Semester 2 2019

Lesson Plan Format - one lesson

Year Level: 5/6 Duration of lesson: 60 minutes Learning area/s: Humanities

Key inquiry question: How have past historical events influenced societies perceptions and definition of what freedom is?

Year level description:

Year 5: Students explore how communities, past and present, have worked together based on shared beliefs and values. The curriculum introduces
studies about Australia’s democratic values, its electoral system and law enforcement.

Year 6: Students focus on the social, economic and political development of Australia as a nation, and Australia’s role within a diverse and
interconnected world today. Students explore the events and developments that shaped Australia as a democratic nation and stable economy,
and the experiences of the diverse groups who have contributed to and are/were affected by these events and developments, past and
present. Students investigate the importance of rights and responsibilities and informed decision-making, at the personal level of consumption
and civic participation, and at the national level through studies of economic, ecological and government processes and systems.

Year level achievement standard/s:

Year 5: Students describe the significance of people and events/developments in bringing about change. They identify the causes and effects of
change on particular communities and describe aspects of the past that have remained the same. They describe the experiences of different
people in the past. They identify the effects of these interconnections on the characteristics of places and environments. They describe different
views on how to respond to an issue or challenge. Students develop questions for an investigation. They locate and collect data and information
from a range of sources to answer inquiry questions.

Year 6: Students explain the significance of an event/development, an individual and/or group. They describe the causes and effects of change
on society. They compare the experiences of different people in the past. They describe how people, places, communities and environments are
diverse and globally interconnected and identify the effects of these interconnections over time. They describe the rights and responsibilities of
Australian citizens and the obligations they may have as global citizens. Students develop appropriate questions to frame an investigation. They
locate and collect useful data and information from primary and secondary sources.

Student Prior knowledge:

Concepts, skills and values that students have obtained in year 4:
 Began investigating the significance of events in bringing about change

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  Began exploring and explaining how and why life has changed in the past and identified aspects of the past that have remained the
same
 Began to re-describe past historical experiences of individuals and groups
 Students are able to identify the origin and content features of primary sources when describing the significance of people, places and
events
Concepts, skills and values that students have obtained in lesson one:
 Posing open ended questions
 Personal definition for freedom and reasons behind their definition

Learning objectives:
By the end of the lesson students will:
 Understand that freedom can have a different meaning to different people
 Be able to develop effective research questions Commented [MOU1]: This lesson objective directly
addresses the questioning stage of the inquiry process,
requiring students to develop the ability to create effective
Learning intentions: research questions before undergoing any research.
 I can pose questions that will guide my understanding of how past historical events have influenced societies understanding of freedom
Commented [MOU2]: General Capability – Literacy
 I can develop an understanding that freedom can have a different meaning to different people Students are constantly developing their literacy skills through
developing knowledge, skills and dispositions to interpret and
Success Criteria: use language confidently for communicating and learning.
Literacy involves listening, reading, viewing, speaking, writing,
 Discover another student’s perception of freedom and creating oral, print, visual and digital texts (ACARA,
 Conducted a brainstorm on one of the five inquiry topics 2014). These skills will be developed throughout the whole
unit, but specifically for this lesson students will be writing
open ended probing questions about freedom. Students will
Strands of the learning area: Content Descriptors:
be actively developing the following literacy skills in this
Knowledge and History: Experiences of Australian democracy and citizenship, including the status and rights of Aboriginal and lesson: reading, listening, speaking and writing.

Understanding Torres Strait Islander Peoples, migrants, women and children (ACHASSK135). Commented [MOU3]: General Capability – Ethical
understanding
Geography: Australia’s connections with other countries and how these change people and places Ethical understanding involves students building a strong
personal and socially oriented ethical outlook. This will help
(ACHASSK141 - Scootle ). them to manage context, conflicts and uncertainty and
Civics and Citizenship: The shared values of Australian citizenship and the formal rights and responsibilities of develop an awareness of the influence that their values and
behaviour share on other people (ACCARA, 2014). The
Australian citizens (ACHASSK147 - Scootle ) second learning intention for the unit is asking students to
Inquiry and Skills form their own belief or opinion of what freedom is and then
Questioning: Develop appropriate questions to guide an inquiry about people, events, developments, places, consider how other’s opinions of freedom may differ and why.
systems and challenges (ACHASSI094 & ACHASSI122). During this process students need to be sensitive and
empathetic towards others.
Commented [MOU4]: This link in the curriculum is relevant
Cross-Curriculum Priorities and General Capabilities to this lesson as the students are learning about how to create
and what makes an effective research question. This links to
the questioning stage of the inquiry process.

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 Literacy
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures
Numeracy
Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia
ICT Capability
Sustainability
Critical and Creative Thinking

Personal and social capability

Ethical Understanding

Intercultural Understanding
Brief description of how you intend to embed these:
Two of the inquiry topics are directly linked with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures and therefore this will be specifically
explored by those two groups. Other groups may also choose to explore this concept within their investigations. Students will demonstrate the
general capability of literacy as they create their open ended questions and record the results of their interviews. Indirectly, students demonstrate
text, words and grammar knowledge when conducting their table group brainstorming and investigation. The entirety of the student’s inquiry-
based projects is underpinned by critical and creative thinking as they respond to the challenge of defining human freedom. Ethical
understanding will be important as students research and explore past historical events and understand the rights, responsibilities and values
those people held and how that is similar or different from those held by the students.

