Kate+jackson

My ICT experience is quite limited as I have only been teaching a year. I would like to learn more about the effective use of ICT for planning and for enhancing learning in the lower grades.


 * __UNIT PLAN __**

Grade 1/2 VELS level 2 (incorporates level 3 science)

Unit Topic – Minibeasts Big idea – How do the smaller things in life have a purpose in our world?

VELS links:

Students investigate how humans affect the survival of living things and change the environment, and how interactions between living things in the environment change Students observe and describe phenomena. For example, insect lifecycles.
 * Science (level 3 standard) **
 * (level 2 standard) **

What would be the role of the students?
 * What real-life connections are you considering?**
 * **What mini-beasts do for us and our environment
 * What the world would be like without them
 * Students will develop an awareness that even mini-beasts have a purpose in our world

What project scenario are you considering?** Students will develop something encouraging others to not 'stand on' a particular type of insect. They must gives reasons why they are such an important thing in our world and how life would not be the same without them.

8/6/2010 In our dinosaur unit we tried the visual ranking tool. In small groups students had order species of dinosaurs according to what they thought was the best dinosaur. This activity had pleasing outcomes. The groups were observed during their discussions and most had some reasoning behind their decisions. It was also great to see how understanding other students were when they didn't necessarily agree but they understood and acknowledged the reasoning behind their thinking.

In our mini-beast unit I plan on using this learning tool again.The main focus of our unit the important role mini-beasts have in the world and how they benefit the us and th environment. My plan is that students will work in small groups and they will use the visual ranking tool to order a list of insects. They will be ordering them based on how important they think they are to us and the environment.

This activity will enhance their higher order thinking skill because they must be able to explain why one insect is more important that the other. Hopefully they will be able to expalin what the world would be like if they did not exist. Students will communicate then they are sorting them together and they will aslo communicate their thinking and reasoning to the whole grade during share time.