Standard 5 Rationale

This must be complete before you submit in Chalk & Wire.

Consider this a practice activity for what you will be posting in Chalk & Wire.

Step 1: Restate the Standard

InTASC standard 5 states The teacher understands how to connect concepts and
use differing perspectives to engage learners in critical thinking, creativity, and
collaborative problem solving related to authentic local and global issues.
To me, as a teacher, standard 5 means that I must find innovative ways to teach
lessons that are engaging, encourage creative problem solving, and draw connections
between lessons I have previously taught and lessons outside of my subject area.

Step 2: Identify your Artifact

(the Website screen shots, link, or collaborative lesson plan)
My artifact for this rationale is a collaborative mobile-learning activity lesson plan that
was created in my Education Technology class in the Fall of 2015. This lesson plan
was created by another Vocal Music Education major, an Instrumental Music
Education major, an English Education major, and myself. This lesson is designed for
a 1st grade general music class and focuses on the music standard for understanding
rhythm and the 1st grade English standard for counting syllables in a word. The
mobile learning portion of the lesson is a video created with the program PowToon.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oKXL_IYn6Pt3a7vZzv_wHUSDo6T_6UWhRzxIwjp6Bk/edit?usp=sharing
http://www.powtoon.com/embed/cK8QrCAqDGC/

Step 3: Purpose of the Standard

InTASC Standard 5 is the basis for applying subject content in meaningful ways for
students. It is important for me as a future teacher to understand this so that my
students can make meaningful connections between bits of information. These
connections help students encode and recall information in the long term memory so
that it can be applied. If I were to teach a lesson about Mozart to my general music
class without giving background information about the Classical Period, Vienna, or the
advancements in the piano, it may prove difficult for my students to remember the
new information if they lack the prior knowledge of at least what Mozarts music
sounds like. According to this standard, it is also important for me as a future teacher
to use technology to provide an engaging and interactive experience that fits the
various learning styles of my students and can aid in the connection making process.
If I were to create an interactive whiteboard activity that helped students visualize
intervals and also made connections to math, they would be more likely to encode

information about intervals into their long term memories. If students are strong in
math, then the connection can help them to remember intervals. This activity would
also be beneficial to visual learners and kinesthetic learners because it matches their
learning style.
Step 4: Analysis of the Artifact
Creating this mobile learning activity lesson plan has taught me more about how my
subject area relates to other subject areas. By working with future English teachers
and Elementary Education teachers, I was able to create a better understanding of
how my content area fits in with what the students would already be learning. An
example of tying in other subjects to a lesson in a different content area would be
creating a rhythm exercise that focuses on counting syllables in words. Using this
exercise in my class would help my students connect the rhythm of speech and the
rhythm of music. Previous knowledge of either topic would facilitate learning of the
new information.
Creating this lesson plan has also expanded my repertoire of technology to use in the
classroom. This is important because using technology can benefit students who are
struggling. The PowToon video that we created is helpful because students do not
have to be present in class to watch it. It is also efficient because students can watch
it as many times as they need to in order to fully understand the lesson. This video is
a prime example of an effective and efficient digital learning tool.
Creating this lesson plan has given me a better understanding of cross-curricular
planning and teaching. Through working with future teachers of different subject
areas, I have developed a greater appreciation for the ways we can blend our
subjects. An example of a cross-curricular music and math lesson would be teaching
a song that also teaches the times tables for fives. An example of an American history
lesson that uses music would be about the origin of the Star Spangled Banner or
patriotic music during the Civil War. Creating this lesson plan has also given me
experience creating flexible learning environments. The PowToon video creates a
flexible learning environment by giving the student an opportunity to watch it outside
of the classroom and as many times as they would like. I could also create a flexible
learning environment in a high school classroom by allowing students 5-10 minutes of
research time after a lesson and having an in-class discussion about what they found.
This guided research time will promote critical thinking and evaluation of resources
and the in-class discussion will help students make connections between individual
pieces of information.