Wesley Said:

TEACHERS, lesson plan idea!?

We Answered:

Help students to explain patterns of human settlement in regions and explain how these patterns were influenced by climate, landforms, soils, vegetation, bodies of water. Discover through research which 3 regions are most densly populated and 3 least populated. Divide the class into five groups (climate, landforms, soils, vegetation, bodies of water) to chart and report their findings about these 6 regions. Use a map and the internet or reference books. Make a class summary of the findings or have students answer an open-ended question to evaluate their mastery.

Doris Said:

What would you think of a teachers organization that fights the principal in wanting lesson plans?

We Answered:

Most districts spell this out in the contract they offer to teachers. Here is what my contract states:

Lesson plans or evidence of planning in a format appropriate
to the teacher’s assignment, shall be furnished by each classroom teacher upon request from the teacher's immediate administrator. No special format for a lesson plan shall be required.

When asked in the past, I have simply printed out my calendar where I keep quick notes about suggested units. It is usually not exact as I go with what the kids need.

If the cta got involved it, the expected format must be different than what the contract states.

good luck!

Angela Said:

Teachers help lesson plan!!?

We Answered:

I don't know the age of your students, but I taught a similar lesson with customary units to my third grades, and one way that I got them really engaged as an anticipatory set was to give them a ruler and have them measure things in their desks/ classrooms. They loved this!

If you wanted to add the estimation component into the anticipatory set, you could have they make a guess about how long their desk, chair leg, eraser, etc. They could record their guesses. Then they could acually measure those same objects to check their estimations.

For weight, you could do something very similar, but you might have to do it whole class because you probably don't have a class set of scales. It could be really fun whole class though, have students make guesses about the weight of something, and then record those on the booard, then have a student come up and actually measure it and see who was closest. They love that sort of thing.

Good luck!!!

Ryan Said:

Why teachers have difficulty in creating lesson plan?

We Answered:

You have to know where the students are, what they know, what they need to know, and how they can best understand it.

Rigor, relevance, and relationships.

Rigor: the lesson must be rigorous (don't just spoon fed them)
Relevance: the lesson must relate to the students' interests
Relationships: teachers must establish and maintain a relationship with students so that students will feel comfortable in the classroom

Karl Said:

Attention teachers! What is a good lesson plan for the following content areas?

We Answered:

Dramatic play -- you read a story & the students do actions.
Music -- have a parade to celebrate ...?.. with tambourines made from 2 paper plates w/dried beans inside.
Gross motor -- the "Going on a Bear Hunt" actions

Jane Said:

Substitute teachers, what do you usually do when the teacher leaves no lesson plan?

We Answered:

The school should have what are called emergency lesson plans. Theoretically all teachers are supposed to have these prepared beforehand. However, realistically that isn't always the case. Some substitute teachers would bring in their own lesson plans that they developed. However, if you do this be prepared for students that will wonder if they will be getting a grade on it (thinking if not, why should they do it), students who won't do it, etc. You will have to have lesson plans for all subjects, and they likely won't match what the students have been studying. But if you can make the plans interesting enough, by all means go for it.

When I was a sub I preferred to match what the students were studying. First off, check not only on the teacher's desk but on the board for any indication of what the students might be doing. Often the teacher had planned to be there that day and so didn't leave any plans, but they might have left the agenda for that day on the board for students to read. Sometimes you may come into a classroom and be looking so much for something written for you on a piece of paper you fail to see all you need is on the board on the wall.

Second, if there is no plan at all look for where the students turn in work. Look at what they did and the dates and go from there (i.e., the next section or chapter in the textbook).

If there is no plan and no student work then privately ask one or two students as they are walking in. You will be able to spot ones that will help out often just by appearance.

Make sure you look at your roll sheets to identify the classes you will be having that day. Then later you can approach neighboring teachers for help with those classes when you have time.

I know this sounds a bit "fly by the seat of your pants", but you can become adept at it and getting a lesson going from nothing within 5 minutes.

I do wish to address to you another important way of keeping your class under control. Even if your district offered training they would not tell you certain things, especially about the tricks students attempt to play on subs. You may very well have students in your class impersonating absent students so they can be with their friends. You will also have students out of seat who claim they are in their right seats. Here's how you handle both of these.

Forget the teacher's seating maps, even if the teacher tells you to go by them. The students will say they are outdated. Half the time they will be lying, and half the time the teacher will have been lazy. Instead, on blank sheets of paper create your own maps. Quickly fill them in as you take roll. Then compare your map to the class. Is a student sitting on a blank spot on your map? There's your impersonating student. They may say they have been added but will not produce evidence. Call the school office and they will usually get up and leave. If you find a student is impersonating an absent student, hold the roster in front of you and ask their middle name. It doesn't matter if it isn't there. The student doesn't know that, and they don't know their friend's middle name either. Bluff them and they will collapse.

You may tell the class that you are creating your own seating maps and that you will be leaving them for the regular teacher so they will know where everyone sat when they return. Often you will suddenly see half the class change their seats. On the other hand, for a little fun AND classroom control don't tell them. Let them sit where they are, get them on task, and later call them out randomly by name, one by one, and ask how they are doing. Memorize some names beforehand from your map and walk around without it doing this to really put the fear of God into them as they wonder how you know them all.

Oh, and if a student leaves your class early without permission, don't worry about it. Call and report it to the school. If you have access to home phone numbers and don't mind using your cell, get in touch with the family and have them call the student's cell to get them back to class. I never had the opportunity to use this trick but I imagine it would have scared the wits out of any student. Imagine them being in the bathroom when the phone rings and their mom or dad yells "Get back to class!!!"

Helen Said:

teachers: a lesson plan to do with the weather?

We Answered:

use the stations of the seasons like winter, spring, summer and fall or autumn. explain that there are four season throughout the year and for every season explain the different types of weather changes. you can even use different types of resources for the different types of seasons such a rain, snow, wind, etc., etc.