Standard-2

=Home Standard-1 Standard-2 Standard-3 Standard-4 Standard-5= =Standard-6 Standard-7 Standard-8 Standard-9 Standard-10=

The teacher understands how children with broad ranges of ability learn and provides instruction that supports their intellectual, social, and personal development. Evidence 1: Online Iditarod Unit
 * Teachers know how children grow. **

Rationale 1:  This unit was created for students in seventh grade language arts class. Students will study the Iditarod, complete webquests, track mushers, work on a newspaper, create podcasts, create short movies, create commercials, and more while learning about all the Iditarod has to offer. Students will feel like they are a part of the Iditarod, as though they are experiencing it with the racers, dogs, and people of Alaska. By creating this unit as an online experience, students have many more opportunities to learn more, in creative ways, and generate finished products that go further than reports and charts.

This lesson has been taught in previous years, but not to this technological extent. This year will be the first year that it will be done according to this unit. This unit will support the broad ranges of learners in the classroom by providing different pieces and projects for students to complete at their ability level. 

KSD:

2.K.1 The teacher understands how learning occurs -- how students construct knowledge, acquire skills, and develop habits of mind – and how to use instructional strategies that promote student learning for a wide range of student abilities.  Providing various tasks, sites, and assessments will be beneficial to all learners. This unit offers many different ways to learn material about the Iditarod race. Knowing how each student learns and processes information will be important before assigning tasks and groups to students. It is important to ensure that all students are learning at their comfort level, but at the same time are being challenged.

2.S.2 The teacher stimulates student reflection on prior knowledge and links new ideas to already familiar ideas, making connections to students’ experiences, providing opportunities for active engagement, manipulation, and testing of ideas and material, and encouraging students to assume responsibility for shaping their learning tasks.

Prior to the Iditarod unit, there will be discussions about the basics of sled dog races. Students’ prior knowledge will be gathered through chats, surveys, and charts. After the unit is complete, discussions will occur about prior knowledge and new knowledge, linking the two together. Students will be assuming responsibility for creating their new knowledge base through the projects that go with this unit.

2.D.2 The teacher is disposed to use students’ strengths as a basis for growth, and their errors as an opportunity for learning.   This unit allows for students to become leaders and knowledge bases to their peers. The varying levels of each section of the unit allows strengths in students to shine, while providing opportunities for students to grow in weaker areas through interaction, research, and technology.