Monday, October 15, 2007

TTI Lesson Resources

The Teacher Training Institute (TTI) through Blue Ridge Public Television (WBRA) helps teachers throughout the state with designing and developing technology-rich lesson plans for their classrooms. All of the lessons created through TTI have a video component as well as a web component. In addition many of them creatively incorporate other forms of technology and software. The TTI Master Teachers work year-round to create lesson plans that follow the general TTI model of effectively using video in the classroom. All of these lessons are available through the WBRA website for anyone to copy, alter and implement. These are "tried-and-true" lessons as most of the TTI Master Teachers are classroom teachers who have tested their lessons with actual students. For this assignment, access the TTI Lessons and browse through them to get a general sense of the model and how they are designed. Choose one lesson to read more thoroughly and post a reaction to include the following items:

- State the title of the lesson
- State three things you liked about the lesson
- State one thing you didn't like
- Briefly describe how you might adapt this lesson for your class or needs

If you have any questions, please let me know!

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Box and Whiskers: Math 6-9 grade


1. I like the fact that it has the students actually becoming the box-and-whiskers graph. I find that so many students can’t read a bar or line graph and this is a great way to help them understand. I like that it involves a lot of students in this activity.
2. I like that it uses visual cards to help the kids see the new terms dealing with the graph; median, lower and upper extreme and so on. This activity helps many different learning types and gets them off their feet.
3. What student doesn’t like candy? I like how it gets the students involved in the data collecting and it helps them feel ownership in the graph.

One thing I am apprehensive about would be all the materials needed and to keep things and events straight. Maybe after teaching for a couple years I could try this, but I get flustered in front of the students when I’m not confident of what is going on.

It calls for the lesson to be 1-55 minute class. It seems like a lot to do in such a short time. If I used this with the 6th graders I have now, I would go at a slower pace. Maybe have the student led part the day before to get them warmed up to the terms before they actually try putting data on. My kids now seem to get overwhelmed fast when new and foreign terms are introduced for the first time.
By Georgeanne Lavery

Anonymous said...

Nothing Lost, Nothing Gained
Science 6-8

1. I liked that it involved something the students would really be excited with--roller coasters. They actually get to check out their own, and they would really get into that.
2. It seems like a lesson that they could really 'see.' I don't remember anything about my energy lessons in school (much less college) if i ever had them. But they could at least remember that they were making roller coasters.
3. i like the fact that the lesson contains so much technology and has such detail. that really helps to make this lesson less outright panic, especially for a new teacher.

One thing that I will have to be convinced on is trusting ten year olds to work respectfully with, essentially, buck shot. We'll see.

At the very least, it will take the three 45 minute periods. I work with the same students as Georgeanne and I agree with her about their stress levels-you've got to be careful when introducing something new, especially with its own vocabulary, or they'll shut down. I might cut down on the formulas, or give it twice the time recommended, because i am not sure they can follow this lesson plan exactly as is.

Megan

Anonymous said...

Nothing Compares to You.

1. I like how this entire lesson has students learning about fractions in a hands on way. For instance, I liked the pizza cutting activiy. The neat part is it allows kids to get moving around the room looking for people with equivalent amounts of pizza, but represented by a different fraction.
2. I also liked the link to illuminations. It is a great website and has MANY phenomenal math lessons.
3. Finally, I liked the learning activity computer lab because studetns are able to manipulate the circle fractions.

The only piece I am a bit cautious of is all of the technology involved. This is also the piece I may adapt is cutting down on some of the activities because that much computer lab time may not be possible. I am also concerned they would be exhausted with manipulating fractions :O)

Ashley Ingle

Anonymous said...

TITLE: INDEPENDENT OR DEPENDENT? THAT IS THE QUESTION

3 THINGS: ONE REASON I LIKE THIS LESSON IS BECAUSE IT STARTS OFF GRASPING THE ATTENTION OF THE STUDENTS. A DEMONSTARTION IS DONE IN FRONT OF THEM. I THINK THIS WOULD BE GOOD BECAUSE THEY ARE WANTING TO KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN IN THIS EXPERIMENT. I ALSO LIKED HOW THE STUDENTS WERE ABLE TO WATCH THE VIDEO AND ACTUALLY COME UP TO THE BOARD AND WRITE DOWN THE VARIOUS ANSWERS THAT THEY WERE LOOKING FOR IN THE VIDEO. THIS KEEPS THE STUDENTS INTERACTIVE AND ACTUALLY PAYING ATTENTION TO THE VIDEO. I ALSO LIKED THE FACT THAT THERE WAS AN INTERACTIVE ACTIVITY IN THE LESSON THAT THE STUDENTS COULD ACTUALLY PUT THEIR KNOWLEDGE TO WORK. STUDENTS LIKE COMPETITION AND IT IS AN ENGAGING WAY TO ASSESS THE STUDENTS TO SEE IF THEY HAVE GRASPED THE INFORMATION THAT YOU HAVE BEEN TRYING TO GET ACROSS TO THEM.

