Description

This lesson is for Day 3 of the unit Inventions and Inventors. Students use a variety of references and write to inform as they explore significant inventors and inventions and the impact of the inventions in the field of communication.

Materials

-Various reference materials about inventions and inventors from different fields such as communication, transportation, technology, medical, recreational, scientific, foods, etc. (See Extensions for link to Unit Plan for Bibliography)
-Several different types of reference materials (for example, encyclopedia, Weblinks, chart, timeline, reference book, photo, etc.) for each communication invention/inventor (i.e., telegraph/Morse, telephone/Bell, wireless telegraph which led to the radio/Marconi, television/Farnsworth, Magnetic Tape Recorder/Marvin Camras, CD/Russell, personal computer/Jobs and Wosniak, and WWW/Berners-Lee) (See Attached Files for sample Reference List)
-Background Information for the teacher (See Attached Files)
-Sample Graphic Organizer, one teacher copy (See Attached Files)
-Writing surface, such as a dry erase board, a chalkboard, or chart paper to draw a graphic organizer on
-Markers or chalk
-Inventions and Inventor Cards, one set (See Attached Files)
-Great Invention Summary, one per small group (See Attached Files)
-Photographs of selected inventions and inventors (See Attached Files)
-Small bag or hat for the Inventions and Inventors Cards
-Student Web Lesson Max and Mavis and the Case of the Missing Inventors, Part 1: Communication (See Web Links)
-Summative Assessment 1 , one copy per student. (See Extensions for link to Unit Plan)

Procedures

1. Walk to the front of the room carrying an armful of books about inventions in different fields such as technology, scientific, medical, foods, transportation, recreational, communications, etc.)

2. Explain to students that you are in a quandary. There are just too many books about inventions!

3. Think aloud to students and state that you know people write for a variety of occasions, audiences, and purposes. Sometimes people write for pleasure, such as writing a letter to one's grandmother. Sometimes people write to inform, such as to write a report.

4. Explain you are going to write to inform. You are going to make a graphic organizer to help you get a better idea about the different types of inventions.

5. Use topics from the reference books to model how to make a graphic organizer with details of the different fields of inventions (See Attached Files for Sample Graphic Organizer).

6. Acknowledge the graphic organizer helps, but you are still confused as to which topic the class should study.

7. Pretend to be thinking.

8. Explain you remember there is something in the classroom that can help you narrow the decision.

9. Walk to the board where the Sunshine State Standards for the unit are posted.

10. Point to standards SS.A.3.2.1.3.1 and SC.H.3.2.3.3.1.

11. Read the standards aloud. Review the vocabulary words and meanings for communication, technology, scientific, and impact.

12. Call on student volunteers to underline or circle the fields mentioned in the Sunshine State Standards.

13. Explain that students will learn about inventions and inventors in these fields during the unit.

14. Discuss how an invention might belong in several fields. For example, the invention of the telephone fits in the communication, technology, and scientific fields. It is a technology tool that helps us communicate. It was invented using scientific experimentation and processes.

15. State today students will use the reference materials to learn about significant inventions and inventors in the field of communication and brainstorm how those inventions impacted or changed society. Take a few minutes to help students understand what it was like before the telephone, fax and television. Ask them how they could communicate without a telephone, computer, or fax. Ask them what would they do after supper if they didn't have a television, radio, computer or stero. Describe how families used to sit around the radio in the evening listening to music and news. Students need a background of this knowledge before beginning their research.

16. Display the various reference materials (See Attached Files for Reference List) you've collected about significant inventions and inventors in the field of communication.

17. Point out the different kinds of references such as nonfiction books, reference books, Websites, photographs of inventors/inventions, a timeline or chart, etc.

18. Using a field other than communication (for example, the field of recreation and how the game of basketball was invented see History of Basketball in Web Links), model how to read for information about an invention and organize the information read on the Great Inventions Summary (See Attached Files).

