LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE FOR THE AGENDA FOR EDUCATION IN A

DEMOCRACY
Name: Andrew Murillo

Date: February 26, 2015

Unit Essential Question: Why is it important to be able to effectively

communicate in groups?
How can an individual effectively facilitate group discussions?
Lesson Topic: Active Listening in Group Discussions (Cont.)
Speech (Period 1)

Class:

PLANNING THE LESSON

With Democracy and Social Justice at the Center of Instruction
Focusing on the National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER)
Mission the 4-Part Agenda for Education in a Democracy
EQUAL ACCESS
ENCULTURATION
NURTURING
PEDAGOGY
STEWARDSHIP
To Knowledge
In Democratic Society
Safe and Caring for
All
of the Mission
What are you and your students doing today to advance the 4-Part
Mission? Connections:
With which part(s) of the Agenda does this lesson connect most
clearly? And how?
-Students will be enculturated in a democratic society by having all of their
voices heard in group activities, and by cooperating for a common purpose.

STANDARDS

(www.cde.state.co)

Content:
10.1.2- Effectively
operating in small and
large groups to
accomplish a goal
requires active listening.

OBJECTIVES

Literacy and
Numeracy:
1.3- Use logic and
rhetoric to analyze and
critique ideas.

Democracy and
21st Century Skills:
1.6- Discern bias, pose
questions, marshal
evidence, and present
solutions.

Content:
SWBAT will operate
effectively in small
groups to accomplish a
goal by actively
listening to one another
by applying active
listening skills in order
to create solutions to
current societal issues.

Literacy and
Numeracy:
SWBAT apply logic and
rhetoric to analyze and
critique ideas by
evaluating the proposed
solutions to societal
issues created by other
groups.

Democracy and
21st Century Skills:
Students will answer
preliminary questions
before their group
discussions for the
purpose of discerning
bias, posing questions,
marshal evidence, and
presenting solutions.

ASSESSMENTS What is your evidence of achieving each objective?

How will students know and demonstrate what they have learned in
each of the areas, all of the objectives?
Content:
Students will engage in
group discussions that
require them to pose
questions about the
issue, but also questions
about proposed
solutions from other
group members.

Literacy and
Numeracy:
Students will use logic
and rhetoric to critique
solutions to societal
issues to decide upon
the most effective
solution.

Democracy and
21st Century Skills:
Students will turn in a
worksheet that covers
all of the elements of
the standard.

Literacy and
Numeracy
Logical argument,
support, rhetoric

Democracy and
21st Century Skills
Bias, active questions,
marshal evidence,
solution

KEY VOCABULARY
Content
Internet Censorship,
Bullying, Obesity, Global
Warming,
Homelessness, Racism,
Steroid Use in Sports

HIGHER ORDER QUESTIONS for this lesson

Content
Why should we discuss
societal issues in
groups?

Literacy and
Numeracy
Why should we critique
ideas via rhetoric and

Democracy and
21st Century Skills
What effect does
discerning bias, asking

logic?

questions, marshaling
evidence, and
presenting solutions
have on a group
discussion?

LESSON FLOW
This is the actual planning of the lesson activities.
Time
10-15
min

Anticipatory Set Purpose and Relevance

Warm-up:
Would you rather master every instrument or be fluent in every
language?
-Write on a half-sheet
Finish Stories
Break:
Stretch Break

Time

Pre-Assessment
N/A

Time
5-10
min

Building Background
Link to Experience:
Students have engaged in small group discussions based on the
topics of societal issues. This process will be continued and
finished. To end the assignment, groups will reconvene to come
up with the three best potential solutions/approaches to the issue
that started with previously.
Link to Learning:
Students will see how effective collaboration can help create

Time
50 min

potential solutions that have been refined through the criticism of

logic and rhetoric. This is can be applied to real world situations
in group meetings at school, work, or within the community.
Students will delegate roles and responsibilities for the final
project, which will help them to improve their communication
skills in future group assignments.
Activity Name:
s
Spinning Solutions
Directions:
1. Students will choose from three of the following topics:
Internet Censorship, Bullying, Obesity, Global Warming,
Homelessness, Racism, Steroid Use in Sports
2. Students will fill out a section of the attached worksheet
prior to each group discussion
3. Requirements: All students voices heard; at least one
question of a proposed solution; 5-minutes for worksheet
sections; 20 minutes for each approach
4. Students discuss solutions, decide on a solution, and rotate
solutions to be critiqued by other groups.
5. Students will reconvene and create three potential
approaches to these societal issues.
Anticipatory Set
Warm-Up

Time

Instructional Input Includes:

Models of Teaching:
Cooperative Learning
SIOP Techniques:
Group Discussion, Brainstorming
Guided Practice:
N/A
Reading , Writing, Listening, Speaking
Checking for Understanding:
Students will be asked on scale of Fist-to-Five to check their
understanding of the directions before proceeding with the
activity. Students will be asked to recite the directions before

proceeding with the activity.

Questioning Strategies:
How are you critiquing the ideas of others?
How might you use logic and rhetoric to create a need to discuss
a particular societal issue?
Why should we discern our own bias before communicating with
others?
Independent Practice:
N/A
Time

Accommodations, Modifications, and Student Adjustments

-Students with dysgraphia/dyslexia will have a graphic organizer
worksheet to maintain focus and engagement. (Visual learners
as well)
-Discussions will also allow students with dysgraphia/dyslexia to
convey their ideas effectively.
-Kinesthetic/Visual Learners will be engaged because they will be
able to research online facts and evidence pertaining to their
group topics.
-All students will be held accountable for listening and
engagement by preliminary question worksheets. Students with
attention disorders will have something to focus on with this, and
will be given extra attention throughout the lesson to stay on
track.
-For the final project, students may draw/create posters that show
potential solutions; they may also create a PowerPoint instead

Time

Review and Assessments of All Objectives How will you

and how will the students know they have achieved the
objectives of the lesson?
Content:

Students will engage in group discussions that require them to

pose questions about the issue, but also questions about
proposed solutions from other group members. They will finally
debrief and question the final solutions from the presentations of
original groups. The next class, they will peer review how their
discussions went, and how active listening supplemented the
content.
Literacy and Numeracy:
Students will use logic and rhetoric to critique solutions to
societal issues to decide upon the most effective solution via
questioning. They will use logic and rhetoric to defend their
solutions from evaluating groups in a final presentation. Students
will also use logic and rhetoric to create a sense of urgency to
discuss these issues.

Democracy and 21st Century Skills:

Students will answer preliminary questions before their group
discussions for the purpose of discerning bias, posing, questions,
marshal evidence, and presenting solutions.
Time

Closure
What will you and the students do at the end of the lesson
or after a chunk of learning to synthesize, organize and
connect the learning to the essential question(s)?
Why should we use logic and rhetoric to critique ideas of others?
What is the effect of this criticism?

Time

Next Step
Students will be briefed on the final project/presentation.