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 LESSON SEQUENCE – Lesson 2

Timing Teaching strategies Learning experiences Assessment Differentiation Technologies/Resources

(mins) of, for or as
learning

INTRODUCTION

15 Questioning Teacher explains that the students are going to n/a n/a My interview with…
minutes  Open ended vs conduct an interview with a partner using the handout (appendix 1)
closed questions they created in the previous lesson.
questions Students pick another student which they would
 What makes an like to interview.
effective
question Students collect their question sheets from the
previous lesson and conduct the interview.

Students, once finished their interviews, complete

the reflection task at the bottom of the handout
(reflecting on the effectiveness of their questions
and how they would change one question to
obtain a more specific answer).

DEVELOPMENT

35 Questioning Students glue their interview sheets into their Inquiry Assessment Reflection and
minutes  Open ended vs Portfolio. Teacher explains they are going to as learning Evaluation handout
closed complete a reflection and evaluation for their (appendix 2)
questions interviews. Students complete these independently. Commented [MOU5]: Open ended questions require more
 Who, what, than a yes or no answer from the person being interviewed.
This enables students to obtain information and a better
when, where Teacher introduces the investigation to students: understanding of the interviewee’s opinions, perspectives,
and why  Students are going to be placed in five values and beliefs.
groups

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  What makes an  Each group is going to be given a topic to
effective research and investigate
question  At the end of the unit, each group will
present their findings to the rest of the class
Differentiated through their chosen presentation format
teaching e.g. PowerPoint, video, poster, etc.
Setting Goals Teacher presents the 5 topics on the interactive
 As a class what whiteboard
do we want to 1. Indigenous rights as Australian citizens
achieve/learn 2. Indigenous perspective of freedom
verses the white perspective
3. Australian gun laws and restrictions
verses other global perspectives
4. The evolution of Women’s rights in
Australia and other countries
5. Rights of children/younger members of
society as contributors to their
community
In table groups, each table will be given a large
piece of parchment paper, textas and one of the
topics. Each table starts brainstorming the topic on
the paper, with facts they know, questions, where
to find information, personal opinions, etc.
Groups will briefly present their ideas to the whole
class
CLOSURE
10 Setting Goals Students will be given an A5 piece of paper with the
minutes  The self- five topics of investigation on them. They will write
assessment and their name at the top of the paper. The students are
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Students are working
in groups which Commented [MOU8]: Differentiation is when the content
means they are that is being learnt is the same for the whole class but how it
is delivered might differ depending on the student and their
working to their learning needs (Craft, 2005). By the students working in
strengths. Within the groups different students take on different roles such as
groups you will have leader, scribe, illustrator and presenter. This enables students
to work to their strengths and learn from their peers (Margetts
a leader, scribe, & Woolfolk, 2012). Students are not completing the task on
presenter. This means their own, this provides the opportunity for students to present
that students who their knowledge in different forms and/or through the help of
feel they are weaker
their group.
in some areas can
step back but then
step up in other
areas.
Commented [MOU6]: General Capability – Critical and
The teacher will also Creative Thinking
be floating around Students are learning to generate and evaluate knowledge,
the room, assisting
clarify concepts and ideas, seek possibilities, consider
alternatives and solve problems. Furthermore, critical and
groups as they need creative thinking encourages students to think broadly and
it. deeply by using skills such as reason, logic, resourcefulness,
imagination and innovation (ACARA, 2014). Students will be
utilizing and developing these skills through the creation of
their brainstorms.
Commented [MOU7]: These brainstorm will act as the
starting blocks for the groups in the next lesson,
demonstrating the progression of the lessons/learning.
Students are asked to briefly present their findings to the
class. The purpose of this is to start getting the students
comfortable communicating their ideas to the whole class, as
n/a Inquiry Topic at the end of the unit students are presenting all of their
Preferences handout findings in a final presentation. By the students presenting
information in different contexts throughout the unit of work it
(appendix 3) is equipping them for the final one (Byra & Coulon, 1994) (Hall
& Smith, 2012)
 teacher then asked to rank the topics 1-5, 1 being the topic
evaluation will they are the most interested in and 5 being the
assist in topic of the least interest. This will determine the
determining investigation groups moving forward in the unit of Commented [MOU9]: The grouping of students is going to
students work. be done interest based. This is to ensure that students are
researching a topic they are interested in, which will impact
individual and their investigation. This also means students will be around
group goals for Students are reminded that they should complete like minded peers who are motivated and driven to follow the
the their preferences on their own and not just choose investigation.
investigation the same as their friend, because that does not
guarantee that they will be in the same group and
you could then end up with a topic you would not
normally choose.

