SETON HILL UNIVERSITY

Lesson Plan Template

TOPIC DETAILS CK
Name Miss Ritchey
Subject Science
Grade Level 4th
Date/Duration November 7, 2016 / 60 minutes
Big Ideas  Our galaxy contains many billions of stars that create formations
called constellations.
Essential Questions  What are constellations?
 Who created constellations?
 What are stars?
 Is every star included in constellations?
PA/Common  Standard – 3.3.4.B1
Core/Standards  Recognize that the universe contains many billions of galaxies and
that each galaxy contains many billions of stars.
Objective  In groups of 2 or 3, students will construct models of multiple
constellations of their choosing.
Bloom's Taxonomy  Students may not work as well with others as they would
independently so they will be given the option to complete a model
Webb's Depth of by themselves.
Knowledge (DOK)
Formative &  I will formatively assess the students by grading their constellation
Summative models. This activity will be graded in pairs with a rubric.
Assessment Evidence  If a student works independently, their constellation model will be
graded individually with the rubric. If needed, the rubric will be
changed accordingly.
 The students’ summative assessments will take place at the end of
the unit by having a test on aspects of our Solar System.
ISTE Standards for  1. Empowered Learners: Students leverage technology to take an
Students active role in choosing, achieving, and demonstrating competency in
their learning goals, informed by the learning sciences.
Framework for 21st  The students will be starting the class by spending some time on the
Century Learning app, Star Walk Kids- Explore Space & Planets. This app allows
constellations to be viewed and explored.
Accommodations,  For Paisley, working with a partner should allow her to complete this
Modifications activity to the fullest. If she would struggle with sticking the tooth
picks into the marshmallows, she could attach them to the paper
with small spaces between the items. Also, if she struggles with using
glue one handed, I will provide precut pieces of tape in order to
attach the marshmallows and toothpicks to the construction paper.
SUPERVISING N/A
TEACHER’S
SIGNATURE

Seton Hill University Lesson Plan Template Step-by-Step Procedures

RATIONALE for the By this time in the unit, the students should have a thorough understanding CK
Learning Plan of our Solar System and what it contains. The only thing that has not been
talked about is stars. While there are different kinds of stars, they are more
similar to each other than the planets which should lead to an easy
understanding.
Introduction Activating Prior Knowledge
 I will ask the question, “Does anyone know what the big dipper is?” If
someone in the class does, I will ask them to draw the big dipper on
the board for the class. This is how I will introduce constellations. (If
none of the students know what the big dipper is, I will draw it on the
board.)
 At this time, students may feel the need to yell out or cause
distractions during the introduction of the lesson. Reminders will be
given that a quiet hand needs to be raised in order to be called on.
Hook/Lead-In/Anticipatory Set
 The students will begin class by being given iPad time on the app, Star
Walk Kids- Explore Space & Planets. This app allows constellations to
be viewed and explored.
 This app can be used as a reward for students who have displayed
positive behavior.
Explicit Instructions Big Idea Statement
 In the night sky, stars created constellations.
Essential Questions Statement
 What are stars and constellations?
Objective Statement
 In groups of 2 or 3, you will create models of multiple constellations of
your choice.
 Students now have the option to work independently.
Transition
 Now that we have discussed all aspects of the Solar System, I will split
the students into groups. The inner planets, the outer planets, the
moons, and the stars. I will than call each group one at a time to come
and sit on the carpet.
 Because of the small class size, the students will be split into 4 groups
of 2.
Key Vocabulary
 Solar System, Galaxy, Milky Way Galaxy, Stars, Constellations
Lesson Procedure PreAssessment of Students
 I will create a lab sheet with different pictures of constellations and
blank spaces where the students, individually have to create a name
for each constellation based on what they think the title would be.
They can guess the name based off of the shape of the constellation.
After they fill out the sheet, they will be given the actual constellation
names to see if anyone guessed correctly.
 If students struggle with trying to guess the constellation names, they
could become frustrated and act out or throw tantrums. If after about
2 minutes, I sense the students are growing frustrated, we will label
the constellations with their real names as a class.
 Modeling of the Concept
 I will begin by having photos of different constellations that we can
see in the night sky. We will have a discussion about the history
behind the constellations and how they originated. After that, I will
introduce the activity of creating constellations out of mini
marshmallows and tooth picks. The marshmallows will represent the
stars in the constellations and the tooth picks are the imaginary lines
that connect the stars. After the constellation is constructed, it will be
glued to black construction paper and labeled with the correct
constellation name. I will have multiple models and pictures of
constellations that the students can pick from.
 During the activity there is a possibly that the students could act out in
a negative manner. If a student acts during the activity while they are
working in pairs, they will be redirected to work independently. If
students are not working productively independently, they will be
paired with another student in the class for peer support in finishing
the activity.
Guiding the Practice
 While the students are working together to create their constellations
I will be looking for cooperation of peers and an overall understanding
of constellations. I will be walking around observing their creations. I
will pause at each pair in order to ask questions and try to guess which
constellation each chose. In order to see if there is an understanding I
will also be verbally asking the students questions about stars such as,
“What are stars made out of?”, “What are constellations?”, “How are
stars and the Sun similar?”, etc.
 The students will be allowed to write the answers to these questions
on an exit ticket if orally communicating their thoughts is something
they are not comfortable doing.
Providing the Independent Practice
 The students will work independently while working on the iPads. This
incorporates independent practice and the use of technology.
 The students also have the option to create their model
independently.
Transition
 We will sing the Outer Space song to the tune of the ABCs. Mercury,
Venus, Earth, and Mars/ Jupiter Saturn look like stars/ Uranus,
Neptune, Pluto’s last/ None of the planets spin around fast/ Who can
name the planet’s now? / (insert any student’s name) will tell us now!
Reading Materials  Toothpicks
Technology  Mini marshmallows
Equipment  Black construction paper
Supplies  Glue
 Markers
Evaluation of the Formal Evaluation
Learning/Mastery of  I will formally evaluate the students by grading their constellation
the Concept models. This activity will be graded based off of a rubric. I will be
 looking for well-constructed models that are labeled with the correct
constellation name and resemble the actual formation.
Informal Evaluation
 The informal evaluation will be, me walking around the room guessing
which constellations each pair picked to create. I will ask them
questions that the students will have to answer in order to describe
their constellation so I can guess which one it is. Questions will be
reflecting shape, size, etc.
Closure Summary & Review of the Learning
 At the end of this activity, I will have each pair present their chosen
constellation to the rest of the class. However, they will not show the
name of the constellation and the class has to try and identify it.
 If the students fell anxious about presenting in front of the class,
either I can present their models for them or the class can participate
in a gallery walk to view all of the constellations.
Homework/Assignments
 N/A
Teacher  I will know the students understood constellations by their models
Self-reflection that will be graded based off of a rubric.
 In their models I will be looking for proper shapes and labels. If they
have models that don’t resemble the actual constellation, I will have
the pair of students create a new model.