1 THING: 1 THING I DID NOT PARTICULARLY LIKE ABOUT THIS LESSON WAS THE VIDEO. I KNOW WHEN MY CO-OP TEACHER SHOWS A VIDEO IN CLASS THE STUDENTS MOAN AND COMPLAIN EVERY TIME HE STOPS IT. THEY USUALLY ARE NOT LISTENING TO WHAT HE HAS TO SAY OR THE QUESTION THAT HE IS ASKING THEM WHEN IT IS STOPPED. THEY ARE JUST CONCERNED ABOUT WHEN HE IS GOING TO TURN IT BACK ON, ESPECIALLY IF IT IS SOMETHING THAT THEY ARE REALLY INTERESTED IN SEEING.

I WOULD ADAPT THIS LESSON FOR MY CLASS JUST AS IT IS. I UNDERSTAND THAT VIDEOS CAN PLAY A MAJOR PART IN THE LESSON. I THINK THIS VIDEO IS VERY USEFUL AND INFORMATIVE. I DEFINITELY WOULD KEEP THE ACTIVITIES IN THE LESSON. ONE THING THAT I MIGHT DO IS INSTEAD OF USING THE INTRODUCTION AS A DEMONSTRATION, I MIGHT ACTUALLY LET THE STUDENTS PERFORM IT AS WELL. LET THEM HAVE THEIR OWN MINI EXPERIMENT.

CONSUELA

Anonymous said...

1. Out with You or Com on In: Push and Pull Factors in Immigration

2. (1) The lesson plan included alot of interactive material for students to use technolgy. They would really enjoy looking at all the websites. (2)This lesson would really help students to understand how immigrants felt as they came into New York Harbor and viewed the Statue of Liberty for the first time. The video clips help students invision this experience. (3)I really liked the activity where students would create a design add to convince people to settle in America by using Web sites for additinal ideas.

3. The webquest activity sheets for the different cultural groups would be to time consuming and students would not commit that amount of time to this acitivity.

4. I love the lesson plan and would use alot of it for my class. The interactive tour of Ellis Island is a great web sit and I have this on my teachersweb.com site. You can also hear interviews with actual immigrants that remember their experiences. I would also us the push and pull factors in my lesson plans. The design ad activity is a great idea and students would love being involved in this activity.

Joy Brown

Anonymous said...

Dear John… How to Write a Report and Letter

There are three reasons that I liked about this lesson but the reasons vary. I initially liked the lesson because it uses different learning styles. It uses a warm-up which is the connection, the lesson uses define in terms of learning the different parts of a letter, it allows students to examine the parts of the letter on the internet in order to actually do a letter of their own, and there are images in the form of a video. The second thing I liked is that it made technology a part of the classroom which is sometimes not a usual occurrence and also changes the setting for the students because they now get to go to the computer lab. Having students move when they read their fellow classmates letters, that they deem are persuasive, gives the kinesthetic learner an opportunity to stretch their bodies. The use of technology was also a problem for me because if that day the technology is not available or breaks down there are not many alternatives to the lesson. This letter writing activity would be good for my students in order to help to develop their writing skill for the SOL’s and personal understanding when trying to write their own letter.

Nzingha Tingling-Clemmons

Anonymous said...

From: Daniel Carter
Here are my comments on the lesson

- State the title of the lesson:
The good old days: were they
- State three things you liked about the lesson:
The use of the video
The use of physical materials in the activity
The up and around movement
- State one thing you didn't like:
The length, I’m not sure you could get this all done in one block. You could do it over several days but you might want to move on.
- Briefly describe how you might adapt this lesson for your class or needs:
You could use parts of it in your lesson or compress it to fit the class period.

Anonymous said...

Room for All: Social Studies 6-8

1. I like this lesson because it provides the teacher with a lesson on diversity. I believe that social studies is the study of people, their interaction with each other, and the environment. This lesson provides a beginning point to a social studies classroom in that it opens to door to discussions on the acceptance and appreciation of ALL people.

2. I love the lesson's use of visual aids, such as movies from United Streaming. Instead of hearing the teacher lecture about differences, the students may learn the information from video clips. As much as I hate to admit it, studens probably prefer learning that way instead of listening to their teacher's voice!

3. In middle school, students are beginning to understand more about themselves and realizing those characteristics (both physical and emotional) that make them different from their peers. A lesson such as this has a perfect place in the middle school classroom because it addresses the appreciation and celebration of such diversity.

I do not believe the lesson is exceedingly useful unless the teacher has the accompanying video in The Character Education Series (video #2). Resources might not be available to get the appropriate material in the series. The lack of funding might keep the teacher from following the lesson.

