Northern State University

Pre-Student Teaching Experience

ELED/SPED/SEED 496
Teacher Work Sample
Fall 2016

Task I: Professional Goal Setting

Objective: Candidates set a professional goal, identify the action strategies they will use to achieve
that goal, and reflect on their learning and growth (as it relates to that goal) near the end of their
student teaching experience.

Resources: Candidates will use the NSU Conceptual Framework (see table below) as a guide for
determining their professional goal.

NSU Conceptual Potential Category Outcomes Description

Framework Categories
(You will choose one of these outcomes
as the basis for your goal)

Knowledge of Self as an Respect and Concern for Students Knowledge of Self as an Individual
Individual recognizes the educators influence in the
lives of students and emphasizes the
importance of building trust relationships,
Commitment to Health and Safety and setting positive examples.

Knowledge of the Learner Developmental Needs Knowledge of the learner focuses on an

understanding of growth and development
of learners in the contexts in which
development takes place and an
Student Diversity understanding of how student diversity
interacts with the learning process.

Knowledge of Content Understanding Subject Matter Knowledge of Content implies a broad

understanding of the centrality of content
knowledge for teaching, and ability to
organize central concepts and principles of
a subject matter, and a responsibility for
acquiring new knowledge.

1 | Page
 Knowledge of Pedagogy Planning Pedagogical Knowledge includes those
Implementation principles and strategies necessary for
Assessment effective teaching, including the planning,
Classroom Management and Organization
implementation, and assessment of
Instructional Materials and Technology
instruction, classroom management and
organization, knowledge of curriculum and
instructional materials, and integration of
technology.

Knowledge of Self as a Parent and Community Involvement
Teacher and Member of a Commitment to Teaching
Learning Community Interpersonal Relations
Professional Growth and Development
Knowledge of Self as a Teacher and
Member of a Learning Community calls for
a collaboration among teachers, students
and their families and communities that
embraces diversity, promotes a positive
sense of personal identify, and enhances
the possibilities for academic success.

1. Conceptual Framework Goal Statement, Action Plan, and Reflection:

a. Identify the Framework Category to which your goal aligns:

Knowledge of the Learner

b. Identify the specific Category Outcome you will use to determine your goal:

Developmental Needs

c. Based on the outcome you selected, write a specific goal for this experience. After your goal statement,
provide a brief narrative explaining the reasons as to why you chose this goal.

I will be able to find and use appropriate and different resources for each of my students that will
help them understand the material being taught. I chose this goal because as a special educator
it is important that you know the needs of your students and their learning style. Once you know
their learning style and developmental level you can find appropriate resources to use in order
to help the material connect with them in a way that they will be able to understand.

d. Describe the action plan (steps/strategies and resources) required to accomplish this goal:

I will observe the students and how they react to certain teaching and learning styles and write
down in my notebook for the first couple days. I will also ask my cooperating teacher what
2 | Page
 learning styles and teaching strategies work best and apply what strategies work in my lesson in
order to help my students be successful in understanding the material. I will look for as many
possible resources that will work for the students as well. I will also take into consideration what
their IEP says and what their disabilities are.

e. Reflect on your progress/growth toward achieving this goal:

I achieved this goal by asking my cooperating teacher what the students learning styles were
and by also observing as he taught the class the first few days. By writing in my notebook I was
able to write down potential strategies that I felt would work best with the students I would be
delivering my lesson plan to and what strategies would fit best with my lesson. Looking over the
students IEPs also helped in order to let me know what disabilities my students have and what
their goals are. Through this I was able to work with the information provided in the IEP and
write and appropriate lesson plan for my students.

Task II: Contextual Information (see rubric for scoring details)

Categories of Contextual Factors Description of the Contextual Factors

General Context of Your Students Students grade level: 9th-12th grade

(All subcategories listed in this box are required.)
Age range: 14-19 years old
Total students: 11
Content Area: Fundamental Math
Students with Cognitive Disability: 5 students
Students grade and developmental levels; the age range Students with SLD: 6 students
of students; the content area being taught; any other Students who are ELL: 3 students
factors that are pertinent to understanding your class
assignment

