BLE 220/SEI

Lesson Plan Template

Lesson Plan Parts One, Two & Three

Team Information
Team

Soup Immortals

Names of Team
Members

1: Jovanna Figueroa
2: Daniel Cortez
3:

Lesson Plan
Grade Level

8th Grade

Subject Matter

Textbook Title

Prentice Hall Mathematics: Pre-Algebra

Unit Title

Functions

Lesson Title

Intro to Functions

Mathematics

Purpose of Lesson
Provide an overarching statement regarding what this lesson aims to accomplish.
The purpose of this lesson is for the students to understand that, in a function, each input
renders only one output. The student will also learn how to relate a function to a graph and be
able to graph a function independently.
Lesson Objectives
Develop at least three lesson objectives.
1. The students will be able to understand that a function has one output for each input by
engaging in the group self-guided "Special Rule" activity (attached).
2. The students will be able to show the function on a graph using signal words by learning the
vocabulary words and applying them in the lesson that is facilitated by the teacher.
3. The students will be able to create a representation of the input/output relationship by
creating their own visual of a function machine with a one-to-one input/output ratio.
Language Objectives
Develop at least three language objectives that closely align with the lesson objectives above.
1. The students will be able to comprehend and identify key words such as input and output by
completing the crossword puzzle correctly.

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Lesson Plan Template

2. Students will be able to apply signal words to solve input and output functions by completing
practice problems with their peers through verbal communication and group work.
3. Students will be able to apply their knowledge of key words by using those words correctly
when the students synthesize a personalized function box with the help of their peers.
Key Vocabulary
input: the variable that you plug into the function
output: the solution of the function
domain: the domain is the value of the distance between the lowest possible number and the
highest possible number on the x-axis
range: the range is the value of the distance between the lowest possible number and the
highest possible number on the y-axis
graph: the representation of a function on a two-dimensional plane
function: a mathematical equation in which there is one variable and only one possible solution
for each variable
x-intercept: the value of x when y equals zero
y-intercept: the value of y when x equals zero
x-axis: the part of the graph where x equals zero
y-axis: the part of the graph where y equals zero
Students will be presented with these terms in the lesson. The terms will be reinforced with the
cross word puzzle.
Visual/Resources
Provide a list of visual resources needed for this lesson, i.e., realia, images, multimedia, etc.
a) Teacher-drawn examples of functions and graphs on board: This visual resource
will help students understand the step by step process that is required to determine the
inputs and outputs of a function and how to graph that function
b) http://www.coolmath.com/algebra/15-functions/01-whats-a-function-domainrange-05.htm: This visual will help students understand the relationship between the
input and output of the function, and apply their knowledge to the problem. It will also
work as a transition into their creation of their own representations of how this
input/output machine works.
c) Crossword Puzzle: The crossword puzzle is a tool that not only organizes the words in
a different way, but it also prompts the students to remember what those words mean in
order to complete the worksheet. We will give it out for homework and use it as one of
the comprehension assessments to next day.

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Lesson Plan Template

d) http://shmoop.com/video/graphing-points/: This website can be used as an alternative

teaching method for graphing plot points and functions.
e) "function machine": This is a model visual of what the students' function machines
may look like. The teacher can also use this to model the explanation of the function
machine using key words.
Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS)
Utilize the hierarchy of cognitive processing, Blooms Taxonomy, and briefly describe how you
plan to address at least one area of the Blooms Taxonomy pyramid (i.e., Knowledge,
Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation) in this lesson.
Knowledge - The teacher will provide students with key words and definitions in the lesson.
Students will recall the key words and definitions to complete the crossword puzzle. Key words
will later be reinforced through later activities. The teacher will check the crossword puzzle for
accuracy.
Application - The teacher will provide guidance, if needed, as students complete function
machine activity. The students will calculate the outputs for each function by following the rule
given by the teacher
Synthesis - The teacher will explain the creative assignment and prompt students to create their
own representations of a machine that converts inputs to outputs on one of multiple media
options.
Key Questions/Tasks
Provide a list of questions/tasks you expect your students to be able to answer/perform at the
conclusion of this lesson.
1. In a function, how many outputs does one input have?
2. What is the definition of domain? What about range?
3. How do you graph a function?
4. Graph the following function: y=2x+3.
5. Come up with your own function and graph it
Standards Assessed
Use your Standards Alignment Worksheet to assist in listing the content standards and English
Language Proficiency standards you identified and selected for this lesson. Then, state how
these standards align.
8.NS.1. Know that numbers that are not rational are called irrational. Understand informally
that every number has a decimal expansion; for rational numbers show that the decimal
expansion repeats eventually, and convert a decimal expansion which repeats eventually into a
rational number

