Basic Productivity Presentation Tool

Lesson Idea

Lesson Idea Name: What was their role?

Grade Level/Content Area: 4th Grade/ Social Studies
Content Standard Addressed: SS4H5 Explain the causes, major events, and consequences of
the Civil War.
ISTE Technology Standard Addressed:  What would you like students to know and
be able to do by the end of this lesson:
Creative Communicator - 1.6.a: Students
choose the appropriate platforms and tools Students can confidently explain the roles of
for meeting the desired objective of their historical figures during the Civil War.
creation or communication
What is the student learning goal for this lesson idea?
I can create a story on Microsoft Sway to explain the roles of the people that were important
in the Civil War.
Selected Instructional Software Tool:
Microsoft Sway

Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy Level(s):

☐ Remembering ☐ Understanding ☐ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☐ Creating

How will this lesson be implemented? Check all that apply.

☐ Teacher-directed: There is no student voice and choice in the activities. Students are guided by the
teacher's direction and expectations.

☐ Student-Led: Students are given voice and choice in the activities. They may select the topic for
presentation and/or determine the tool they will use to meet the learning goal. Products of
learning will be uniquely designed. Teacher simply facilitates the learning in a lesson like this.

☐ Project-based and/or Publishable: Students are completing projects to demonstrate their learning
and the projects can be shared outside of the classroom. This objective could be reached by
displaying the project on the school’s morning newscast, posting the project to the classroom
blog, presenting it to another class, or publishing it via an outside source.

Lesson idea implementation:

To start the lesson, I will first reintroduce the standard, then I will introduce to the students
the learning goal which includes: “I can create a story on Microsoft Sway to explain the roles
of the people that were important in the Civil War.”
Next, I will represent to the students the Sway I created that relates to the lesson about the
Civil War to go over the important figures that were a part of the Civil War. I will then
proceed to inform them about the story that I created to represent them an example of idea
 Basic Productivity Presentation Tool
Lesson Idea

of what is next to come. At the conclusion of the story, I will show the students a card where
it will give the instructions for students to uniquely create their own story using Microsoft
Sway with addition of a narrative representation of the cards of their choice. After the
completion of their group student-led presentations, the students will represent their
enjoyment of the project with snaps of the fingers.

Managing engagement: Describe a way to use this technology in a way that gets students
actively involved in authentic tasks and contexts?

During the activity, the students will come together in groups of 2-3 and co-use their
computers to choose their historical figure from the Civil War. Next, Students will be given
time to collaborate with their group members to create ideas that they want to implement in
their presentations. Students will also have the ability to find their own findings to increase
their own understanding of these figures and to help them become more knowledgeable
with finding different outlooks about the figure.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

The Microsoft Sway software supports the students by allowing them to be able to represent
their ideas in a unique creation. The software has tools that can support students with
disabilities. Sway has a program called Immersive Reader which allows for the presentation to
be read aloud with different translations, text preferences, and many other tools to cater to
the reader or creator.

Reflecting on enhanced learning:

BPTs have given me a new outlook about how information can be represented in a lesson
plan and in a presentation within a classroom. In addition, I really enjoyed learning more
about Microsoft Sway and how its use could benefit student learning and allow them to
utilize another program to enhance their learning experience. I am really excited to
implement the use of Microsoft Sway in the classroom to allow students to represent their
unique ideas about a desired content area that they have learned in the classroom.