Student 1: 11th grade - Cognitive

Student 2: 11th grade - Cognitive
Student 3: 10th grade - SLD
Student 4: 12th grade - Cognitive
Student 5: 11th grade - SLD
Student 6: 10th grade - SLD
Student 7: 9th grade - SLD
Student 8: 9th grade - SLD
Student 9: 12th grade - Cognitive
Student 10: 9th grade - SLD
Student 11: 12th grade - Cognitive

3 | Page
Community Third largest city in South Dakota
Located in Northeastern part of South Dakota
(e.g., whether the area is urban, suburban, or rural;
Population: Approximately 26,000 people
socioeconomic information; census data for the
Urban area
community)
Predominant industry is agriculture
Home of two colleges, Northern State University
and Presentation College
District There are eight schools in the Aberdeen School
(e.g., enrollment; percent of students receiving free or
District.
reduced-priced lunches; graduation rates; ethnicities; Six elementary schools
Two middle schools
percent of students with IEPs; percent of students who are
ELLs; per-pupil expenditures) One high school
Enrollment: 4,485
Percent of ELL students: 2.7%
Percent of students on free and reduced lunch:
32.1%
Percent of students on IEP: 14%
Graduation rate: 89.97%
Ethnicities
White: 82%
Hispanic: 3.3%
Native American: 6.5%
Asian: 2.6%
African American: 2.2%
Pacific Islander: 1%
Multirace: 3%
Per-pupil expenditures:
Total Educational Expenditures: $28,284,163
Cost Per ADM: $6,683
https://doe.sd.gov/ofm/documents/14ExpData.p
df

School Enrollment 1,273

Free and reduced lunch 29.9%
(e.g., enrollment; percent of students receiving free or
Percent of students on IEPs 11%
reduced-priced lunches; ethnicities; percent of students
Percent of students who are ELLs 2%
with IEPs; percent of students who are ELLs; teacher-to-
student ratio)
Ethnicities

4 | Page
 White: 82%
Hispanic: 3%
Native American: 7.3%
Asian: 2.8%
African American: 3.2%
Pacific Islander: 5%
Multirace: 1%

Classroom Demographics Ethnicities

White: 6 students
(e.g., ethnicities; gender ratios; special needs, including
Asian: 4 students
those of gifted students, those of students physical needs,
African American: 1 student
and those due to cultural characteristics).
Gender
Males - 6 students
Females - 5 students
Special Needs
Cognitive - 5 students
SLD - 6 students
ELL - 3 students
Knowledge of Students Language needs
3 students are ELL. They speak English fairly
(in terms of the whole class and individual students)
well, just talk quickly and sometimes are hard to
understand.
Learning approach
(e.g., language needs; approaches to learning; prior Students learn better through hands on activities
learning and experiences; academic
and visuals. Become bored easily if not moving
proficiencies/behavioral differences; areas of interest).
or being actively engaged.
Prior learning and experience
Cooperating teacher stated they learn better
through hands on activities and visual learning.
Behavior Differences
Most students sit quietly and pay attention, a
few students talk quite a bit and get distracted
easily.

Task III: Instructional Design and Implementation

Objective: Candidates design, implement, and assess one lesson. (see rubric for scoring on each
component)
To complete this task use the Common Lesson Plan Template (see below). You will complete this

5 | Page
 template for the lesson that your university supervisor formally observes.

Millicent Atkins School of Education: Common Lesson Plan

Template
Teacher Candidate
Name:
Maggie Hepper

Grade Level: 9th-12th grade

Subject: Fundamental Math

Date: Thursday, November 17, 2016

PLANNING
List the Common Core/State Standard(s) to be addressed in this lesson:

CCSS.MATH.Content.HSN.Q.A.1
Use units as a way to understanding problems and to guide the solution of multi-step problems;
choose and interpret units consistently in formulas; choose and interpret the scale and origin in
graphs and data displays

List the Learning Objective(s) to be addressed in this lesson. Use the following format:
Students will be able to

Students will be able to verbally read time on an analog clock using the steps of counting by fives in
order to determine what the minute hand represents/shows and also write the time the clock shows.
Students will also be able to state the importance of knowing how to read an analog clock.

Describe how the objective is relevant to students lives.

This objective is relevant to students lives because the students will use the skills taught during this
lesson in their everyday life. Reading an analog clock is important in order to go to work, meetings, fill
6 | Page
out a time card, etc. on time. Reading a clock is important in order to transition during their daily lives
successfully.

