Design for Learning

Instructor: Lindsey Harding

Lesson Title: Light it Up!
Curriculum Area: Science

Grade Level/Cooperating Teacher: 4th

Date: 11/20/15
Estimated Time: 2 days

Standards Connection: 3.) Recognize how light interacts with transparent, translucent, and
opaque materials.
Examples:
- transparentmost light passes through,
- translucentsome light passes through,
- opaqueno light passes through
Learning Objective(s):
Students will recognize transparent light by giving a presentation that meets the rubric criteria.
Learning Objective(s) stated in kid-friendly language:
You will give a presentation about transparent light and will be graded based on the rubric!
Evaluation of Learning Objective(s):
The teacher will create a presentation with the information that they found during their discovery
time. The teacher will present the students with a rubric and they will go over it as a class. It will
instruct them on how their presentation should be constructed and presented. Each individual
student will be assessed even though they will be working together in groups. The teacher will
designate roles to each member of the group so that each member will have a role. One member
will be there recorder, one will be the presenter, and one will be the creator. Students who meet
the rubric criteria with a 3 in every category will be considered in the green range. Students that
earn a one will be considered in the red range and need additional support.
Engagement:
The teacher will bring the students to the carpet in front of the KWL chart that is already made.
She will go over with them what each letter stands for. She will then ask them what they know
about the subject light. She will then ask them what they want to know or learn about light. They
will discuss the subject to trigger students background knowledge about light and how it
impacts their life. Boys and girls I need everyone to come to the carpet. I will call you out by
table. Table 1 one you may come to the carpet table 234. Alright class, we are going to be
doing a new unit on light. Can everyone look at this chart with me? Do you all remember what
these stand for? We have done KWL charts before. What does the K stand for? Teacher waits for
student response. Thats right, its asking us what we already know about something, in this case
light! What about the W? Thats right, it is asking what we want to learn about it. Maybe its
questions that we have about light. And the L stands for what we learned about light, but we will
do that after our lesson. Lets start with what we know. I want you all to think for a minute
without talking. When youre ready I want you to give me the silent thumbs and you can share
something that you know about light. This might be where light comes from, how we use it, or
how it effects us. Teacher gives students a minute to think. Student A, what is something that you
can tell us about light? Teacher writes the students response under the K column. Student B,

will you share with us something that you know is true about light? Teacher writes student
response under the K column. Do we have any me toos for these things that our friends have
shared? She receives 3 or 4 more responses from students. Alright, lets move to what we want to
know about light. I am going to give you another minute to think about this. Teacher gives
students time to think. Student C, what is something that you want to learn about light? Teacher
writes student response under the W column. Great. What about you, Student D? Teacher writes
response under the W column and gets 3 or 4 more responses from students. Great thinking, boys
and girls. You all have some really great questions and I hope that over the next few days we will
answer them! Today we are going to be focusing on one specific type of light called transparent
light. Teacher transitions into instruction.
Learning Design:
I. Teaching:
The teacher will explain the objective to the students again. Before she dives into transparent
light, she will ask students questions about light that access prior knowledge. This will take place
in a Socratic circle where there can be open discussion and input. After the teacher asks guiding
questions about light, she will explain the term transparent light. She will begin the instruction
but then will give the students the responsibility to research transparent light on his or her own.
She will give them instructions and then will allow them to use the iPads and handout in a small
group to discover more about transparent light. Boys and girls, we are studying light for the next
few days! This is one of my favorite topics. We are going to learn today about light interacts with
transparent material. Can you all say that with me? Students respond transparent. By the end
of this lesson you will have hopefully learned a lot about it and will create a presentation on the
information you have learned to the class. Before we dive into transparent light, we are going to
come into a circle and talk about light in general first. Can I have everyone grab their chair and
form a circle around the center of the room? Please be mindful of others as you do this. Teacher
waits until students get settled in their seats. Boys and girls, what is light? We have talked about
light before, but I want us to think about what it is. Teacher waits for student responses. She
allows time for multiple answers and discussion. Where does light come from? Teacher allows
for discussion and response. What about light traveling, does anyone know how it travels?
Teacher waits for response and allows time for discussion. Can you block light? What kind of
things block light? Teacher allows for student responses. Does it reflect off things? What kind of
things does it reflect off of? How do you see this on a daily basis? Teacher waits for student
response and allows time for discussion if necessary. Does light travel through things? Youre
right, it does! Can anyone tell me what it is called when light can travel through an object?
Teacher gives students time to think and respond. Thats okay, this is what we are learning about
today! Boys and girls, light that travels through an object is called transparent light. Just for fun,
does anyone know the other types of materials that block light or reflect light? Teacher allows
time for students to respond if they know the answer. Im impressed! We are going to learn
about translucent and opaque light later on in the unit, but I am proud that some of you know it
already! Teacher writes transparent light on the board. Have any of you heard that word
before? Its a pretty big word. Can you clap it out with me? Teacher leads the class and claps,
Trans-par-ent. Good. Now I want you to answer these questions in your mind right now. I dont
want anyone blurting out or talking during this time. These questions are to make you think
about transparent light. Have you all seen transparent light today? What are some objects that

