Multimedia: Audio or Video Lesson Idea Aria LaTour

Lesson Idea Name: Living vs. Non-Living Organisms

Grade Level/Content Area: Kindergarten, Science
Content Standard Addressed:
SKL1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about how organisms (alive and not
alive) and non-living objects are grouped.
a. Construct an explanation based on observations to recognize the differences
between organisms and nonliving objects.
b. Develop a model to represent how a set of organisms and nonliving objects are
sorted into groups based on their attributes.
ISTE Technology Standard Addressed: What would you like students to know and be
Empowered Learner: 1.1.c. Students use able to do by the end of this lesson:
technology to seek feedback that informs
Students should be able to distinguish living from
and improves their practice and to non-living organisms.
demonstrate their learning in a variety of
ways. Students should be able to understand the
Knowledge Constructor: 1.3.c. Students characteristics that differentiate living from non-
living organisms.
curate information from digital resources
using a variety of tools and methods to
create collections of artifacts that
demonstrate meaningful connections or
conclusions.

What is the student learning goal for this lesson idea?

I can understand how living things are different from non-living things by observing their features
and grouping them based on their characteristics.

Selected Instructional Software Tool: Spotify for Podcasters

Description of Software: Spotify for Podcasters is a simple platform that allows creators to share
their audio content with a wide audience and provides editing tools for audio clips.

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable):

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/aphtrodite/episodes/ITEC-3100-Module-6-Podcast---Aria-
LaTour-e2i3rmh

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s): (Which level(s) will this lesson meet using this technology tool?)
Please put an X in the box or next to the level(s). Do not highlight or bold the response.

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

TFrazier, 2022
 Multimedia: Audio or Video Lesson Idea Aria LaTour

How do you plan to implement this lesson and integrate the technology? Check all that apply:

☐ Teacher-led: There is no student voice and choice in the activities. Students are guided by the
teacher's direction and expectations. Learning activities are assigned to the student and mostly
practice based.

☐ Student-Led: Students are given voice and choice in the activities. They may select the topic of
learning and/or determine the tool they will use to meet the learning goal. The teacher facilitates
the learning as the students direct their own learning processes.

☒ Problem-based and/or Publishable: Students are solving problems and completing projects to
demonstrate their learning. Additionally, the projects can be shared outside of the classroom.
(Note: 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:

Before I introduce students to the lesson about living vs. non-living organisms, I would assign them
the task to listen to my short podcast episode about living and non-living organisms. In this podcast,
students will be introduced to the topic and then they will hear a brief explanation of the
characteristics of each organism. I will then task them to observe their environment of choice and
take note of five organisms (three living and two non-living) so that the next day, they can share with
the class their findings.

The day I intend to introduce the standard to students (likely a day after the podcast listening task is
assigned), I will have students begin with a discussion about their observations of living and non-
living organisms. A class discussion will allow for students to hear about organisms that they may not
have observed in their environment, and it will allow me to assess where each student’s
understanding is regarding organisms.
Managing student learning:

The use of a created podcast will shift students from passive to active learners because this will be
their introduction to a new topic. The length of the podcast is short to stay within the attention span
of my younger students, however it contains all the necessary information that they need to begin
learning. Students will also receive their first assignment regarding the lesson in this podcast, which
they would be made aware of, to ensure their engagement and participation in the tool and the
lesson.
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Reflection: Be sure to mention one specific UDL principle you
are focused on in this lesson – Multiple Means of Engagement, Multiple Means of Representation,
or Multiple Means of Action & Expression.

By assigning students a short pre-lesson audio task, they are provided with a multimodal
introduction to the topic which caters to diverse learning preferences that are present in the
classroom. This tool is also allowing students to access information in an interactive and accessible
way. The unique deliverance of the information allows for increased student engagement.
TFrazier, 2022
 Multimedia: Audio or Video Lesson Idea Aria LaTour

Reflection:

I feel this lesson will positively impact student learning due to the uniqueness of the instruction.
Beginning students with a short listening activity which provides them with basic knowledge of the
topic they will be exploring and assigning them a quick engaging activity to prepare for a class
discussion allows students to engage with the content in an interactive way. This lesson give
students an entertaining way to learn, allows them to collaborate with one another, and allows me
to assess their knowledge so that I can understand what strengths and weaknesses my students
have in this topic.

TFrazier, 2022