Lesson Topic Specify the topic and title of the lesson Objectives and Standards What will your

students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson? Which standards are targeted with this lesson?

English Compare and Contrast SOL English 3.5(d) The students will read and demonstrate comprehension of fiction: d) Compare and contrast settings, characters, and events * By practicing a more detailed compare/contrast technique of Girl Scout cookies, TSW able to apply the same/similar techniques to comparing/contrasting two characters or two works of literature or art. -Girl Scout cookies, one thin mint and one trefoil -Nutrition fact sheets about each cookie One copy needs to be translated in braille -Graphic organizer One copy needs to be translated in braille -White board -markers, paper, pencils The lesson is hands on and requires the use of all of the five senses such as, taste, sight, touch, smell, sound. TSW will be grouped randomly. Students will be grouped in 3s. Whoever is in Davids group will have to help him with the sight descriptions. David will be able to type out his descriptions or use a tape recorder. The teacher will give each student a graphic organizer and make sure each student has plenty of time to come up with some comparisons. By having a classroom discussion, the teacher will be able to know if students understand the new information from their responses. *The teacher will review the concepts of comparing and contrasting. Then the teacher will use an example of a pear and apple and discuss the similarities and differences. The teacher will explain that some items are more complicated to compare and contrast than just an apple and a pear. Some similarities and differences are not always as clear and require a more detailed analysis. The teacher will have to physically bring in a pear and apple for David and use very descriptive words.

Instructional Materials What materials, texts, etc will you need for this lesson? What technological resources (if any) will you need?

Learner Factors How does this lesson accommodate individual differences in approaches to learning, create connections between subject matter and student experiences and/or include students with particular learning differences or needs? Assessment of Learning How will you know what your students are able to do during and as a result of the lesson?

Lesson Plan Outline Introductory Activities How will you capture the learners attention and motivate them to be actively engaged in learning? How will you activate prior knowledge?

Developmental Activities How will you organize the students for instruction? What content do you plan to share with the students? A brief, but detailed, outline of the content should be included

*The teacher will hand out two kinds of cookies, one thin mint and one trefoil. TSW do a comparison of the different characteristics of each cookie, such as size, shape, color, weight, smell, and taste. Next the teacher will hand out nutritional facts about each cookie and ask students to identify some nutrition characteristics of the cookies to compare. Some

with the plan. A statement such as share with the students information about oceans is not sufficient.

examples might be the number of cookies per serving and the per-cookie weight, calories, fat content, etc.

Closing Activities How will you tie together the lesson and bring the lesson to a close? What kinds of follow-up activities and/or tasks will you use to reinforce, apply, or extend students knowledge/skills/concepts?

*After each student has come up with their comparisons, they will, as a class, discuss general categories under which their comparisons fall in. Such as appearance, nutrition, and/or sensory. The students will agree on three general categories that tend to cover most of their ideas. David will be able to type out his comparisons that he came up with or will just express them orally to his group. TSW get into groups of 3. Each group member will choose and draft a paragraph about one of the three different categories. David will type out his draft or get help from the itinerant teacher to write out his responses. After the students have drafted their paragraphs, they will work together to draft an introduction (to set up their comparison), a body (it will contain the three comparison), and a conclusion (to tie together the ideas presented in their three paragraphs). David can do this verbally as well as get help from the itinerant teacher. This rough draft will be used as a reference to use for the students final assignment so this will have to be translated in braille. An essay will be assigned for students to do as a final assignment. David will be able to type out his final essay since this will be done individually.

