Name: __Sara Schimenti_______________ Date lesson taught: ___3/13/19__________

Content Area:
Social Sciences
Course Title & Grade Level:
Psychology Applications. Sophomores & Juniors
Standards:
SS-Psy.9-12.16 Investigate human behavior from biological, cognitive, behavioral, and sociocultural
perspectives
Objectives:

Content—SWBAT investigate human behavior from a biological perspective

Language—In small groups, students will be able to identify human instincts through listing three instincts
from the gallery walk prompts

Student-friendly— Today I am identifying human instinct, so that I can list out instincts from real life events.
I’ll know I’ve got it when I can list 3 instincts from the real life event prompt

Assessment: In their small groups, students will list out three instincts per gallery walk prompt. They will
also be expected to explain why they believe that is an instinct that would come up during that situation

Proactive Management:
Raise hands for questions
Phones will be away
Can use computers for notes
Students will be on time to class and will remain in seats while teaching
Students will be allowed to move around the classroom when given permission
Voices will remain a respectful level for small group work
Students will be paired up by the teacher and told where to start for the gallery walk and in which order to
complete

Instructional Strategies:
Modeling
Whole Group discussion

Note Taking Strategy:

Students are given notes with vocabulary prompts
Notes are given to students during the anticipatory set

Questions: See Red Text

Anticipatory Set:
N/A
Mentor Teacher is planning the anticipatory set as it sets up the bigger project

The Lesson:
I Do (10-15 Minutes)

Motivation (Slide 2)
 Why do we do what we do? What makes us do things? Allow for students to theorize this
question. Allow for free thought, it will lead to motivation
 What makes you get up in the morning? Have students theorize and shout out answers as to why
they get up, what their motivations are
 Define Motivation
 Motivation is the big umbrella idea for this project, as it is a vague idea, but the mini lessons that you
all will be teaching will show us the different ways and types of motivation that we encounter
throughout life
Transition: We know that motivation energizes us and guides towards a goal, but what about things that
seem automatic? That’s where we get into Instinct or Instinct Theory.

Historical Perspective (slide 3)

 What year did psychology start? 1879
 The idea of motivation began around 1890, so only 11 years after the creation of psychology; they wanted to
answer the question, why we do what we do.
 Using the umbrella term of motivation, psychologists began asking this question and came up with the idea of
Instincts and drive
 Do you remember who William James was?
 What was he known for? Writing the first American textbook, a founder of psychology.
 William James came up with the idea of instincts and wrote out 37 instincts, which quickly grew to the
thousands when other psychologists got involved
 However, instinct theory soon became obsolete as it was not something that could be scientifically proven
and couldn’t explain all behavior

Transition: So what is instinct theory?

Instinct (Slide 4)
 Define Instinct
 Give examples:
 Birds migrate during the winter
 Babies know how to suck instinctually
 Give the historical background information
 Emphasize how instinct is unlearned and is not something one experiences before activating the
instinct
 Talk about gut instinct.
 What does that feel like?
 When do you get that feeling?
 Can you explain why you have that feeling?

37 Instincts (Slide 5)
 Here is James’ 37 instincts
 Take a moment to look at them
 Do any of them not sound like instincts?
  Are there any instincts that come to mind that you think should be added? Have students think for a
minute and then see if they answer as a whole group. If not, have them turn to a partner
 Write on the board the instincts

Drive Reduction Theory (Slide 5)

 Define drive reduction theory
 Define drives
 Emphasize how drives are physiological and instincts are innate/biological

What are some drives that you can think of?

 Have students shout out drives and write them on the board for them

Activity (Slide 5) (10-15 minutes)

 Read the instructions for the gallery walk
 Point to where the gallery walk prompts are located within the room
 Pass out the sticky notes that they are expected to use
 Have them write their name on the sticky note
 Give them a time limit of 10 minutes for the gallery walk
 After 10 minutes, have them sit back at their chairs and ask them to explain the instincts they
believe they would have from the prompts
Prompts:
1. 127 Hours: Aron Ralston becomes trapped when a boulder falls on his arm. Faced with death, Ralston decides
to amputate his arm. What were some of his instincts & drives?
2. Chuck Noland, a Fedex executive, is on a plane when it crashes over the Pacific Ocean. As the sole survivor of
the flight, Noland washes up on a deserted island. What were some of his instincts & drives?
3. Lola was walking home from work when she thought she heard someone walking behind her. She turned and
didn’t see anybody. She entered her house and as it got later in the day, she started falling asleep on the
couch, but something told her to fall asleep in her bed, which had clothes piled high on it. She fell asleep and
woke up at 3 a.m. to voices in her house. What were some instincts or drives you thnk she would encounter?
4. Allie has just given birth to her son James. What are some instincts and drives that Allie and James would
encounter?
5. Mary has been stuck inside for a week because of the snow. Now that the snow is melting and she is able to
meet up with her friends at karaoke, what do you think are some instincts and drives she encounters?

Closure:
Procedural— Students are expected to remain in seat until the bell rings
Content Summary— Remember, instincts are inherited behaviors and drive is physiological.
 Hunger would be instinct or drive? Drive
 Crying would be instinct or drive? Instinct

References:

Blair-Broeker, Charles T. & Ernst, Randal M. (2008). Thinking About Psychology The Science of Mind and
Behavior (2nd Edition). New York, NY: Worth Publishing

Gonzalez, Jennifer (2015, October 15). General Format. Retrieved from

https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/speaking-listening-techniques/
Psychology Notes HQ (2012, December 2). General Format. Retrieved from
https://www.psychologynoteshq.com/instincttheoryofmotivation/

Lesson Plan Reflection (required):

1) Highlight Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) components within your lesson.
Write a paragraph (3-5 sentences) elaborating on the intentionally planned CRT components of your
lesson. How did you demonstrate high expectations, make learning relevant, and motivate students?
Modeling this lesson as part of the bigger lesson, which is mini teaching, shows high expectations for
the class. Additionally, through the content, we have made it relevant by pulling in personal stories and
movie concepts to make the lesson more enjoyable. Since the lesson is about motivation, we look at a
portion of what motivates students, which helps them be aware of what is motivating them to learn
the lesson.
2) Italicize Universal Design for Learning (UDL) components within your lesson.
Write a paragraph (3-5 sentences) elaborating on the intentionally planned UDL components
(representation, action & expression, engagement) of your lesson. How did you differentiate to meet
the needs of ALL learners?
Through the use of multi media, I am able to reach multiple students. Using visuals, text and small and
whole group discussion, we are able to reach students from multiple views. We also enact individual,
small group, and whole group thinking through our multiple prompts, which enhances the lesson.