8/8/2019 Reflective Statement for PTS #1

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This professional teaching standard emphasizes the importance of using inquiry-based

learning experiences to make the curriculum both engaging and meaningful to all students. Most

importantly, each inquiry-based learning experience should not only be engaging and hands-on,

but it can also create a connection across curricular areas in addition to real-world experiences.

By helping students to develop personal connections with the curriculum, all students are able to

understand the content better. Furthermore, this is a prime example of how to adapt instruction to

the needs of both ELLs and students with disabilities. Therefore, this standard wants me to

recognize the importance behind understanding major curriculum concepts and principles in

order to provide access to a quality education for all students.

I chose a lesson plan incorporating literacy strategies into a 3rd

grade science lesson as the

artifact to demonstrate how to apply this standard in practice. Not only does this lesson plan

present knowledge to students central to science, but it also uses reading and writing to integrate

language arts into a science lesson. The students are asked to write a letter to a state senator

presenting ideas of how to prevent future oil spills. This demonstrates an understanding of the

relationship of knowledge within the discipline to other content areas and to life and career

applications. These established connections make learning more concrete and meaningful for

the students. By allowing students to brainstorm their own ideas of how to prevent future oil

spills, the students are provided with an opportunity to learn through inquiry-based experiences.

These inquiry-based experiences and integrating reading and writing into the lesson uses a

variety of explanations and multiple representations of concepts that capture key ideas to help

students develop [an overall] conceptual understanding.

Although this lesson plan has not been directly used in practice, it will significantly

impact my teaching in the future. Completing research for this lesson and integrating literacy and

8/8/2019 Reflective Statement for PTS #1

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