List the words relevant to the content area that you will either introduce and/or review during
your lesson.

Minutes

Hours
Analog Clock

List the materials you will need to teach the lesson.

Foam clocks

Pre and post assessment

Notebook paper
Pencil

ASSESSMENT
Pre-Assessment: Describe the instrument or process you will use to measure
students level of understanding toward the learning objective(s) prior to teaching
the lesson.

-In order to check if the students know how to read an analog clock properly, I will give my pre-
assessment a few days prior and look over and score them. This will be done through a short
worksheet that has nine different questions showing different times on an analog clock. Along
with the pre-assessment test, I will also ask the students the importance of knowing how to
read an analog clock.

7 | Page
APPENDIX: Include a blank copy of the lesson pre-assessment. (if applicable)

Is your pre-assessment included at the end of this lesson plan?

-Yes

Describe the timeline as to when you plan to administer the pre-assessment?

(Recommended timeline is a minimum of two days prior to teaching your lesson).

I will give the pre-assessment six days before the lesson will be taught in order to
go over the worksheets and plan my lesson plan accordingly and make changes if
needed.

Create and insert a table/chart/graph that shows the pre-assessment data results.
(if applicable)

Insert an image of your table/chart/graph here.

8 | Page
Describe how the results of the pre-assessment (what the students have demonstrated they
know) will be used to design the lesson objectives, instruction, and post-assessment.

I used the results of the pre-assessment in order to judge if this lesson is something that needs
to be taught and what my objective should be. The students really struggled with telling time
and since it is so crucial to know how to read a clock, I based my lesson off of the basic skills of
telling time. I could tell while giving the pre-assessment that the students were not thrilled with
the subject, so from there I based my lesson to be more interactive in order to keep them
engaged. I was also able to tell what students felt confident answering and which ones
struggled to answer the questions right away.

Post-Assessment: APPENDIX: Include a blank copy of the lesson post-assessment you will use to
measure students level of understanding toward the learning objectives after teaching the lesson.

Is your post-assessment included at the end of this lesson plan?

Yes

APPENDIX: Include a copy of a Key/Product (completed by you, the teacher) which provides a model
of the desired outcome.

Is your key included at the end of this lesson plan?

Yes

TECHNOLOGY
Describe the instructional and/or assistive technology that you plan to incorporate into the
lesson to enhance instruction and student learning.

A computer, SmartBoard, and projector will be used in order to enhance instruction and student
learning. I will put up a game for the students to demonstrate their skills of telling time and will
9 | Page
keep students actively involved by having them come up and answer the questions.

ACCOMMODATIONS
Describe the accommodations/differentiation/modifications you will use to meet the needs of all
learners and accommodate differences in students learning, culture, language, etc. * Be sure
that these accommodations are based on what you identified/described in your contextual
information (Task II).

The students I will be teaching all have cognitive disabilities or specific learning disabilities. In
order to accommodate them I will use direct instruction and go over instructions several times.
A few of the students also are ESL students so I will talk slowly and clearly while giving
instructions and while teaching about the topic. Breaks will also be provided for students who
may need time to re-gather their thoughts and refocus. Another accommodation will include
providing help to each student up at the board when playing the game, or make it look like Im
helping each student in order to help students who are more shy feel more comfortable to get
up in front of the class.

MANAGEMENT
Identify the management and motivational strategies you will use to meet student
behavioral/developmental needs in order to keep students on task and actively engaged
throughout the lesson.

In order to keep the students on task and actively engaged, I will call on students throughout
the lesson to tell me what time my clock is showing. I will also have the students take turns
coming up to the board in order to determine what time the clocks are showing on the game.
Students will sit in their assigned seats and I will go over the instructions and expectations
several times. If I see a student getting off task I will redirect their attention to the lesson. A
short break will be given if students are beginning to get frustrated or are having a hard time
focusing.

10 | Page
 LESSON IMPLEMENTATION
I Do

(Teacher introduces lesson and models expected outcome of learning

objectives)

Describe how you will activate student interest and present the learning objective in an
engaging way (this is your lesson opening).

