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Lesson Plan Design

Subject: Social Studies Grade: 4th grade Lesson Topic: The Bill of Rights and Me!
Candidate’s Name: Tatianna Ortega ID # 040066666
Site Supervisor: Bob Bachmeier NU Supervisor: Jessica Rios
Date: _____11/13/18_______________
1. Introduction: (Identify Grade Level K12 Academic Content Standard(s), rationale, create bridges
from past learning, behavior expectations)
.
Standard: Rationale:
3.4.3 Know the histories of important local and national This will satisfy the California
landmarks, symbols, and essential documents that create a requirements in third grade for government
sense of community among citizens and exemplify cherished learning. All the needs of the whole class
ideals (e.g., the U.S. flag, the bald eagle, the Statue of will be met, including modifications for
Liberty, the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of ELL, special needs, and gifted students.
Independence, and the U.S. Capitol).
This activity is designed to reinforce prior
3.4.2 Discuss the importance of public virtue and the role of knowledge of the U.S. Government to help
citizens, including how to participate in a classroom, in the with learning new concepts such as the Bill
community, and in civic life. of Rights and the Constitution. With this
previous knowledge, students should have
Bridges from past learning: 90% mastery understanding those new
Prior week’s learning have discussed the three branches of concepts by the end of the lesson.
the U.S. government and what their roles and functions are
for the U.S. Discussion have also been had on what a Developing new knowledge of the U.S.
community is, how it functions, and the roles and Government and building a foundation,
responsibilities for each member. will help them later on with their Social
Studies development throughout school.
Behavior expectations:
The majority of the class are focused learners with minor
redirection needed. A few of the boys in the class will need
more monitoring and reminders that socializing instead of
work is not appropriate. The class has been active in learning
about the U.S. and CA government and are eager to continue
expanding on the knowledge they have attained.

2. Learner Outcome(s)/Objective(s): (What will students learn from this lesson? How will you
measure mastery of the outcome?)

Behavioral Objective: Rationale:

 Students will be able to correctly cut and glue 100% With 71% of students at or above grade
of the time, since they are now in 3rd and 4th grade, level, this activity should be not be
and mastered those skills in Kindergarten and first something they rush through, but
 grade. something that will challenge them and
 Students will be able to recognize all three Branches require them to use previous knowledge.
of the Government correctly 95% of the time, and When working with a peer, students can
correctly determine what each branch does and who use more relatable terms to help each other
is in charge, 85% of the time. understand vocabulary or concepts that are
 Students will be able to understand what the Bill of still unclear. “Cooperative learning is
Rights are and recognize at least one amendment by designed to encourage students to help and
the end of the lesson 90% of the time. support their peers in a group rather than
compete against them.” Pg. 162 (Eby,
The class will first discuss what we have previously talked Herrell, and Jordan, 2011) Peer work
about in the government. A cut and paste activity along with should be encouraged and seen by students
a review will happen. Then a whole class reading will as another tool to help them learn, rather
happen, followed by a pair activity, then a whole class than a burden or punishment.
sharing, and ending with an individual response to determine
material retained. Students are also given the opportunity to
work individually with their own thought
Teacher will observe students in paired groups, where they processes. They will have time to ask
will be able to apply knowledge recently learned. They will questions and get terms clarified
be able to share and compare ideas. The class will then throughout the entire lesson. Individual
reinforce what they learned during the whole class work is beneficial to all students, because it
participation. gives them time to work and learn in their
own style and way.
Mastery and knowledge of retained material will be
determined after the class activity. Teacher will check work,
especially individual sentence and follow up with a mix and
match test in the next week.

Any ELL and special needs students will be assisted through

the class activity with help from the teacher or aide. They
will also be given pictures to go along with the 3 Branches
and the Bill of Rights, in order to help master.

3. Pre-assessment Activity: (Determine students’ abilities to achieve the learner outcome and
prescribe instruction accordingly. Consider: linguistic background, academic language abilities,
content knowledge, cultural and health considerations, interests and aspirations, physical
development, social development, emotional development. )

What do you know about this class? Rationale:

