Tyler Homeschool

Unit Plan Template   

Think about your past teachers. How have they influenced you? Did you have a quality education? What has made up your mind to be a homeschool teacher?

As for myself, many of my past teachers have inspired me to become a teacher myself; however other individuals who never specifically taught my class have had an impact on my decision to become a teacher. My best friend’s mother was a Kindergarten teacher who I looked up to in many ways. Her name was Claire Boettcher.  I also looked up to Angela Burkhalter who is a mother of six and a wonderful home school teacher.  As far as my teachers I admired my high school Spanish teacher Carla Muth, my high school Calculus teacher Jeff Starr, and my high school literature/philosophy and college English teacher Jim Kilkenny to name a few. But I believe that my son creates my greatest desire to become a great teacher.

  Claire Boettcher was wonderful with children and always found the best in each of her students. She was patient and loving yet organized and determined. She taught phonics to her students and was so patient with teaching little hands to write letters. I assisted her in her classroom and took care of her when she became ill with cancer. She was a single mother. I could always talk to her about anything. After my mother left I spent a lot of time at my friend Lisa’s house and became close with her mother Claire. I looked after Lisa’s mother some days until a few weeks before she passed away. Claire was a teacher for over 20 years. She had a tremendous impact on many people.  I started to realize how rewarding teaching is when her students would come to the house with get well cards and letters to her. These students were anywhere from 4 years old to 24 years old. She became weak and couldn’t have many visitors. So I would send many of them away and just read her their letters. The letters were heartbreaking and so sweet. She had maybe a dozen or more students wanting to visit every day. What an impact one teacher had.

  Before I married my husband I had been a nanny to a missionary family in Brazil. They had 4 children when I first started to be their nanny. Now they have 6. Before I became their nanny I had taken a course called “Teachers for the Nations” to learn about applying Biblical truth to every lesson plan and spreading God’s Word to other nations through education. Angie Burkhalter extended my knowledge on Christian education. She was a fair and wise teacher to her children. She did not tolerate goofing off during class time. She was consistent. She would make out a lesson plan for me to teach them starting at 7:30 am for English and Math. Meanwhile Angie would nurse her baby and then teach Spelling, Science, Bible, Reading, History, etc. Although I was helping her teach, I felt like a student sometimes. I definitely learned a lot from her.

  My High School teacher Carla Muth made Spanish class fun, believe it or not. I have traveled to over a dozen different countries and I have always had trouble with languages. The Spanish that I remember comes from when I was in Miss Muth’s class and we played “pasa la naranja” (pass the orange). Where we would pass this plastic orange around and say words or phrases in Spanish. Miss Muth also taught one of my literature classes in high school. That was the first time I would go out on my own and research other books from the authors that we read from in class. She spurred on my desire to find the answer for myself. Jim Kilkenny made me speak my mind during class discussions. Ever since then I have not been able to shut up. However he has taught me how to defend my thinking by opposing me or by nudging me on in the right direction of logical thinking. Jeff Starr taught my high school Calculus class. I had always done well in math and I felt like I was never challenged in the subject until his class. He pushed me to my limit which at the time was exactly what I needed. I couldn’t be lazy in his class. He was not a mean strict teacher but a jolly, always smiling teacher who always took the time to explain problems after class. All of my High School teachers were never paid a cent to teach but were all volunteers. I guess that is why they taught with much passion because other than the love for teaching there wasn’t much of a reason to be working at that school.

  I have always enjoyed spending time with children. I enjoy teaching children and I enjoy learning from them. Children enjoy life. They laugh an average of 172 times a day yet an adult laughs an average of 2 times a day. I love being around children. I love teaching them how to reason and improve their skills. I would like to teach a 2^nd grade class because at that age children have some knowledge of how to sit in their desk and take instructions from the teacher yet there is so much potential for obtaining a vast amount of knowledge for laying a foundation for future grades. More than teaching 2^nd grade I would like to home school my son for a few years. I’m not mad at the government’s system or anything but I think that I would rise to the occasion and offer a type of Christian education that would fit what he needs.

Grade 3 Math

Class:

3^rd grade math

Unit:

Geometry and spatial reasoning

Teacher:

Melody Eisenbach

Objectives:

The student will demonstrate an understanding of geometry and spatial reasoning.

Standards:

The student is expected to identify, classify, and describe two- and three-dimensional geometric figures by their attributes. The student compares two- dimensional figures, three-dimensional figures, or both by their attributes using formal geometry vocabulary. The student is also expected to identify congruent two-dimensional figures; create two-dimensional figures with lines of symmetry using concrete models and technology; and identify lines of symmetry in two-dimensional geometric figures. The student is expected to locate and name points on a number line using whole numbers and fractions, including halves and fourths.