The teacher will collect the papers

Commented [MOU10]: Reflective practices allow students

Assessment: to analyse their learning/work and either make changes or
Formative assessment – Reflection and Evaluation (Appendix) anticipate what they would do differently in the future (Arthur,
Beecher, Death, Dockett & Farmer, 2012). By students
Students will be given an A5 sheet of paper with some tick boxes and questions that reflect the learning intentions and success criteria. Students completing the Reflection and Evaluation handout, they are
place a tick in the box if they feel they have demonstrated that skill during their interview with a peer. They can then write comments about their identifying what areas of the task they believe they have a
experience, any questions they might have or as an evaluation of themselves. The teacher then collects the papers and conducts an evaluation good grasp on and accomplished and what areas they would
like to improve on. These improvements can be carried out
of the student, by filling in the ticks in the teacher column and placing some comments at the bottom of the paper. These will be given back to the later in the investigation when they start researching their
students at the beginning of the next lesson as feedback moving forward. topic and need to create questions to find key information.
Commented [MOU11]: Feedback is beneficial to students
The purpose of this assessment is for students to conduct a self-assessment and the teacher to gain an understanding of what the students believe as it can encourage them in what they are currently doing well
they have achieved and to provide feedback early in the unit of work. This also informs the teacher for future lessons and learning. and give direction for possible next steps to improve their
work. Feedback can be given in many forms, for example
through conferencing, written comments and suggestions,
highlighting and verbal feedback (Measured Progress, 2009).
For this lesson written feedback is given at the bottom of the
Reflection and Evaluation handout. This feedback will assist
students in moving forward in the unit.
Commented [MOU12]: Self-assessment is a form of
reflective practice. It allows students to take some time to look
over what they have achieved so far in the lesson and
determine themselves what they need to improve on.
However, it is important for teachers to also check in with the
students on what they have written to ensure that they are not
being too critical on themselves, and heading in the right
direction.

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 References/resources
Arthur, L.; Beecher, B.; Death, E.; Dockett, S., & Farmer, S. (2012). Programming and planning in early childhood settings (5th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Cengage Australia.

Programming and planning in early childhood settings, expresses the importance of both teachers and students taking part in reflective practices. Teachers can use this
resource to broaden their knowledge different strategies of reflective practices and how to effectively incorporate them in the classroom. By student’s completing a self
reflection it allows them to step into the teacher’s shoes. They are required to look at the success criteria and decide if they have shown each aspect in their work. After
making these judgments they can write what they will do now to deepen their understanding.

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA] (2014). Australian Curriculum F-10: HASS. Retrieved from https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-
10-curriculum/humanities-and-social-sciences/hass/

Byra, M., & Coulon, S.C. (1994). The effect of planning on the instructional behaviors of preservice teachers. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 123-129.

Byra and Coulon, explain to teachers how to create a plan for a unit of work ensuring that the learning that occurs throughout the unit of work is progressive and each
lesson builds on the last. This methods, along with the inquiry process was used to create this inquiry unit of work. This lesson is part of the questioning process within the
inquiry process. Students are learning how to ask questions that will allow them to gain the information that will inform their investigation. Students need to know how to
ask questions before they start researching or analysing and therefore, this is the reason for lessons one and two focusing on questioning.

Craft, A. (2005). Pedagogy. In Creativity in schools: tensions and dilemmas. (pp. 41-50). Routledge: London.

Craft emphasis that we need to be creative in the classroom and not just in the sense of incorporating the arts. Teachers need to be creative with differentiation.
Differentiation is when the same content is being learnt however, how it is delivered varies to suit the needs of the individual students. We as teachers need to provide
opportunities for students to present their knowledge in a way that best shows their achievements.

Hall, T. J., & Smith, M. A. (2006). Teacher Planning, Instruction and Reflection: What we know about teacher cognitive processes. Quest, 58(4), 424-442.

Hall and Smith present a teaching process of planning, instruction and reflection. This process was followed to an extent in the planning process of this lesson. The aim of
this lesson is for students to be given some istructions by the teacher, start ivestigating and then conduct a reflection to help determine their next steps in the following
lessons. Teachers can use this resource to gain a deeper understanding of this process and how it benefits the students.

Margetts, K., & Woolfolk , A. (2012). Educational Psychology (3rd Edition ed.).

Educational psychology is a very valuable resource for teachers as it covers multiple aspects of teaching. For the purpose of this lesson, this resource was used to
determine the advantages of grouping students. By placing students in groups, teachers allow students to use their strengths to assist their group in the task and
demonstrate their knowledge affectively.

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Measured Progress. (2009). Actionable Feedback Strategies for the Classroom. Retrieved from: http://rapps.pbworks.com/f/MP+Handouts+Formative+Feedback+6-3-
10.pdf

Actionable Feedback Strategies is an online pdf file that outline different strategies for giving students feedback as well as classroom examples and outcomes to the
feedback. This is a resource that can be used by the teacher to broader his/her strategies for providing feedback and differentiating feedback. In this lesson, the strategy of
given written feedback was used as students were completing a self refection and the teacher could leave the feedback at the bottom. This meant that all information that
could be used to support student’s moving forward was in one place.

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 Appendix
Appendix 1: Appendix 2:

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Appendix 3:

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