Peer Teaching Template | Fall 2012
Artifact Description
This artifact is a Peer Teaching Template that a peer and I drafted before co-teaching a lesson on regular polyhedra (Platonic Solids) in a diverse classroom setting scenario. Some of our classmates role-played as an ELL student, Gifted Student, reluctant student, unmotivated student, and struggling student during a 30 minute segment of the lesson. We completed this template and enacted the lesson in our Curriculum and Instruction (CI 403) class during Fall 2012. The lesson required students to connect their prior knowledge on a previous lesson of angle summing in regular polygons (2-Dimensional) and make conjectures exploring how many regular polyhedra (3-Dimensional) exist. This artifact highlights the importance of recognizing diverse characteristics of each student in the classroom and how that applies when planning a lesson. During our planning, we took into consideration the common core math standards, students' prior knowledge, objectives of the lesson, seating charts, and most importantly differentiated instruction. We also included scripts, transitions, and questions to address the needs of each student. In particular, we planned what accommodations should ELL students be provided. Moreover, we took into consideration how to support a gifted student, reluctant student, unmotivated student, and struggling student.
Satisfying the Standards (1A, 1B, 1E, 1I, 1J, 1K)
Throughout the planning of the lesson, my peer and I took into consideration the spectrum of student diversity in our classroom based on how would we engage students of varying levels and backgrounds. From these different standpoints, it is without a doubt students will grasp the lesson and experience it differently from one another. As a result, as teachers, we had to make careful considerations during planning on how to group students, discuss about what kind of roles and responsibilities will take on to help foster everyone's learning in the classroom, and how to make appropriate accommodations. From the student who cannot sit still during class to the student who strongly grasped the material, we discussed and came up with a plan on how to work with students of varying characteristics. In particular, for the student who could not sit still during class instruction, we gave her positive attention through assigning her responsibility in the classroom by helping to write on the whiteboard, and passing out materials. When creating groups in the classroom, we facilitated a learning community in which individual differences are respected by setting clear expectations on how students were to work with their peers in groups. To differentiate the classroom, we placed students in groups strategically based on their performance level and how well we believed the students could work together based on if they were reluctant, gifted, or struggling. For example, the gifted student was placed with the struggling student so that both students had the responsibility of guiding one another. In order to facilitate this, my peer and I only visited groups where all group members raised their hand after collaborating with one another. If not all members were on the same page, the group had to work with one another and explain their ideas to everyone before discussing with a teacher. For the ELL student, my peer knew how to speak in Spanish, so she worked closely with this student by translating and also provided him a Spanish version of the worksheet. In tapping students' prior knowledge from the previous lesson of finding the interior angles of a polygon, we began the lesson by giving a five minute warm-up. The warm-up included four main questions that we wanted students to think about, such as What do all regular polygons have in common? What is an example of a shape that is not a regular polygon? From yesterday's lesson, who can recall how to find the interior angles of a regular polygon?. By accessing students' prior knowledge through the warm-up and class instruction, we created a space for students to link new ideas to already familiar ideas and experiences.
Professional Development
As all of the standards highlight the multitude of what teachers must take into consideration on a regular basis, I believe that this very first standard, teaching diverse students, really encapsulates the meaning of learning. We all have our differences in ideas, prior experiences, and strengths in learning. As a result, as a professional, I believe it is very important to not only recognize but also appreciate the differences among the students in the classroom. Each student has his or her unique identities and characteristics in the classroom, and teachers should be able to cater to those strengths by providing students the necessary opportunities and responsibilities in the classroom. By being able to take into consideration the diversity of the classroom, teachers can foster an inclusive learning community for all students. When students are able to express or find multiple ways of understanding mathematical concept, that demonstrates how I can guide students in appreciating diversity in the classroom.
Go back to Standard One
This artifact is a Peer Teaching Template that a peer and I drafted before co-teaching a lesson on regular polyhedra (Platonic Solids) in a diverse classroom setting scenario. Some of our classmates role-played as an ELL student, Gifted Student, reluctant student, unmotivated student, and struggling student during a 30 minute segment of the lesson. We completed this template and enacted the lesson in our Curriculum and Instruction (CI 403) class during Fall 2012. The lesson required students to connect their prior knowledge on a previous lesson of angle summing in regular polygons (2-Dimensional) and make conjectures exploring how many regular polyhedra (3-Dimensional) exist. This artifact highlights the importance of recognizing diverse characteristics of each student in the classroom and how that applies when planning a lesson. During our planning, we took into consideration the common core math standards, students' prior knowledge, objectives of the lesson, seating charts, and most importantly differentiated instruction. We also included scripts, transitions, and questions to address the needs of each student. In particular, we planned what accommodations should ELL students be provided. Moreover, we took into consideration how to support a gifted student, reluctant student, unmotivated student, and struggling student.
Satisfying the Standards (1A, 1B, 1E, 1I, 1J, 1K)
Throughout the planning of the lesson, my peer and I took into consideration the spectrum of student diversity in our classroom based on how would we engage students of varying levels and backgrounds. From these different standpoints, it is without a doubt students will grasp the lesson and experience it differently from one another. As a result, as teachers, we had to make careful considerations during planning on how to group students, discuss about what kind of roles and responsibilities will take on to help foster everyone's learning in the classroom, and how to make appropriate accommodations. From the student who cannot sit still during class to the student who strongly grasped the material, we discussed and came up with a plan on how to work with students of varying characteristics. In particular, for the student who could not sit still during class instruction, we gave her positive attention through assigning her responsibility in the classroom by helping to write on the whiteboard, and passing out materials. When creating groups in the classroom, we facilitated a learning community in which individual differences are respected by setting clear expectations on how students were to work with their peers in groups. To differentiate the classroom, we placed students in groups strategically based on their performance level and how well we believed the students could work together based on if they were reluctant, gifted, or struggling. For example, the gifted student was placed with the struggling student so that both students had the responsibility of guiding one another. In order to facilitate this, my peer and I only visited groups where all group members raised their hand after collaborating with one another. If not all members were on the same page, the group had to work with one another and explain their ideas to everyone before discussing with a teacher. For the ELL student, my peer knew how to speak in Spanish, so she worked closely with this student by translating and also provided him a Spanish version of the worksheet. In tapping students' prior knowledge from the previous lesson of finding the interior angles of a polygon, we began the lesson by giving a five minute warm-up. The warm-up included four main questions that we wanted students to think about, such as What do all regular polygons have in common? What is an example of a shape that is not a regular polygon? From yesterday's lesson, who can recall how to find the interior angles of a regular polygon?. By accessing students' prior knowledge through the warm-up and class instruction, we created a space for students to link new ideas to already familiar ideas and experiences.
Professional Development
As all of the standards highlight the multitude of what teachers must take into consideration on a regular basis, I believe that this very first standard, teaching diverse students, really encapsulates the meaning of learning. We all have our differences in ideas, prior experiences, and strengths in learning. As a result, as a professional, I believe it is very important to not only recognize but also appreciate the differences among the students in the classroom. Each student has his or her unique identities and characteristics in the classroom, and teachers should be able to cater to those strengths by providing students the necessary opportunities and responsibilities in the classroom. By being able to take into consideration the diversity of the classroom, teachers can foster an inclusive learning community for all students. When students are able to express or find multiple ways of understanding mathematical concept, that demonstrates how I can guide students in appreciating diversity in the classroom.
Go back to Standard One