Lesson Plan for Implementing NETSSTemplate I

(More Directed Learning Activities)

Template with guiding questions

Teacher(s)
Name

Daniel Davis

Position
School/Distri
ct

Teacher

E-mail

daniel.davis@ccboe.net

Phone
Grade
Level(s)

706-962-9051

Content Area

World Studies and Life Science

Time line

Jan. to March 2016 (3rd quarter)

Columbia Middle School, Columbia County Schools

7th

Standards (What do you want students to know and be able to do? What knowledge, skills, and
strategies do you expect students to gain? Are there connections to other curriculum areas and subject
area benchmarks? ) Please put a summary of the standards you will be addressing rather than
abbreviations and numbers that indicate which standards were addressed.
S7L4c - be able to recognize that changes in the environment
S7L4a,b - understand the food chain
S7L4e - identify the location in which an organism
Content Standards

S7L5b - see how changes in the evolution of a species occurs

1b - Use creativity and innovation to create original works (podcast/video product)

2a, b, d - Communicate and collaborate with a team for multiple audiences
(discussions for podcast/video)
3b, c, d - Use a variety of online research tools (internet search, webcams, etc.)
4b - Plan activities in order to complete a project (webcam observations,
podcast/video)
5b, c - Exhibit digital citizenship and a positive attitude (teamwork, podcast/video)
NETS*S
Standards:

6a-d - Understand and use a variety of new technology (webcams, podcast/video)

Page 1 of 7

Overview (a short summary of the lesson or unit including assignment or expected or possible products)
The lessons main goal is to have students work in an authentic task as an ornithological trainee.
Students will be able to describe how raptors behave, their role in the food chain, and the environment
in which they live. Students will work with two other students in teams during the lesson, but some of
the lesson is completed individually. Using online maps, the student and team will first choose three
different raptors to study. Research, observations, and comparisons are going to prepare them to be
known as an expert in the specific raptor, as well as birds of prey or top-level consumers in general.
Each student will keep an observation journal, discuss and write a comparison paragraph with the
team, and create a video or podcast to document understanding of the behavior of your raptor.
Technology is used throughout the lesson: research, mapping, webcams, and finished product are all
completed using different levels and types of technology.
Essential Questions (What essential question or learning are you addressing? What would students
care or want to know about the topic? What are some questions to get students thinking about the topic
or generate interest about the topic? Additionally, what questions can you ask students to help them
focus on important aspects of the topic? (Guiding questions) What background or prior knowledge will
you expect students to bring to this topic and build on?) Remember, essential questions are meant to
guide the lesson by provoking inquiry. They should not be answered with a simple yes or no and
should have many acceptable answers.
EQ1: How do changes in the environment affect species that live there?
EQ2: How do different species, specifically birds of prey, interact in the food chain?
EQ3: How does location affect the behavior, feeding, and young rearing of a species?
EQ4: What evolutionary adaptations allow raptors to survive at the top of the food chain?
Assessment (What will students do or produce to illustrate their learning? What can students do to
generate new knowledge? How will you assess how students are progressing (formative assessment)?
How will you assess what they produce or do? How will you differentiate products?) You must attach
copies of your assessment and/or rubrics. Include these in your presentation as well.
Assessment for this plan will occur in several stages and several types.
Students will be responsible for several written research and discussion assignments through the
course of the lesson. These will be assessed using a posted performance level grading rubric focusing
on details, correctness, and team work.
Formative assessments will take place during team research sessions and the before and after
discussion sessions about their observations.
Observations will be assessed using a simple completion checklist since that is more of a process
grade.
Final products will be assessed with the attached rubric. Students will be assessed about their ability
to discuss their observations in video or podcast format. The video or podcast focuses on the
observations of each raptor in comparison to the selected raptors of their team mates.
Page 2 of 7

