Appendix P
Below is an online lesson critique I wrote in EDU 542. I fully evaluated online lesson plans
regarding a topic I currently teach in science. I was able to evaluate the effectiveness of these plans to determine
if I should utilize them in my classroom. This
critique shows
my understanding of the following elements from the NETS-T, CTTC, and CCCT.
NETS-T – I.a, II.c, II.d, II.e, V.a, V.b
CTTC – I.c, II.a, II.d
CCCT – 1.1,
2.4, 3.3
Robert H. Ives, Jr.
Online Lesson Critique Two
EDU 542
6/12/06
Available at http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Science/Physics/PHS0063.html,
is a science lesson on visible light that’s appropriate for the fifth or sixth
grade level. This science lesson
addresses the properties of visible light, and the relationship between the
absorption of light and how that absorption relates to the heat of an object.
This lesson addresses National content standard B, which states: As a result of
their activities in grades 5-8, all students should develop an understanding
of: Properties and changes of properties in matter; motions and forces;
transfer of energy. This lesson also addresses Connecticut standard 5.2 – Perceiving and responding to information about the environment is
critical to the survival of organisms.
This “inquiry-based” lesson involves an activity that allows students to discover the effects of different material colors on the transfer of light to heat. When students enter the room, they have prisms sitting on their desks. The teacher shows the students how to hold the prisms so that white light is divided into colors. The teachers then reviews the colors of the light spectrum, which is taught previous to this lesson. After this review, students are informed of the day’s objectives. They are as follows: a. define visible light; conduct a light absorption experiment; chart the data gathered during the experiment; draw some conclusions about light absorption based on the data gathered during the experiment. Students then participate in a class discussion about light absorption and light reflection, as well as how each relates to the temperature of an object. Then the class is divided into groups of five, and they conduct the light absorption experiment. The students lay thermometers on a counter under different colored pieces of construction paper. After this initial setup, students return to their desks for whole class discussion. Students then make predictions about the results for each colored piece of paper. These whole class discussions are recorded on the board. They then return to their groups to read the thermometers and record the temperature data on notebook paper. They then enter this information into a computer spreadsheet, and create a graph of their choosing to display the data. The groups then share their results and compare them to the predictions they made as a class. They should then draw conclusions about how color affects light absorption. They conclude the lesson by writing a few lines in their journals stating what they learned for the day.
Science literacy is strongly addressed in this
lesson. Scientific literacy includes speaking, listening, presenting, interpreting,
reading and writing about science. Students
must verbally make predictions, and listen to the predictions of others. They must interpret their results to draw
conclusions about light absorption.
They also use technology to present their results to others.