Alex Dunbar & Ryan Kaslavage

Dr. Kenton

Towson University

Case Analysis
 The instructional lesson that we have chosen to analyze in this assignment is called

“Graphing With Insects”. This lesson plan was found on the teacher.org website and created for

a first, second, or third grade math classroom. In this lesson students are introduced to the

concepts of bar graphs and how to create their own. Students will be able to create their own bar

graphs using a set of data and answer questions regarding their graphs. This lesson begins with

an instructional video on how to create a bar graph followed by a teacher directed lesson on

creating a class bar graph. After working as a class to create a graph using a set of data students

will be expected to work with a partner to create their own bar graph very similar to the example

using a different set of data. Finally, students are asked to work independently to create a bar

graph with a third set of data. Please see the attached lesson plan in Appendix A:

The lesson as a whole has a good foundation and strength within it, even with the little

technology it uses. The big strength of technology is the motivating piece with the video being

presented, at such a young age in today's world, kids are glued to screens to watch what interests

them, so if students are interested in bugs, this is a great opener. The unfortunate part to the use

of technology in this lesson is, it uses old technology, it can easily be revamped and innovated to

become better. The teacher can keep the opening video to motivate the students, but they should

also use new technology along with the students that can help them create their own graphs with

the teacher as an example. The biggest strength overall however of this lesson since there is a

lack of technology is integrating toy bugs for little students to keep them attentive and motivated.

This pre-made lesson plan had very little technology integrated into the instruction, so we

have worked to come up with possible ways to integrate more technology into the lesson. One

way that we believe would be a great integration of technology is the inclusion of virtual games.

These games make lessons for younger learners much more engaging and motivating.
 Introducing games such as Fuzz Bugs on ABCYA (ABCYA.com), students will be

strengthening their graphing skills while feeling as though they are playing a video game. The

questions this game provides are also in line with standards and the goal of the lesson. Students

can also work on deeper understanding of bar graphs by answering a variety of questions and

getting to see a variety of graphs on many topics using this site, iknowit.com. Another way to

add more technology into this lesson could be having students create their independent graphs

virtually. In this lesson they are provided with three chances to create a graph, once as a class,

once with a partner, and once independently. When working with younger students it is

important to change the way the activity looks so they do not become bored or uninterested.

Introducing a site such as NCES Kids' Zone to create a classic graph/bar graph where they can

create the same graphs in a virtual setting is a great way to get a variety of practice

opportunities(nces.ed.gov).

In the original lesson plan the technology was not integrated in a way that added

engagement or motivation for the students. Although videos are an engaging way to teach

information the one that was selected was a bit outdated and the images were blurry making it

hard to see the details of the graph which is critical for this lesson. The only other use of

technology in this plan was the use of a projector which is a good tool to help with teacher

presentations however it does not change much about the lesson or the level of student

understanding. If the lesson was changed and included some of the technology listed above, I

feel that there would be more strengths in the lesson. If the technology is used correctly some

benefits the students would see are increased engagement in the lesson. Students will also

experience more interactive questioning that was not in the lesson before the integration of

technology. Students would also experience many versions and layouts of bar graphs which is
important in the understanding of the lessons. If students create two identical bar graphs as the

teacher example only using different numbers, they will not experience the many visual

differences that can be found in graphs. Students should be able to read any kind of bar graph on

any topic and answer questions regarding them and these websites will help to enforce that skill

when included with teacher modeling.

Since this lesson lacks technology but does meet some criteria for the Taylor Model

where the computer acts as either a tool, tutor, or tutee for the students, this is most likely the

best fit to critique the lesson and then adapt to innovate the lesson. The lesson itself mainly uses

technology as a tool for only the teacher. This unfortunately is not what this model is meant for,

it is meant to be used for the students. While the video similarly acts as a tutor for the students,

all it is doing is talking to the students, it does not follow up with questions and has little

instructional material. The video is only meant to be an opening tool and just that. The projector

is the other technology used in the lesson, again a tool only used by the teacher. The teacher can

allow the students to use the projector to reformat this into the Taylor model on the tool side, but

it is still not assisting the student other than to present their bar graph, not create one. This lesson

as a whole misses the point of the Taylor model but can be revamped with it into a much better

lesson.

Due to so much more technology available as described above, the Taylor: Tool, Tutor,

Tutee model is the best fit for this lesson, once the teacher is able to make the changes as

discussed. In the Taylor model, the computer is used in one of three ways: the tool is the simplest

part of the model, students simply use the computer to create the project. Once the technology

from above is integrated, students will create their own bar graphs using the computer. The

NCES Kid’s Zone website is this tool where students can input their own data and the computer
runs the program for them. This is the most basic version of the tool as it creates the students bar

graph, so they are not completing the activity by hand.