This is a third/fourth grade combo class. The majority of Students have been learning about U.S.
students are at or above grade level on academics. This Government for the past week. They have
activity will be appropriate for their level and prior developed a general concept about
knowledge of the subject. government and how it runs. Being able to
break down the government and Bill of
Considerations: Rights into more manageable pieces will
not only help them now, but later on in
Linguistic background – 64% of students (9 students) speak high school government.
only English at home, 22% (3) students speak both English
and Spanish at home, 7% (1) student speaks both English and This activity will not only facilitate
Tagalog at home, and 7% (1) student speaks both English students need to share with a peer, but also
and Punjabi at home. to develop language that correlates with
government. By pairing up students to
Academic language abilities – STAR Reading tests have share, this will help with their need to be
determined that 71% (10) students are at or above grade level social during class time, and also give them
in ELA, while 29% (4) students are below grade level in reassurance on any possible parts that they
ELA. 29% (4) of students participate in a Reading group need more clarification on.
during school hours, ran by a retired teacher of 30 years.
We will refer back to government
Content knowledge – In STAR Math, 71% (10) students are throughout the rest of Social Studies this
at or above grade level, and 29% (4) students are below school year, as well as make correlations
grade level. (The students who are below in both subjects are between the current government and the
different in Math versus ELA). Similarly, those same law of the land in the Bible. (We are a
students who are on or above grade level, are determined Catholic school and intertwine religion into
through teacher assessments to be on or above grade level in other subjects).
Social Studies, Science, and Religion. The same fluctuation
occurs with those students who are below grade level. The teacher guided practice before and
after paired work, is designed to help those
Culture and health considerations – One 3rd grade student who need more clarification and also work
has diagnosed ADHD, and no other known allergies or better alone. Having the teacher lead the
illnesses. There are zero students who qualify for ELL or beginning and end of the activity will keep
Special Education services. 3 students are regularly tardy, the students engaged and excited, as long
while the entire class has great attendance. as the teacher keeps the material relevant
and relatable. Also, with teacher lead
Interests and aspirations – The majority of the boys have a activities, keeping the excitement up, will
high interests in video games and sports. While the girls are help to alleviate some anxiety in those
more interested in art and drawing. Half of the class are avid students who feel they won’t or don’t
readers, and the other half have low motivation to read, even understand.
if the book is about something they like. They have goals set
all over the spectrum from sports players, to doctors,
scientists, and even a Priest.

Physical development – Majority students seem to be at age

appropriate development with height and weight. Two
students are shorter for their age than their peers, while a 3
students are taller than their peers.

Social development – They are a very social group with

only a few who continuously follow the “no talking” time
rule. 64% (9) of students are involved in sports, music or
attend the extended day program after school. 50% (7) of
students receive free or reduced lunch.

Emotional development – All students except for one can

take constructive criticism well and transition great between
subjects. One student cries under the desk when is frustrated
with work, peers, or teacher. Parents are aware and working
with doctors and teacher to better help the student.
Socioeconomic Considerations – About half of the parents
hold jobs as professionals, while the other half work in the
service industry and day laborers.

4. Differentiation, Adaptation & Accommodation Strategies: (Based on the pre-assessments, modify

Learning Activities based on learner characteristics to meet the needs of ELL & special needs
students, highly achieving students and low achieving students)

During this activity, review of the branches of government Rationale:

will be reinforced. New concepts such as the Bill of Rights This activity is not only important to the
will be discussed thoroughly with the goal to have all general class, but also to the ELL, special
students understand the 10 Amendments, and have 3 or more need, higher achieving and lower achieving
memorized by the end of the lesson. students as well.

Modification for ELL & Special Needs students: For ELL and special needs students, this
 Utilize pictures to help to explain what each lesson will be broken down into more
amendment means. manageable and understandable pieces a
 Work in small group with teacher or class aide to little at a time. They will be able to work
reduce anxiety of working with a higher achieving with words that correlate with the actual
peer. picture describing what the set of words
 Adjust handouts into a simpler form of writing to mean. They will have constant feedback
help better understand the idea behind the and guidance from the teacher or classroom
information being discussed. aide.
 Teacher can use knowledge of learning style to
break apart the activity into manageable pieces. Higher achieving students can utilize their
 Whenever possible, have student work with a peer quick mastery of the information learned in
who is compassionate to their needs and will help the lesson, to be able to develop the
them understand material. knowledge further and think outside the
box.
Modifications for High Achieving Students:
 Group these students with lower achieving students Lower achieving students will not only
during pair work, to utilize their high knowledge in have teacher support throughout the lesson,
a way that they are able to teach their partner. but also have an opportunity to work with a
 Call on those students during the class share activity peer and hear the material spoken in a way
to get student engagement started. they can understand. Some will also feel
more comfortable asking a peer a question,
 Have these students follow up lesson with a small
instead of the teacher.
paragraph of their understanding of the
amendments.
Teaching for all levels and types of
students is an important part of being a
Modifications for Low Achieving Students:
teacher. Adjusting and modifying lessons
 Pair up with a higher achieving student to be able to
should become like second nature once a
ask questions and receive information in a more
teacher is aware of their students learning
manageable and broken down way.
styles and educational needs. Adjusting
 Give the handouts in smaller manageable parts, so
work for the different types of students,
not to overwhelm them with too much work in front
allows all student an opportunity to learn in
of them.
a way that makes sense to them. Giving
 Have teacher and aide check in with them often to
 see if assistance is needed. students the opportunity to relate material
to real world examples not only helps them
understand the material better, but also
builds their confidence in learning.

