Lauren Wiener

Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School

Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017

LESSON PLAN OUTLINE

JMU Elementary Education Program

A. NAME OF LESSON/TYPE OF LESSON: The Ocean Floor, Science Lesson Plan

B. CONTEXT OF LESSON AND UNWRAPPING OF THE STANDARD

I conducted a science talk where I asked the students various questions to gain knowledge of
their experiences with the ocean. It will be a review of what they learned previously, and I
will get to apply a hands-on approach to learning the parts of the ocean floor. The students
have just finished learning about plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanoes on land. Now
they will be applying that knowledge to the ocean. This topic is more of an abstract idea for
students to learn because most of them will never be able to see the ocean floor and its many
parts, so this concept involves more creativity and flexibility among the students. The
information has also been scaffolded by first teaching them about land features and events and
then moving into the abstract ocean.

BIG IDEA/ESSENTIAL QUESTION

For students to understand the features of the ocean floor and how they affect our world.
What are the geological, physical and ecological characteristics of the ocean?

C. UNWRAPPING THE VIRGINIA STANDARDS OF LEARNING and the NEXT

GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS (NATIONAL STANDARDS)
● STANDARDS:
● VA SOLS
o Standard 5.6
▪ The student will investigate and understand characteristics of
the ocean environment. Key concepts include
● a) geological characteristics (continental shelf, slope,
rise)


● National Standard

● 4-ESS2-2. Analyze and Interpret data from maps to describe patterns of Earth's
features. (clarification statement: maps can include topographic maps of earth's
land and ocean floor, as well as maps of the locations of mountains, continental
boundaries, volcanoes, and earthquakes.)

o The locations of mountain ranges, deep ocean trenches, ocean floor

structures, earthquakes, and volcanoes occur in patterns. Most
earthquakes and volcanoes occur in bands that are often along the
boundaries between continents and oceans. Major mountain chains
form inside continents or near their edges. Maps can help locate the
different land and water features areas of Earth. (4-ESS2-2)
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017

Unwrapped Concept Unwrapped Skill Taxonomy Level

(nouns) (verb) (Bloom’s, SOLO, DOK)
Ocean environment Explain Understand, Level 2
terminology

Ocean floor model Create Create, Level 6

Interpret Application, Level 3
Label Knowledge, Level 1
Describe Knowledge, Level 1
Depth variation by feature Research Application, Level 3
including: Describe Knowledge, Level 1
Continental shelf
Slope
Rise
Abyssal plain
Ocean trenches

D. LEARNING INTENTIONS and SUCCESS CRITERIA

Understand – what are the broad Know – what are the facts, rules,
generalizations the students should specific data the students will gain
begin to develop? These are through this lesson? These
typically difficult to assess in one “knows” must be assessed in your
lesson. These should be written in lesson. These should be written in
the form of “I understand” the form of “I know that”
statements. statements.
I understand… I know…
● Geological characteristics of ● Oceans cover about 70% of the
the ocean floor (continental earth’s surface
shelf, slope, rise, abyssal plain, ● How to identify the features of
ocean trenches) the ocean floor by their look
and make up
● Continental shelf, slope, and
rise are covered with thick
layers of sediment (sand, mud,
rocks)
● The depth of the ocean varies
● Ocean trenches are very deep,
and the continental shelf is
relatively shallow
Do – what are the specific success
criteria for the lesson? Each
success criteria will be assessed in
your lesson. These should be
written in the form of “I can”
statements.
I can…
● Explain ocean environment
terminology
● Create, interpret, label, and
describe an ocean floor
model to identify ocean
floor features
● Research and describe the
depth variation of features
such as: Continental shelf,
Slope, Rise, Abyssal plain,
and Ocean trenches
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
E. ASSESSING LEARNING

Learning Intention and Success

Criteria
I can to explain the following
geological characteristics of the
ocean floor including:
continental shelf, slope, rise,
abyssal plain, ocean trenches
I can create and interpret a
model of the ocean floor and
label and describe each of the
major features
I can research and describe the
variation in depths associated
with ocean features, including
the continental shelf, slope, rise,
the abyssal plain, and ocean
trenches
I understand the geological
characteristics of the ocean floor
Opportunities to Respond Evidence
Creation of foldable with all Collecting the foldable
features defined and described In class review of the features
The students will be labeling the Labels and descriptions on the
ocean floor in their foldable and foldable
will describe its features
Students will use notes to research Labels and descriptions on the
the depths associated with the foldable
ocean floor and will include this in
the foldable
Students will be able to use their Completion of the warm up.
own words to describe the ocean
floor and will use their prior
knowledge to understand the
ocean floor.

