SAILING COURSE FOR SCIENCE/MATH APPLICATIONS
(GRADES 3-12)
OBJECTIVE: The students will write goals in all subject areas for the next 9 weeks of their grading period, in response to their initial report card grades. The goals are to be concrete, "Raise Science grade by 5 points", "Maintain A average in Math", etc.
ENGAGEMENT: Question and Answer with Students - "How many would like to see their grades improve the next 10 weeks?", "How do we need to go about achieving that goal?", "How can the teacher help you?, your parents help you?, yourself help you?" ELICIT responses. Encourage open discussion and dialogue.
DIRECT INSTRUCTION: Tell stories of your own successes with goal writing. "My brother asked myself and my other brother to write down goals for the coming New Year, (this was at a New Year's Eve Party!). We all joked around, but did it. I wanted someone to ask me to play guitar with them, (Boy, I am that good?!) Low and behold, come 'round September, folks were asking me to come join them and jam on guitar. (Whip out a guitar riff on Electric guitar). In 7th grade, my buddy and I, both said we would make the Varsity basketball team and be co-captains, AND WIN the championship. We did not write that goal down then, but we ACTUALIZED IT, by constantly talking about it, playing the games, and practicing the ultimate. Low and behold, when we were seniors, WE WON the championship as co-captains. (Show pictures, articles) I planned, I wrote down a Cross-Country Bicycle Trip Itinerary. I cycled the trip. I accomplished the goal easier by writing down and following the plan. NOW you tell NEAL PETERSEN'S stories. Child Born with Disability, Black child wanting to sail in White South Africa, Mast lost at sea, towed in to port. "Life's Short, Don't Post-pone Your Dreams."
Ask Students - What did you do to get Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, Hanukkah gifts? Some of you may have written your "wishes", your "goals" to Santa, grandparents, etc. What did you do to practice your vocabulary/spelling words for the week's test? Some of you may have written them down 2 times a night for the week.
ACTIVITY: Have children work in pairs to discuss 3 things that they really want to do in life but haven't yet done it. Write them down. Children discuss what 3 things they need to do to achieve those 3 initial goals. Discuss as a class response by children.
ACTIVITY: Ask children to write down goals for all their subjects in concrete terms. Example. "Raise science grade by 5 points." Ask the students to write down 2 things to assist the student in achieving that goal. Example. "I will read my science notes over every night for 10 minutes."
ASSESSMENT: Informal assessment of students working together and class discussion. Formal assessment of goals written for all subjects in their "Agenda" or "Journal" or "Portfolio".
MATERIALS: Teacher's stories, teacher's artifacts, trophies, pictures, video of Winning triathlon, life guarding championships, paper, pencil, Agenda, VCR, TV, PC with Internet access (www.no-barriers.com).
Lesson plan by Phil Frandino