Lesson 4

Lesson 4/Entry 4

Health 6^th Grade

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday

Objective:

         The student will analyze the consequences of personal choices on health and wellness with 100% accuracy.

Coverage of all the listed standards: State of VA Standards

6.4. a) The relationships among personal actions, self-image, and personal success

6.4. b) The importance of accepting responsibility for personal actions

Technology Instruction/Teacher:

Utilize Power Point presentations, and play You-Tube-Body Image and Self Esteem (http://www.timelytv.com/).

Activities and Experiences per Objective: (Learning styles will be addressed via Teaching (Auditory), Power Point Presentation (Visual), and Hands On assignment-Blogs-Website search of material that students find interesting (Tactical)

Learning Activities and Experiences per Objectives:

6.4. a) The relationships among personal actions, self-image, and personal success

·        Students will read a book, “You are Not What You
Weigh” by Lisa Bevere and write a report on the book; some reading will be done in class.

·        Class divided into seven groups of three students- will complete group activities identifying positive self-image.

·        Students will take a look at their self image and construct a personal analysis homework assignment incorporating web sites to assist with this activity(guideline will be provided).

·        Students will complete questions at the end of the chapter which will assist them in identifying healthy and unhealthy self images.

6.4. b) The importance of accepting responsibility for personal actions

·        Students will review http://www.letsmove.gov/ to assist in making better decisions regarding their health and share information on their blog.

·        Students will explore the importance of accepting responsibility for the actions during class discussion.

·        Students will open dialogue with another classmate, write down instances in which they have accepted responsibility for personal actions and discuss the outcome.

Evaluation Procedures: Class Participation, Reviewing of blogs/participation, web search findings, Rubric (blog and presentation) will be revised to accommodate lesson, and unit test.

Lesson 3

Lesson 3/Entry 3

Health 6^th Grade

State of Virginia Standards of Learning: Goal

6.3)      Students will describe the connections between mental and physical development as it relates to adolescence.

Objectives: Define healthy mental and physical development for adolescence, Discover the correlation between body image and weight management, and Identify the effects of bullying, peer pressure, stress, and other “school stuff”

Technology Instruction/Teacher:

Utilize Power Point presentations, listen to podcasts on Body Image and Self-Esteem as well as become familiar with the contents on the site @ http://www.kidshealth.org/.

Learning Activities and Experiences per Objective: (Learning styles will be addressed via Teaching (Auditory), Power Point Presentation (Visual), and Hands On assignment-Blogs-Website search of material that students find interesting (Tactical) Extra credit: Students will share a healthy, easy, stress relieving recipe and class will make and eat in class. *Must be approved.

·        Students will have a homework assignment to explore www.kidshealth.org/teen and determine the connections between mental and physical development based on the information shared on this website. Thus, gaining a better understanding of the terms.

·        Students will discover the correlation between body image and weight management and post information on blogs.

·        Students will have homework assignments to listen to podcasts they find interesting as well as topics related to “school stuff,” bullying,  peer pressure, and stress.

·        Students will share information from their podcast or web search findings. 10/15 minute presentation.

Evaluation Procedures: Class Participation, Reviewing of blogs/Participation , 10/15 class presentation on podcasts or web search findings, and Rubric (blog and presentation) will be revised to accommodate lesson.

Lesson 2

Lesson 2/Entry 2

6^th Grade Health

State of Virginia Standards of Learning: Goals

6.2 a)   Explore the relationship of the United States Department of Agriculture and Health and Human Services Dietary Guidelines for Americans to personal eating habits

Objectives: Each student will explore the differences between USDA and HHS, Discover the correlation between USDA and HHS, Explore changes to the food pyramid (food plate), Discover the personal relevance of the dietary guidelines, and Familiarize themselves with the information available of both websites 

Technology Instruction/Teacher:

Utilize Power Point presentations, play You-Tube-USDA issues new dietary guidelines and podcasts: 60 Second Health Tips-April 21, 2011 “Another Problem for Overweight Teen. http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

Learning Activities and Experiences per Objective: (Learning styles will be addressed via Teaching (Auditory), Power Point Presentation (Visual), and Hands On assignment-Blogs-Website search of material that students find interesting (Tactical)

·        Students will search the web (exploring the websites mentioned above). Students will have a homework assignment to explore www.choosemyplate.gov/guidelines and explore USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) and HHS (Health and Human Services) websites and determine how these guidelines relate to personal eating habits. Students will consider cultural /ethnic background and how it relates to dietary guidelines; post information on blogs.

