STEM LESSON PLAN:

The lesson that I planned asks students to go to five locations of a creek that flows from our mountain on one side of town to the river that flows on the other side of town. The students are asked to measure dissolved oxygen in the water at the different points, discover, count and classify the different invertebrates in the area, and to do an observation map of the area. The students are asked to draw, journal, and categorize all of their data in their journals. At the end of the project the students will be asked to create a presentation with their small group about their hypothesis, data, and conclusion. When the experiment is complete, the students will then determine other areas of study for the area.

While using the template I found that I had to analyze many points of my lesson that I am not use to prior to the beginning of the lesson. The five E’s were helpful to me in this process because I had to be more analytical about the entire process prior to the beginning. I usually will allow experiments to be a little more student directed, so I don’t have the full process completely planned. I usually will just have an idea, bring that to the class, and guide the inquiry. I liked the extend and elaborate idea because it is easy with today’s guidelines to move on to the next concept without following up on the previous projects. I could have students maintain stream quality projects throughout the year making it a phenology project. We could also study other streams and rivers throughout the watershed. It will be important for the students to be allowed to share results through the Wyoming Stream Team website.

I do plan to implement this lesson one day, but I will have to be sure to address the issue of the students being in dangerous areas. It will be very important to set strict guidelines about stream and hiking safety. I will also have to address transportation issues. It would be best to get parent drivers, which would also answer the supervision issues.