Lizzie Prible

Indiana Wesleyan University

Elementary Education Science Lesson #2
CAEP 2018 K-6 Elementary Teacher Preparation Standards

Investigating to Discover Motion

LESSON RATIONALE
This lesson of investigating motion is important because it allows students to see how motions such as
pushing and pulling are evident in their everyday lives. It is a simple way to show them how science is
always prevalent in their lives; the requirement of working in teams to collaborate and investigate gives
students experience of what problem solving and exploration looks like in the real world.
READINESS
I. Goal/Objective/Standard
A. Goal: The students will understand that a force, such as push or pull, puts objects in motion.
B. Objective: The students will examine motion by physically applying the forces of push and pull to move
objects around the classroom.
The students will classify various motions into the categories of push and pull.
C. Standard: K-2.E.1 Pose questions, make observations, and obtain information about a situation people
want to change. Use this data to define a simple problem that can be solved through the construction of a
new object or tool.
II. Management Plan:
o Time
Introduction (ant. set, modeling, guided practice): 15 minutes
Group work: 20 minutes
Transitions: 5 minutes
Closure: 5 minutes
o Space
Anticipatory set: on playground
Modeling and Guided practice: seated at front carpet
Independent/group work: various locations around the room
Closure: students’ individual seats
o Materials: Motion PPT, Motion Case Files (journals), printed directions for each station, toy cars, plastic
bins, books as ramps, Jenga set, two hula hoops, images of push/pull motions (with corresponding stickers
on back), Push/Pull/Both title cards (with corresponding stickers on back)
o Expectations/Procedures
Students will be expected to actively participate throughout each section of the lesson. I will enforce a
positive incentive behavior management system by rewarding cooperative behavior with M&M’s. When I
spot a student actively participating, being a good listener, or following directions, he or she will receive
an M&M. For example, I may say, “I am looking for students who are walking back to their seats slowly
and quietly to give an M&M to.” I will choose a couple students to reward.
To get students attention prior to transitions, I will utilize the clap and response method, since it is
already enforced by my cooperating teacher and will not be foreign to students. To quiet students and
gain their attention, I will clap a pattern, and then the students will repeat it. I will continue this until
everyone is listening.
o Grouping
There are 16 students in the class, so they will rotate in four groups of four. There are four stations total
for students to rotate to. The groups will be intermixed by ability and gender.
 Lizzie Prible

III. Anticipatory Set: “Today we are going to take a quick adventure outside to the playground.” Take students
out to the playground. “I am going to demonstrate two actions that might seem kind of silly, but they will
make sense later!” (go to the swings and push them, then go to the monkey bars and climb across) “Now, I
want you to take a minute to just stay where you are and look around at the playground. Think about the
different games and activities you do at recess time.” (give students a minute to look around and
brainstorm) “Now let’s go inside!”

IV. Purpose: “Today you will be a motion detective. Your case will be to identify the forces of push and pull
around the classroom. This is important because we push and pull objects every single day. It is important
to know how an object will respond to being pushed or pulled.”

PLAN FOR INSTRUCTION

V. Adaptation to Individual Differences and Diverse Learners
I planned this lesson in a manner that it should be accessible to all students. For the students who struggle
with comprehending instructions and putting them into practice, I have them grouped with students who
perform well. However, since this is a hands-on, exploratory lesson the students are not used to, I do not
want to limit any of the learners. I want to give them the same opportunity as everyone to see how they
will respond. There are two specific students I will have my eye on. If I notice them extremely struggling, I
will place them in a group together and have my cooperating teacher facilitate it. However, I think both
students will thrive with a kinesthetic, interpersonal activity such as this one.
There is one particular student who responds differently everyday, but sometimes has an extremely
difficult time working and sharing in a group. Because of this, I will give him the option to either work
independently or with his small group.

VI. Lesson Presentation

Inquiry Question #1:
“What objects in our everyday lives can be pushed and pulled?” (write the question on the board)

Modeling:
o I will go through a PowerPoint presentation while I model my instruction.
o (PRESENT 1ST SLIDE) “When we say something is in motion, it means an object or a person is moving.
There are two ways objects can move that we are going to talk about today!”
o (PRESENT 2nd SLIDE) “The first way is by pushing. Push is a force that moves an object. A push moves
an object away. To remember this, we can use two hands to push forward like this.” (gesture: push =
palms out, push away from body) “Try it with me!”
“The second way to move an object is by pulling. Pull is a force that moves an object. A pull brings an
object closer. To remember this, we can use two hands to pull towards us like this.” (gesture: pull =
two first on top of each other, pull towards body) “Try it with me!”
o (PRESENT 2nd SLIDE) “When we were on the playground, I demonstrated motion by pushing an object
and pulling an object. The first object I put in motion was the swing. I moved the swing by PUSHing it.
The second object I put in motion was myself! I PULLed myself across the monkey bars.”
“So while we were on the playground, I pushed (use hand gesture) the swing and pulled (use hand
gesture) myself across the monkey bars.”
o (PRESENT 3rd SLIDE) “I have a song we are going to sing together. I will first sing it for you, then we will
try together. The tune goes to the song Mary had a Little Lamb. If you have heard it before, then this
will sound familiar. If not, we will learn together!”
Sing song and then have students sing it with me
 Lizzie Prible