19. Model how to use the organized information to report to the class about the invention/inventor.

20. Point out there is so much information about communication inventions/inventors you need for the students to work in small groups and do some investigation. Then each group will report back to the class.

21. Divide students into small groups.

22. Let a student from each group select one of the Invention/Inventor Cards (See Attached Files) from a bag or hat.

23. Remind students that a discovery is something seen or known for the first time.

24. Provide each group with grade level appropriate reference materials about the invention/inventor (See Attached Files for Reference List).

25. Provide each group with a Great Invention Summary form.

26. Encourage students to think about the communication invention they chose and determine if it could also be considered a scientific discovery. If so, ask students to put a star beside the name of the invention on the Great Invention Summary.

27. Each student (or pair of students) in the group is to use one of the references the teacher supplied. Note: Pair a less capable reader with a fluent reader to facilitate learning.

28. Students are to read the reference and locate information about the invention/inventor and record their thoughts on notebook paper. (You may choose to use the graphic organizer from the lesson, Imagine That, in this unit instead of notebook paper.) The name of the reference used is recorded also.

29. Facilitate student research and provide guidance when needed.

30. When finished, students share the notes with others in their group.

31. Students in each group determine which notes they will record on the Great Invention Summary (See Attached Files) and organize the information on the form.

32. Each group also lists references for the information recorded on the Great Invention Summary.

33. Finally, students in each small group discuss ways the invention impacted or changed society. If the invention could also be considered a scientific discovery, students determine how the scientific discovery helped or hindered (hurt) progress regarding human health or lifestyles.

34. Responses chosen by the group are recorded on the Great Inventions Summary.

35. Discuss the criteria listed on the Great Invention Summary Checklist.

36. Allow time for students to work in groups.

37. Upon completion, each group informs the rest of the class about the invention, inventor, and the invention's impact on society (or how it helped or hurt progress regarding human health or lifestyles).

38. A Great Invention Summary Checklist (See Attached Files) is used to formatively assess each group's effort.

39. Display the Great Invention Summary papers in the classroom to serve as a reference for students.

NOTE: At this time, explain Summative #1 to students. (See Extensions for link to Unit Plan) Make sure students understand what they will be doing and the time frame in which it should be accomplished.

40. Students complete a journal entry for Day 3 according to the Daily Journal Prompts (See Extensions for link to Unit Plan).

41. Formatively assess journal entries using the Unit Writing Checklist (See Extensions for Link to Unit Plan). Provide feedback that is both positive and guiding. Positive feedback might include, Yes, I'm sure not having a telephone would make it more difficult to talk with your out of town relatives. Guiding feedback might include, Can you think of other activities that might help you relax if you had no television?

42. Students continue working in pairs to complete the Student Web Lesson Max and Mavis and the Case of the Missing Inventors, Part 1: Communication (See Web Links). To facilitate learning, it is suggested that the teacher pair an accomplished reader with an emerging reader.

Extensions

1. Click the link below to view the Beacon Unit Plan associated with this lesson. See Attached Files to download the Unit Plan Overview, Unit Assessments, and other associated files.

2. If possible, make arrangements with the media specialist to take students to the media center to conduct their research.

3. Pair a less capable reader with a more fluent reader to facilitate learning during the research activity.

4. Note: Remember, the Internet can be a valuable source to use for newer inventions. Pay attention to the reading level and the amount of information on the site before sharing with students. You might want to use a computer lab and bookmark some appropriate sites for students to use. Take the time to explore for these sites and bookmark them PRIOR to beginning the lesson.

5. Note: Although LAB2.2.3.3.1 indicates that students write for a variety of occasions, only one occasion is being addressed in this lesson. Throughout the unit, students do write for a variety of occasions and reasons, therefore the need for writing for a variety of occasions is met by the end of the unit.

Attached Files

A Sample Graphic Organizer, a Reference List, Invention and Inventor Cards, a Great Invention Summary, a Great Invention Summary Checklist, Photographs of Inventions and Inventors and Background Information.     File Extension: pdf