Artifact Construction

Title: Shared Reading Lesson Plan

Date: 4/18/13

Artifact Description:
The artifact I have chosen is a shared reading lesson plan that I completed during my pre-student
teaching placement at Belleville Elementary. The book that I read to the class for this shared
reading lesson was called Ten Happy Elephants. The purpose of this shared reading lesson was
to model literacy behaviors and skills and also for the students to recognize rhyming words or
word families. The expected outcomes were for the students to be able to recognize rhyming
word/word families by using context clues to guess the rhyming words that were hidden behind
the post it notes in the story. The students were also expected to be able to recall details from the
story, building their comprehension skills.

ALIGNMENT Wisconsin Teacher Standard Alignment:
This artifact best aligns with standard seven of the Wisconsin Standards for Teacher
Development and Licensure which states: The teacher plans instruction based upon knowledge
of subjects matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals. I know that this artifact
aligns with standard seven because when I was planning this lesson, I took into account my
kindergarteners previous knowledge of rhyming words and word families and also the
curriculum development of the students concept of print. Another key point in my lesson plan
that aligns well with standard seven is creating an effective bridge between the curriculum goals
and students experiences by covering rhyming words in the story so that the students would
have to listen for rhyming words or word families to guess the word behind the post it note. This
is a skill that my cooperating teacher had previously worked on with the students so I knew when
planning the lesson I could use this previous experience by the students to enhance this lesson as
well. When planning this lesson, I had to select and create learning experiences that are
appropriate for curriculum goals, relevant to learners, and based upon principles of effective
instruction that activate students prior knowledge. An example of this would be when I was
writing up this lessons anticipatory set to elicit prior knowledge before reading Ten Happy
Elephants to the students. My anticipatory set was, Have any of you ever seen an elephant
before? Maybe at the zoo or at a circus? I choose this as an anticipatory set for this particular
group of students because I knew that they had previously taken a class trip to the zoo, and I had
also heard a few of them talking about the circus before. I knew that by linking the students
prior knowledge to the content of the book, it would help enhance comprehension.
UW-Platteville School of Education Knowledge, Skill, Disposition Statement Alignment
I know that this artifact aligns well with KSD3.c. of the UW-Platteville School of Education
Knowledge, Skill, Disposition Statement Alignment which states: The candidate has the ability
to engage students in the learning process by linking appropriate content, based upon suitable
instruction materials and resources, to students knowledge and experiences, being certain that
all students are cognitively engaged in the activities/assignments and that the students actively
contribute to the content design. Instruction is highly coherent and appropriately paced for all
students and allows for reflection and closure as appropriate. This artifact aligns well with this
KSD because I linked content of the lesson to the students knowledge and experiences. An
example of this would be when I linked my anticipatory set to the students prior knowledge or
experience with elephants. Another aspect of my lesson that I linked to the students experiences
was when I covered particular words with post it notes so that the students were required to listen
for rhyming words to predict the covered up word. I knew that the students had previously used
this technique in different lessons with my cooperating teacher.
Secondary Alignment:
KSD1.c. Selecting Instructional Goals
KSD3.a. Communicates Clearly and Accurately

Reflection:
What I learned about teaching/learning:
From completing this artifact, I learned that teachers need to know how to take instructional
materials, individual student interests, needs, aptitudes, and community resources into account
when planning instruction that creates an effective bridge between curriculum goals and
students experiences. This is not always an easy task, but if teachers get to know their students
and community well, it almost becomes second nature. I learned that when a teacher creates this
bridge, it enhances the students learning and deepens comprehension of the content being
taught.

What I learned about myself as a prospective educator:
After completing this lesson plan, I learned how important it is to connect a lesson to the
students background knowledge, the community, and curriculum goals. When a teacher can
connect all three of these aspects, the lesson becomes much more valuable. I learned the
importance of getting to know your students so that you can relate the lessons to them in a way
that they understand the content more fully. I also learned that when planning a lesson, a teacher
must be open to adjustment and revision based on the students needs.