Final Entry/Mini Lesson

Grade: 1st grade Mini-Lesson Rationale (Why are you teaching this lesson?): To work with students who still have trouble with or are unconfident with blending and sounding out words. Objective for this lesson: Students will be able to… Practice and demonstrate blending larger words. Materials & supplies needed: Blending cards.(Index cards with different clusters that can be blended)

Procedures and approximate time allocated for each event  • Introduction to the lesson  (What will you say to help children understand the purpose of the lesson?  How will you help them make connections to prior lessons or experiences?  How will you motivate them to become engaged in the lesson?) (2 minutes)  I am going to tell my student that we are going to work on some blends. I am going to say I am going to try something out I have never done and would like to see if it is something a student would enjoy and learn from so I could possibly use it in the future. I am going to explain how I know that she has worked with these before, but I want to see just how great she is at it. I want to sort of treat it like a challenge and try and get her to overcome her insecurity with sounding out words and really grasp that she can do it. I am only working with one specific student because I know that she can do it if she really tries hard, but she is not confident with herself. I really want to show her that it’s okay to be unsure and take chances. • OUTLINE of key events during the lesson (Include specific details about how you will begin and end activities; what questions you will use; how you will help children understand behavior expectations during the lesson; when/how you will distribute supplies and materials) (6-7 minutes) -Introduction -Cluster Cards: do a simple run through of all the cluster cards and the sounds they make. Just so she gets an understanding of how to use them -Segue into adding vowels, more clusters to make words. -Blending game: Popcorn Blends -Farewell high-fives • Closing summary for the lesson (How will you bring closure to the lesson and involve children in reflecting on their experiences?  How will you involve them making connections to prior lessons or prepare for future experiences?  What kind of feedback do you want from them at this time?) (2 minutes) -I will just talk to her about the lesson. I want to see if she enjoyed it and if she feels like she learned anything. I really want to ask her what she learned, to gauge what she thinks she gained, if anything. I really want to work on her confidence, so I’m really hope she feels like she learned a lot. Assessment: (How will you know the students are progressing toward your identified objective?  What will you observe for and/or take notes on to help you plan follow-up instruction?) By observing her progress through the lesson and the game, I will be able to tell if she is feeling more confident with her skills or not. I want to be really encouraging with her in hopes that she really gains some confidence in herself and is able to blend the words without asking for help. For the mini-lesson I conducted I only used one focus student. This focus student has always been one of the students who really clings to me and looks to me for guidance. She is a wonderful student who is always smiling and always eager to learn. She is one of the better-behaved students in my class, and has great manners and a good attitude. The reason I chose this student, however, is because she sometimes looks to me TOO often for help and really lacks the confidence she needs. She does this for two specific subjects, math and reading. She really possesses the information and knowledge she needs to do the work correctly, but she has a really hard time believing that she can do it. The reason I chose to work with her was because of one specific instance in class that really bothered me. One day the students were asked to complete a worksheet. It was a really simple worksheet that required basic blending. This student, who normally is one of the first students done with worksheets, was the last person to complete it, and had to go sit at a side table to finish it while the class moved on. This blew me away! I would have never ever expected that out of her. I decided I’d go sit with her while she completed it, but when I did, she seemed to really think that I was going to give her the answers if she just asked. I told her that I knew she could do it, all she had to do was sound it out. So, I asked her to do it aloud so I could hear her work the problems out herself. She did a great job, and finished the worksheet correctly. Her lack of confidence in this was astounding to me, so I decided she maybe needed a little extra help, and if not help, she maybe needed a little extra reaffirmation that she was able to do it! For my mini-lesson I did a game called Popcorn Blends with my student. The game gave many “Blends” and many “endings.” The “endings” were part of a spinner and the student had to spin and land on an “ending,” she then had to choose a blend that fit with the ending to make a word. If it made an actual word, she could write it down. It was a very fun game for the student, and she really seemed to enjoy it. At first, she struggled when trying to make words, but eventually she got the hang of it. Seeing her sound out the ending, and saying it combined with the blend was so exciting, because I could really see her grasp how many options she had to make a real word. I really think it was a confidence booster for her because she really demonstrated to herself, and I, that she was able to do it. I was really proud of her!