Domain III:

Instructional
Practice

Abigail Stallkamp
Teaching
Scenario
Meet Clayten! He is a 3rd grader who loves
Toy Story, putty, and order within the
classroom. I worked with Clayten everyday.
While we were working on mathematics, I
noticed he was having trouble identifying
the orthographic representation of many of
the numbers. So, I decided to create a unit
for him to work on identifying the
orthographic representation of numbers.
Domain Indicators

The candidate creates learning

The candidate uses formative experiences that engage students in the

3.1
assessment in decision-making.
Instructional decisions based on
assessment and need lead to student
learning.
3.4
depth of the discipline at hand, in the
context of related discipline and
students’ lived experiences.

The candidate uses classroom inquiry, research,

and critical thinking to select multiple
3.6 instructional strategies, technologies, and
materials to best meet student needs.
 3.1
I decided on the orthographic representations
that I was going to teach based on the
answers Clayten gave to the pre-test. He was
able to identify one, two, nine, and ten on the
first attempt. However, he was not able to
identify three, four, five, six, seven, and eight
on the first attempt, which is why I decided
to include the numbers he did not identify on
the first attempt in the unit instruction.
 This skill is essential for Clayten to learn as it will

3.4
create independence both in academic and functional
skills. If Clayten can identify the orthographic
representation of numbers than he can use a calculator
to continue his application of mathematical concepts.
Not only will this help his academic skills, but this
will also allow him to use a calculator or identify
numbers in everyday life. This will help with life
skills like buying things at the store, knowing
amounts of food or medicines, and being able to dial
correct phone numbers. These are only part of the
academic and functional skills that will improve when
Clayten can identify numbers.
3.6
Within this unit I used a massed trial format, as Clayten was
still acquiring this skill, and a massed trial format aids in the
acquisition of skills. I also used a system of least prompts.
Firstly, Clayten does not like to be touched, so I did not want
to use the most invasive prompt right away, as that could be
a trigger to him. I also wanted him to try to identify the
number that was recently presented to him, and to try to
identify numbers that we had previously worked on. First, I
would use verbal prompting and then gestural and modeling
prompting, if necessary. I never used a physical prompt with
Clayten as I dd not want to trigger him, and he never needed
a physical prompt to fulfill a given task. (Collins, 2012.)