EDUC 2220- Educational Technology Lesson Plan Template

Rocks/Minerals: Google Slide Presentation

Sara Becker
6th Grade Earth Sciences

Common Core Standards:

Science: Grade 6: Earth and Space Sciences (ESS)
Rocks, Minerals, and Soil: Rocks, minerals, and soils have common and practical uses.
Lesson Summary:
For this lesson, students will be researching rocks and minerals found in the United States. They will create a
Google Slides Presentation that includes the physical properties of the rock/mineral, methods of extraction,
uses of the resource, and the storage/disposal of the resource. Students will be required to embed visuals
and/or videos of the rock/mineral into the presentation and will be required to present their findings to the
class.
Estimated Duration:
This lesson will take approximately three 48-minute class periods for research/creation of the presentation and
2 48-minute class periods for presentations to the class. The total estimated time will be 240 minutes.

Commentary:
Teacher will bring in a variety of rocks and minerals for students to observe/feel. Teacher will pass these
around and ask students to hypothesize the resources name and use. Students will record their observations in
their notebooks before teacher reveals the information.

Instructional Procedures: (This will be one of the most detailed sections of this assignment).
Day 1:
1. Introductory Set (10 minutes): Students record observations and hypothesis of teacher provided
rocks/minerals and record finding ideas in notebooks. Teacher provides information and students check to
see who was correct.
2. Teacher will reveal standards and objectives for upcoming rock/minerals project. Standards/objectives will

be projected and posted on handout.

3. Model project (15 minutes): Introduce project to students and provide model presentation on Calcite.
4. Students will be given a list of approved rocks/minerals to research and a list of websites to use.
5. Teacher will record student choices of rocks/minerals and will help students record information on graphic
organizer. Students will work on project for remainder of class period.
Day 2:
1. Review goals/objectives of lesson (5 minutes): Teacher will check in with individual students on progress
while others work on project.
2. Students will continue to work on the project with periodic teacher check ins. This will take the rest of the
class period.
Day 3:
1. Teacher will provide whole group instruction on creation of Google Slides Presentation and how to embed
visuals and/or videos. Students will create Presentation using Chromebooks provided by District.
(Approximately 10-15 minutes).
2. Students will use Chromebooks to create presentation based on graphic organizer information. They will
embed visuals/videos and share presentation with Teacher.
Day 4-5:
1. Students will present Google Slides Presentation. Presentations will be projected for whole class. Students
not presenting will complete a graphic organizer on their classmates rock/mineral.

Pre-Assessment:
Student prior knowledge on the rocks/minerals will be assessed through the introductory set where students are
making hypothesis on the teacher provided rocks/minerals. Teacher will use the checks from students and
the information in their notebooks to determine prior knowledge of rocks/minerals and their uses.
Scoring Guidelines:
Teacher created rubric for Google Slides Presentation (created from RubiStar). Students will receive a grade
for completion of the graphic organizer notes on their peers presentations.
Post-Assessment:
Students will complete the graphic organizer notes on peers presentations. Students will be assessed on
content standards on a later date through a summative assessment (unit test).

Scoring Guidelines:
Students will receive a completion grade for the graphic organizer notes. Students will be graded on the
summative assessment (unit test) using the District mastery grading scale.
Differentiated Instructional Support
At-risk/struggling students: reduction in number of Slides in presentation; teacher provides website for student
research; small group/1:1 re-teaching of using Google Slides if necessary;
Extension: Students will research chemical composition of chosen rock/mineral; for those already familiar
with Google Slides, students can incorporate transitions and other effects on the presentation; make a map or
3-D model of Ohio that shows location of rock/mineral;
Discuss additional activities you could do to meet the needs of students who might be struggling with the
material:
Small group and/or 1:1 discussion and review:
USGS Resources: http://geomaps.wr.usgs.gov/parks/rxmin/mineral.html
Poster Review: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2000/0144/pdf/of00-144.pdf
Poster Review: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2001/0360/pdf/of01-360.pdf

Extension
Map the School Yard: http://education.usgs.gov/lessons/schoolyard/MapFindTheRocks.html
Students will use the USGS website to create a map of the rocks/minerals found on school grounds. They will
create a geological map. This extends the standards for interpreting and communicating science information
and standards.

Homework Options and Home Connections

Homework Assignment: Choose a video from the link (http://geosurvey.ohiodnr.gov/news-events/multimedialibrary) to watch for class next week. We will be discussing and learning about rocks/minerals native to Ohio.

Interdisciplinary Connections
Mathematics: Create 3-D map of Ohio rocks/minerals;
Art: Create a poster/visual that represents the rock/minerals physical characteristics, uses, and
availability/location.

Materials and Resources:

For teachers

Model Google Slides Presentation (Calcite); graphic organizer for notes to create
Presentation; graphic organizer for notes on peers presentation; projector;

For students

1:1 computer access (Chromebooks); graphic organizer for notes to create Presentation;
graphic organizer for notes on peers presentation

Key Vocabulary
Content specific vocabulary: rock, mineral, physical characteristics, hypothesis

Additional Notes
Students in this district/class are very familiar with the use of Google Chromebooks as an introductory course
is required/taught at each elementary, middle school, and high school.