The New Kid at School

The school year began at Oakwood Elementary School without any major upheavals. I was getting acclimated with the third grade students and they were adjusting well to a new teacher. I was in my sixth year as a teacher at Oakwood and was familiar with most of the students new to my class from the previous school year. The month of December began and I was approached by Mrs. Dobbs, the Principal of Oakwood Elementary School. Mrs. Dobbs told me that a new student would be added to my classroom soon but she didnt know exactly when this new student would start because the child study team had to meet to determine how best to meet this students needs. I found myself wondering what exactly the issue was that required a meeting. I had been to a few child study meetings for students with learning disabilities and didnt think much of it. Mrs. Dobbs continued talking, telling me that the students name is David Martin and that he is a student with a visual impairment. He is legally blind with a small amount of vision in his right eye. My heart skipped a beat and my mind began racing. How on earth could I teach a student who could not see? A large part of the third grade curriculum is of a visual nature. For instance, in science I am responsible for teaching the students the parts of a flower. How could I teach this concept without the ability to use the usual visuals of what a flower looks like? Mrs. Dobbs said the meeting would be on Wednesday and I needed to be in the conference room at 10:30 as the General Education Teacher for the student. A substitute teacher would teach my class while I was at the meeting. Mrs. Dobbs went about the rest of her day, leaving me to ponder what the future might hold. Dismissal time arrived and I began looking on the internet to see what I could find related to teaching children with visual impairments. I quickly learned that David would need to learn braille if he had not already been taught. I also learned that special keyboards were available with braille keys, allowing students to type their work in a format accessible to those who cant read braille. I began taking notes and making lists of questions to ask the child study team, so I could be prepared for my new student. The more I learned, the more confident I became that I could teach David the third grade curriculum despite his visual impairment. I was looking forward to the meeting on Wednesday. The day arrived and a substitute teacher came to my door at 10:15. I handed her my lesson plans and explained a few details before telling the students I had to leave the classroom for a meeting and would be back when they returned to the classroom from art class. I introduced the sub and reminded them that I would receive a full report upon my return. I picked up the notebook I had written my questions in and a pen. I walked to the conference room where the child study team was to meet. I walked in and saw Mrs. Andrews, the head of the child study

team for our school district. She had a thick file on the table in front of her, which she was reviewing as I entered the room. She looked up at me and greeted me warmly. We began talking about David and I expressed my initial concerns about his ability to access the curriculum for the third grade and my own abilities to teach him without the ability to use visual aids. I also told her I had done some research and had some ideas that might help. She returned a genuine smile and expressed her appreciation that I had already taken such an interest in how to help David access the curriculum. The rest of the child study team arrived and the meeting began. Mrs. Andrews lead the meeting and we discussed Davids present level of performance from his IEP that came with him from his school in North Carolina. The team quickly determined that David would be a good fit in my classroom and discussed hiring a paraprofessional who would handle the fine details of Davids day, encouraging as much independence as possible from him. He already was fluent in braille and was just above grade level in reading and math. He had undergone extensive orientation and mobility training in North Carolina and would only need assistance in orienting himself to the layout of his new school. I decided that I would have my students create a three dimensional model of the school as a way to introduce them to the notion that the new student would need some help and that they could help him by providing as many tactile details as they could think of. The biggest challenges for David would be navigating the school independently and accessing worksheets available to other students. The team decided an itinerant teacher for visually impaired students would be the best way to manage accommodating Davids needs. I would be responsible for providing worksheets to the itinerant teacher who would transcribe them in braille. Any visual aids that accompanied the worksheets would be traced over with puff paint to make them accessible to David through his sense of touch. All of the third grade textbooks would be ordered in braille versions and a closed-circuit television scanner would be ordered to enlarge text so David could continue to use the vision he had to access some materials. I left the meeting more confident and ready to greet David the following week. We have a plan in place that should make the transition a smooth one and I am excited about meeting David and being his teacher.

Making adaptations to lesson material or student work David will All handout have an materials must itinerant be translated into teacher that braille and any will help him visual aids that and the accompanied the itinerant worksheets teacher will would be traced also be able over with puff to translate paint. David will worksheets in also be allowed braille. to type all his work (if needed) or present it orally.

SelfMonitoring Supports

Positive Behavior Supports for classroom David doesnt seem to have behavior problems. It would good to have a classroom discussion about Davids disorder so that the other students would have a better understanding.

Potential Changes in Teacher Behavior David can Must make sure read enlarged that lesson text and is plans are done fluent in ahead of time to Braille. His ensure that any books and worksheets get other translated handouts will before either have to introducing the be enlarged lesson. Keep or translated finding different to Braille. ways to David can accommodate also type different lesson using Braille plans to fit so there Davids need. If should be there is a class equipment available to available for help with this, him to use. the teacher should attend.

Instructional Strategies changes

Changes to Learning Environment There should be enough space for David to move around and the teacher should never move things out place. David will learn the layout of the room by memory. If there needs to be a change to the layout, make sure David has plenty of time to remember it.