Goal 4: Demonstrate knowledge of and ability to plan and implement a variety of instructional strategies and assessment techniques for teaching science at the elementary level.
At the beginning of the semester I did not even know where to begin with science planning. It was literally a foreign language. I was so immersed in the gradual release of responsibility method from our literacy classes that trying to let students self discover seemed like chaos. I have learned over this semester that science is to be taught in learning cycles following the 5E model. Students need a chance to explore and create their own ideas to share. This connects with the nature of science. Also, when letting students share their ideas it generally makes them take ownership for their learning and they tend to be more excited! Just like adults students become bored with the same old thing so knowing that various strategies need to be used. As I developed learning cycles this semester I tried to provide unique experiences for students to engage in to develop their own ideas and to take ownership of their own learning. As much as we need instructional strategies we also need assessment strategies. As an educator you need to know how your students are understanding the content. One of my favorite things to use is formative assessment. One reason I love it is because formative assessment comes in so many ways. One way is through simply having a conversation with them, asking them questions, and recording their response. However, this semester we also learned about a lot of other formative assessments we can use in the classroom to change it up or find one that best fits for the learning cycle. Overall, I think this goal is so important because just like your students are diverse you need to bring diversity to your instructional and assessment strategies to meet all of your students needs. The artifacts I have selected show my development creating learning cycles and using the 5E model. Even though each one follows the 5E model each learning cycle is unique in itself. Additionally, I chose to share a sample of one of my formative assessments. To continue working on this goal I want to keep creating learning cycles but my focus is really going to be using more of a variety of formative assessments.
At the beginning of the semester I did not even know where to begin with science planning. It was literally a foreign language. I was so immersed in the gradual release of responsibility method from our literacy classes that trying to let students self discover seemed like chaos. I have learned over this semester that science is to be taught in learning cycles following the 5E model. Students need a chance to explore and create their own ideas to share. This connects with the nature of science. Also, when letting students share their ideas it generally makes them take ownership for their learning and they tend to be more excited! Just like adults students become bored with the same old thing so knowing that various strategies need to be used. As I developed learning cycles this semester I tried to provide unique experiences for students to engage in to develop their own ideas and to take ownership of their own learning. As much as we need instructional strategies we also need assessment strategies. As an educator you need to know how your students are understanding the content. One of my favorite things to use is formative assessment. One reason I love it is because formative assessment comes in so many ways. One way is through simply having a conversation with them, asking them questions, and recording their response. However, this semester we also learned about a lot of other formative assessments we can use in the classroom to change it up or find one that best fits for the learning cycle. Overall, I think this goal is so important because just like your students are diverse you need to bring diversity to your instructional and assessment strategies to meet all of your students needs. The artifacts I have selected show my development creating learning cycles and using the 5E model. Even though each one follows the 5E model each learning cycle is unique in itself. Additionally, I chose to share a sample of one of my formative assessments. To continue working on this goal I want to keep creating learning cycles but my focus is really going to be using more of a variety of formative assessments.