Resources (How does technology support student learning? What digital tools, and resourcesonline
student tools, research sites, student handouts, tools, tutorials, templates, assessment rubrics, etchelp
elucidate or explain the content or allow students to interact with the content? What previous technology
skills should students have to complete this project?)
To begin the lesson, students will use online search engines to conduct research. Next, students will
use the selection tool to select a bird. This resource is a good way to show how the internet can use
choices from the user to narrow down results.
The main component of the lesson is making use of online webcams featuring common North
American raptors. Students can use school laptops or desktops, iPads, or their own device to make
their required observations. For the observation logs, students may use a digital copy of the chart, or
record their observations using an app such as Evernote or an online resource such as Microsoft
OneNote. Digital observation logs can be emailed to the teacher.
Discussion paragraphs may be handwritten, but to save time and paper, Microsoft Word Online
should be used for composition and sharing the document with the teacher via email.
Podcasts should be made using an Apple or Android device and common recording and editing apps.
Videos should be made and edited using Windows, Apple, or Android programs or apps. The video
should be uploaded to YouTube and the link emailed to the teacher.
Instructional Plan
Preparation (What student needs, interests, and prior learning provide a foundation for this lesson?
How can you find out if students have this foundation? What difficulties might students have?)
Prior to delivering this lesson, students will have a thorough knowledge of evolutionary adaptations
and lineage trees to see how the beak, eyesight, and coloration of raptors have developed. Students
will be familiar with food chains and food webs. Students will understand the levels of consumers
and at what level raptors fill. Students will understand how to identify sources and types of food for
tertiary consumers. Students will have ample opportunities to use the internet for research and notetaking. We will use webcam videos as a resource for class discussions prior to this lesson.
Management Describe the classroom management strategies will you use to manage your students and
the use of digital tools and resources. How and where will your students work? (Small groups, whole
group, individuals, classroom, lab, etc.) What strategies will you use to achieve equitable access to the
Internet while completing this lesson? Describe what technical issues might arise during the Internet
lesson and explain how you will resolve or trouble-shoot them? Please note: Trouble-shooting should
occur prior to implementing the lesson as well as throughout the process. Be sure to indicate how you
prepared for problems and work through the issues that occurred as you implemented and even after the
lesson was completed.

Page 3 of 7

Classroom management of internet and device usage has already been modeled and effectively
maintained. This feature makes the technology use simple to monitor. Students will have the
opportunity to observe the webcam in class or in the library, giving them the least restrictive
environment possible. Student choice and interest plays into the management toolbox as well;
students who are interested and engaged will want to stay on-task longer in order to complete the task.
The teacher will circulate during research and discussion time, as well as webcam observation time, in
order to promote focused work and accountable outcomes.
For troubleshooting, the teacher will work with the tools on hand. The main problem this lesson
presents is data/bandwidth usage and internet compatibility with the webcams. Bandwidth needed for
the lesson can be obtained by asking other teachers to minimize video and streaming use during the
lesson times. Since my school has a variety of devices that can connect to the internet, if a student
device is incompatible then another option (such as a desktop) can be used. Students may also access
the lesson requirements (research, writing, collaboration, observations, and creating final product) at
home or in public using Wi-Fi.
Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities Describe the research-based instructional strategies
you will use with this lesson. How will your learning environment support these activities? What is your
role? What are the students' roles in the lesson? How can you ensure higher order thinking at the
analysis, evaluation, or creativity levels of Blooms Taxonomy? How can the technology support
your teaching? What authentic, relevant, and meaningful learning activities and tasks will your students
complete? How will they build knowledge and skills? How will students use digital tools and resources
to communicate and collaborate with each other and others? How will you facilitate the
collaboration?

Page 4 of 7

Using a device connected to the internet, students will research what a raptor is. They should find it
pretty easy to find the unique features and adaptations of raptors and their feeding methods, but it may
be more difficult to find how their body structure and parenting skills allow them to survive. Working
as a team, students will write a paragraph about raptors.
Next, students will use the attributes selector from the WhatBird.com website to search common
raptors with hawk or owl-like body structures. Some of them are more common than others, so the
team must write down the names that they recognize first, followed by the rest. The team will then
use this list to check the ranges and characteristics of several of North America's common raptors.
Now that the students have an idea of what a raptor is and which ones are out there flying the skies of
North America, they will get started on your training. Using the computer or their devices, they will
visit the following links and preview the quality of the webcam, the location, and the birds. Then,
each team member should select one different species to observe during the lesson. Each team should
have a fair mix of species:

