UMF

Unit-Wide Lesson
Plan Template

Name: Nicole Brewer Program: Secondary Ed. Math Course: EDU 460

Lesson Topic / Title: Graphing Exponential Functions

Lesson Date: 3/5/2019 Lesson Length: 80 min Grade/Age: Grades 9-11

Learning Objectives & Content Standard Alignment - Selects, creates, and sequences learning
experiences and performance tasks that support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals
based on content standards.
Learning Objective(s) Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
• I can graph exponential growth and decay • Being able to graph
functions. exponential growth and decay
allows you to see how the
functions change over time.
Seeing that in one direction
they go forever and in the
other they plateau.

Content Standard(s) Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
• Understands how to graph a function and • Students will need to be able to
determine key features. interpret a graph and
understand what it is telling
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSF.IF.C.7.E them.
Graph exponential and logarithmic functions,
showing intercepts and end behavior, and
trigonometric functions, showing period, midline,
and amplitude.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSF.LE.A.1.C
Recognize situations in which a quantity grows or
decays by a constant percent rate per unit interval
relative to another.

Assessment - Uses assessment flexibly to expand and deepen understanding of learner performance
and determines best supports for continued learner growth.
Assessment Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
• Pre-Assessment to check their understanding on • The pre-assessment will be
graphing and solving exponential equations. used to show me if students
• Notice and Wonder looking at graphs of have the intuition to solve the
exponential equations. logarithmic and exponential
• Desmos Activity equations because it is content
that they haven’t been taught.
• The notice and wonder activity
allows me to get an idea about
what they understand about
exponential graphs and if they
know what it tells you.

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• Desmos allows the teacher to

see on each problem what
students answered or look at a
certain student and what they
did for all the problems. It also
gives you a list of the class and
a checkmark an x or a blank for
each question for each student.
This breaks down the work
and identifies students who
are struggling or problems that
stumped multiple people.
Instructional Materials and Resources - Stays current in content knowledge and expands expertise in
reviewing instructional materials from the perspectives of both the discipline and individual learner
needs.
Materials, Resources, and / or Technology Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

Materials • The students use their iPads to
• Worksheet take notes and work on
• Notes worksheets in an app called
• Sticky Notes Notability. This allows them to
Technology always have their notes with
• iPads them if they have their iPad.
• Laptop Notes are done in slide shows
• Desmos Link and Code so that students can use them
https://teacher.desmos.com/dashboard/5c7697c as guided notes and can focus
a33a3cf0c66182d9f more on what’s being said.
• Sticky notes as an exit ticket
allows them to put it up on the
board and make it more
anonymous.
• Using Desmos is a fun way to
get students engaged and
thinking but it feels more like a
game.
Instructional Methods: Selects, creates, and sequences learning experiences and performance tasks
by using a variety of instructional approaches, strategies, and technologies that make learning
accessible to all learners and support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals.
Teaching and Learning Sequence Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
1. Go over Unit Outline (5) • Showing the students the
2. Notice and Wonder (5) outline gives them a picture of
3. Notes (20) where we are going and tells
4. Look at graph of y=2^x (10) them what targets this unit
5. Desmos Activity (30) will give them an opportunity
6. Reminders about homework (5) to hit again.
7. Exit Ticket (5) • Looking at graphs of
Exponential Growth and Decay
• Notice and wonder looking at the graphs of before the students know what
exponential growth and decay. Ask students if it is allows them to connect
they see any differences or similarities. what they already know to
• Pull up Desmos and type in y=2^x twice. Keep one these graphs. It also gives them
but change parts of the other, asking students a chance to see if something is
what they think will happen. Such as the fact that different. The students also
the asymptote changes when you add or subtract.

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• Have students go to the Desmos link posted on • Having the notes be in

the board. Explain to them that they will be doing slideshow form makes them
an activity where they have to manipulate guided notes that allows
something in the equation to change the graph to students to focus more on
what they want it to be. listening than on writing.
• At the end of the activity tell them that they have • Not all students will see how
to do at least 4 problems from the worksheet for different parts of the equation
homework. impact the graph so pointing it
• Hand out exit ticket (sticky note) and ask the out to them is a way to avoid
questions, “What did you think of this activity, misconceptions.
what did you learn, would you like to do • The Desmos activity gives the
something like this again?” have students write students something new to try
their answers, they don’t have to include their which they said they wanted.
name. Have them post the sticky note on the Content wise it is also a strong
white board as they leave the room. activity because it forces
students to think about how
changing one part of the
equation will change the
graph.
• I only assigned four of the
problems for the worksheet
because they did they activity
but I still wanted them to
practice making a table and
graph themselves.
• The exit ticket will help me to
see if they found value in the
activity or if it was something
that didn’t help them learn.