Anticipatory Set:

We will use “wall words”. I will write key words on the wall and whenever I point to the word everyone calls out the definition (i.e. Adjacent means next to) We will also do a Tessellation in class. I will hand out 1 precut 2” triangle to each student and they will make a hexagonal tessellation.

Teaching: Input

A projector will be used to draw different shapes and number lines. Tessellation examples will be shown to the class. Wall words will be used so students can take notes on key words. We will draw figures of symmetry and congruency in our notes. We will discuss 2 and 3 dimension shapes.

Teaching: Modeling

Examples of tessellations will be shown and as students are working on their work I will show each step of how to do it correctly by doing one in front of the class and walking around with it.

Teaching: Checking for Understanding

Students should be following each step and I will go around to make sure they are doing it right. Each student will:

1. Cut out one side of the triangle from vertex to adjacent vertex.
2. Tape cut out piece to another side without flipping it.
3. Trace the new shape with the straight side about 1” from the left side of the paper
4. Slide the piece until it fits like a puzzle to the other side of the traced shape and trace again
5. Repeat until the traced shape becomes a hexagonal shape
6. Color

I will be asking questions to be sure we are all on the same step and no one is behind. Also I will be checking everyone’s notes.

Guided Practice:

I will go around the class again and encourage the students and hold up some of their tessellations as examples and praise.

Closure:

Directions will be given on what to do before turning in the tessellations (i.e.-put your name on the top, put away the crayons and scissors) to wrap up the project. We will go over all the wall words before closing.

Independent Practice:

Individual students will be called on to answer questions regarding geometric terminology and the material that has been reviewed.

Materials:

Chalk Board for wall words, a projector. Cut out triangles (paper). Each student must have:

1. Paper
2. Scissors
3. Crayons
4. Pencil

Duration:

Three math classes (about 40 min each)

This is an example of one of the Lesson Plan formats used in public schools today:

Types of Cells

Content Area:

Science

Grade Level:

Second Grade

Aim:

Students will learn about animal and plant cells.

Goal:

After using manipulatives, students will be able to draw a picture of a cell and be able to tell a few differences between animal cells and plant cells.

Note:

In this lesson I will be using manipulative materials to convey what a cell looks like.

Materials:

Pictures of cells, Water balloons, Fish Bowl, Pitcher of water, onion, magnifying glass, tweezers, worksheet, color pencils, and microscope with cell samples.

Anticipatory Set:

First I will explain to the students that we will be learning about cells. I will tell them that we will learn the differences between animal cells and plant cells. I will tell them that at the end of class they can look at real cells through the microscope.

Stated Objectives:

• Students will learn and write down facts about cells (i.e.- every living thing is made up of cells)
• Students will draw and color a picture of a cell
• Students will state the difference between animal and plant cells

Modeled Practice:

Pictures of cells will be passed around the class. I will take a fish bowl and fill it with the water balloons then explain that the fish bowl represents the tiny part of an animal’s body and the water balloons represent its cells. I will fill the fish bowl with water over the water balloons covering them and filling up the fish bowl. I will explain that in an animal fluid keeps the cells alive.

Next I will cut a small square out of an onion, pulling away the outside skin with a pair of tweezers, and press this onto a window pane. The students can see the cells with a magnifying glass. This helps the students see that plant cells are not soft and flexible like animal cells and that they have a tough outer wall which helps them keep their shape. Plus, some plant cells are much bigger than animal cells, which make them easier to see.

Guided Practice:

The students can come and look at the onion skin on the window pane with a magnifying glass. Next, one at a time I will help each student look at a cell under a microscope.

Independent Practice:

Next the students will be given a worksheet with a few questions on it about cells and will draw and color a picture of a cell.

Closure:

I will ask the class what they learned about cells (i.e.-all living things have cells). I will ask a few volunteers to show off their pictures of a cell. I will summarize the lesson by stating the differences between animal cells and plant cells.

Here is one way to write a lesson plan:

Lesson Plan

• Subject: Fill out a separate Lesson Plan for each subject
• Leading Idea: This is the focus of the lesson (such as the plot of the book). The ideas chosen must support general course objectives. 
• Principle: How does this lesson teach us about Christ? Use a supporting scripture or explain a Biblical principle.
• Goal: What do you want to accomplish? Do you want your child to read a chapter in a book, learn how to multiply, etc. at the end of the lesson?
• Visual Aid and Tools Needed: What books will you read from, what computer programs will you use, and what science experiment will you do? Make a list of all the materials that you will use.
• Method of Interacting: Will you have an interactive lesson, will you be dictating notes, reading, instructing, or will the student have work to do on his/her own?
• Student Work: Keep your students work on record. Write a brief summary on the lesson plan of what your child will work on during class. Have your child keep his/her work in a notebook.
• Effectiveness: After the lesson record how it was effective or not effective.