.
The closure allows for students to clean up
their landmasses activity and return to their seats.
The teacher has the students take out a piece of
paper and have them reflect on their thinking they

Student Does
The students clean up and scrap paper and put away
their materials and return to their seats. They take
out a sheet of paper as asked and answer an oral
prompt that the teacher tells them. For ELs and

will use in their persuasive essay. If you were a

scientist, what would discredit a hypothesis that is
present to you? The teacher will allow the students
a few minutes to finish their writing and has them
turn in their sheets. This prefaces what students
should include in their persuasive essay, including
the opinions of a counter argument. This allows
students to think metacognitively, where they view
their content in another perspective. They are then
dismissed once they hand in their exit-slip.
Instructional Materials, Equipment, and Multimedia
Overhead Projector for Learning Log Questions & Instruction
Evidence of Continental Drift Project Part 1
KQHL Diagram
Diagrams of Land Masses
Scissors, Tape, Colored Pencils
Evidence of Continental Drift Project Part 2
Evidence of Continental Drift Project Part 2 Rubric

SPED, the teacher gives them a handout that has the

questions written out. Students write out their
responses and turn in their exit-slip. They pack up
and are dismissed from class.

Co-Teaching Strategies
A co-teaching strategy that would work well in this inquiry assignment is Supplemental Teaching. This coteaching model enables one teacher to work with students at their expected grade level, while the other teacher
works with those students who need the information and/or materials retaught, extended or remediated. During the
land mass activity (Part 1 in the project), both teachers will be able to facilitate student learning in separate groups by
answering questions, posing new arguments, or clearing understanding of difficult concepts.
DIFFERENTIATION
English Learners
Striving Readers
Students with Special
Advanced Students
Needs
ELs are accommodated
Striving readers are
Students with special needs Advanced students would
throughout this lesson due
accommodated in that the
in the class are
be able to participate in a
to the inclusion of charts,
amount of reading builds
predominantly ADHD with
bonus question that is
videos, diagrams,
up as the lesson
anxiety, which have trouble included in the rubric. This
supplemental handouts,
progresses. Guided notes
with focusing. I have
would have them write
and differentiated group
are handed out for the
provided a variety of
another two paragraphs in
pairing. The video also aids
readers to be able to fill in
instruction material in
their essay explaining that
in ELs students because it
the blanks or elaborate on
different learning styles.
he/she found another two
gives visual and auditory
what they read in the
There are videos, visuals,
pieces of evidence that
representations of the
power point lecture. The
writing, reading, and even
supports their hypothesis
material as well as allows
prompt for the essay is
models. The video also aids even further. They will be
focus and attention on
quite extensive in the
in SPED students because it able to create their own
animated videos and
amount they are to read,
gives visual and auditory
evidence and justify why it
music. Many diagrams are
but it is broken apart into
representations of the
would strengthen their
included in the lesson as
different ideas, as well as
material as well as allows
argument.
well as a guided notes
having a diagram provided
focus and attention on
sheet for EL to give visual
to organize their thoughts
animated videos and music.
representations as well as
from the prompt and to
One SPED student in
practice for writing out the
eventually have it in their
particular loves art, so
English Language. Students persuasive essay.
doing the landmass
are also given guided notes
investigation where he will
to aid in their note taking
be coloring and pasting
and to have visual
should be particularly fun
representations of what
for that individual. Group
they are hearing. The chart
work also allows for a
on the essay prompt also
lessened anxiety when
allows ELs to organize their
working on the project. The
thoughts to where they can
most difficult aspect would
transfer their thinking into
be writing the essay. The
English academic writing.
checklist rubric will allow
Some may struggle on
the SPED students to have
writing the essay.
the rubric organized and
Depending of their CELDT
easily to focus and follow.
standing, I may
accommodate them by
having them write some
and present to me orally, or
have them write based on
their ability. The checklist
rubric also decreases the

amount of wording, where

they are able to follow the
rubric and what is expected
in the essay.
REFLECTION: SUMMARY, RATIONALE, AND IMPLEMENTATION

Summary
The purpose of this lesson is to engage students in the Theory of Continental Drift project where they
investigate the evidence and persuade the scientific community as to why their hypothesis is correct.
Class observers will see students engaged in groups and focusing on an activity where they piece
together landmasses based on evidence that is given. Once the students have their landmasses pieced
together, they can move on to the next part of their project where they are given a persuasive essay
prompt and can begin brainstorming. Once they have the brainstorming chart filled out, they follow
along a rubric checklist while writing their persuasive essay to make sure all aspects are included to
receive full points. My role is to facilitate learning, pose questions, answer questions, and guide students
through the project if they need help. Being that this is a student-centered constructivist classroom, it is
my responsibility to observe students as they work on their own to make sure they are on track and on
task. I am also able to focus on EL and SPED students who may need extra scaffolding. The evidence
that students demonstrate mastery of the content or skills is through completion and accuracy of the
project they create. If they master the understanding that the evidence they have pieces together the
landmasses into Pangea, then they are more than likely to succeed in the written essay. Once they are
able to demonstrate the hands-on activity, they will be explaining their rationale and elaboration
through the persuasive essay.
Rationale
My rational on why I chose the instructional strategies, assessments, and differentiations are to
make my class as equitable as possible. This allows all of my students to engage in learning and be
able to develop the same learning outcomes. My instructional strategies include different learning
styles through lecture, guided notes, a lab that is creative and art-based, and a writing response.
Students also are able to work with one another, which allows them to collaborate and
communicate. Piecing together evidence and answering questions engaging them in critical
thinking, and allows their creativity to shine through. This lesson incorporates the 4 Cs where they
communicate, collaborate, critical think, and are creative. My differentiation strategies include
many visuals, diagrams, and guided notes for ELs, striving readers, and SPED students where they
are able to organize their thoughts and synthesize information. Advanced students are able to
participate in a bonus question and may even help other students if needed. Being that my class is
a very diverse class, my instruction must be diverse as well.
Implementation
Once implementing the lesson I am able to go back and think about what aspects in the lesson did
not go as planned or what worked really well. This will give me insight on what to work with for the
next lesson or when I teach this again next year. For example, if this whole lesson took three days
to complete, I would be able to plan around that and give the appropriate amount of time for the
students. If something came up in the middle of the class, such as new questions that students
have, I would be able to address this in the next lesson. Also, many times in teaching, the teacher
thinks that they have explained everything and given the appropriate amount of directions,
however students keep asking the same question. If this happens, I would be able to pause class
and go over the directions again with the class as a whole and have them repeat what is expected
for them so they understand their task and outcomes.