5. Resources: (Identify materials needed for this lesson accounting for varying degrees of skill level)

Pre-Assessment Activities: Rationale:

The week prior to the activity, the class has been talking Previous work on the U.S. Government has
about the U.S. Government and how it is ran. prepared them for this lesson and new
Text book, handouts and small video clips have been utilized material. Some information will be a
in class review, while other information will be
new.
Explicit instructions:
Overhead projector with pull down screen All the materials for the lesson and
Various materials to use as examples activities are designed to meet the needs of
all students, while also encouraging
Guided activity and collaborative groups: students to draw upon previously learned
Guided activity with teacher: knowledge of the subject.
Overhead projector with pull down screen
Social Studies journal
Various handouts
Scissors and glue stick

Pairs:
Scissors and glue stick
Handouts
Social Studies journal

Individual activity:
Blank lined paper
Pencil and eraser
Student volunteers to share

6. Learning Activities: Explicit Teacher Instruction - (Explain, model, demonstrate, check for
understanding)
Explain: Rationale:
First teacher will explain to the entire class about the goal “Often teachers begin with a statement of
and learning objective of the lesson. purpose…called providing an anticipatory
set, is used both to gain attention and to
The goal for this activity is to understand the U.S. motivate students to be interested in the
Government better. The learning objective is to be able to lesson.” Pg. 135 (Eby, Herrell, and Jordan,
understand the government through learning and 2011) Goals and learning objectives are
understanding the Constitution and Bill of Rights. always an important part of any lesson
because it gets the students in the mind
Model and demonstrate: frame for the information. This is also
1. (10 minutes) Students will already have their Social important to help motivate the students to
Studies journals, scissors and a glue stick prior to beginning want to know about what they are going to
the lesson. The first handout with the 3 Branches of learn and help to keep them engaged.
Government and their descriptions are to be passed out.
Students are given instructions on how to cut and glue top The handouts and journal will continue to
sheet. Once completed, students are asked which description be referenced back through, throughout the
goes with which branch of government. Teacher will take unit. Helping students to master the
volunteers with quiet hand raised. Once all three descriptions information by the end of the unit.
have been matched, they will be glued under their branch.
Teach is using overhead to model for students. Teacher modeling and explaining is always
important, especially for visual learners.
2. (15-20 minutes) Next, students will be given a handout This will help all students to see exactly
that talks about the Constitution. Students can volunteer to what is expected of them throughout the
read a paragraph at a time. Teacher will clarify any new lesson and how to do tasks correctly.
information or words after each paragraph or if any questions Teacher modeling also sets the tone for
come up throughout the reading. Teacher will also have the how the activity should flow. When
reading material on the screen through the overhead improper demonstrations or explanation
projector. Once completed with that, a hand out on the Bill of occur, students will get off task and do the
Rights will be given to students to glue into their Social work incorrectly.
Studies journals. Then one at a time, teacher and students
will go over the first 10 amendments for understanding and Student feedback is a great way for
clarity. teachers to assess which students acquired
which material from the lesson. Oral
Check for understanding: assessments help teachers quickly find out
Once teacher has finished going over all the material with if the lesson was a good one for the entire
students, teacher will ask open ended questions to check for class or only select students. Teachers can
understanding of material. Questions could be: The also find out who was listening and
government can’t demand that this group stay in your home?, actively participating with their partner.
or When can you use your freedom of speech?

7. Learning Activities: Guided Practice/ Collaborative Practice (Check for understanding and
provide feedback and re-teaching)

Guide practice: Rationale:

3. (10-15 minutes) Teacher will explain that students will Having students engage in pair work is
pair up with the person in the next row over, row 1 with row important to their learning process. Peers
2 and row 3 with row 4. They will close all books and put can relate to each other and help each other
any handouts away. Each pair will be given a blank handout understand concepts and material in
pre-labeled one through ten. Then they will be given the 10 different ways that make sense to them. It
amendments on a handout in random order. They are to cut also helps build social and communication
out the 10 amendments, and then with their partner they will skills.
try to place the amendments in the order they remember.
“Performance sampling is a form of
If ELL or Special needs students had been in the class, they authentic assessment where a student is
would have gone in a small group with the class aide to work observed in the process of accomplishing
on this assignment. They would be given pictures to go along academic tasks and is evaluated in the way
with the amendments to help them make better sense. in which the tasks are done.” Pg. 124 (Eby,
Herrell, and Jordan, 2011) This way the
Check for Understanding: teacher can walk around listening and
After the time is up, the teacher will call on each group to observing the pairs. The teacher can
share what they believed was the correct order. Once all monitor who is participating and helping
groups have gone, teacher will place the correct order on the and who is not even trying. The teacher can
overhead for all groups to see. Partners will both put their also figure out what students still need
names on their amendments and turn them in. more help with mastering the material.