F. MATERIALS NEEDED
List all materials that will be needed to teach this lesson.
Who will be responsible for securing each item?
● Foldable worksheet
● Instruction sheet
● Warm-up sheet
● Scissors
● Pencils

G. MISCONCEPTIONS or ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTIONS

Anticipate how your students will respond to the tasks and activities of the lesson.
Identify the possible misconceptions or alternative conceptions about the lesson content.
● I plan to discuss how the shelf, slope, rise, and plain are found on both coasts or sides
of the ocean. This may be found confusing for students because the features in the
middle vary based on location.
Where do you think students will have difficulty?
● I anticipate students may have difficulty with setting up and organizing their foldable.
The foldable is going to be very minimal but they will be provided with an explicit
instruction sheet.
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
What questions will you pose or changes will you make to help nurture student thinking and
understanding of the content?
● I am asking the students to dive deeper into thinking because we are covering more
features than the SOL requires. We will also be using the foldable to discuss how plate
boundaries play apart in the creation of features.

H. PROCEDURE
Procedures and management
Step-by step procedures including questions and Students
Activity
main points – visualize what you are going to say Describe what the students
Element
to the students. It might be helpful to script out will be doing as a result of
& Time (in
what you are going to say, although during the your instructions
minutes)
lesson you do not need to use this language
verbatim.
Let’s go ahead and put everything on our desks
away.

Engage – Go ahead and answer the questions on your warm Complete warm up
Introduction up about the ocean floor. Collect from students Cleaning off their desks

Next, let's review the features of the ocean floor,

what they look like and their composition.
REVIEW THE FEATURES OF THE FLOOR by
drawing the profile on the board and having
students tell me what part I have just drawn :

Shelf:
● Begins at the shoreline
● Gentle slope
● Thick layers of sand, mud, rocks
● Play on this at the beach
Slope:
● Plunging
Students will be raising
● Begins after the shelf
their hands to answer and
Event 1 ● Thick layers of sand, mud, rocks
describe the questions about
Rise:
the ocean floor features
● Gentle slope
● Thick layers of sand, mud, rocks
Abyssal Plain:
● Relatively flat area
● Sand, mud, plant remains, animal remains
Seamount:
● undersea mountain formed by erupting
volcano
Guyot:
● Seamount with the top worn away
Mid Ocean Ridge:
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
● Form due to sea floor spreading (divergent
boundary)
● System of mountains formed from Magma
(Mantle)
Ocean Trench:
● Very deep
● Like canyons on land
● Deepest trench (Marianas Trench)

Transition Get out a pencil, and scissors

Present foldable and explain how it works
● This is your foldable your will be creating
● You will follow the instructions on your
paper to complete it

Demonstrate the flaps separating each feature

Listening to instructions and
Event 2
creating foldable
Inform how they will cut, fold, label, and describe
each feature

Students that finish early may color their ocean

floor in colors that correspond to the makeup of
the floor
Transition Turn in foldable
Students will be raising
Discuss what each feature is made up of and where their hands to answer
Conclusion:
they take place on the floor questions and describe what
they learned from the lesson
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
I. DIFFERENTIATION
Describe how you have planned to meet the needs of all students in your classroom with
varied interest and learning readiness, English language proficiency, health, physical ability,
etc. How will you extend and enrich the learning of students who finish early? How will you
support the learning of children struggling with your objectives?

Students with a
Content
Learning Disability
I will capture their
attention through pictures
of the ocean floor and by
Interest
having a discussion with
them regarding the
features.
This information requires
more abstract thinking
than previous content and
Readiness
will be explained through
situations that are similar
on land.
Process Product
The process of
completing the warm
The students are
up questions regarding
completing a visual and
their ocean experience
written task which helps
will increase their
to accommodate all
knowledge and
learners.
interest of the ocean
floor.
The students will be
able to work with a The foldable will help
partner to complete students to link a visual
the foldable and the with the new technology
instructions will be they are learning.
demonstrated to them.

J. WHAT COULD GO WRONG WITH THIS LESSON AND WHAT WILL YOU DO
ABOUT IT?
Think about this! It may help you avoid an embarrassing situation. This CANNOT include
fire drills, interruptions due to announcements, weather, or other emergencies.
● One thing that could go wrong with this lesson is the students becoming confused by
the concept of the ocean floor features occurring on both sides of the ocean
● Another issue could be that this is too difficult of a task for students to complete
individually. If so, I will assess during the lesson and allow them to work with their
buddies to complete it.