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Lesson Plan Template

Connections: 8.EE.4; 8.EE7b; 6-8.RST.4; 6-8.RST.7

ELL Stage IV: Grades 6-8
Listening and Speaking
Standard 1: Pre-Emergent
PE-8: responding to academic content ideas and concepts by using key words, phrases, and
gestures
These Standards Align by:
-both standards address understanding vocabulary (i.e. irrational, rational)
-both require students to show a form of comprehension, which may be verbal
Materials Needed:
Provide a list of materials your students need (e.g., language dictionaries, word-banks, etc.) in
order to successfully meet lesson and language objectives stated in this lesson plan.

graphing paper - students will use this to practice graphing functions

blank paper - students will use this to create their representation of a function box

Crossword Puzzle Activity Sheet - students will use this to solidify their knowledge of
the vocabulary words, as well as a visual representation of the words interacting with
each other

Supplemental visual aid from CoolMath" - also called the "activity sheet"; help
students discover properties of functions independently so as to have basic knowledge
prior to the lecture

Connections: Prior Knowledge/Building Background/Prior Learning

Before this lesson, students should already be familiar with what a graph looks like and what it
means to plot points on a graph. They should also know that the word "graph" can be used as
both a noun and a verb. As far as solving the functions, students need to have prior knowledge
of order of operations in order to be able to solve the functions presented in class. Finally,
students should know that a function machine is not an actual device that people use, but a
fictitious representation to help them understand the one-to-one nature of a function.
Procedure
Describe the lesson in its entirety and types of activities incorporated in your lesson. Your
lesson and activities must ensure that students have ample opportunities to achieve lesson and
language objectives as outlined in your teams Lesson Plan Part One.
Stage 1 (Anticipatory Set/Opener)
o The teacher will begin saying, What if making decisions in life was really easy? What if, for

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Lesson Plan Template

every problem you had, there was one solution to fix it? Thats the way that Linear Functions
work! They have one problem (their ex) and their job is to figure out why (get it? x and y)." By
using this introduction the teacher connects the lesson to the students' lives in a funny and
entertaining way, making the students interested.
o The teacher will ask a series of questions to engage student attention. Questions may include,
So what does a function look like? Does anyone have any guesses? Does anybody know how
to graph a line? Does anybody know what a line looks like? Who can tell me the definition of a
line? By asking these questions, the teacher can not only informally assess what students may
already know, but also requires them to employ their prior knowledge of math to attempt to
answer the teacher's questions.
Stage 2 (Lesson)
o Before the lesson begins, the classroom will be set up in a way that displays a mix of easy and
hard questions for the students to complete for extra credit if they finish other activities early.
The questions will also be on the homework More information about these questions is
available in the "Modifications" section of this lesson plan.
o The teacher will present and explain a review on the key vocabulary words by listing them on
the board. Students will be encouraged to take notes on these vocabulary terms for future
reference.
o Students will complete the crossword puzzle to reaffirm vocabulary terms that the students have
just learned during the review. The teacher will be present to assist and answer questions about
the crossword puzzle. Alternate instruction for this step is included in the "Formative"
subheading of "Assessment".
o Before lecture, have students fill out an ELL-friendly activity sheet composed mostly of visuals
and simple commands. This will allow students to independently find that functions only have
one output for each input by following the directions of the worksheet.
o Using the examples of a machine, the teacher will describe that one input will yield exactly one
output during the lecture. The lecture will be used as a tool to review the activity sheet and
therefore explain to students what they were really doing as they completed the activity. This
explanation will serve as an outline for students to use when completing the group practice
problems. Students will be able to ask questions and will ultimately understand the function
graphing process for a linear function through practice and group work.
o The teacher will write 3 different functions on the whiteboard. Students will then draw and plot
functions on their individual whiteboards. Although this is an independent practice, the students
will be allowed to ask their teammates for help. This will affirm the students understanding of
graphing functions. Alternate instruction for this step is included in the "Formative" subheading
of "Assessment".
o The teacher will show an example of a function machine and then instruct students to design
their own function machine as depicted in the worksheet. This will allow students to show
that they truly understand the concept of functions while also expressing their individuality and
creativity.
Stage 3 (Closer)
o To wrap the lesson up, the teacher will instruct students to present their function machines to
each other in their groups, while the teacher observes for accuracy.
o Students will show their graphed functions to the other groups. With teacher prompting, each

