Fanya Stein

SCED 517
Lesson Plan Format
Lesson Title: Giraffe’s Can’t Dance

Subject: Growth Mindset and Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Date: January 31st, 2017

Objective Students will be able to recognize that they can do what they love even if
it is not the most popular thing or they are not the best at it

Essential Question How can we connect Gerald’s story to the struggles and passions in our
own life?

Time About 30 minutes

Materials The book Giraffe’s Can’t Dance, worksheet, art supplies, document
camera/projector, “Try Everything” song from Zootopia on Youtube

Culturally Relevant Story is about animals in Africa, theme is about finding your own passion
Connections
and doing what you love, mentions bullying. Some kids in the classroom
have been bullied, be sensitive towards this topic and highlight how the
animals feel after being bullied.

Differentiation Book is for audio and visual learners, worksheet is hands-on with an
activity for art and writing. Write brainstorm on the board for ELL
learners.

Opening Activity Review our reading strategies

Teaching the new 1.

Students will start in their spots on the carpet.
objective
2. Review reading strategies and good reading habits
3. Read Giraffe’s Can’t Dance out loud, but stopping to ask
questions during the story
● What do you predict will happen?
● How do you think Gerald feels when the animals tell him he is
weird and Giraffe’s can’t dance?
 ● What does it mean when the cricket says you just need a
different song?
4. After the story is over, ask them questions about the story and
how they felt about it
5. Ask the kids what they love to do, even if they aren’t the best
at it or it’s not the most popular thing
6. Write on the board things that they love to do as a brainstorm
for the written activity
7. The students will go back to their seats and teacher will explain
the worksheet, the students will write things that they love to
do and then draw it in the space above
8. The kids will work on the worksheet, and teacher will have the
worksheet projected on the document camera
9. When they are done, play/project the song “Try Everything”
from Zootopia and host your own Jungle Dance!
Closing Activity “Try Everything” Dance

Reflection Complete this post-lesson: what went well, what didn’t,

what would you change next time?

Overall I think this was a good lesson for the 1st graders so that we can
start to have a dialogue of things that we love to do even if we aren’t the
best at it or it may not be the most popular thing to do. I want to be able
to dig a little deeper into growth mindset with them but I think that I need
to start off slow. I think this was a fun activity that the students will enjoy
doing, especially if it’s going to be the first time that I’m teaching them on
my own. I want them to be excited for me to do my lessons with them.

I need to work on giving an overview of the lesson and learning targets

for what we will be doing that day. This will help me with connecting my
subsequent lessons as well. I would want to add some more instructions
to the picture, such as using multiple colors or having them write multiple
things that they love to do so that it can take more time to even it out. I
also like the idea of having sentence frames in addition to the brainstorm
of activities that they love to do so that they have a starting point of how
to write it.
 Fanya Stein
SCED 517
Lesson Plan Format
Lesson Title: The Power of Yet

Subject: Growth Mindset and Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Date: February 7th, 2017

Objective Students will start to use the word “Yet” after “I can’t…” to foster their
growth mindset.
Students will see that they can achieve their goals through hard work
and can learn to do things, even if they can’t do them yet

Essential Question When we add Yet to the end of our phrase “I can’t...” how does that
change the meaning?

Time About 30 minutes

Materials The book Giraffe’s Can’t Dance, worksheet, art supplies, document
camera/projector

Culturally Relevant Story is about animals in Africa, Bullying is introduced from different
Connections
animals making fun of the Giraffe for being clumsy and not being able to
dance, Theme is about finding your own passion and doing what you
love

Differentiation Book is for audio and visual learners, worksheet is hands-on with an
activity for art and writing, brainstorm on the board for students to see
ideas and spelling, sentence frames for ELL students

Opening Activity Review the book from last week and looking for things that we missed
while we read the book a second time. Talk about the sign that says we
no longer say “I can’t” in the classroom

Teaching the new 1. Students will start in their spots on the carpet.
objective
2. Review reading strategies and the book from last week
3. Show the new poster in the classroom that has “I can’t”
crossed out. Explain how we no longer use the word I can’t in
 this classroom because it closes down our brain and we need
our brain open to learn new things.
4. Read Giraffe’s Can’t Dance out loud, but stopping to ask
questions during the story
● What does Gerald feel when he wants to dance but can’t?
● What can Gerald do to get better at dancing?
5. After the story is over, ask them about things that they can do
now, but have had to practice over time
6. Ask the kids what they can’t do...YET
7. Talk about the word Yet and what it means when they add it to
the phrase I Can’t
8. Write on the board a brainstorm of things that they CAN do
9. Write on the board a brainstorm of things that they can’t do
YET
10. The students will go back to their seats and teacher will explain
the worksheet, the students will write things that they can do
and things they can’t do yet, but will work hard and be able to
do them in the future
11. The kids will work on the worksheet, and teacher will have the
worksheet projected on the document camera
12. When they are done, they can share their work
Closing Activity Sharing their work

Reflection Complete this post-lesson: what went well, what didn’t,

what would you change next time?

