Living or Non-living?

1. Living or Non-living? A Kindergarten “First” Learning Experience By: Pamela Hays Royalton-Hartland Elementary School Gasport, New York Peer Review: February, 2012

2. Peer Review Focus Questions • Are there further revisions that would make this LE more complete or useful to other teachers? • Are there suggestions for improving my presentation of the LE? Peer Review: February, 2012

3. District BackgroundInformation taken from NYS Report Card • Rural school district in upstate New York. • 33% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. • 94% identify as Caucasian. • Average class size: 22 students • Total K-12 enrollment approx. 1430 students Peer Review: February, 2012 (slide modification 7/13)

4. Grade Level/Ability of Students • Learning experience for a kindergarten class comprised of 22 students, 11 girls and 11 boys. • Included one identified child (speech impaired), 3 students at varying levels of the RTI process, and 3 students receiving ERSS speech and/or OT services. • One third of the students entered kindergarten at age 4. Peer Review: February, 2012

5. Time Frame for LE • Four to five days of instruction and assessment. • Students continued to explore concepts for several weeks after formal lessons ceased. Peer Review: February, 2012

6. Rationale MST 4 (Science) Key Idea 1 (Living Environment) Younger students’ ideas about the characteristics of organisms develop from their basic concepts of living and non-living things. As students are given opportunities to observe and classify living and nonliving things, they should be reminded that living and nonliving things are sometimes given attributes they do not really have. Understanding the variety and complexity of life and its processes can help students develop respect for their own and for all life. It should also lead them to better realize the value of all life on this fragile planet. Peer Review: February, 2012

7. Essential Questions • Year-long Essential Question: What is our responsibility to the planet Earth as human beings? Or How can we be good stewards of the Earth? • LE Essential Question: Why is it important for humans to know if something is living or non-living? Peer Review: February, 2012

8. Enduring Understandings • Things in our world can be sorted into two categories: living or non-living. • Living things have needs that non-living things do not. • Humans impact living things by their decisions. Peer Review: February, 2012

9. Major Objectives • Make qualitative observations in order to classify an item as living or non-living. • Consider role of humans in the care of living things. (self-reflection) Peer Review: February, 2012

10. Learning Opportunities • Develop key questions to determine if an object is living or non-living. • Sort objects into living and non-living categories, in groups, with family members, and individually. • Uncover the difference between naturally occurring and man-made non-living objects. • Communicate ideas for caring for living things. Peer Review: February, 2012

11. New York State StandardRelated to yearlong theme MST 4 (Science) Key Idea 7 (Living Environment) • Human decisions and activities have had a profound impact on the physical and living environments. Humans are dependent upon and have an impact on their environment. Students should recognize how human decisions cause environmental changes to occur. • Students should be given opportunities to identify and investigate the factors that positively or negatively affect the physical environment and its resources. • PI 7.1 Identify ways in which humans have changed their environment and the effects of those changes. Peer Review: February, 2012

12. New York State StandardsSpecific to this LE • PI 1.1 Describe the characteristics of and variations between living and non-living things. • MST 1 (Analysis, Inquiry and Design): Students will use mathematical analysis, scientific inquiry, and engineering design, as appropriate, to pose questions, seek answers, and develop solutions. MST 4 (Science) Key Idea 7 (Living Environment) Peer Review: February, 2012

13. Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts Specific to this LE Speaking and Listening: Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas • SL.K.4. Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail. Peer Review: February, 2012

14. Assessments • Pre-lesson (diagnostic): Living or Non-living pre-assessment . • During the LE (formative): Completion of “My Living and Non-living Things Cards” will be used to assess students’ understanding during the LE. In addition, pages generated for whole class student book will be evaluated for student understanding. • Post-lessons (summative): Living or Non-living post-assessment. In addition, students are assessed on their understanding of the difference between man-made and natural non-living things using Natural or Man-made? Peer Review: February, 2012

15. Developing Student How did you know which things were living? (What makes them living?) • Needs food/water • Grows • Reproduces • Needs air • Gets rid of waste • Reacts to environment Comments: Like when we have lunch. When asked if there was anything else, shrugged shoulders. When asked to name something that was living stated “my dog”. Peer Review: February, 2012

16. Proficient Student How did you know which things were living? (What makes them living?) • Needs food/water • Grows • Reproduces • Needs air • Gets rid of waste • Reacts to environment Comments: Needs water (pets get drinks from people, some animals get drinks from the pond, we have to water the plants in our room). Have to eat (plants get their food from the sun – don’t really get that) They have babies that grow up to be like them. Peer Review: February, 2012

17. Distinguished Student How did you know which things were living? (What makes them living?) • Needs food/water • Grows • Reproduces • Needs air • Gets rid of waste (emerging) • Reacts to environment Comments: Eats and drinks (plants die when you don’t water them), grows, has babies or grows more from seeds. Breathes (students asked previously about plants breathing and was satisfied that plants need air as well). Noted that animals and people “poop and pee” and inquired if plants did too. When asked what he thought, student thought they probably did, just differently, like when they “breathe”. Peer Review: February, 2012

18. Modification Table Peer Review: February, 2012

19. Changes that resulted from past peer reviews…. • Re-organized congruency table and added ELA common core standards. • Added titles to tables within the written LE under “Student Work” section. • Revised rubric to better reflect learning objectives/goals. • Added Table of Contents and (hopefully) clearer organization of LE components. Peer Review: February, 2012

20. NEW OLD Peer Review: February, 2012

21. Peer Review: February, 2012

22. Reflections • The big picture: Working on LE’s and participating in peer review changes the way I think and ultimately the way I teach. • Thank you to the members of TLQP and students/teachers in Teaching to the Standards at Daemen College for helping me to learn, practice, and improve. • Although I am not teaching kindergarten this year I hope to continue working on LE’s that encourage the teaching of science in the early childhood grades. Peer Review: February, 2012