Using Bloom´s Taxonomy and Vygotsky´s Scaffolding in Lesson Planning
Multiple Choice
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1.
Create an example of a lesson that requires students to perform at least one of the three higher order skills in Bloom´s Taxonomy. In addition, describe at least two scaffolding strategies the teacher can use to facilitate comprehension of the content of the lesson. Explain why each of the strategies you described will contribute to the students´ learning. In your essay, specify the grade level of the students. Any grade level, kindergarten through grade 12, is acceptable.
(Expected response is 200 to 400 words)
Example:
Mrs. Newberry teaches sixth grade at Montgomery Elementary School. Mrs. Newberry begins her lesson by holding up a two pound bag of plain chocolate M&Ms to get the attention of her class. She tells the class that they will be learning about circle pie chart graphs. She puts an overhead up and shows an example of a pie chart. She explains how colors may be used along with a key to express mathematical relationships in an easy to interpret format. After this review on graphs, Mrs. Newberry explains that graphs are a useful way to summarize mathematical information that can be understood at a glance. The teacher then divides the class up into groups of three and distributes crayons and paper plates to each student. Using a scoop that holds about an ounce of M&Ms, she gives each student group a scoop of M&Ms and instructs them not to eat them-yet. She tells the students to sort and count the candy by the colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and brown). Mrs. Newberry has them record the count for their group on a piece of paper. Students then practice expressing their count as a fraction of the ounce, as decimals, and as percents. She then takes her class to the computer lab and has each group of three sit in front of a computer. She then takes the class through the steps required to create a circle pie chart in Microsoft Excel, a spreadsheet program. Each group then enters their count into the spreadsheet with the teacher´s supervision, and generates a circle pie chart on the computer screen. The group members then copy the graph onto their paper plate using crayons (to save the expense of printing). At this point, Mrs. Newberry asks the class to predict which color they think has the most M&Ms represented, using their data as a predictor. When all of the groups are finished, the data for the entire class are combined into a final graph, and the students get to eat their candy. For homework due the next class period, the teacher asks them to write a creative essay about why they think the makers of M&M´s make more brown ones than green. Finally, as an optional extra credit activity, she offers students an opportunity to research to find out why there was a period of years that no red M&M´s were made and when the company started including red M&M´s in the packages again. (The correct percentages of colors in a plain bag should be: 30% brown, 20% red, 20% yellow, 10% green, 10% orange, 10% blue).
example:
Scaffolding Strategies:
Contextualization
Contextualization creates a clear experiential environment that familiarizes new, unknown concepts and throws light on them. Input is made comprehensible through a variety of means which manipulate the content of the materials that teachers include in their lessons. In this lesson, Mrs. Newberry´s use of the M&Ms as manipulatives helps this lesson about graphs come alive for her students.
Schema Building
Schema Building helps students establish the connections that exist between and across concepts that may otherwise appear unrelated, and helps students gain perspective with regards to where ideas fit in the larger scheme of things. In this lesson, Mrs. Newberry´s use of a graphic organizer to illustrate and explain pie charts is an example of schema building.
Modeling
Modeling clarifies procedures through direct experience and provides concrete examples of what a student´s finished product should look like. The main idea here is that any task that is introduced for the first time should be modeled, and that students need to be given clear samples of what is requested of them for imitation. Mrs. Newberry took the class through the steps in Microsoft Excel to create a circle pie chart for the class, which is an example of modeling.
Bloom´s Taxonomy:
Synthesis
Synthesis deals with the task of putting together parts to form a new whole. This might involve working with parts and putting them together in a creative new way, or using old ideas to come up with new ones. In this lesson, Mrs. Newberry asks the students to write a creative story explaining why the M&M company makes more brown candies than any other of the colors. The task of creative writing is an example of synthesis.
Analysis
Analysis requires the student to examine and break information down into parts to examine and understand its meaning. This level requires students to ´read between the lines,´ make inferences, and find evidence to support generalizations. This is a more advanced level, since it mandates that the student be able to see the big picture, distinguishing between facts and inferences while evaluating the relevancy of data. In this lesson the students are performing at the level of analysis when they predict and draw inferences about overall color percentages based on their existing data.
Technology Enriched Learning
