Standard 2: Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge

This artifact is an assignment I did for my Middle Grades Social Studies Methods course. The directions were to pick a topic in history that I was knowledgeable about and plan and present a mini-lesson based on that. I chose the Early Republic and presented the Powerpoint Presentation attached, along with direct instruction (lecture).

The assignment meets Indicator 2B, which states that the competent teacher "understands major concepts, assumptions, debates, and principles; processes of inquiry; and theories that are central to the disciplines." I am well-versed in this content area because I have previously earned an M.A. in history from Eastern Illinois University. This presentation and lecture were a chance to show this, and to teach a topic I really enjoy learning and reading about even now. Because I am very familiar with this time period, I can better teach it to my students, and find ways to engage them with primary source materials.

Presenting this mini-lesson was a great learning experience for me. I received great advice from the professor, who suggested moving around more during direct instruction, and making sure I had proximity to students so that I could make sure they were engaged. I also learned to connect anything that I am teaching to my students' lives, and/or something they are interested in. This helped me immensely when planning lessons while student teaching.

This artifact is a lesson plan that I taught while in my first student teaching placement. The lesson centers on determining whether an online source is credible or not. I had students take guided notes (via the whiteboard) on the topic, and then they completed an independent activity in which they chose a research website and tried to figure out if it was credible or not.

This lesson meets Indicator 2K, stating that the competent teacher "engages students in the processes of critical thinking and inquiry and addresses standards of evidence of the disciplines." With this lesson, I was making sure that my sixth-grade students knew what to look for in terms of historical evidence; specifically, secondary sources. They also had to ensure that the website they chose met the standards for being reliable.

This was one of the first lessons I taught independently. I learned that you always have to prepare for students to have questions you may not have thought of while planning. The responses to this lesson varied among the sections of my classes, but many of them were wondering if their answers would be wrong if the website they chose wasn't credible. I assured them that their grade would not be affected, and that the point was to see that they could assess the website themselves based on what they had learned and their notes.