Teachers:

Ms. Caitlin LaBenz

Inquiry (5E) Lesson Plan Template

Subject:
Science: Reduce,
Reuse, Recycle

Grade:
6th grade

Standard:
(PO 1.) Analyze data obtained in a scientific investigaion to identify trends.
(6.W.2) Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts,
and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.
Objective (Explicit):
To analyze through futures thinking on the ways to recycle within their school, home, and
community, and to be able to invent and design how the world would be like if everyone
recycled.
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable):
Include a copy of the lesson assessment.
Provide exemplar student responses with the level of detail you expect to see.
Assign value to each portion of the response

The students will be able to show their knowledge and understanding of the topic at an 80% or
higher.
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (knowledge, skill, purpose):
How will you review past learning and make connections to previous lessons?
What skills and content are needed to ultimately master this lesson objective?
How is this objective relevant to students, their lives, and/or the real world?

Start by watching a short clip on the importance of recycling.

Ask if any of the students recycle at home. What kind of things do they recycle?
Have the read from an article on what types of items cannot be recycled.
Finish with writing a informative blog post that uses their future thinking to think of ways our Earth
would be helped if we recycled every day.
Key vocabulary:
Recycle: creating reusable products
Reduce: to use less of
Reuse: to use more than once
Informative: to provide information to a person
about a specific topic

Materials:
Smart Board
Document Camera
Anchor Chart
Science Notebook
Dirty Dozen Article
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Theme Song
Letter Paper
Pens
Markers

Engage
How will you activate prior knowledge?
How will you hook student attention?
What question will you pose, based on your objective, that students will seek to answer in Explore?

Teacher Will:
What do you think of when you hear the
word Recycle?
Give the students time to brainstorm their
answers

Students Will:
Brainstorm ideas of what the word
recycle means
Raise your hand with the answer you
thought of

Have the students raise their hands and

provide an answer
Write their ideas onto the board.
Explore

Write down the ideas in their science

notebook

How will you model your performance expectations? (remember you are not modeling what you want students
to discover but need to model expected behavior or required procedures).
How will students take the lead and actively use materials to discover information that will help them answer
the question posed in the Engage?
What questions or prompts will you be prepared to use with students while they are exploring?

Teacher Will:
Next turn their attention to the smartboard
where they will watch the video Reduce,
Reuse, Recycle Theme Song
When the video is done ask the students what
they thought about it.
Ask the students why they think Recycling is
important
Call students to answer the question

Students Will:
Follow along with the theme song on
the smartboard
Tell the teacher what they learned from
the video
Answer why they believe that
Recycling is important

Co-Teaching Strategy
What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

If students are having a hard time with thinking of why it is important to recycle, remind them of the
past information that they have learned. This includes the animals, water, carbon footprint etc.
Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?

If some of the students are having a harder challenge with what is being asked then I will have the
students watch the video again to grasp a better understanding.
Explain
How will all students have an opportunity to share what they discovered?
How will you connect student discoveries to correct content terms/explanations?
How will all students articulate/demonstrate a clear and correct understanding of the sub-objectives by
answering the question from the Engage before moving on?
Teacher Will:
Students Will:

Pass out the article Dirty Dozen to the class

Have the students do popcorn reading
Have the students think of items that can be
recycled
Create an Anchor Chart on the board of the
different categories (paper, plastic, etc.)
Have the students write down three items for
each category in their notebook
Walk around and help with questions

Look over the Dirty Dozen article, and wait

to be called on for popcorn reading
Brainstorm ideas that can be recycled
Copy the Anchor Chart into their science
notebook
Write down three ideas for each category
in their notebook

Co-Teaching Strategy
What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

If students are having a hard time with thinking of items that can be recycled, ask them what kind
of items they see every day that would fall into those categories.

Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?

If the assignment is becoming challenging for the students, I will walk around and review the article
with them. Then I will try and get them started by giving some examples.
Elaborate
How will students take the learning from Explore and Explain and apply it to a new circumstance or explore a
particular aspect of this learning at a deep level?
How will students use higher order thinking at this stage (e.g. A common practice in this section is to pose a
What If? Question)?
How will all students articulate how their understanding has changed or been solidified?

Teacher Will:
Once the students are done with the
Anchor Chart bring their attention back to
the front.
Tell the students that they will be creating a
informative blog posting
Have the students follow along while the
teacher explains the instructions on the
smart board.
Have the students write a five paragraph
blog that describes why the Earth is in risk.
Tell the students that they need to use
three of the topics that we have gone over
(ex: carbon footprint, the animals, and the
oceans)
They then would need to write how
recycling would help these areas
throughout the world.
When they are done, they will have a
partner peer edit and wait for the other
classmates.
Brainstorm ideas with the students
Let the students begin their writing
assignment

Students Will:
Once finished bring your attention back
to the teachers
Listen to the instructions the teacher is
providing
Watch the teacher and brainstorm
topics that they would like to write
about
Write their ideas onto their science
notebook
Begin their writing assignment

Co-Teaching Strategy
What co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?

If the students are having a hard time thinking of ideas that would be affected with recycling, have
them think back to the other assignments that they have done during the week.
Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you provide for specific students?
How will you anticipate students that need an additional challenge?

If the students are needing modifications, the teacher will sit with the student and help them create
a story board that will help them get their thoughts across on paper.
Evaluate
How will all students demonstrate mastery of the lesson objective (though perhaps not mastery of the
elaborate content)?
How will students have an opportunity to summarize the big concepts they learned (separate from the
assessment)?

Teacher Will:
After the teacher has checked their peer
edits have the students bring their
attention back to the front
Tell the students that they will be able to
create a Weebly account under a blog
post
Show the website on the smart board
Tell the students that they will be creating
a free blog post
Have the students grab the small
computers from the computer bin
Help with the students if they need any
extra help
Tell the students that they will need to
type their blog post onto Weebly
When the students are done they will
need to publish the site and send the link
to the teachers email
Let the students begin typing
The teacher will be able to show mastery
with observing the blog post and seeing
that all of the requirements were met and
there was a great understanding for the
topic.

Students Will:
Once they have completed their peer
review to their attention back to the
teacher
Wait for further instructions
Grab the small computer from the
computer bin
Follow along with the teacher
Pull up the website
Create their own weebly account and
blog post
Start and finish their typing onto the post
Publish the site and send the link to the
teacher