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Lesson Plan Template

group will determine if their individual functions are correct and will correct them if necessary.
Homework
Indicate what type of homework assignment(s) will be most useful to solidify the knowledge of
the lesson and ensure additional practice for the students.
Teacher will assign homework that presents students with a few practice functions. For each
function, they will be given a group of inputs and the students will figure out the output for
each input. Lastly, the students will graph the functions. This will provide students with
repetitive practice that will allow them to be comfortable with using signal words to graph
functions and how to graph them. The same mix of easy and difficult functions from the class
will be included at the end of the homework for students to complete for extra credit.
Checking for Understanding
Indicate how you plan to ensure that knowledge occurs during instruction and what checking
for understanding strategies you plan to implement.
During the beginning of the course, the teacher will introduce the new key words by asking
students to remember (or guess) what a function is. After explaining the correct definition of a
function, the teacher will ask a couple students to explain, in their own words, what the
objective for the lesson is. This makes sure that the students understand what is in store for that
lesson so that if they get off track, they can easily get back on track.
By using whiteboards to graph practice functions, the students will be able to make their work
large enough for the teacher to observe the progress and intervene if necessary. During the
intervention, the teacher will go over the vocabulary terms with the student, and ask them
questions like, When you see [keyword], where are you supposed to plug it in? Can you tell
me what to do with [keyword]? This will help ELL students and diverse learners extra
reinforcement and guided practice if needed.
Teacher will also check for understanding by overhearing different groups self-assess their
understanding during their function machine representations. If the students explanations
about functions is not coherent, then the teacher must make time check for understanding by
asking the class what are the difficult aspects of the lesson and clarifying them further.
Guided Practice
Elaborate on what guided-practice (modeling) techniques you will utilize to ensure that students
acquire learning.
After the students have completed the crossword puzzle, the teacher will begin to explain
exactly what it means to have a function. The teacher will draw some examples of functions on
the board. Together the teacher and the students will solve and graph one function. Once
students have worked in groups and have come up with their own function machine, the teacher
will listen to them explain why it is representative of a function and will either confirm their
answer or explain to them why they are incorrect.
Independent Practice

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Indicate what type of opportunities during the lesson will ensure independent practice and peerinteractions to solidify what is being taught.
Many of the activities used in this lesson require that either the students work individually, or
more frequently, in groups of four. In both instances, however, the teacher will walk around and
listen to their conversations between the group members with the ability to interject whenever a
group has gone astray or does not understand the task at hand. The teacher will manage the
classroom and check for understanding in independent practice by asking questions to the
groups who are working to make sure that they are on the right track. Homework will also
provide practice for students to become comfortable with solving and graphing functions.
Activities that involve independent or group practice:

crossword puzzle (independent)

activity sheet (group)
graphing functions on white board (independent)
design function machine (independent)
present function machine (group)
homework (independent)
Assessment
Explain what types of assessments you intend to utilize in order to assess what is/has been
learned. Make sure to address all three areas outlined below.

