Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

Elementary Education Program

Pre-Observation Form

Directions: This form is to be completed prior to every lesson that will be observed by the mentor
teacher or university supervisor. It is to be submitted no later than 3 business days prior to the actual
observation along with your lesson plans.

Name: Bridgette Bryson Date: 11.7.17

1. What is the topic of your lesson?

Geography, themes: location, place, and human-environment interaction

2. Why are you teaching this lesson? What is your rationale for teaching it?
I am teaching this lesson to meet the grade level-standards and to teach the
students about how we can use the location, place, and human-environment
interaction to learn about different places around the world.

3. What is your Teaching Behavior Focus? Why did you choose this?
My teaching behavior focus is utilizing cooperative learning I chose this
because this lesson is built around cooperative learning and I want to ensure that
it is used in such a way that deepens students understanding of the content.

4. Why did you design your instruction in this lesson the way that you did? Why did
you choose this way of teaching the lesson (e.g., Was the idea from a methods
course? From your mentor teacher? Another source?)
For this lesson, I used an idea from my social studies, ELM 460 course that
involves collaborative learning. The students are going be doing a jigsaw,
where they will find out information about a certain place and then share their
findings with the whole group, which of whom will have also found information on
the same place. My thinking behind this is that since the students are all
researching the same place, they will be more engaged during our discussion at
the end when each group shares out because they will want to hear more about
this place.

5. As you are thinking through this lesson, what do you believe will be the most
challenging part of this lesson for you when you teach it? Why?
I think the most challenging part of this lesson will be finishing the lesson on time.
This is something that I struggled with when doing my math lessons, but I have
allotted time for each section on the lesson plan to help with this. I also plan on
using a timer to keep me on track.

6. How will you know if your learning outcomes for the students are met
successfully?
 I will know if the learning outcomes are met by visiting each group and informally
assessing them by asking questions related to location, place, and human-
environment interaction. I will also use the posters to assess the students
understanding of the content by having each member of the group write their
findings in a colored marker of their choice. This distinction will help me see
which students in the group are understanding the content and which students in
the group need more support. Lastly, I will have the chance to assess student
understanding during our whole group discussions before and after the activity.

7. How will your classroom management support the learning outcomes?

Before the students are sent off to do their work, I am going to review the
concepts to activate prior knowledge. This will help students when they do break
into groups because they will know what they are supposed to be doing. I am
also going to give clear directions and expectations before they break into groups
so that they know what is expected of them. To encourage good behavior, I will
praise students who are on task and doing their work. If needed, I will use the clip
chart for students who need repeated reminders to stay on task.

8. List 1-3 areas which you would like for your observer to pay particular attention.
Why do you want your observer to focus on these areas?
1- I would like for my observers to focus on my questioning. I want to make sure
that my questions promote a deeper level of thinking from the students.
2- I would also like for my observers to pay attention to my responses to
students. I want the students to feel like their input is valued even if it is wrong.

9. Is there anything else you would like your observer to know before the
observation?
The lesson prior to this, the students will take a mini field trip to the playground to
discuss the location, place, and human-environment interaction. This lesson is an
extension from the prior and students will be applying their understanding of the
concepts to learn about another place.