-In order to activate student interest, I will begin by asking the students the following riddle I
have a face, two arms, and two hands, yet I can not move. I count to twelve, yet I can not
speak. I can still tell you something everyday. I will allow the students to think for a few
minutes and then I will ask someone to answer the riddle. Once the riddle is answered I will ask
the students what the difference between and analog clock and a digital clock is. I will then ask
why it is important to know how to read an analog clock. Once we have discussed a couple
reasons why it is important to know how to read an analog clock I will take a foam clock and go
over the hour and minute hands. I will teach the trick that the minute hand is longer because
minute is the longer word and that the hour hand is shorter because hour is a shorter word. I
will ask the students to count by fives with me up until 60, moving the minute hand as we go.
Next, I will set a time on the clock and demonstrate to the students the process of reading a
clock. I will show a few examples and then I will tell the students to figure out the minutes by
multiplying the number 1-12 that the long hand is pointing to by five. I will also demonstrate the
hand being between numbers and how to read the minutes not on 1-12.

Describe how you will communicate (to students) how the objective is relevant to
their lives.

I will communicate to the students how the objective is relevant to their lives by first discussing
the importance at the beginning of the lesson. I will ask the students why they feel knowing
how to read an analog clock is important and add any other reasons not mentioned. I will also
elaborate on their thoughts in order to repeat what is said.

Describe what instructional strategies you will use to model/explain/demonstrate the knowledge
and skills required of the objective. (cite theories/theorists)

Instructional strategies I will use to demonstrate/model/explain the knowledge and skills

required include direct instruction, effective questioning, hands on learning, and modeling.
Direct instruction will be used by going over what the students are expected to do several times
while walking them through the thought process and steps to use while setting the times on
11 | Page
their clock and reading the analog clock times. The developmental level of the students is lower
due to their disabilities,so direct instruction is crucial.Like Vygotsky argued, constant changes
in the structure and content of a disability take place during development and under the
influence of education/remediation. Effective questioning is used to check for understanding
along the way making sure I can move on to the next part of my lesson and ensuring they
understand what they are learning. Hands on learning works well with students with SLD and
Cognitive disabilities because they are able to see visuals of the time and set the time
themselves. Modeling is used as well with direct instruction and showing the students what is
expected.

Describe how you will check for students understanding before moving on to
guided practice.

I will check for students understanding before moving on to guided practice by asking the
students explain to me why I put the hands on the clock where I did. I will also ask multiple
times throughout the examples what the little hand represents and what they big hand
represents.

We Do

(Teacher engages students in guided practice)

Describe the learning activities you will use to provide students multiple opportunities to practice the
skills and content needed to meet the learning objective(s).

-I will hand out foam clocks to everyone in the class and I will begin by setting a time on my
clock and asking them to match the time on theirs. I will then ask them to tell me what time it is.
We will do this a few different times and then I will ask for a few students to volunteer choosing
a time and asking the class to tell them what time it says. We will check the answers together
as a class. Next, I will bring up a game on the Smartboard and I will demonstrate how to play
one round. Students will then take a turn coming up to the board and dragging the times to the
correct clock. Before the students submit their answer, I will ask the class to check their work.
This will check for understanding along the way.
http://www.math-play.com/Time-Matching-Game/Time-Matching-Game.html

Describe how you will check for students understanding before moving on to independent
practice.

Before I move on to independent practice I will check for students understanding by having the
12 | Page
students explain to me again why they put the hands where they did on their clock. I will walk
around the room and look at each students clock, while asking students who I see are
struggling what the little and the big hand stand for. I will continue to do examples until I see the
students have a hang on setting their clock. During the game, I will ask the students to check
their work, along with the class checking their work before submitting their answers. This
provides multiple opportunities as well for learning.

You Do

(Students engage in independent practice)

Describe what the students will do to independently practice the knowledge and skills required
by the lesson objectives? (this is the post-assessment)

In order to assess if the students gained the skills required in the lesson objectives, I will hand
out the pre-assessment again and ask them to work on the worksheet independently. Once
they have all finished I will collect the sheets. I will then ask the students again the importance
of knowing how to read an analog clock, what hand is the hour and minute hand, and the trick
to knowing what minute it is.

APPENDIX: Include a blank copy of your post-assessment.

Is your BLANK COPY of the post-assessment included at the end of this lesson plan?