one eagle
one hawk or falcon
one owl

Once they have selected your raptor species, students will do some research and write a descriptive
paragraph with the most important information about the species.
Use the paper handout or an online or digital note-taking tool to record your observations from the
webcam. Each team member should schedule at least seven 30-minute blocks of time for webcam
observations. It is best to vary the time of day so students can see how the behavior of your raptor
family changes as the day goes on. Raptors on the nest generally follow similar patterns of behavior
from one day to the next, so mix up the observations! As with all habits of a good scientist, be
detailed and observant.
Once the team has all completed their observations, they will be given class time to meet and discuss
what each member observed. Students should share the daily life of each raptor family by talking for
a few minutes and comparing the raptor's behaviors, environment, fledglings, and interactions with the
other families from the team.
Collaboratively, teams will write a paragraph that describes the similarities and differences amongst
the raptor families from the webcams. Use specific details from team member observations and
research.
The final product for this lesson is a podcast or video about the students training as a raptor expert.
In it, each individual student (modified to be a group assignment if needed) must discuss what makes
a raptor special, why they chose a raptor family, what they observed, and how one raptor family
compares to the other families on the team.

Differentiation (How will you differentiate content and process to accommodate various learning
styles and abilities? How will you help students learn independently and with others? How will you
provide extensions and opportunities for enrichment? What assistive technologies will you need to
provide?)
Page 5 of 7

Differentiation will be at the heart of the lesson due to my inclusion class. It will take several forms.
First, working in a small team of learners gives every background, ability, and interest level supports
from the other members of the team. Since the discussion and research is an important part of the
lesson, teams may chunk the requirements into smaller, more focused portions to aid completion.
There is a portion of the lesson that is individual. However, due to the scaffolds put in place, students
of various levels and assistive needs will have an opportunity to address the requirements of the lesson
fully. Since the observations are done online, the observation log can be modified for length, details,
or total log entries. This fits with struggling and advanced learners. Discussions and research can be
modeled and guided by the teacher to assist students or teams with planning and organization, another
essential skill from the technology standards.

Reflection (Will there be a closing event? Will students be asked to reflect upon their work? Will
students be asked to provide feedback on the assignment itself? What will be your process for answering
the following questions?
Did students find the lesson meaningful and worth completing?
In what ways was this lesson effective?
What went well and why?
What did not go well and why?
How would you teach this lesson differently?)
Student and team reflections will be a component of the final podcast or video presentation. Since the
goal of the lesson is to become an expert in each raptor, students will self-reflect on the rubric
requirements before completing the podcast/video portion so that they can include any further details
to provide evidence of their learning.
I will judge student interest and interaction with the lesson during all portions of the task. This is a
high-interest and really draws them in to the process of observing raptors on webcams. I will reflect
on the questions listed above based on the informal observations of students completing the various
process steps of the lesson. It will be important, however, to determine if the length of observations is
appropriate to the outcome of the final product.
Closure: Anything else you would like to reflect upon regarding lessons learned and/or your experience
with implementing this lesson. What advice would you give others if they were to implement the lesson?
Please provide a quality reflection on your experience with this lesson and its implementation.

Page 6 of 7

Reflecting on this lesson brought me a few ideas based on making this larger task more manageable.
One idea, if I were to give this lesson to another teacher, would be to have a little more structure to the
observations. I may give the class an opportunity to complete the observations in the computer lab
rather than on their own, which would allow the teams time to discuss while the events, feeding, or
rearing are actually occurring, rather than afterward. I feel that this type of immediate sharing would
benefit them more than coming together as a team days or weeks later, after everything from their
observation chart may have become forgotten or less clear.
Another idea would be to have students create an ongoing podcast or video log with their daily
observations, which could then be compiled by the individual or team at the end of the project. This
would serve as a chunked learning activity to help make the overall outcome of the project (the
podcast or video) a simple summative task.

Page 7 of 7