Lesson Implementation Reflection

Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
I. How did your actual teaching of the lesson differ from your plans? Describe the changes and explain
why you made them.
● My lesson was different from what I had initially planned due to having my time cut down considerably. I was
originally allotted over 1 hour to work with the students on building their foldables and conducting a review
and potentially a pop quiz. However, on the day of my lesson I was told that I would only have 20 minutes for
the students to complete the foldable. I also had written in my plans that the students could work on the
foldable using their notes but my cooperating teacher decided they should work without the notes so they
would have to think about what they learned.

II. Student Work Sample Analysis: Based on the assessment you created, what can you conclude about
your impact on student learning? Did they learn? Who learned? What did they learn? What evidence can you
offer that your conclusions are valid?
Gets it Has some good ideas, Does not get it
but…

Student A Student B Student C Student D Student E Student F

a. Ocean Ocean Ocean floor The ocean That we That the

Understands… floor is not floor has has many looks were ocean is
constant many features different as learning home to
features you move about the many
across the bottom of animals
bottom the ocean

b. Confused Guyots vs. What is Believes the Believes Differences Defining

about… Seamounts formed at ocean floor the ocean between characterist
each type follows a floor features ics of
of plate pattern follows a features
boundary pattern

c. Questions to How do What Do you Do you What What

ask to clarify seamounts happens think all of think all of characteriz characteriz
form? when the the oceans the oceans es each es each
floor look the look the feature? feature?
spreads? same? same?

d. Ideas to Seamount Compare Look at Look at Draw and Draw and

work on next and island boundaries real maps real maps label each label each
formation on land to of the of the feature. feature.
ocean ocean floor ocean Look at Look at
floor pictures pictures

I have attached a separate document that entails the quiz scores of all students in my class that were present for my
lesson. The students were given this quiz the day after my lesson was taught and shows the growth and learning of
my class. From this document you can learn what students missed certain questions and what questions were
missed most frequently throughout the class. These topics are ones that my cooperating teacher planned to touch
Lauren Wiener
Ms. Ellie Jansen, John Wayland Elementary School
Date to be presented: November 2, 2017
Date lesson plan is presented to cooperating teacher: October 17, 2017
on more in the future. For example, question G had a good amount of wrong answers. My best guess is that the
confusion was surrounding the vocabulary word of “teeming.” As a class we learned and discussed that the
animals in the ocean live mostly near the Continental Shelf, yet we never used the specific vocabulary that was
used in the question. If the information was asked in another way, I am sure at least some of the students would
have answered differently. Question K was another one that threw students for a loop. While the walls of a trench
are in fact steep slopes, the better answer was canyons. This is the land form we discussed that related to the
formation underwater to help connect the ideas.
III. Describe at least one way you could incorporate developmentally appropriate practice in a better or
more thorough way if you were to teach this lesson again.
● If I were to teach this lesson again, I would do an individual review assessment to see if the students were
ready to complete the foldables. Many of the students had not completed their review homework and therefore
were unaware of how to complete the foldable properly. I believe that working with students in class on the
topic would have worked better for them to learn. I also would develop a way for students to demonstrate their
knowledge differently from the foldable. A few students struggled to form their ideas into words and write
them cohesively on the paper. I would develop a simpler version of the foldable to help students who may
struggle with fine motor skills.
IV. Based on the assessment data you collected, what would you do/teach next if you were the classroom
teacher?
● As the teacher in the classroom, I would continue to review and elaborate on the features they already have
learned about. Many of the students only understood the ideas on a surface level. Finding a way to dig deeper
into the concepts would help the students better understand what is happening. The next thing my cooperating
teacher did was conduct a quiz. The quiz was meant to help her gather where the students were in the process
of learning these features but many of the students became defeated when they scored low on the quiz.
V. As a result of planning and teaching this lesson, what have you learned or had reinforced about young
children as learners?
● It has been reinforced that students learn in many different ways. What works for one student is not going to
work for them all. I believe that we need to provide many ways for students to show their knowledge. It is
difficult to do so when you have over 55 students to teach and accommodate for but providing at least two
ways to learn would help and benefit all students.
VI. As a result of planning and teaching this lesson, what have you learned or had reinforced about
teaching?
● While teaching this lesson I learned that I need to allow adequate time for lesson to occur. I struggle with
planning how long a lesson will take and that simply comes with time and knowing your class. During this
lesson the students and I both felt rather rushed to complete the assignment due to only having 20 minutes to
completely review the ocean floor and create a study tool. Being rushed resulted in the students not wanting to
complete the work because they felt they would be unable to do so adequately.
VII. As a result of planning and teaching this lesson, what have you learned or had reinforced about
yourself?
● I learned that I do not like to be rushed when teaching a lesson. As a teacher I will be rushed when teaching
lessons sometimes due to unforeseen circumstances but taking time to teach lessons properly is important. I
feel that I could have personally taught the lesson in a better way if I had more time to do so.