This lesson went really well. I originally wasn’t going to read the book
again but they all wanted to hear it so we did! They were a little bit more
chatty during this read through because they already knew what was
going to happen. Next time I would have questions that they needed to
ask themselves while they were reading so that they could be focusing
during the book. The worksheet was at their level and they were able to
draw their pictures and write their ideas. The brainstorm went well, but
next time I need to line up the Can and Cannot side on the brainstorm on
the same sides as the worksheet. I need to think of things for them to do
after the first ones finish while the others are still working.
 Lesson Plan Format
Lesson Title: Learning Growth Mindset Using ​The Dot

Subject: Growth Mindset and Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Date: Feb 13, 2017

Objective Students will be able to begin thinking with a growth mindset and
encourage others to have one too

Essential How can I change my thinking to create a growth mindset?

Question

Time About 30-45 minutes

Materials The Dot Book, Projector for The Dot Music Video
(http://www.fablevisionlearning.com/blog/2014/08/the-dot-song/?crlt.pid
=camp.2xdL11cWZ4rW), Document Camera, The Dot Worksheet
[Attached], Art Supplies

Culturally Relates to how students feel when they are challenged, Students can start
Relevant to encourage their peers when they hear they are having a closed mindset.
Connections Some students are extremely frustrated when they can’t do something, but
hopefully this will show them some new strategies to help.

Differentiation Audio, Visual, and Kinesthetic activities. Discussion questions for verbal
skills and art for those who are not as expressive with their words.

Opening Reading The Dot on the carpet

Activity

Teaching the 1. Students will start in their spots on the carpet.

new objective 2. Teacher reviews last lesson about adding the word Yet, and
talking about activities that were challenging or things that we
can’t do yet
 3. Teacher will read The Dot, stopping to ask questions like,
“Have you ever felt like this? What did you do? What happens
when you keep trying?”
4. Teacher will open up discussion at the end. Students will
actively participate by answering the questions and providing
their own experiences
5. Once the book is over they will be dismissed to their seats and
asked to stand by their desks
6. Teacher will project The Dot music video and have students
follow along and dance if they feel like it
7. Preview the Dot Worksheet on the overhead
8. Pass out the Dot worksheet to each student
9. Give them all about 10 min to work on the activity, and make
sure they sign their names!
10. Share their pictures at the end and discuss how they feel about it

Closing Sharing the pictures that they colored and discussion that follows
Activity

Reflection Complete this post-lesson: what went well, what didn’t,

what would you change next time?

The kids were very interested in the story. They had a lot to say
afterwards and made connections to the previous story, Giraffes Can’t
Dance. During the Dot song they were very rowdy because I gave them
the option to dance. Next time I would say that they can dance only
behind their desk, because it wasn’t as effective as if they were following
along with the words. They liked being able to make their own dots and
each student had a different creative idea. They were proud to share them
at the end. I need to work on classroom management and getting 100%
attention before moving on. I was able to use tokens to enforce positive
behaviors in students.
 Lesson Plan Format
Lesson Title: Building Teamwork and a Tower Using Growth Mindset
Subject: Growth Mindset
Date: Feb 27, 2017

Objective Students will use the vocabulary and skills they have learned about
growth mindset to put it into action during a team building activity

Essential How can I use my growth mindset while working with a group?
Question

Time About 45-60 minutes

Materials Growth Mindset Video ​https://ideas.classdojo.com/f/growth-mindset-1​,

Pipe Cleaners, Marshmallows, Uncooked Spaghetti, Masking Tape, or
other building materials

Culturally Relates to how students feel when they are challenged and how they can
Relevant treat their peers while working in a group. Be aware of the various
Connections backgrounds of the students and previous exposure to “emotional”
vocabulary.

Differentiation Audio, Visual, and Kinesthetic activities. Activity is a challenge but has
many different parts and each skill level can have a strength

Opening Reviewing past growth mindset activities and then playing the Growth
Activity Mindset Video

Teaching the 1. Students will start at their desks and teachers prompts questions
new objective about previous growth mindset activities.
2. Teacher continues discussion with brainstorm of phrases that
we can tell ourselves and our friends when we want to “give
up” or say we “can’t” do something
3. Teacher will play the Growth Mindset Video and then discuss
the question at the end
 4. After the discussion, kids will get into groups of 3 or 4,
depending on the number of kids in the class
5. Start instructions before handing out materials
6. Instructions: The groups of students will be given materials to
build a tower. These towers will be built in order to balance a
marshmallow on top. Students need to work together and
encourage one another using a growth mindset. The first 5
minutes will be just discussion with the group about how they
want to build the tower. Then 15 minutes will follow for the
group to construct their tower. Prizes for the teams that build
the tallest tower and teams that demonstrate knowledge of a
growth mindset with one another.
7. After time is up, groups will share their towers and what group
dynamics worked and what didn’t. Groups will also share some
key phrases that they or their group members used.

