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LESSON PLANNING GUIDE

Teacher: Gayathri Topic of Lesson: Newton’s Third Law of Motion

Ramakrishnan

Grade Level: 8 Content Area: Forces and Motion

This guide may be used for your observed lesson, or you may choose to use your site-based lesson-
planning template.

Expected Outcomes: What new concept or information do you want students to know at the end of this
one lesson?

Students will gain understanding of Newton’s third law of motion : For every action there is an equal
and opposite reaction.
Focus Student: How will you modify, accommodate, and differentiate instruction to ensure universal
access to the curriculum for your Focus Student?

Focus student(s) will be students from various cultural and ethnic groups. The students backgrounds
and learning styles will be taken into consideration when designing the lesson.

(I am trying not to generalize here, and I am using the articles I read as an example of what kind of
learning styles the different ethnic groups may prefer) Lecture and note taking will help the Indian
student. Kinesthetic activities will help the African American and latino students visualize it.
Additionally the video clips (sports and rap song videos), group activities as well as the hands on
activities may also help meet their learning requirements.

During the hands on activity I will need to explain the difference between football and soccer.

I will be constantly rotating among students and student groups. I will have a self monitoring cards (Get
it, Ok here, not sure, need help) on the students desks and they can lay out the card that will show me
how well they understand the concept. I will pay attention to the students needs (based on the card on
the desk) and will pull a select set of students to reteach a concept if needed.
Assessment: What evidence will you gather to assess student learning?

Informal Assessment - Students will pair up and will be given 10 minutes to brainstorm real life
examples of Newton’s third law of motion (that were not already discussed or shown). Students will be
encouraged to be creative in choosing their examples. The students will be called up in pairs to come up
to the front and present their examples. The other students will be encouraged to ask or comment
(positive!) on their classmates example choices.

Formal Assessment - I will project two or three pictures on the screen and ask the students to analyze
what is happening in the pictures. Then the students will be asked to write their responses (referring
back to Newton’s third law and academic vocabulary) and illustrate it in their science notebooks.
Flexible Grouping Strategies: How will you group students at various points in the lesson to address
individual students’ needs? During the hands on activity students will be placed in heterogeneous
groups. During the assessment students will be paired up based on their academic needs - a struggling
student may be paired up with a helpful and academically strong student or a EL student may be paired
up with another student who can help translate the questions/answers etc.

What academic content standard(s) will you focus on during this lesson?

NGSS Disciplinary Core Idea MS-PS2.A.1: For any pair of interacting objects, the force exerted by
the first object on the second object is equal in strength to the force that the second object exerts on the
first, but in the opposite direction.

NGSS Science & Engineering Practices covered by this lesson : Analyzing and Interpreting Data:
Analyze various data to make valid and reliable scientific claims.

Developing and Using Models: Develop or use a model based on evidence to illustrate the relationships
between systems or components of a system.
Lesson Design: Describe each stage of your lesson in detail.

Background knowledge - Students should know about Newtons first and second law of motion before
this lesson.

Introduction ( 8 min)- I will mention that today we will focus on Newton’s third law of motion and
give its definition. We will go over the vocabulary words and their definition and write it down in the
notebooks. I will project http://teachertech.rice.edu/Participants/louviere/Newton/law3.html on the
screen or read the paragraph(s) from the science textbook.

Demonstration (8 min)- I will ask the students to think about the science behind how rockets work. I
will blow up a balloon, tie it to a string and let it go. They will notice that as the air rushes out the
balloon moves forward. (Or I may use alka seltzer tablets, water and film canister with lid to model a
rocket). As I demonstrate I will use academic vocabulary and verbally explain what they are seeing.

Group discussion (8 min) - Students will pair up and will be given 10 minutes to brainstorm real life
examples of Newton’s third law of motion (that were not already discussed or shown). Students will be
encouraged to be creative in choosing their examples. The students will be called up in pairs to come up
to the front and present their examples. The other students will be encouraged to ask or comment
(positive!) on their classmates example choices.

Hands on activity (12 min) - The class will head out to the field to kick soccer ball and “see” Newton’s
third law for themselves.

Closure ( 6 min) - Students will watch a portion (4 min - 6 min mark - 2 minutes) of the clip https://
www.pbs.org/video/indiana-expeditions-episode-206-newton-must-have-been-sports-fan/ . They will
then look at the pictures projected on the screen and write the answers in their notebook.

Homework - Students will watch the rest of the video at home. They will also read and answer the
questions from http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/newtlaws/Lesson-4/Newton-s-Third-Law in
their notebooks. Alternatively, they will look at their environment to find examples of Newton’s third
law.

Extension - Students will create their own rockets/racers in groups.

Student Engagement: Explain how your lesson ensures student engagement and differentiates for all
learners. The lesson teaches the same concept using various methods - for example students will learn
by listening to the instruction and taking notes, by watching the “rocket canister” demonstration, by
physically kicking the soccer ball and finally by seeing the video clip.

Academic Vocabulary Instruction: What specific vocabulary/terms will you explicitly teach and have
students practice during this lesson to ensure concept understanding?

Students will learn about Newton’s third law of motion and its definition. They will also learn and use
words such as force, motion and direction.

Asking Critical Questions: What specific questions will you pose to students to ensure thinking that
requires analysis, evaluation, synthesis and application of content ideas across proficiency levels?

What did you observe during the demonstration/in the picture/during the activity? What is the action?
What is the reaction? How does Newton’s third law of motion explain how forces move objects? How
can you use Newton’s third law of motion to explain what happens when a force is applied to an object
but it does not move?