8. Independent Practice: (Provide practice that supports the learning outcome. Note: Independent
activities are assigned assuming that students understand the concept well enough to work on their
own.)

Independent Practice: Rationale:

When finished with group work, students will move their These small paragraphs will not only help
desks back to their original position. The will then be the students to think back on the entire
allowed to use their notes and write a short paragraph, 3-5 lesson and recollect material in order to
sentences, on what they think is the most important show what they have learned on the paper.
amendment and why. This work will be turned in when By putting their own ideas on paper, it
finished. helps the teacher to be able to see their
amount if learning, as well as help the
Check for Understanding: students to make sense of the material.
Teacher will be able to review individual short answers to be
able to assess where comprehension level is for each student,
after activity.

9. Assessment and Evaluation: (Describe how you will assess and/or evaluate the students’ learning.
Describe differentiating assessment strategies you will use for ELL, special needs students, highly
achieving students and low achieving students.)

Whole class assessment: Rationale:

During the discussion and information sharing, teacher will This is just the beginning of their education
be able to assess who is paying attention and who is not. process of governments. Building a strong
Based on questions and answers, teacher will also be able to foundation on terms and concepts will help
assess who is comprehending the material, who is having students throughout their years in school.
some trouble, and who is just not understanding.
Modification for all students should be a
Modifications for: priority for teachers in order for all
ELL – Teacher will be able to observe students during whole students to be able to learn and retain
class activity and paired work. Teacher can have students information. Making the work too easy or
draw some of the amendments they remember instead of too hard is more of a hindrance than a
writing about them. learning process. Students should have
work that makes sense to them in a way
Special needs – Teacher will be able to observe student that challenges them to think and explore
during whole class and paired work. Depending on the level new ideas.
of need and learning style for the students, teacher can have
them draw pictures of some of the amendments, utilize the
Chromebook to write out what they learned, or even have
them tell the teacher what they learned.

High achieving students - These students can write out a

longer paragraph explaining why all the amendments are
important, and if any need updating for this current day and
age.

Low achieving students – These students can still write out

what they think is the most important amendment to them,
but in simple sentences or bullet points for their reasons why.
They can even talk through the reasons with the teacher or
aide before writing.

10. Closure: (Describe how students will reflect on what they have learned.)

Once students are done with their writing, they will share Rationale:
what they think the U.S. would be like if there had never It is definitely important to review as a
been a Constitution or Bill of Rights. Teacher will inform whole class what was learned during the
them that volunteers will be called on first, and then the rest lesson. Students can share ideas, opinions,
of the class will be called on, that all student participate is questions or even comments. Some
required. All students will get the opportunity to share students will even get thoughts or concepts
because there is really no right or wrong answer, and all clarified just by listening to other students
students should be able to come up with an idea. This will share.
also help the teacher in assessing who really understand what
the government does for the U.S. “Summative assessments are typically
given at the end of a unit of study or
Students will continue to review and use this information in sequence of lessons to determine how well
the days to follow, eventually ending with an end of unit test individual students have mastered the
to see if mastery of the concepts was achieved. material presented.” Pg. 207 (Eby, Herrell,
and Jordan, 2011) Final assessments,
whether they are the standard paper test,
project, or even a poster should be
administered so that the teacher can see
where each student made the greatest gains
and where they were lacking in a particular
area. This also helps the teacher to adjust
and modify lessons for future classes.

11. Lesson Reflection/Assessment: (Collect student learning data to determine: What went well?
What needs to be changed? Were learning outcomes met? What activities will you add, change,
modify in the future? What can be done to follow up on the learning from this lesson? Who needs
additional help? Who needs enrichment or higher level work?)
 You will complete this in week four. You do not need to include it in your lesson plan.

Revised: 5/17
 Rubric

1 2 3 4

I can define the

I can define the Bill of Rights, and
Bill of Rights Still confused I know a little
Bill of Rights know many
amendments
I can give a I can define and
Constitution Still confused I know a little general description explain the
of the Constitution Constitution
I know all 3
3 Branches of I know all 3
I know the name of Branches, what
Still confused Branches and what
Government the 3 Branches they do, and who
they do
runs them
I stayed focused,
Overall work I was reminded I was only I stayed on task
participated, and
more than 2 times reminded once to and only got side
effort completed all my
to get back to work get back to work tracked very little
work