In order to make this piece practical for the classes I have now, I have to take bits and pieces out of the original lesson to use. I would take two 45 minute class periods and show the video clips from United Streaming and ask the questions provided in the lesson (i.e. Why do you think America is so diverse?). I would also be able to pull out the video and website resources to utilize in my own lessons.

This lesson would lead nicely into a section on prejudice and discrimination (i.e. Civil Rights Movement, etc.).

Elizabeth Webb

Anonymous said...

OUT WITH YOU, or COME ON IN
Push and Pull Factors of Immigration.
Grade 6 (Pulaski Co. Grade 7)

1. The lesson plan is very engaging and keeps students active in many ways. It incorporates many uses of technology from video to interactive websites.
2. The 3 day lesson, crosses curriculums including language arts and math. This is important for students to understand the information is relative to other parts of their school day. The poem was a great addition to get students thinking.
3. This lesson allowed students to be critical thinkers and expose them to vocabulary words that will give them a better understanding of the immigration process. Great variety of activities.
4. The only thing I am concerned about it the three days it would require and for new teachers, that would probably stretch out to four days. I hope that would fit with the pacing guides that are already set up.
5. I would enjoy teaching this lesson to students. All the informtion is organized and very well thought out. I feel students would enjoy this lesson and I would encourage blocking students who are planning doing their student teaching in 7th grade Social Studies to grab this one!

Leigh Ann Brewster

Anonymous said...

Nothing Compares to You!

I really liked the introductory activity with the paper pizza cut out. Students love hands on activities and its much easier to see how a fraction is from a whole this way. I also liked the opportunity to move around and change groups to show equal fractions, students have a hard time grasping that concept and I think that would be a good way to show it. Another thing I liked was the idea of using this lesson in Language Arts by writing a story of how we use fractions in everyday life. The one thing I did not like was the videos and having to stop and pause, I thin that would be very time consuming and would take away from the lesson.
I would adapt this lesson in my classroom by including the paper pizza but instead of having the nunmber on the back students would have bags with different fraction pieces cut out in them. One bag would have 6ths in red and 3rds in blue and so on that way students can see how all the different pieces can make the whole.

Teresa Anderson

Anonymous said...

Title: Division and Division and Division (Cell Cycle and Cancer)

First of all, I like how the lesson introduces meiosis and mitosis by talking about cancer because this is a very tragic and familiar disease many kids can associate with. They will care enough to want to learn about it. I also like the idea of starting the lesson with a video and questions because the students can actually see how meiosis and mitosis occur visually in our bodies and it is more engaging than a lesson. Lastly, I thought the idea of having students make their own power point presentations was a great way for them to grow comfortable with the technology and learn the information in a fun way. The only thing that I saw that I know can get frusterating for students in the lesson is when the teacher stops the video and rewinds it frequently. Many times we would like to just view a video from beginning to end. However, I do see the significance of why we would need to stop the video and look at the important points. I feel I could adapt this into one of my lessons by taking the kids to the computer lab or using SMART board as an introduction to mitosis and meiosis. It is a great way to introduce these important concepts without simply lecturing and reading about them.

Anonymous said...

oops I'm sorry that was Laurie Morgan's!

Anonymous said...

Nothing Compares to you!
Grade 6-8

1. I like how this lesson serves as a remediation lesson. Many students/teachers are moving on without reinforcing the information they have learned before. Currently, we are having the first block of everyday as remediation and this lesson looks like it would work perfectly to help!
2. I like how the lesson uses real life ideas to show children fractions. It has children get into groups and split a pizza evenly. Great way to show fractions!
3. It is great how this activity has multiple hands out activities and visual means to show students fractions.

I don't really like how the lesson does not have accommodations. Also, the technology section seems a little difficult.

This lesson would easily be adapted to my classroom. I have been working on math fractions and it will work perfectly in the remediation session. I would probably cut out some of the technology, just because there is only but a little time each day, and by the time it was set up it would be time to go already.All in all, this lesson is neat and i will definately use this site!

Casey O'Toole

Anonymous said...

"Stick to Your Principles" 6-8 Lesson Plans

I could really adapt to this lesson plan because I am in the Civics and Economics 8th grade classroom. I really like the idea of integrating different types of media and technology into the classroom. I also really enjoyed the different techniques that this lesson plan had to offer. For example, the interviewing role play that students will use during this lesson can also correlate into an SOL activity. Students have to learn different interview techniques in either an English or Social Studies SOL. The last component I thought was very interesting was how the lessons were so detailed so I definitely could use them in my classroom today.

One aspect I did not care for was the role playing with students about dictatorships. I understand that students need to learn different forms of government, but as students are in a group and they role play is dictators, the lesson may go a bit too far.

This lesson could be taught in tandem with any learning type because there are so many different ideas that can be used for students of all needs.

Anonymous said...

That was from Susan Smith! Sorry!