you believe are transparent? What is the purpose of transparent light? How is it used? Where is
it used? Why is it used? When is it used? Teacher asks the questions slowly allowing students to
think and process. She gives them a minute after she asks them to sit and think. Does anyone
notice anything about the questions that I asked? Thats right, I used the What, Where, When,
Why, and How questions. Is that something you all have used before? I know it is! Today you
all are going to be discovering transparent light for yourselves. You are going to use the iPads
today! I have already paired you in groups of three for this discovery. Each group will have an
iPad and will use them to research transparent light. What kinds of things are you going to
research? Think about the questions I just asked you boys and girls. Thats right you are going
to research things like why it is used, when it is used, how it is used, etc.! You all have used those
tools before, so I expect you to do a great job in using them to help you learn about transparent
light. I have a hand out for you that looks like this. Teacher refers to the handout that has four
different boxes for information to go in. (attached) I need all eyes and all ears. This is going to
be what you all use to collect your information. How many boxes are there? Students respond
4. So how many things am I looking for? 4, good. Am I looking for one-word answers? No!
What kind of responses do we give as fourth graders? Complete sentences, thats right! You all
sound like you have done this before. This is not the first time we are using the iPads boys and
girls, so I expect you to respect this privilege. You did a great job last time, so I hope to see you
handling it well again. So what things am I looking for? Teacher listens to students respond and
writes them on the board. Work well together, complete sentences, take turns with the iPad, use
the questions, fill in all four boxes. Good! I am going to leave this up so that you all know what I
am expecting of you the whole time. What are we researching again, class? Transparent light!
And what is transparent light? It is an object that light travels through. Okay, I am going to call
each of you by group to come get your papers and an iPad. Each of you will need to fill out your
own paper, but you can obviously work together. You may scatter around the room but please
remember to use your inside voices and be mindful of others. I will give you 20 minutes to
complete this so keep watch of the time. I will let you know when you have 10 minutes left and 5
minutes left. I will be walking around so please ask any questions if you have them. Does
everyone understand? The teacher gets ready to pass out the iPads and worksheet. Group one is
Students A, B, C. Teacher hands the materials out to each group one at a time until each group
has received the material and has found a place around the room. One last thing! Remember the
tool that has the links to the good research websites in on your tool bar. Take advantage of that!
The teacher monitors the students and walks around making sure they are finding correct
information. She answers any questions that the students have and supports their learning. She
warns them when they have 10 and 5 minutes left and then draws their attention back in when it
is time to finish. Boys and girls I am so proud of how you all just worked! Did you find out some
more about transparent light? Do you feel like you could present it to the class? Well you are
going to have the opportunity to in just a little bit! First, we are going to have a scavenger hunt
to help us apply what we have learned. First. I need Group 1 to bring me your iPads and then
put your sheet back at your desk and stay seated there until I give you further directions. Group
2345. Thank you. You are going to use those sheets that you just filled out to help you with
your presentations, so please leave them on your desks and do not lose them! Now I am going to
explain to you what we are doing next. Teacher transitions into explaining what the students will
be doing for practice.