Yes

Lesson Closing

Describe how you will reemphasize the lesson objective and any skills/content that were taught
in an interactive manner (whole/small group, etc.).

To close this lesson I will ask a few volunteers to come up to the front and set the clock to a
time and as a class read the time again. I will then ask the students again the importance of
knowing how to read an analog clock, what hand is the hour and minute hand, and the trick to knowing
what minute it is.

13 | Page
 ANALYZE
(This portion may only be done after the post assessment is collected/scored.)
Describe the results of the Post-Assessment and be sure to address the following:

Students progress from pre-to-post assessment. (if applicable)

Factors that may have influenced the post assessment results.

How the results of the post assessment highlight what areas of the lesson will require re-
teaching (if any).

If applicable, insert a table/chart/graph (below) that shows the post-assessment data results. If
you used the same document for both the pre and post assessments, it is strongly encouraged
that you show the comparison.

Insert an image of your table/chart/graph here.

Description: Through my post-assessment I was able to see improvement with most of my

students. In my pre-assessment 7 students got all 9 questions wrong, where as in my post-
assessment only 1 student got all 9 wrong. The student who still got all 9 wrong was one of my
ELL students, so going forward if I were to reteach this lesson I would work with this student

14 | Page
more in order to ensure they understand what I am describing and teaching. The other lower
scores were my ELL students as well, so talking slower and more clearly would help the
students achieve a higher score, along with working with the students more.

REFLECT
List and describe two things you feel you did well to plan, implement, or assess instruction
(successes).

One part of my lesson that I felt went well included making every student feel comfortable with
coming up to the board. Some students were hesitant to come up and answer the questions,
but I did a couple examples before having them come up to the board which made them feel
more confident. Between 15 and 30 minutes of my presentation I made it look like I was
assisting all students in order to help the students who were nervous and not catching on as
quickly that they werent the only ones having difficulty. I felt I encouraged students well and
kept them engaged through positivity.

One other success I had was the constant checking for understanding and asking questions
along the way. To begin I asked why it is important to know how to read an analog clock and I
elaborated on student answers to build a deeper understanding. As I walked around the room
and checked the answers of the students during the foam clock activity, I asked them why they
put the hands where they did and how they knew it was correct. I also checked for
understanding during the SmartBoard game by holding the students accountable for checking
over their peers answers and telling me if they felt they were all right and how to change the
answer if they felt one was wrong.

List and describe two things you feel were challenges during the planning, implementation
and/or assessment of the lesson.

One challenge I faced during my lesson plan was keeping one student engaged and wanting
to participate. The game we played up on the board, most students enjoyed and wanted to
participate in. One student, however, had the attitude that it was stupid and didnt want to
participate. This took place at 28 minutes and 45 seconds of my lesson. This particular student
also had this same mindset during the foam clock activity, but still participated for me.

15 | Page
One other challenge I faced was keeping the side conversations to a minimum. I found with this
group of students that two of the ELL students would say things to each other in their native
language. It didnt distract the class, but it kept those students off topic for a bit. There were
also a few students in the class who got annoyed of each other and would make comments to
each other to be quiet. I had to pick and choose my battles of what to ignore and what to
address, but overall students stayed engaged and on task when redirected.

List and describe two ideas for redesign you would make if you were to teach this lesson again.

One part of during my implementation that I found was a challenge was during my guided
practice between five and thirteen minutes of my presentation. The foam clocks were hard for
the students to maneuver to the correct time and one student had a clock that the hand kept
falling off from. If I were to teach this lesson again I would have a different manipulative and
type of clock for the students to use in order to help them correctly set the time given. Students
would get frustrated because the hands would not go to the correct spot so having a different
set of clocks for them to use would make the lesson run more smoothly and students would not
get frustrated during the guided practice.

One other idea of something that I would redesign if I were to teach this lesson again would be
to have written the two words hour and minute up on the board. At 1 minute 20 seconds, I
asked the students what word hour or minute is longer. The students interpreted my question
as what time length is longer, while I was really asking which word had more letters in it. By
writing it up on the board the students would be able to visually see the words and understand
what I was asking easier. I would be able to show them that I mean the length of the word as it
is letter wise and not the actual meaning of the word.

16 | Page
17 | Page
18 | Page