I was unable to access the video link that we were given so I researched the Internet for a site with alternative videos. I found the Center for Applied Linguistics and downloaded a video on a 6th grade humanities lesson on the English Founding America. Robin Liten-Tejada's class is from Gunston Middle School in Virginia.The narrator's introduction of the lesson indicated that the class consisted of advanced beginning ELL students. The site also provided a copy of the SIOP lesson plan (website) which was an added bonus and helped me follow what was going on in the lesson.
I particularly liked the introduction of the lesson where Ms. Liten-Tejada specifically stated the content and language objectives to the students. She chunked each objective into understandable sections and clarified any vocabulary that was difficult for them. Questions were addressed to solidify understanding of the content and language objectives.
The instructor moved onto the motivation section of the lesson by dividing the class into groups of three. Each group was given a piece of newsprint and markers and asked to brainstorm reasons why people immigrate to the United States in modern times. To connect to their own backgrounds she asked them to think about why their families had moved here or why friends they knew had moved here. After creating their own lists the groups shared their ideas while the teacher compiled them on a class poster. As each idea was added groups crossed them off their own lists. When the class list was completed each student came up to the new chart and put a colored sticker next to the main reason their own family had come to America. This helped the students buy into the list and own the class' brainstorming. In their journals they then completed the following statement "I predict the most common reason our families came.... They saved the chart and their journaling for comparisons later in the lesson.
Robin then moved to the presentation section of the lesson to connect what they just did, modern reasons for coming to America, to their current unit of student about colonization of America by England and Spain. On a chart next to the previous class chart the teacher had the students compile a list of why the Pilgrims and the Spanish came to America. She used a map that showed where the English and the Spanish settled in the eastern section of America.
The instructor then moved onto the practice section to preview the chapter of their text on why the English came to America. Using clues from pictures, captions, bolded lettering, etc. the small groups came up with people and places from the chapter preview. The groups then came back together to make a third chart using sentence strips the teacher had previously created with people and places from these text chapter. The students put the strips in the correct column on a chart marked people and places. They then copied the new vocabulary from the sentence strips in their journals.
The final activity, review, was completed using a map of the original thirteen colonies where the students, in their small groups, marked the places they will be studying in this unit. The teacher talked through each of the places they marked on the maps and then allowed them to color each place a separate color. They then glued the map into their journals for future reference.
Ms. Liten-Tejada seemed to have a good handle on the structure of a SIOP lesson plan as explained in Hill and Flynn's text, Classroom Instruction That Works With English Language Learners. She had visuals available for the class and ad constructed short, simple sentences on the strips the class used. Her introductory section relied heavily on prior content and the students made great connections to current reasons families come to America to historical reasons the English came to America. She made great eye contact with the class and was extremely articulate in her explanation of the assignment. Her facial
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