Guided Practice:
o “When we were out on the playground, I had all of you look around at the different objects outside.
Take a minute to think about the objects you use at recess on the playground that you push and pull.”
(give time for students to think)
o (PRESENT 4th SLIDE) “What are some objects you push at recess? Which playground activities need a
push to create a motion?” (call on students to share, write response on Smart board) (i.e. slide,
tetherball, a basketball, a ball during four square)
“What are some objects you pull at recess? Which playground activities need a pull to create a
motion?” (call on students to share, write response on Smart board) (i.e. jump ropes, pull yourself up
the rock wall, tug-a-war, pull friends hands while running around)
o “These are all great examples of motion and how we push and pull objects on the playground.”
o “I am going to show you all a few different pictures. They are pictures of objects you push and pull at
home. If the picture shows something being pushed, I want you to just use your hands and do the
push gesture (show hand gesture). If the picture shows something being pulled, I want you to just use
your hands and do the pull gesture (show hand gesture)
o (PRESENT 5th SLIDE) “We will practice this one together. This is a picture of a mailbox. To open this
mailbox, you have to PULL! Everyone show me the pull gesture.”
“Great job, you are going to try a few more on your own!”
o (PRESENT 6th SLIDE) picture of a closed fridge (give students time to gesture) “We PULL the fridge
door open.”
o (PRESENT 7th SLIDE) picture of a TV remote (give students time to gesture) “We PUSH the remote
control buttons.”
o (PRESENT 8th SLIDE) picture of an unmade bed (give students time to gesture) “We PULL the bed
covers up before we go to sleep.”
o (PRESENT 9th SLIDE) picture of a toilet (give students time to gesture) “This one is tricky! It actually
could be both depending on how you look at it! We can pull the toilet lid up, but we can also push the
handle to flush the toilet.”
Check for understanding: I will be able to check for understanding by listening to students’ responses when
reviewing the 4th slide and by observing students’ hand gestures during the response activity on slides 5-9.

Independent Work:
o “You all did a great job! Now you are going to investigate how you can push and pull objects in the
classroom! You are going to rotate to four different stations around the room, at each station you will
fill out this journal!” (hold up journal for students to see)
o Review what students will be doing at each station: click through the remaining slides for supporting
pictures. Walk around to each location to show students where stations are at.
* “One station will be on the front carpet. I will have a few ramps set up and also some cars. You will
use a force to get the car from the top of the ramp to the bottom. You then will fill out this page in
your journal. Mrs. McGriff will be sitting up here with you for extra help!”
* “At the next station you will play Jenga at the back rectangle table. Then you will use this page in
your journal to talk about what force you used. I will be at this station to help you.”
* “At the next station you will be sitting at the back round table. You are going to sort these pictures
into three different categories. You will look at the picture and if it is using the force of push, you will
put it in this side of the hula hoop. If it is using pull, you will put it in this side of the hula hoop. If it
could be both, you will put it in the middle. You then will fill out this page of your journal. I will be
sitting close to you, so if you get stuck raise your hand, and I will come over.” (I will use hula hoops to
create a large Venn Diagram. The cards will have matching stickers on the back to match the
corresponding titles: push, pull, both. This allows students to self-correct)
 Lizzie Prible

* “For the final station, you will be going on a scavenger hunt. You and your group will walk around
the room looking for objects you can push and pull. You will write down what you find in your
journal.”
o Transition: I will remind students when there is one minute left of the station and that they should start
finishing up. As students transition to their next station, we will all sing our motion song. This will keep
students focused on getting to their station and not worrying about anything else. By the end of the
song, students should be sitting at their next station. (students have the song in their journals if they
need to reference it)
o (Call over one group at a time and hand them their journals. Tell them where they are going to first.)
o At this time, students will be able to begin their independent work. I will now address any previous
concerns I noticed during the check for understanding, if any. My cooperating teacher and I will be
seated at specific stations but will also circulate the room to keep students on task as well as check for
students who may be struggling. I will try to visit each group for some formative assessments.

VII. Check for understanding.

I will be able to check for understanding by listening to students’ responses when reviewing the 4th slide. I
can also do this by observing students’ hand gestures during the response activity on slides 5-9. If there
are multiple students who respond incorrectly, I will reteach the whole group to address any confusion. If
there are only a couple, I will address them after I let the students start their independent discovery time.
During group work, I will be observing students’ conversations and actions to determine if they are
understanding the question and thinking outside the box. I will ask them questions to deepen their
understanding and also to help me check their understanding.

VIII. Closure
“Everyone did a great job today being detectives to investigate the motion of push and pull.”
“Our question was, what objects in our everyday lives can be pushed and pulled?” I will then ask one
student to share what he or she discovered at the car station, reading the journal response for a
reference. I will do the same for the Jenga station and sorting station. For the scavenger hunt, I will have
multiple students share one item around the classroom that could be pushed and/or pulled.
“Those were some very creative discoveries! Remember, a push moves an object away, and a pull moves
an object closer. Today we looked at how we can push and pull objects on the playground and in the
classroom. When you go home today, I want you to show someone in your family or a friend different
objects around the house that you can push and pull!”

PLAN FOR ASSESSMENT

The informal assessments can be seen under check for understanding. My main source of assessment will
come from observations during group work and students’ responses during whole-group conversations. I will
also be asking students’ questions to ensure they are understanding the content.
To offer more concrete assessment, I will review students’ motion journals. I will be able to review what they
discovered at each station and how much accuracy it was completed with.

REFLECTION AND POST-LESSON ANALYSIS

1. How many students achieved the lesson objective(s)? For those who did not, why not?
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
3. How should I alter this lesson?
4. How would I pace it differently?
5. Were all students actively participating? If not, why not?
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?
7. Was each group able to work collaboratively to accomplish the task at each station?
8. How did the “higher performing” and “lower performing” students respond to a kinesthetic, interpersonal activity?
9. Did the singing of the song make the transitions smoother or more complicated?
10. Was the combination of each station strong enough to help students develop a deep understanding of push and pull?