Student Teaching edTPA Lesson Plan Template

Central Focus:
Subject:
People often use symbols to honor the culture and history of
NC Symbols
places.
Essential Standard/Common Core Objective:

4.H.2.2
Date submitted: Date taught:
Explain the historical significance of North
Carolina’s state symbols

Daily Lesson Objective:

Students will work independently and be able to explain the historical significance of North Carolina’s state symbols.
Students should receive 4-5 points to have mastery.
21st Century Skills: Academic Language Demand
Collaboration
Communication Language function: Explain

Vocabulary: Symbols, significance, honor, represent

Discourse: Whole group discussion, turn and talk

Syntax: NC State Symbols chart, Exit Ticket

Prior Knowledge:
Students should have the basic knowledge of what a symbol is.

Activity Description of Activities and Setting Time

The teacher will start by engaging the students in an inquiry: 5 Minutes
“What different symbols have you seen out in the world?”

You might get some answers like:

-Nike
-McDonalds arch
-flags
1. Focus and Review
The teacher will call on a few students to share.
The teacher will then ask: “Why are symbols important?”

Then the teacher will say, “What you shared connects with our big idea,
which is: People often use symbols to honor the culture and history of places.
These are all symbols that we have seen out in our world. Today we are going
to be learning about the different type of symbols that represent North
Carolina.”

2. Statement of Objective The students will be able to explain how and why various symbols were
for Student chosen to honor the culture and history of North Carolina.

The teacher will start by explaining why we have symbols. The teacher will 5 Minutes
3. Teacher Input say, “Each state in the U.S. has many different symbols that represent what is
special and important to that state. For an example, the cardinal is North
 Carolina’s state bird.”

“The cardinal is known for whistling songs. Male cardinals are a scarlet red
color, while the girls are brown with reddish wings.”

10-15
The teacher will say, “Now work together as a group to figure out what our Minutes
state symbols are. Write them in the blank beside the category.”

The class will work together to look at interactive timeline. They will work
together to find the answers to the symbol chart worksheet through the
interactive timeline.
4. Guided Practice
This is the link to the interactive timeline: https://www.ncpedia.org/north-
carolina-history-timeline-state-symbols

During this time the teacher will walk around the room and ask questions:
- “What symbols are you finding that represent North Carolina?”
- “Why are symbols important?”

10
During this time the teacher will pass out a worksheet. This worksheet is Minutes
located at the bottom of the document.

The teacher will say, “You will work on this worksheet independently. You
will do a scavenger hunt through the website on the worksheet to find your
answers to the statement. Write your symbol on the line.”
5. Independent Practice
As the students work the teacher will walk around and ask questions:
-“What interesting facts have you learned about North Carolina’s State
symbols?”
- “How do these symbols represent our states?”
- “Would you have chosen different symbols? Why or why not?”

The students worksheet in the independent practice is their exit ticket. They will turn this in
at the end of the lesson. They are to use a website to answer the 5 questions. They will
write the answer on the line.
6. Assessment Methods of
all objectives/skills: Rubric:
1 point for every question answered right/ Total of 5 points

5 minutes
During this time the teacher will bring the students together and go over
different NC Symbols that they learned about. The teacher can give the
7. Closure students time to share what symbol shocked them and which one they found
interesting. Students will also discuss a riddle activity where they guess the
NC state symbol based on a riddle.
 After looking over the exit tickets that were given out during the end of the lesson. Most of
the class received 4 out of 5 points on their exit ticket. With most the class receiving
8. Assessment Results of
mastery on their exit ticket, I would start my next lesson with a quick review and go on to
all objectives/skills:
the next topic.

Targeted Students Modifications/Accommodations Student/Small Group Modifications/Accommodations

English Language Learners: Include PPT slides with Struggling readers: Paired up with a higher level reader. If the
images of the symbols and some translated examples. text is too difficult; look for an easier text.

Autism Spectrum: Use a folder or piece of paper to Early finishers: Give more NC state symbol riddles, write a fact
cover up the categories on the State Symbol chart. they learned about each symbol, illustrate the symbols.
Answer each category one at a time. Allow them to use
a fidget as needed.

Materials/Technology:
https://sites.google.com/a/chccs.k12.nc.us/fourth-grade-is-fabulous/social-studies/north-carolina-symbols
Exit Ticket printed out
Classwork worksheet printed out
Computers for the students to use

Reflection on lesson: Make sure to address these reflection questions: (Write several paragraphs about what you
learned from this lesson. What were the strengths? What were the weaknesses? What did you learn about teaching and
student learning? How would you teach this lesson differently in the future?

I have learned alot about while teaching this lesson. I have had some strengths as well as weaknesses during my
lesson. Some of my strengths was that I had all of the students engaged in the content that was being taught. The
students also loved my worksheets that I provided for them. They had to use their knowledge of symbols to answer the
questions and problem solving skills to figure out the symbol from a riddle about that symbol. A weakness was when
some of the students would mention a symbol that they liked and learned about, I did not know how to go more in
depth with it.
I learned that students learn in different ways. The teacher should provide the students with resources that can
help them during the learning process. For my lesson I had an interactive timeline that has the state symbols, and a
website that was laid out easier to read. I started my students off with the interactive timeline and did not tell them
about the other website yet. After walking around I noticed a few students having trouble reading the interactive
timeline so I gave them the other website to look at. I learned that the teacher should encourage problem solving. Don't
always give the students what they need right away. Get them thinking depending on the topic that is being taught.
In the future, I would teach this lesson differently by going more in depth during the closure part, and be more
prepared on how to answer the students questions. You never know what a student might ask or say, so you need to go
through what if scenarios to make sure when it come to answering it or discussion what a student might have said, you
can go into the topic more in depth. I felt like the lesson overall went good, and I would want to keep the worksheets
that I used during this lesson. All the students enjoyed it, and stayed focused on the lesson the whole time.

CT signature: ________________________ Date: ______ US signature: ____________________________Date: ______

Name____________________________ Date___________________
NC Symbols
Exit Ticket

Read each statement. Figure out which NC symbol is being discussed. Use this website to find
the answers: https://statesymbolsusa.org/states/united-states/north-carolina

1.This stinging insect makes a sweet and tasty product.

__________________

2.There are plenty of this for your cereal, thanks to North Carolina’s dairy
farmers.____________________

3.This creature moves slowly and is a model for patience and

persistence.__________________

4.This North Carolina Creature can sing and fly._________________

5.This fruit is red. On many North Carolina farms, you can pick your
own.___________________
 Name____________________________ Date___________________

Pre-Assessment
Answer questions 1-4 by circling the correct answer. Be sure to use a complete
sentence to answer number 5.

1) What is the North Carolina’s state bird?

a.Mockingbird
b.American Robin
c.The Cardinal
d.Eastern Bluebird

2) North Carolina does not have any state symbols.

a.True
b. False

3)What is North Carolina’s Nickname?

a.The Sunshine State
b.The Tar Heel State
c.The Garden State
d.The Sunflower State

4) What is the North Carolina’s State tree?

a.Longleaf Pine
b.White Oak
c.Red Maple
d.Pine

5)What does a state symbol represent?

___________________________________________________________________
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