Lesson Plan

This lesson is designed be taught face-to-face to a class of grade-6 ESL students in classroom settings where access to multi-media facilities is available. It introduces tree maps and their application, and it is a follow-up to previous science lessons on vertebrates. Based on the approach of UDL, UbD, and DI, this lesson, with clearly defined learning objectives, is intended to provide students with multiple means information presentation; activities designed to engage and motivate students, and to take account of their learning styles and English proficiency levels; and multiple opportunities for students to demonstrating their understanding and apply what they have learned in the class.

Instructor: Yan Sun

Lesson Title: Vertebrates and tree maps

Subject: Science

Grade Level: Grade 6

Standards:ESL/TESOL Grade 4-8 Standards: Goal 2, Standard 2— represent information visually and interpreting information presented visually; construct a chart or other graphic showing data or synthesizing information (http://s.maxthon.com/?q=ESL%2FTESOL+Grade+4-8+Standards%3A )

Content Objectives:1. Students will be able to understand what a tree map is by reviewing what they have

known about vertebrates from previous lessons;2. Students will be able to design tree maps and interpret information from tree maps.

Language Objectives:1. Students will watch a video clip about vertebrate and be able to present what they

know about vertebrate (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mamals) based on this video clip and what they have learned in previous lessons;

2. Students will be able to listen to and comprehend a audio clip and note down the information contained in the clip by using a tree map;

3. Student will be able to interpret and report the information contained in a tree map;4. Student will be able to write a paragraph about information contained in a tree map.

Strategy Objectives:The underlying thinking process for a tree map is classification and organization. Use a tree map to help students organize or classify information in order to understand a

concept or a text and its structures, or help them organize or classify information in order to deliver it to someone else or to integrate it into writing.

Materials:1. PowerPoint slides; (http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/yansunsy-238212-

lesson-plan-education-ppt-powerpoint/ )2. A video clip (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBJLdVdAN9Y) about vertebrate 3. Transparencies of various tree map examples;4. A audio clip for students to listen and a passage for students to read;5. Worksheets of tree maps.

Procedures:Preparation and Motivation: (15 minutes)1. Review what has been talked about in the previous lesson about vertebrate by

showing students a video clip and use “Stop that Video-DVD” (Vogt, 2008 p.174): stop the video at key points, allowing enough time for students to note down information and ask questions;

2. Put students into five groups (combining high proficiency level students with low proficiency students) and give each group a report card. Ask each group to choose one kind of animal from the five categories of “fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals” and write down all information they know about this kind animal on the report card;

3. Put the five report cards together with two cards with the word “vertebrates” on one of the card and “backbone” on the other;

4. Ask students to think about how to arrange the seven cards in order to best show the relationship of them;

Presentation: (15 minutes)5. By comparing the relations of different vertebrates to those of a family, explain to

students what a tree map is;6. Show students a tree map about plants on a transparency and a tree map of “year,

season, month, week, and day” on a PowerPoint slide; Let them choose either to report information contained in the tree map about plants or fill in missing information in the other tree map. For those who think they can do both, give them opportunity to do so;

Tree map 1

Tree map 2

(http://www.google.cn/imgres?imgurl=http://www.nhcs.net/parsley/Curriculum/Graphics/TMaps/TreeMap.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nhcs.net/parsley/Curriculum/ThinkingMaps.html&h=288&w=265&sz=14&tbnid=Yp_mrvxA4KaZ1M:&tbnh=115&tbnw=106&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmap%2Btree&hl=zh-CN&usg=__5zcz68FOQqPK_2y7JWWHqR8CBks=&ei=ow-rSsyVCNDgnAeM6IygBA&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=7&ct=image)

7. Ask students how they think a tree map can be helpful to them before explaining to them how a map tree can help them organize and classify information;

Practice: (15 minutes)8. Ask students to listen to an audio clip for two times and be ready to participate in a

competition among the five groups;(The transcript of the audio clip:John is going to attend a meeting in New York City. He can get there by bus, by train or by plane. If he goes to New York City by bus, he can take the bus at 8:25 or 9:35 in the morning, or he can take the bus which leaves at 1:55 in the afternoon. If he goes to New York City by train he can take the train at 6:25 or 11:20 in the morning, at 2:25 or 4 o’clock in the afternoon. If he decides to go there by plane, there are three flights at 7:30, 9:20 and 11:40 in the morning, and there are two flights in the afternoon at 2:45 and 5:15. )

9. For the first time, ask students to sit and listen, and then work within groups to write down the information they can remember about the clip; ask each group to report their discussion results; ask each student to vote individually for the group which they believe have presented the most accurate and detailed information about the clip;

10. For the second time, give each student a tree map worksheet and ask them to note down what they will hear from the clip; then ask them to share within groups about the information about the clip and ask each group give a report on the clip by using the tree map they have worked out;

Tree map worksheet

Self-Evaluation (5 minitues):11. Ask students to reflect on their experiences in listening to the audio clip and report on

a voluntary basis what they think a tree may can help them; 12. Show students the following tree map, and ask them if they think they can understand

the information in it;

Tree map 3

13. Ask students to read the following passage, and ask them if they think they can design a tree map to present the information of the passage;

The energy sources have been divided into three groups: fossil fuels, renewable sources, and nuclear sources. Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are fossil fuels. The renewable energy sources are solar, wind, hydroelectric, biomass, and geothermal power. The nuclear-powered sources are fission and fusion.

Expansion (Homework):14. Ask students either to write a paragraph about the information contained in Tree

map 3 or design a tree map presenting the information in the above passage; For those who believe they can do both, encourage them to do so!

15. Give students a grocery shopping list, ask them to construct a tree map organizing the list by types of food (i.e. produce, dairy, canned goods, treats, etc.), and ask them to think how the tree map can help them locate the foods in the grocery store.

References:

Vogt, M. & Echevarria, J. (2008). 99 Ideas and Activities for Teaching English Learners with the SIOP Model. MA: Allyn and Bacon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBJLdVdAN9Y

http://www.google.cn/imgres?imgurl=http://www.nhcs.net/parsley/Curriculum/Graphics/TMaps/TreeMap.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nhcs.net/parsley/Curriculum/ThinkingMaps.html&h=288&w=265&sz=14&tbnid=Yp_mrvxA4KaZ1M:&tbnh=115&tbnw=106&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmap%2Btree&hl=zh-CN&usg=__5zcz68FOQqPK_2y7JWWHqR8CBks=&ei=ow-rSsyVCNDgnAeM6IygBA&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=7&ct=image

http://s.maxthon.com/?q=ESL%2FTESOL+Grade+4-8+Standards%3A