Ann Vespestad

ELED 432
Prep Notes
Chapter 4 - Cox-Peterson, Melber, & Patchen
Connections

The concept of self-confidence impacting how a student learns is important to

note. In my practicum setting, there are a couple of students who do not have
a lot of self-confidence and feel that they are destined to fail. I want to be
able to build all my student's self-confidence so they feel that they can
succeed. All students are able to be successful in school, but it's important as
a teacher to let them know. I like the idea of having a mentor in the class that
can relate to many student's to encourage them that they are capable of
reaching their full potential.
I feel like teachers can easily stop creative thinking as they are often focused
on following standards and getting students to pass standardized tests.
Teachers may fall into the trap of telling students information and not
allowing time for creative thinking. I want to allow students to think creatively
in my future classroom as students come up with incredible ideas and can
often learn what is needed for the test in their own engaging and meaningful
way.
Concept maps are a great way for students to understand a variety of broad
science concepts. This activity allows for creativity and allows for the
students to determine what goes where so it makes sense to them. I feel like
using concept maps would be beneficial for students in my practicum to use
so they can pioneer their education rather than the teacher telling them what
they should know.
I am a big fan of student inquiry and the group investigation strategy of
learning. I was never able to question science concepts and investigate them
when I was in elementary school, but I was rather told the information I
needed to know. I feel if I went through the puzzlement, ask questions, group
formation, group investigation, group monitoring, group presentations, and
group evaluation stages, then I would have been interested and learned more
about science. I would have actually been engaged in learning rather than
just memorizing facts that I inevitably forgot after taking a test.
I believe that following the 5Es Instructional Model is a great way to engage
students in science curriculum. By following this method, I can foster an
environment where students are eager to learn about science and get them
directly involved in the process. I plan on using this method in my future
classroom.

Challenge

One thing that I find challenging is being able to make all science lessons
culturally relevant. I do not know where I may end up teaching, but I want to
be sure that I take all my student's cultural backgrounds into account so
everyone will be able to benefit from all lessons. I think involving parents in
science activities when possible will be a great way to implementing
culturally relevant lessons.
I am not all too familiar with the concept formation model of instruction and
the concept attainment model, but I think that they would be useful in my
classroom. I will have to spend more time looking into these methods in order
to successfully implement them.
Although I believe that group work is a great way for students to work
together and share their ideas with one another, I am worried about the
classroom management aspect of it. I don't want students to get out of
control or get off task when working in groups. I am sure that setting
rules/boundaries early on could help this, but I am still worried that I may lose
control. I want to allow students to work collaboratively with one another, but
I must figure out how to maintain control.
I hope I will be able to foster a learning environment in my classroom that
builds off of student interests. I am worried that I will be unable to reach
some students and get them involved in science lessons. I hope by using
these strategies of teaching that all students can be engaged, but I still worry
some will be left behind.

Concepts

Interest in science can be enhanced by using vocabulary/visual/hands-on

experiences that relate to students' interest, by engaging students in the
whole learning process, by connecting science to students' lives and native
culture, and by extending science outside of the classroom. These ideas could
definitely be implemented in my practicum setting. I have yet to see any
science in the classroom and students are often completing worksheets all
day. Students are definitely not engaged in learning and have often
expressed how they are bored. Interest in science, and in all other content
areas, needs to be enhanced by using these strategies in order for the
students in my practicum class to be excited about learning.
The 5 Es instructional model seems to be a great way to promote inquiry and
engaging lessons. This model could definietly be implemented in my
practicum setting so students can become engaged with the content and be
a part of the learning process. They are so used to being told what and how
to do something, so being able to explore a topic would be extremely
beneficial for students.

Changes

This chapter has given me multiple ways to make science fun and engaging. I
will definitely be using all of these various methods and strategies in my
future classroom so I can keep science interesting and meaningful. I hope to
always foster creativity and critical thinking in my classroom which will be
possible when using these strategies.

Chapter 4 - Gregory and Hammerman

Connections

Out of the five basic methods of instruction, I grew up mainly with expository
as there was a lot of lectures, presentations, books, etc. There were some
demonstrations, guided inquiry, and discussion, but not as much as
expository.
I think its important to shine a light on the importance of grouping. There are
pros and cons to whole group, small group, partner group, and individual
work depending on the activity. As a teacher, I will decide what activity is
best suited for what grouping. I may try different groups out to see what
works best for my students.
In my practicum setting, students really dont think on their own and fully
understand concepts. I think guided inquiry would be a great start to get
them thinking in a different way. I wouldnt want to use open inquiry right
away because students would be lost having to think completely on their
own. Guided inquiry is a great stepping stone to begin thinking in a different,
more meaningful way.
In this class, we use our science notebooks as a tool for learning. Having
various sections is helpful in breaking down all of the various components in
class. I have seen interactive science notebooks used in elementary school as
well and they seem very beneficial.

Challenges

I have never really heard of brain research connected with classroom

practices. I never thought about the impact that note taking versus using
cooperative learning has on the brain. I know the two are different, but I
never though of it from a brain research perspective which is quite
interesting.
I have done many lab reports in high school, but I am curious what grade
would be appropriate to start completing lab reports. Maybe there is a way to

modify it for the younger grades? I am curious what grade the lab report
sample in the book is best suited for.
I know about differentiation and the importance to adjust assignments for
each individual in the class. However, I am worried how I may accomplish this
if I have a class where students are on all different levels. Or if the majority of
my class is relatively on the same level, but just one or two students are
behind. How would I differentiate without singling them out?
I am not quite sure I fully understand to concept of curriculum compacting. I
have never heard of this term before so I am not all too familiar with it. The
concept seems like something that is naturally done in the classroom where a
pretest is taken to see what students know, but I am unsure if I understand it
enough to use it in my classroom.

Concepts

The five basic methods are important to know which are expository,
discussions, demonstration, guided inquiry, and open inquiry/problem-based
learning. The expository method is mainly used in my practicum setting with
some demonstration, but discussion, guided inquiry, and open inquiry are
hardly ever used. These would be great methods to incorporate in my
practicum class so students can have a variety of lessons.

Changes

This chapter has gotten me to change my way of thinking on how effective

strategies relate to brain research and what that means in the classroom. The
chart on page 59 in very helpful in breaking down various effective
strategies, the brain research, and classroom applications. I want to be able
to implement activities/strategies that will challenge the brain.