The second option in the Taylor model is to use the computer as a tutor, where the

computer is the one teaching the students the material by providing them with different styles of

instructions and then allowing them to practice their skills. The Fuzz Bugs game is the tutor

through the computer in this situation, as students follow along with the game, the computer will

ask the students to answer various questions based on the material. Lastly, we have the computer

as the Tutee in the model, this is when the students will teach the computer about the material, in

this case bar graphs. While this may be more advanced for elementary students, it is possible.

The technology listed above does not fit into this criterion, but for our more advanced students, a

simple excel spreadsheet can be the tutee portion for students. A student would need to create

data and code in the spreadsheet, which will teach the computer how to create the bar graph.

Graphing with Insects is a great base lesson for younger students to start learning about

bar graphs but does not go into the detail of what they are about and how they can be used. It

fails the Taylor model right from the start and could use much improvement to make it even

better. By including the two websites designed to help students create bar graphs and instruct

them on the overall purpose of these graphs, the Taylor model allows for a much better designed

lesson and instructional setting for the students.

 References

ABCYA! • educational computer games and apps for kids. (n.d.). Retrieved November 6,

2022, from https://www.abcya.com/games/fuzz_bugs_graphing

Bar graph. Create a Graph Classic - Bar Graph - NCES Kids' Zone. (n.d.). Retrieved

November 6, 2022, from https://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/graphing/classic/bar.asp

Reading bar graphs. Start Page. (n.d.). Retrieved November 6, 2022, from

https://www.iknowit.com/lessons/b-reading-bar-graphs.html

Zae, B. (n.d.). Graphing with insects lesson plan. Teacher.org. Retrieved November 6,

2022, from https://www.teacher.org/lesson-plan/graphing-with-insects/

 Appendix A

Graphing With Insects

This lesson is designed to teach students to draw a picture graph and a bar graph
(with single-unit scale) to represent a data set with up to four categories. Plus, solve
simple put together, take-apart, and compare problems.

Grade Level: 1 - 3rd

Subject: Math

Length of Time: About 45 Minutes

Common Core Alignment

CCSS: MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.D.10 - Draw a picture graph and a bar graph (with
single unit scale) to represent a data set with up to four categories. Solve simple put-
together, take-apart, and compare problems 1 using information presented in a bar
graph.

Objectives & Outcomes

Students will be able to collect data and draw a bar graph of their findings.

Materials Needed
plastic bugs: spiders, crickets, worms, etc.
graph paper

Procedure
Opening to Lesson
Start by asking students: “raise your hand to answer: How many of you like
insects?” “What is your favorite insect?”
Think Pair Share with partners (write answers on the board).
If we write down every time someone says butterfly, then we would have to
count all the times we write it down.
Today we are going to learn how to take this “data” and put it into a bar graph
 that will make it easier for us to know what the class’s favorite insect is.

Body of Lesson
Direct Teaching
VIDEO: show Math Monsters video on bar graphs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Y9n67yG9d8
Using data from the introduction, show students how you would put that
information into a bar graph

© Teacher.org - Lesson Plans 2

Introduce the parts of the bar graph: title and measurements
Show students how to draw the lines on the graph paper
Input “favorite insect” data

Guided Practice 1
Using the projector, project a pre-made graph onto the white board
Show students a data set.
Using popsicle sticks, ask students to help fill out the graph on the board.
Students will follow along with teacher; students will engage and may be
expected to come up to the board to participate in graphing items on the
projected bar graph. (CFU: “What did we graph here? what was the data that
we graphed?)

Guided Practice 2
Partners A/B: give each group a bar graph similar to the one created in GP1
with a different data set, help the whole class by working through the setting
up the graph and then have partners complete the bar graph.

Independent Practice
Have students create their own bar graph with the bag of plastic insects: give
students graph paper and tell them they will now assemble their own bar graph,
they will have to collect the data by counting the bugs in their bags, then fill in
their graph with the data they collect.

Closing
1. What did you learn today?
2. Who asked a good question/contributed to today’s lesson?
3. What did you like about today’s activity?
4. How can we make it better next time?
5. How can we use this outside of the classroom? or why is this important to the
world outside our classroom?
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Assessment & Evaluation

Through guided questions, close monitoring and informal observation; the teacher will
be able to assess student’s ability and understanding of the subject being introduced.
Through individually assessing during independent practice and reviewing during
guided practice the teacher will be able to evaluate students.

Modification & Differentiation

Students may work in groups or individually in order to complete their assignments.
In order to accommodate for all students, allow extra time to review for lower
students and