·        Students will have homework assignments to listen to podcasts that they find interesting and related to the topic on either site (USDA or HHS).

·        Students will share information from their podcast or webcast for either website. 10/15 minute presentation.

Evaluation Procedures:

            Class Participation

            Reviewing of blogs/Participation

            10/15 class presentation on podcasts

            Rubric (blog and presentation) will be revised

Lesson 1

Lesson 1/Entry 1

Health 6^th Grade/Unit

Standards of Learning: Goals

6.1    The student will apply critical-thinking skills and personal-management strategies to address issues and concerns related to personal health and wellness; students will consider their ethnic backgrounds when exploring this area of critical-thinking.

a)      the importance of significant friends or adult mentors

b)      the relationship between self-image and gang-related behaviors

c)      the effects of environmental influences on personal health

d)      refusal strategies related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs

e)      prevention of communicable and non-communicable diseases

Objective: Given health issues adolescent face, each student will analyze how their environment and personal health are interrelated. Discover the relationship between self-image and gang-related behaviors. Explore the effects of the environmental influences on personal health.  Students will analyze ways to prevent diseases. Examine ways to resist peer pressure related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. 

Technology inclusion:

Students will apply what they have learned to create a short five slide presentation. The subject area they will cover is "Health". They must choose a presentation package of five to six slides that includes appropriate font size, clip art, and creativity. Students will present their finished product to the class for evaluation.

Learning Activities:

·        Class divided into seven groups of three students (21 students in the class) will complete group activities that assist them in exploring environmental and personal health issues. Discuss their cultural background and how it relates to health issues.

·        Students will have homework assignments to visit the public library and check out at least books and one journal article that are health related. Students will utilize these resources while interacting with peers in group discussion

·        Students will learn how to create a Power Point Presentation.
1. Become acquainted with the power Point Program.
2. Describe the basic features of the Power Point Program.
3. Create and Select a presentation style.
4. Create a short five to six slides Presentation.

·        Students will become more familiar with the information learned by incorporating an in-class activity/a game called good health cues. Students with the most points will earn extra point incentives.

·        Students will gather information on how to reduce risk related to adolescent health. Students will share this information with their class in the Power Point Presentations.

·        Students will divide into groups and discuss the relationship drugs, alcohol, tobacco, inhalants, and other harmful substances to body functioning

·        Students will submit a five to six slide PowerPoint presentation on how appropriate health care can prevent premature death to include information from the standards listed above. Students will be required to check out books at the public library and utilize one journal article.

Evaluation Procedures:

Teacher-made tests and quizzes

Present findings

            Group discussion/group work

            Papers and Power Point presentations

            In class activities

E-Books

Although I believe technological advances are beneficial, I too believe that companies are making a lot of money off consumers who are simply smitten with these tools; they simply have to purchase. E-books are converted to digital format for display on a computer screen or handheld device.What was wrong with regular hard back books? E-books are one of those advances that may appear to be beneficial, but take away from the pleasure of a family going to the library or book store and perusing. E-books are not ideal for my family because our weekend outings include spending time in the Christian bookstore. Yes, this tool makes it more convenient but for “old school” people like myself- I would rather have a hard copy.

WebQuest

WebQuest:

Learners gather the needed swatches from their local fabric store. They design a creative fabric swatch booklet. Learners identified the characteristics of natural and manufactured fibers. Learners describe the construction of woven, knit, and nonwoven fabrics. Learners explain how added finishes affect fabric appearance and performance. Learners then evaluate the suitability of particular fabrics for clothing which includes a two page paper to be submitted with swatch booklet. 

The Public URL for this WebQuest: www.zunal.com/webquest.php?w=106382

Personal Use of Technology

The best remedy for maintaining balance with the demands technology places upon us as well reap the benefits is to remain disciplined. In everything we do in life, there must be balance.  In many ways, technology interferes with the quality time my family and I spend with one another. There are times when my husband will tell us all to cut off the television, XBOX, cell phones, computer, MP3, etc., so we can just “hang out” and talk. With the same token, there are so many benefits. My favorite is the GPS/Navigation access I have on my cell phone. On my job, I make home visits and I never know where I am going. I believe the Navigation system was made just for me.

