Professional Documents
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Reflection:
The first lesson I taught to the students was What dissolves in water? In order to connect the lesson back to previous experiences, I asked
the students what liquid they thought was in the clear cups on the table. After they said it was water, I asked them to think back to our field trip and
water discussion that we had the week prior. I began talking about water, reminding them that water has a lot of properties and characteristics. I then
explained that one characteristic is that water has the ability to make some materials disappear, or dissolve. I added the word dissolve to the word
wall for the investigation and then began the lesson.
In this lesson, I provided a total of five different materials: salt, brown sugar, oats, noodles, and sprinkles. I had five clear cups of water by the
materials, and I asked the small group of students to predict what materials would dissolve. When making their predictions, I gave the students the
opportunity to explore the material with their senses. As they touched, looked and smelled each material, they predicted whether they thought it
would dissolve into the water or not. I wrote each students predictions on a chart, which was shared with the group at the end of the lesson. I had
each student take turn pinching the materials into the cups of water. The students were then asked to stir the mixture. After each student had a turn,
we passed around the cup and allowed everyone to observe and explain what he or she saw.
I was surprised how excited students were. If one of the materials dissolved, they would get so excited as they realized the material had
disappeared. They began yelling that it dissolved and at one point the teacher had to come quiet them down because their
reactions were too loud.
From this lesson, I learned that the students enjoy interactive lessons. The students were more involved with the
activity because they were able to take charge of the activity. I guided discussions and explained the procedure, but the
students were the ones interacting with the materials and completing the investigation. The small group activity provided
each student the time to participate and share his or her thoughts. The students were also curious about the water properties.
This will help with my future instruction because I will plan another water activity based on another property of water.
One thing that I would change within my lesson would be to have more time for explanation. Throughout the lesson, I used
words such as: experiment, prediction, and observations. I did not immediately explain these words before using them until
one student inquired about the word experiment. I had assumed they would have heard these words before, but this was
new language. After the student inquired, I added the words to the word wall and explained each word. In the future, I
will use strong language, but also stop to explain the language I use so students can fully comprehend what I am
teaching.
6/12/2013
Early Childhood Education
Learning Experience Plan
Overall the lesson was successful. All of the students that participated in the lesson met the objectives and seemed to enjoy themselves
throughout the duration of the investigation activity on water. I was beyond happy that after my lesson, I overheard a young boy talking to a friend
about what dissolves in water. The learning that took place, afterthought, and curiosity made my lesson a success.