Closing Sharing their towers and discussing the group dynamics, as well as prizes
Activity for the groups who worked together

Reflection Complete this post-lesson: what went well, what didn’t,

what would you change next time?

I wanted to do an activity where the students could put these phrases into
action with one another. I often hear a lot of negativity and closed
mindsets within the classroom and I wanted to have a fun group activity
where they could actually use this new positive vocabulary and language
we have been talking about. The kids were very excited to do this activity
and I think over half of the groups did extremely well and were excellent
examples of how to use a growth mindset with a team. I can see some of
the growth mindset phrases translating into other sections of the class
such as math and reading which is the ultimate goal of these lessons.

The groups that did not do so well have definitely caused me to relook at
the activity and see what could have been done differently. I wanted to
pick something that was a challenge, but I probably could have
accommodated more to the 1st grade level. Next time I would use thicker
and more sturdy building materials such as blocks so that they don’t get
so easily frustrated. I could probably do more scaffolding with the project
and show them more examples before they begin. I wanted them to use
their creativity and work with their group to build whatever they wanted,
but I think they need more structure. We also scrapped the idea of prizes
for the tallest tower and other groups because the tensions were very high
for some groups. I wanted to have some friendly competition, but I think
I need to do a lesson on sportsmanship and being happy for our friends
before I introduce games like this.
 Fanya Stein
SCED 517
Lesson Plan Format
Lesson Title: It’s Okay to Make Mistakes

Subject: Growth Mindset and Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Date: March 6th, 2017

Objective Students will see that they can learn from their mistakes. Success is not
a straight line, but a series of learning from mistakes.

Essential Question What can we do if we make a mistake?

Time About 30-45 minutes

Materials The book Beautiful Oops, Picture of what success looks like [Attached],
list of people that made mistakes but were persistent (Walt Disney), 3
pennies per student, student success survey [Attached]

Culturally Relevant Introducing people in history that either learned from their mistakes or
Connections
were persistent even when people rejected their ideas or talent. I used
Walt Disney, because 1st graders love and know about Disney and
Disneyland, but it would be a great way to introduce famous people of
color and their inventions or accomplishments.

Differentiation Book and picture are for audio and visual learners, the pennies are a
hands-on activity, student success survey is mostly pictures for ELL
students, and teacher reads the words allowed while projecting the
survey

Opening Activity Show the “success” picture and talking about why it doesn’t just look like
a straight line.

Teaching the new 1. Students will start in their spots on the carpet.
objective
2. Teacher shows the “success” picture and asks questions to
students about what they think it means?
Why does it look like that? Why is the road to success messy?
 3. Talk about famous people in history that learned because they
made mistakes or were persistent even when people told them
no or didn’t believe in them.
4. For example, Walt Disney was rejected 300 times by banks to
fund his project for Disneyland
5. Read the book Beautiful Oops!
6. Have a discussion about making mistakes
7. Talk about what it means to be persistent and never give up.
Even if you make a mistake you can learn from it, and that
helps your brain grow.
8. Dismiss the kids back to their seat and have them wait for
directions for the next activity
9. Each student will be given 3 pennies and will have the
challenge of standing them up on the skinny side. Teacher
should model at the front of the room.
10. Ask students examples of positive self talk that they can say to
themselves if they can’t do it right away or if a penny falls
down. Ex: I won’t give up! I can do this! I can learn from my
mistakes!
11. The students will be given about 5-10 minutes to do this
challenge
12. After the penny challenge, debrief with the students about
how they felt doing the challenge
13. Hand out student success survey for them to fill out as a
summative assessment for the growth mindset unit
Closing Activity Student success survey

Reflection Complete this post-lesson: what went well, what didn’t,

what would you change next time?

This lesson went really well overall. They loved the book Beautiful Oops!
and wanted to read it over and over again. I do think that this lesson was
a little bit lecture and talk heavy, but I think having a discussion was an
effective way to talk about persistence and making mistakes. The penny
activity was fun, but definitely a challenge for them. A couple of them
were getting visibly upset when they couldn’t do it or when the pennies
would fall. Many of their peers were supportive, as well as the teachers.
I know that once lecture on making mistakes won’t completely change
their mindset, but it is hard to convince them not to be upset!

I would be more aware about which famous people I am introducing that

were showing the characteristic of persistence. I wish I had selected a
women of color or someone else that would represent more for the
minority population, but Walt Disney was someone that they all knew. I
wish I had done a student success survey before the unit began to see if
there had been any changes over the course of the 5 lessons, but it
served as a great summative assessment.