Formal

The students will first fill out the crossword activity to show that they understand the
vocabulary. By filling out the crossword activity, students, especially ELL students, will
constantly practice, recall, and use the key words. The students will also be able to see visualspatial relationships between the words. After the lecture, students will fill out an activity sheet
that will demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the process of using an input to
find an output. Because this activity sheet mainly consists of visual cues and simple commands,
it is ELL student friendly. The activity sheet will allow them to unknowingly learn the
relationships between inputs and outputs and the process of graphing a function (they will have
full understanding during the review of the activity in the lecture). Finally, the students will
show their complete understanding of the entire concept by creating their own completely
visual function machine to show they have learned how to find a single output for any input,
how to graph such a function, and how to use signal words to explain their creation.
Informal
The lecture consists of reviewing the activity sheet that students independently completed; by
reviewing the sheet as a class, the teacher is able to explain exactly what is that students were
doing on the worksheet. At the end of the lecture, the teacher will explain to students how to
graph a function. Then, the teacher will model what a graph of a function looks like on the
whiteboard. Once the students have seen a function and the process of graphing it, the students

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Lesson Plan Template

will be given small whiteboards and a marker for independent practice. The teacher will put a
function on the board in front of the classroom and each student will graph the function on their
small whiteboards. The teacher will then be able to look at graphs around the room to check the
accuracy of the students functions.
Formative
Formative assessment will be an ongoing practice concentrated on the three main areas
(crossword activity, independent white board practice, and the function machine) in the
lesson; the teacher will constantly observe the students performance and, if a student does not
understand one or more of the concepts, the teacher will then provide one of the following
adjustments that is appropriate for the particular situation:
When the students are having a difficult time completing the crossword activity, the
teacher will draw ELL-friendly visual representations of a couple of words and ask
students to do the same for the rest.
If the students are having difficulties during the independent board practice, the teacher
will use a YouTube video to supplement the instruction and provide students with a
different explanation of graphing. YouTube example:
http://shmoop.com/video/graphing-points/

When the students create their own function machine, the teacher will look at the
function machines to check for understanding. If the students are not able to explain
their representations using their key words, the teacher will need to go back and teach
the vocabulary words by modeling how to use them to explain a function machine.

Modifications for
Elaborate on accommodations you plan to incorporate to address the needs of diverse learners
within your class.

Special Education Students

For a high functioning student with autism, the teacher hand out a step-by-step agenda,
including all possible accommodations, so that the student knows what that day entails. In
essence, the handout will serve as a schedule for students with autism to use to satisfy their
need for consistency. Following this notion, the student will also always be sitting in the same
group with the same people in order to not only provide consistency, but to promote friendships
as well. Also, considering the student may have specific required accommodations, the teacher
will make sure to follow them. Some accommodations can include, but are not limited to: a)
preferring to sit in a specific part of the room as to avoid over-stimulus by lighting or noise, b)
having special objects that satisfy tactile needs, such as taping sandpaper to the bottom of desks
or using a stress ball to avoid anxiety, and c) making modifications to the social components of
required assignments if outlined in their IEP.

Gifted & Talented Students

When students break up into groups, the gifted and talented students will be dispersed evenly
among the groups. By dispersing them around the groups, gifted and talented students can help
other students that may not understand the concepts. Although this practice is difficult to

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Lesson Plan Template

implement correctly and should not be a common procedure, it will, in this case, benefit both
gifted and talented students and other students.
Another thing to note is that gifted and talented students often tend to monopolize and finish
group work independently because they feel hindered by the rest of the group. In order to avoid
this, the groups will not be allowed to submit their answers for the activity sheet unless every
member of the group has worked to get that answer. The teacher will also walk by and ask
students questions about the activity so they can all assess how the group is doing.
Throughout the duration of the lesson, a mix of easy and difficult functions will be posted on
one of the whiteboards that students can work on for extra credit if they finish assignments
only. These questions will also be included at the bottom of the homework. The questions are a
mix of easy and difficult functions in order to avoid a disadvantage between regular students
and gifted and talented students in terms of extra credit.
Visuals:

*The actual worksheet has much better quality.

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Lesson Plan Template

**CoolMath "Activity Sheet": The latter images are each a full-page in size, but have been
compressed for the sake of this document.

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