Meeting students’ needs (differentiation, extensions, Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
modifications, accommodations)
• I added in section 4, manipulating a graph on • Not all students can pick up on
Desmos together, to support students who didn’t those shifts or even realize
see initially from the notes what shifts occur that they are their unless they
when. are prompted. Showing them
• Limited the Desmos activity to just the first 14 allows them to see and hear
problems. those associations in a way
that includes everyone. This
also allows students who
already see and understand it
to share their knowledge.
• I didn’t think that the other
parts of the activity would be
beneficial for this unit as the
students are never required to
look at a graph and write the
equation.



Field Courses Only – Post lesson

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Reflection
Over all I think that the lesson went well. The students were actively engaged and
participating during the notice and wonder. This allowed me to see what they
already knew and adjust what I would emphasize during the notes.

The Desmos activity seemed to go well, students were engaged and looking at the
graph beforehand definitely allowed them more confidence in their decisions and
understanding. The Desmos activity allowed me to see a trend that most students
weren’t making the connection that changing the base number in the equation
would change the rate at which the graph was growing. This was easy to address
and point out to students in the moment. From the exit tickets I gathered that most
of the class enjoyed doing something outside of the normal routine. Some didn’t like
it, those were the students who struggled with understanding or thought it was too
easy.

I learned that the students are more engaged when you ask them direct questions
and give them time to think and respond. I will use this to help me plan my other
lessons by trying to incorporate more time for them to think about and respond to
the content.


On 3/7/2019 they took a formative covering graphing exponential functions. Of the
17 students who took it, 8 got a 3, 5 got a 2.5 and 4 got a 2. No students received a 1
on this assignment so they all attempted it and knew mostly what they were doing.
Many of the 2 and 2.5 scores came from students not reading the directions to
identify domain, range and whether it was growth or decay, as well as making a
simple mistake. While not all students met the objective they all showed progress
towards meeting the objective. To help all students meet the objectives I will remind
them that they need to read the directions and give them more opportunity to
practice.

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Teaching Standards and Rationale

Standard #2 Learning Differences
Notice and Wonder
Rationale:
Some students already understand and can see how adding a number to an
equation will change the graph but others don’t. Adding in discussion around this
allows me to see who already understands it. It also allows the students who might
not automatically see it to hear it explained by me or another student, so this will
allow them to learn without targeting them.

Standard #6 Assessment
Desmos Activity
Rationale: Desmos collects all the student responses and gathers them in a way that
teachers can look at one student or at one question in particular. This allows me to
gauge the level of understanding, directly after direct instruction, that students
have. I looked at problem questions and their answers to free response options.

Standard #8 Instructional Strategies
Notice and Wonder
Rationale:
The notice and wonder activity had the students engaging with me, their peers, and
the content directly. This got them to use and learn vocabulary that they will see in
the unit. It was an easy way to question them but let them feel like they were just
sharing ideas. It also got them questioning each other to figure out commonalities
in ideas.

Standard #10 Collaborations
Discussion with Mentor
Rationale:
During discussion with my mentor about the unit he pointed out that most students
had never seen a graph with an asymptote or learned what it is. This lead me to
realize that I needed to emphasize the asymptote concept during notes. It also
made me think about the fact that most students wouldn’t realize how parts of an
equation create shifts and changes to the graph. This lead to the decision to
incorporate an emphasis on those shifts into the lesson.

Standard #11 Technology
Desmos Activity
Rationale:
The Desmos Activity challenged students to think about the relationship between
the graph and the equation in ways that they don’t normally have to. They had to
think about how changing the equation would change the graph. The technology
allows them to instantly check their ideas to see if they work. They don’t have to
take the time to do all the calculations for the graphs but can still get the
information out of them.
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