Social Network

Social network technologies broaden the availability of research tools to meet the educational needs of students. Thus, it is important to understand that not all the information found on the internet has been researched; therefore, many articles are not considered empirical data. This causes an obvious problem when students are becoming familiar with new information or trying to build on new principles.  My biggest concern with technology is that it takes away from creativity and using your imagination.

Asynchronous and Synchronous Online Learning

Because I am taking online classes, my educational environment is structured to meet the needs of an asynchronous collaboration.  I believe many people who take online courses choose this type of learning because it is more convenient and meet the needs of their busy schedules. For this very reason, asynchronous collaboration works best for me.  As it relates to synchronous online environments, I have not used many of these methods-other than chatting.  My husband takes online classes at Regent University and I have had the opportunity to observe audio and video conferencing. I believe both online environments are conducive to professional development and collaborative learning.

Reflections-WEB SITES

Because I am not presently teaching, I am not that familiar with many educational web sites. Nevertheless, I did not want to appear incompetent on my blog, so I began to google some Family and Consumer Sciences websites. I found a slew of sites that would benefit me in the future. I will briefly discuss two of them.www.aafcs.org, American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) is recognized as the driving force in bringing people together to improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities. Their mission is to provide leadership and support for professionals whose work assists individuals, families, and communities in making informed decisions about their well being, relationships, and resources to achieve optimal quality of life (Retrieved June 12, 2011, www.aafcs.org).  As a Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher, I am sure this would be one of the organizations that I would want to join. www.glencoe.com is a website that provided subject matter related resources, additional websites, and general teaching resources.  Personally, I enjoy www.blueletterbible.org. This website could be considered as a cyber Bible. I use it as my concordance.

Presentations

I am a more visual and tactical learner. I have always enjoyed teachers and facilitators who are able to incorporate a variety teaching styles and activities that could capture and maintain my attention. I normally disengage during lengthy lectures. When I was an undergraduate student, I would have to make myself stay focus by talking quietly. I would repeat stay focus on Design, Nutrition, etc. These professors normally had monotone voices and they rarely deviated from lecturing. For me, these classes were a form of torture. Therefore, I have a better understanding of why it is important to incorporate variety in your lesson planning. As regards to presentations, it is important that the classroom, audience, etc. are fully engaged. Ideally, I would like for the presenter to ask questions and really dialogue with the audience throughout the presentation. I also enjoy facilitators who are able to make their lessons or whatever they are presenting relevant or practical. Many times if I do not understand the relevance; I am not very interested in the material. In these moments, my mind has to override my will.

Reflection

I find the online cyber space helpful in managing my household. I visit Wachovia daily to ensure our debits and credits are balanced; I also pay the majority of our bills online. I utilize Face book to stay in touch with my distant family members who live in other states. I enjoy listening to Biblical teachers via online websites as well as ordering books and other studying materials from these websites.  About seven months ago, I utilized the internet (Pilot online) to purchase our Lab puppy, Sarah Bell, who we simply adore. What I love the most about the online cyber space in seeking employment. You have the opportunity to look for employment all over the world from your kitchen table. Overall, I have found the online community to be the most convenient tool for a busy woman, wife, and mother trying to balance home, work, and school.  My family enjoys buying their music and books (Amazon.com) off the internet. One of my sons is a Chronicles of Narnia/C.S. Lewis fan, so he is part of their fan club via Narniafans.com and he also enjoys googling the release date of action movies.

Technology Adoption in Schools

Currently, I am not a classroom teacher. Nevertheless, I believe that the biggest barriers in technology adoption are lack of finances and knowledge. It is difficult for many school systems to fund these advancements in technology. As regards to implementing technology in the classroom, I am sure teachers have to be creative and really think outside the box.  When I student taught in 2001, there were no computers in the classroom. Therefore, incorporating computer assignments in my lessons (in-class) was not an option. It is also important to consider the teachers who are not computer savvy and refuse to learn how to properly utilize and incorporate computers as a component in their teaching and learning environment.  It is vital that we continue to learn and grow with our students.