Hannah Fore

Clinical IMB

ELED 3221-002
Science Observation Lesson

On Wednesday March 29th, 2017 I had the opportunity to observe Ms. Danzas classroom

at Parkside Elementary School where she taught a science lesson regarding the parts of a seed.

Due to high-stakes testing, Ms. Danza informed me that they have recently had to remove all

science and social studies instruction from their typical block structure. Instead, students go to an

RTI block prior to Block One which lasts from 8:30-9:30 where they receive either social

studies or science instruction on a 2-week cycle.

Ms. Danza opened up the lesson by stating, Yesterday we talked about the parts of a

plant. What is one part of the plant that we talked about? She continued this review until all

parts of the plant were reviewed and recognized by the class. I thought that this guided

discussion was very beneficial, because it questioned students and informally assessed the

knowledge they gained yesterday and also introduced the topic for the day. After this guided

review and calling on multiple students to gain an understanding of prior knowledge, Ms. Danza

said, Someone told me that plants start out as something, what do they start out with? After the

students came to a mutual understanding that plants start out as seeds she said, Today we will be

looking at seeds and parts of the seed to see how seeds are a part of the plants life cycle. I

thought that this guided review and questioning was very beneficial and engaging for the

students. Throughout this five-minute time period, students were willing and eager to answer the

questions about the plant that were posed to them by the teacher.

After the guided review/ Engage portion of the lesson, Ms. Danza then began the

Explore stage of her lesson. She told the class, I am going to hand you a lima bean seed. You

can touch, smell it, and if you decide to break it you can do that also but you need to do so over
 Hannah Fore

Clinical IMB

ELED 3221-002
the paper towel. Let me go over those directions for you one more time. Do not eat the seed.

They are not edible. You may look at it, touch it, break it but do not eat it. I believe that Ms.

Danza provided the class with very clear and explicit directions so they were able to understand

what was expected of them throughout the days lesson. After the instructions, Ms. Danza gave

the students 10 minutes for them to observe and explore the lima bean seed. The students were

able to work individually, or as a table group, to discuss their observations about the table seed.

After the students observed the seed Ms. Danza guided the class through questions about their

experience by asking them questions such as, Before you tried to break it what did you see?,

How did it feel?, When you tried to break it did it open? What did you notice?, What do

you think is inside of the side?, and If you planted this seed what do you think would happen?

Students made Ms. Danza and the class aware of their observations throughout this questioning

time period, which was great for allowing them to discuss their thoughts and experience.

After the discussion, Ms. Danza then played a five-minute video on seeds as the

Explain portion of the lesson. Ms. Danza informed the students to create a 3,2,1 on a sheet in

their composition book where they would write 3 facts, 2 questions, and 1 ah-ha moment that

surprised them. For the Elaborate portion of the lesson, Ms. Danza told the class that two

weeks ago she had planted a seed and provided it with the essential components it needed for it

to grow. She then passed around a Ziploc bag which had the plant in it that had grown from the

lima bean, and told students to make observations about what happened to the seed. Following,

for the Evaluate portion of the lesson, Ms. Danza passed out two worksheets. The first

worksheet was an informational text regarding seeds and plants. Ms. Danza read-aloud the

informational text and told the students to follow along. After, Ms. Danza told the students to cut
 Hannah Fore

Clinical IMB

ELED 3221-002
out each paragraph, glue it in their composition book, put each stage of the life cycle on to the

worksheet, and glue it down when they are 100% positive that they have the stages in the correct

order. This activity lasted approximately ten minutes, and students were instructed to work

individually.

Overall, I believe that this lesson was very engaging and informative for the students.

Due to the fact that they had prior knowledge about seeds and plants, due to the previous days

lesson, the class was able to have a very effective and informative discussion regarding plants,

seeds, and their cycle. I thought it was very well-done, and was very impressed at how simple

Ms. Danza made the 5E lesson plan look when it was actually implemented in the classroom.

The students were very engaged throughout the entirety of the lesson, and wanted to further their

knowledge on seeds and the plant cycle. One thing that I really enjoyed throughout the lesson

was that Ms. Danza allowed students the freedom to manipulate and observe the lima bean seed

in whichever way they pleased, besides tasting it. In addition, she told students it was OK to

break the seed and had clear directions on what to do if they wanted to do so. This allowed for

student choice and freedom, which I think is essential in a lesson, especially with one regarding

their own exploration. Another thing that I enjoyed and learned from throughout this lesson, was

Ms. Danzas effective use of questions to guide class discussion. Overall, this was a very

efficient lesson regarding seeds, plants, and their life cycle. I am very thankful for the

opportunity to observe Ms. Danzas classroom and science lesson to further my professional

development.