Classroom Management: List any logistical, materials-related or behavioral issues you may need to
consider to ensure a safe and inclusive environment for student learning.

I will need to consider the behavioral issues that might arise when I take the students to the ground to
“play” soccer to see Newton’s third law in action. I will also need to provide more than one soccer ball
so that we can finish the activity on time. Additionally I will need to differentiate for special education
students. I will fill a small tub with water and have students use their hands to pull against the water and
experience both the action force and reaction force.

I might also print out vocabulary cards with a picture on it for ELs. Additionally I may need to print out
copies of materials (if they are only accessible online) for students who don’t have access to technology
at home. Alternatively, I will need to provide after school support so that they can use the school
computer to finish their homework.
Integration of Technology: How will you integrate available technology resources into this lesson as
you plan, teach, and assess student learning?

Technology will be integrated for various purposes during this lesson. Video clips such as https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=InowSJ1904M andhttps://www.pbs.org/video/indiana-expeditions-
episode-206-newton-must-have-been-sports-fan/ will be shown to help them visualize it and learn the
concept using a different format.

I could use the quiz in http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/newtlaws/Lesson-4/Newton-s-Third-

Law to check the students’ understanding.

I will also project these pictures and allow them to discuss whats happening in the picture
Reflection on how this lesson is designed to demonstrate sensitivity to students’ cultural and ethnic
backgrounds.

Disclaimer - I am not trying to generalize the cultural or ethnic groups when planning the lesson. I am
using my own background knowledge and the information provided by the articles to imagine my
students’ learning needs. Additionally, I am imagining that this lesson will take place after I get to know
the students, their backgrounds and their learning styles. I will take their own personal choices into
consideration when forming groups.
The aforementioned lesson plan doesn’t use one teaching style or method. It tries to teach the same
concept using multitude of ways so as to reach the majority of students. As mentioned in the article
Crossing Cultural Borders into Science Teaching: Early Life Experiences, Racial and Ethnic Identities,
and Beliefs About Diversity most Asians are used to the structured/teacher centered teaching method. In
this lesson the first few minutes are teacher centered where the teacher gives a lecture, asks students to
take notes, reads from the book and demonstrates Newton’s third law. In the same article Jerry an African
American prefers a relaxed classroom atmosphere where students don’t have rigid behavioral guidelines.
In this lesson students can be relaxed when they step outside to do the hands on activity where they play
soccer ball and think about Newton’s third law. In the article Race And Ethnicity: Powerful Cultural
Forecasters Of Science Learning And Performance it states that many African American students tend to
be very holistic thinkers, value learning materials that have a human social context, favor learning in
cooperative groups, express themselves in affective manners, and use language that is dependent upon
unique context, and have many interactional characteristics connected with time and place, inflection,
muscular movements, and nonverbal cues. The kinesthetic activities will help them learn the topic. The
kinesthetic activities also help students come together because they stop focusing on their individual
selves and they play as a team - so the ethnicity and cultural background disappears. Kyle in the article
Crossing Cultural Borders into Science Teaching: Early Life Experiences, Racial and Ethnic Identities,
and Beliefs About Diversity came from rural background and he himself mentions that just because a
student comes from a different part of the world doesn’t mean they are unmotivated. Similarly in the
article Race And Ethnicity: Powerful Cultural Forecasters Of Science Learning And Performance it states
that due to the lack of academic rigor and the difficulty with speaking English, science educators might
assume that these students (Latino students) are unable to overcome these major educational obstacles.
The lesson takes this into consideration when groupings are made - students are placed in heterogeneous
groups during hands on activity, during the assessment students are paired up based on their academic
needs - a struggling student may be paired up with a helpful and academically strong student or a EL
student may be paired up with another student who can help translate the questions/answers etc.
Additionally, this lesson takes into consideration the fact that a student may be struggling due to factors
beyond their control - they may be an EL, they may have special needs. These needs are met by providing
vocabulary words and picture cards, by using visuals and videos, by providing alternative activities etc.

Students ethnicity may also affect their socio economic status and therefore the access to materials is
taken into consideration in this lesson plan. For example, a student who may not have access to internet
will be given a hard copy of the pages. Alternatively I will stay after school and allow the student to
access the school device to complete his/her homework.

Also, I will be constantly rotating among students and student groups. I will have a self monitoring cards
(Get it, Ok here, not sure, need help) on the students desks and they can lay out the card that will show me
how well they understand the concept. I will pay attention to the students needs (based on the card on the
desk) and will pull a select set of students to reteach a concept if needed. This might help certain students
who may be shy or who may have trouble verbalizing their comprehension (or lack of comprehension).
Even though this is not specifically mentioned in the lesson plan, all students will be treated fairly and
equally. I will have high expectations for all the students regardless of their race, gender, ethnicity,
cultural, socio economic background or disability. Students with disabilities will have an alternative to the
soccer activity.

Although I talked about students cultural and ethnic background I also have to look at my own
background and think about how it affects my teaching. I am very aware of how I pronounce words
differently using an Indian accent. Additionally, I have to appreciate and use all different kinds of
teaching styles - didactic method, student centered discussions, and even web based classes!

PS: I realized that the video clip that I wanted to show the students shows only “white” students! I may
have to find an alternative video. I also realize that although this week’s focus was taking students’
cultural and ethnic backgrounds into consideration, I should have considered the gender and should have
a different activity, if needed, for my female students.