II. Opportunity for Practice:

The teacher will introduce the scavenger hunt to the students. She will explain how they will use
the information that they researched and that was discussed. She will explain the guidelines of
the scavenger hunt and then will allow them to find the objects around the classroom and school.
Okay boys and girls, what are we learning about today? Transparent light, good job. After
learning about what it is, do you see how there are many places that we see it on a daily basis?
You all are going to go on a scavenger hunt around the school to find 3 transparent objects. You
can work in groups of two. That means that you can just fill out one sheet for the two of you. I am
going to pass out the sheet that you will use to fill out as you go around the school. The teacher
passes out the sheets and then draws their attention to it and explains it. You are going to find an
object. Describe the object and how the light passes through it. Then you will tell how it is used.
You are going to do that for three different objects. After you finish the scavenger hunt you will
come back to your desks and come up with three questions that you have about transparent light.
Remember that other classes are in class right now so you need to be respectful of that. Please
stay inside and one this side of the school. You all are big kids and I am trusting you all that you
will be responsible with this activity. If you do not behave responsibly you will ruin another
opportunity like this for the whole class, so please be respectful and follow the directions that I
have given. You all may get with your buddy and start the scavenger hunt. Please be back in 10
minutes. Teacher monitors students as they do the scavenger hunt. After they finish they will
transition into the assessment portion.
III. Assessment
The teacher will assess the students from their presentation of information that they researched to
see if they grasped the content, transparent light. She will read over the rubric with them. She
will give them time in class to work on the presentation. Each group will have three minutes to
present the information to the class in whatever way they find appropriate. The students will
listen to their peers and learn from each others research. The teacher will assess each group
based off of the rubric. Okay class, you have researched transparent light in your groups and
come up with some information about it. You have also just done a scavenger hunt as a class so
you should be very familiar with this topic now. Now each group is going to present the
information that they found to the class in a three minute presentation. I am going to pass out the
rubric that you will be graded from and we are going to read it together so that you know exactly
what I am expecting. I will give you class time to work on it and then each group will present
and we will have class discussions. Teacher passes out the rubrics to the class. Can everyone
look at this with me? There are three categories that your presentation can fall into. What are
those? Student responds, Wow, okay, and not yet. Good. I think that all of you can get a 3! I
am looking for some things in order for you to earn that 3. What are some things that I am
looking for? Student says, that the research is right. Yes, thats right. So class, I am looking to
make sure that you researched the correct thing. I think that you all should do a great job on
that. It also says that the information is clearly presented. What might that mean? Thats right, I
am looking for good presenters. Everyone look at the chart that we have that has tips on what
makes a good presenter. Teacher draws student attention back in. What is another thing that I am
looking for in your presentations? Creativity, good! That is a big one. I really want you all to be
creative with these. Make it interesting for the class. What are some ways that you can make
your presentation creative? Teacher lets the students share some ideas. I would love to see some
of these in your presentations. Those are great. Okay, someone else tell me another thing Im

looking for. Participation, good. How do I expect all of you to participate and present? Thats
right, with strong voices. Do only one of you participate? No! Of course all of you participate. In
order to make sure that all of you participate, you are going to assign each member a role. One
will be the presenter, one will be the recorder, and one will be the creator. All of you will play a
role in each of these categories, but these are just to help guide you. Okay class, what is one last
thing that I am looking for in your presentations in order for you to receive a 3? Student
responds. that we understand transparent light. This is the most important one boys and girls. I
hope that after these presentations I see that all of you can tell me a lot about transparent light.
Does everyone have a clear understanding of what I expect of all of you? Okay, I am now going
to give you class time to work on these presentations. You will have 30 minutes to work on it. We
will present your work after that.
IV. Closure:
The teacher will discuss with the students what they have learned in this section of the unit of
light. They will look back at some of the questions that they asked at the beginning of this lesson
and then will fill in the L section together for things that they learned. Light is an interesting
thing, isnt it boys and girls. It really effects us in a lot of ways, doesnt it? We just learned about
one aspect of light today. What is that, class? Transparent light, good. What is transparent light?
What are some examples? Good observations. Remember the KWL chart that we did at the
beginning? We are going to finish that off by looking at some specific things that we have
learned about light so far. Who wants to share something that they learned that they didnt know
before? Teacher calls on students and fills in the rest of the chart. She makes sure that each
student participates in some way whether it is answering questions or contributing to what they
learned.
Materials and Resources:
Anchor chart (KWL)
iPads
Rubric
Scavenger hunt worksheet
Graphic organizer
Differentiation Strategies (including plans for individual learners):
For students who struggle with synthesizing information, the teacher will pre-pair the students so
that they will have a strong support in their groups. The teacher will monitor their roles in the
presentation and will intentionally assign them a specific role if need be. For students who
exceed what is expected will be given the responsibility to lead the group and help the students
who are struggling. The presentation standards will be the same for every student, but the
grouping will help the students who are above or below the level that they should be at. This
should differentiate the learning and allow them to be challenged at the appropriate level.

Samford University
Design for Learning

Rubric

The information is
accurate and detailed.
Research is
appropriate and
clearing presented.
Presentation is

appealing to the
audience. Students put
effort in making it
creative.
Students speak with
strong voices and
clear sentences. All
group members

participate in the
presentation.
Evidence of students
understanding
transparent light.

Wow!

Okay

Not Yet

Transparent Light
Scavenger Hunt

Object

Description

How is it used?

Object #1

Object #2

Object #3

Questions that I have about transparent objects

1.
2.
3.