Lesson Plan
Candidate: Lisa Snyder
Date: 5/16/14
Grade: 4th
Coordinator: Shelli Bordeaux
Mentor: Katie Sachter
Lesson Part
Formal/informal
Assessment of
Prior Learning or
Preassessment
(Sequence start)
Activity description/Teacher does
[This section for formal preassessment begins the lesson
sequence and does not need to be shown on subsequent
lessons.]
Title
Standard (Common
Core)
Lighting the Bulb
EALR 4- PS3E: Electrical energy in circuits can be changed to other forms of energy,
including light, heat, sound, and motion. Electric circuits require a complete loop through
conducting materials in which an electric current can pass.
Current electricity requires a complete circuit, including an energy source and energy
receiver, in order to work.
Students will investigate what is needed to make a bulb light
up and will draw 4 diagrams to illustrate their findings.
Complete circuit, battery, investigate, bulb, source, receiver,
energy, pathway, diagram, label, critical contact point,
positive/negative, current
Batteries, copper wire, bulbs, science notebooks
Central Focus (CF)
Learning Target (LT)
Academic Language
to be used:
Materials (with
specific count)
Lesson Part
Instruction
Inquiry
Preview
Review
Activity description/Teacher does
Teacher will ask students to review the previous science
lesson (connecting batteries to motors), and ask questions to
clarify the concepts and vocabulary that were learned:

Where is the energy coming from?

Where did you have to touch the wires to the battery
to get the motor to work? (Teacher will then
introduce the vocabulary “critical contact points”)

Did it make a difference which wire touched which
end? (Teacher will then introduce the vocabulary
“positive/negative”)

What happens if you put both batteries together?
Teacher will then ask a student to read the learning target,
and then ask students to turn and explain to their neighbor
what we will be doing in science.
Teacher will ask students why lighting a bulb is important skill
to learn, and ask for examples of when they might need to do
it in the real world.
Students do
Students do
Students will offer what
they remember from the
previous lesson.
Students will
questions.
answer
Students will read and
explain
the
learning
target, and give examples
of why it might be
important to learn.
Informal
Assessment
Instruction/Practice
Activity/
(if needed)
Informal
Assessment
Instruction/Practice/
Activity (if needed)
Closure
Assessment of
Student Voice
Gifted/early
finishers
Teacher will then explain that today we will be figuring out
what is needed to make the light bulb light up.
Teacher will model setting up the science notebook on the
document camera, as students follow along.
Teacher will then ask students to make a prediction as to
what is needed to make a bulb light up.
Teacher will explain the investigation: students will be using a
light bulb, battery, and wire to try to find as many ways as
they can to light up the bulb. Students must draw diagrams of
each successful AND unsuccessful arrangement that they try.
Teacher will display the science journal entry checklist on the
document camera as students work.
Teacher will circulate, asking students questions to assess
their knowledge of circuits and their different parts:
 What are the critical contact points on the battery?
The bulb?
 What have you tried so far? Why do you think that
did/didn’t work? What could you try next?
 Where is the energy coming from? Where is it going
to?
Once most students have completed at least four diagrams,
teacher will ask them to try to light the bulb using two wires.
Students will work in pairs for this. They must complete at
least one diagram using two wires.
Teacher will bring the class back together and ask a student
(choose somebody during previous activities) to come up to
the board to draw one of their arrangements.
 Why does this arrangement work?
 What are the critical contact points?
Teacher will ask a different student to draw one of their
battery and motor arrangements from the previous lesson,
next to the light bulb diagram. Ask students to look for
similarities between the two. Elicit the following:
 Both have batteries , a source of energy
 Both have wires connecting both ends of the battery
 Both have an object that uses the electricity.
Explain that in order for an electric current to flow, we must
have a complete circuit: a continuous loop that connects the
critical contact points of the battery. Draw arrows on the
student diagrams to demonstrate the path of the electricity.
Teacher will ask students to write a conclusion to their
investigation by answering the focus question. Teacher will
again display the notebook entry requirements on the
document camera.
Teacher will ask students to share some of the important
things they learned today, and then review the lesson.
Teacher will ask students to read the learning target and then
assess how well they met it using a fist of five.
Students who complete their circuits early will be asked to
partner with another student and pool their materials.
Challenge students to find ways to light the bulbs using all of
the materials.
Students will set up their
notebooks
following
teacher directions.
Students will
predication.
write
a
Students will carry out
their investigation and
record their findings.
Students will attempt to
light the bulb using two
wires.
A student will draw a
diagram on the board.
Students will explain why
the arrangement works.
A student will draw a
battery
and
motor
diagram on the board.
Students
will
find
similarities between the
two circuits.
Students will write their
conclusions.
Students will share what
they learned and assess
how well they met the
learning target.
ELL adaptations
IEP/504
modifications
Formal
Assessment or
Postassessment
(Sequence end)
ELL students will be given a graphic organizer for their
diagrams in order to allow them to focus on the investigation
rather than the production of a notebook entry.
Students with IEP’s will be required to complete only two
diagrams. Their notebook entries will be assessed using an
adapted rubric.
Students will be summatively assessed on their science
notebook entries.
Science Journal Entry Requirements
5/16/14: Lighting a Bulb
Focus Question: What is needed to make a bulb light up?
1)
Write the date, title, and focus question on the next
blank page.
2)
Write your prediction of the answer to the focus
question.
3)
Draw diagrams of all of your battery and bulb
arrangements: both successful and unsuccessful. You
need to have at least four diagrams.
4)
All diagrams must include:
 Wires
 Battery
 Light bulb
 Critical contact points
 Labels
5)
A conclusion that answers the focus question. Your
conclusion must include:
 An explanation of the parts needed to light a bulb.
 An explanation of how the parts need to be
arranged.
 Use of the vocabulary “Complete circuit” and
“critical contact point”.