Spin-a-Lesson

           So when I think about instructional applications of the Internet, I think of how educators can use the World Wide Web to find tools and resources that will enhance their instruction. In my experiences, I have found it to be very time consuming to locate top notch lesson plans on the Internet without having to pay a fee for them. Excellent instructional ideas can be found for free, but it requires a lot of hours in which to search for them. As I think about continuing my blog after the course ends (which was the initial reason I created it in the first place), I know that I would like for it to be a place where I can share lesson plan ideas and resources with elementary school teachers. Since this week in class we do not have any readings to reflect on, and I have already written about WebQuests, I thought I would attempt a "trial post" of my idea.

         The first thing educators will do upon visiting the blog is to watch a short video letting them see the grade level and subject area that will be the focus of the post. Take a look: https://youtu.be/NwnTRFdfs-Q. 
     
 I will then provide a lesson plan that is aligned to the Common Core Standards (specific to Ohio) that coincide with the subject and grade level I spun. Since the spinners came up as "Kindergarten" and "Science" this time, those will be the focus of this first lesson plan idea that I will provide. 

Grade Level: Kindergarten

Subject: Science


Duration: This is meant to be an introductory lesson used at the start of a study of the four seasons. The lesson provided here will focus on the season of fall, but it should be taught when green leaves can be picked from the trees, in either spring or summer. Other lessons should follow that focus on the remaining seasons. 

Standard: Weather changes are long term and short term. 

Objective: The students will understand that there are four different seasons that occur over the course of a year, with each one having unique weather and observable weather patterns. 

          Materials: 
          * the book: The Seasons of Arnold's Apple
          * flashlight
          * globe
          * copies of the printable book on the seasons
          * 3 leaves (from the same tree) 
          * rubbing alcohol
          * spoon
          * jar
          * plastic wrap
          * paper coffee filter
      
Anticipatory Set: To get the students excited about the lesson, pull up the current temperature on the projector. Since you will be teaching this lesson in the spring or summer, plan to bring winter gear with you to school (i.e. hat, gloves, snow pants, boots, parka, etc.) If possible, plan to teach this lesson as the students are coming back from recess, lunch, or a special. When they enter the classroom, you should be dressed in all of the winter gear. The students should find this funny, as it will be out of place considering the actual weather conditions. When you ask the students why they are laughing, or if they think you are dressed right for the afternoon, have a discussion about why these are not appropriate clothing choices based on current weather conditions. Talk about when they would be important to wear and begin to discuss the concept of seasons: although there is definitely a time and place for winter gear, it is not all year round (where they live) that people need it.

Procedure: 

1.) Have the students come to the carpet/gathering place and share the story: The Season's of Arnold's Apples. 

2.) When the story is over, talk about how the reason for the apples changing is because of weather changes that happen over the course of a year called seasons. Show the students how the earth moves around the sun at a tilt in order to get the different seasons. Use an exposed lightbulb from a lamp and a globe to do this, but make sure the globe is always pointed in the same direction as you move it around the lightbulb. Also, be mindful of students keeping their distance from the hot bulb. Although this is a higher level concept, a marked spot with a sticker above where the students live on the globe will help them to visualize when the area is getting a lot of light compared to when it is getting very little. 

3.) Show the students just how the globe looks when it is the fall, or autumn, season. They should see that our area of the globe is sharing light with the lower half (you can refer to these as the northern and southern hemispheres, but be sure to explain what they are in very simple terms as well). Let the students know that the difference between fall and spring (since both of those seasons get the same amount of light in the northern and southern hemispheres) is that in fall, the earth is moving toward where it is positioned during winter, which is away from the sun.

4.) Tell the students that today they are going to focus on learning even more about the season of fall. Have a discussion about the weather during that season and what it looks like outside during that time of the year. 

5.) Ask the students if they have ever wondered why the leaves change color in fall. Have them provide some possible answers as to why they think it happens, and explain that today they will actually find out. Tell the students that leaves get their green color from something that is inside of them called chlorophyll, and hold up one of the leaves to demonstrate this. Next, have student volunteers break the leaves you have into tiny pieces. Then, pour rubbing alcohol over the leaves until they are covered. Have a student volunteer help to mush the leaves up with a spoon until the liquid turns greenish. Now, cover the jar with plastic wrap and set it into a bowl full of hot water. Once again, make sure students stand back as you demonstrate this part. Tell the students that you will be leaving the jar in the hot water for about forty-five minutes to an hour.

6.) In the meantime, give each student a copy of the My Little Book of Seasons. Have them fill in the first page of the book for fall. Their sentences should say something about the earth and weather during that time of the year. Decide whether you want students to come up with what to write individually or if you want to decide what to write as a whole class. This will depend on the specific needs of the students in your class. 

7.) When the hour is up (it is possible you will have moved onto a different subject at this point), take the jar out of the bowl of water and cut a strip out from the coffee filter. Remove the plastic wrap and set the strip into the water so that one part is still sticking out and resting along the side of the jar. Liquid will travel up the coffee filter strip leaving colors behind. The strip should be left alone for about an hour, or even overnight. 

8.) Have the students observe the strip. Explain that the color, or colors, they see on it is the color (s) the leaf turns during the fall. It is there all along, but the bossy chlorophyll green color usually takes over. As the weather in the autumn season gets cooler, it causes the chlorophyll liquid that is inside of the leaf to break down and the other color(s) finally get to show through!

Closure: Review with the students the number of seasons that exist, the fact that each has observable weather patterns, and what the earth is like during autumn. 

Credits: A special thanks to these sources  -

Teacher Idea Factory: http://teacherideafactory.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2012-09-29T09:04:00-07:00&max-results=7

How Wee Learn: http://www.howweelearn.com/science-experiments-for-kids/

         Until next time...