Bachelor of Education / Professional Master of Education (Primary Education)
Lesson Planning Framework
School Placement, Primary Education, DCU Institute of Education
Date:
Class level: 4th Class
Lesson topic: As I grow older I can learn to
look after myself
Strands: Myself
Subject: SPHE
Lesson duration: 35 minutes
Elements / Strand units:
• Taking care of my Body – Food and Nutrition
Identify the skills / concepts:
• Raising children’s awareness about food choices and food hygiene helps to promote healthy
attitudes to food.
Children’s prior learning (if you have taught a previous lesson in this subject area):
Children will have prior knowledge the unit ‘taking care of my body’ from previous SPHE lessons
Organisational strategies for teaching and learning:
• Discussion/Group Work
Learning outcomes:
The children will be able to…
• Explore some factors that influence the consumption of different food products
• Discuss and examine the importance of proper food hygiene
Assessment:
Teacher based assessment through asking questions
Differentiation:
Ask higher order and lower order questions so all students can get involved in the lesson
Integration:
• SESE – Science – Living things – Human life
• English – Developing cognitive abilities through language – oral, reading and writing
Resources:
• Some examples of different types of packaging on similar foods
• Worksheet: Food Choices – one per group
• Jingle from a well – known children’s food advertisement
Introduction (time allocated): 5 minutes
Key questions:
To introduce this lesson to the students, they will be told that
they are going to learn all about food and nutrition. The students
will be asked to discuss any prior knowledge they have on this
topic with their partner and then relay this information with the
class. The teacher will help guide the line of discussion with
asking the students the questions such as if they have know any
brand names e.g milk (Avonmore), chocolate (Dairy milk),
cereal (Nestle). The students will be asked if they know of any
phrases or jingles that are associated with the product/brand.
The teacher will then play a well-known jingle such as Rice
Krispies – Snap, Crackle and Pop!
Do you know any advertising jingles
for food products?
Can you say or sing them?
Why do you know these jingles so
well?
Does this influence you or your
parents when shopping for food?
Why/Why not?
Development (time allocated): 2o minutes
Key questions:
The students will then be divided into groups where they will
complete the worksheet on Food Choices. Each group has to
write down three or more food choices under each meal, and in
the next box, write why they chose that particular product. The
teacher will encourage them to be as honest as possible about
this. The students will then discuss why they chose it as a class.
What three food choices did you pick?
Why did you pick these?
What does this tell us?
Have you learned anything about how
you make food choices?
The teacher will then explain to the children that they are going
to help construct a diagram of the main reasons for food choices
in the class.
In the middle of the board, the teacher will write FOOD
CHOICES and then invite each group to contribute one reason
they listed for any food choice on the worksheet. These are
written around the central words. If not mentioned, the teacher
will suggest some of the following: presentation and packaging,
advertising, local or imported produce, price, taste, availability,
suitability for all the family, healthy, fresh or in date etc to help
with scaffolding.
When all have been listed, the teacher will ask the children
individually to pick the top three reasons why they choose foods
generally. They students will discuss this as a class.
The teacher will then introduce the students to food
hygiene and the importance of it. The students will discuss
how to handle food properly and times when we handle
food which could make it less healthy to eat. The teacher
will also discuss with the students the meaning of expiring
dates on food, not cooking food properly and how food
should be stored.
Do you think the reasons you choose
food are a good way to choose?
Does this help you to make healthy
choices? Why/why not?
What could you change about your food
choices to make them healthier?
How should food be stored?
How can we ensure we cook food
properly?
What does the expiry date tell us about
food? Can you think of times when we
handle food properly which could make
it less healthy to eat?
Conclusion (time allocated): 5 minutes
Key questions:
To conclude the lesson the students will be invited to write a
few sentences in their SPHE copy about making good food
choices and/or good food hygiene. They should be encouraged
to share and discuss their learning with parents and guardians.
How do you make good food choices?
What are the factors that influence our
food choices?
How would you relay this information
to your family?
Bachelor of Education / Professional Master of Education (Primary Education)
Lesson Planning Framework
School Placement, Primary Education, DCU Institute of Education
Date:
Class level: 4th Class
Lesson topic: Reading – Fiction – The Lion,
The Witch and The Wardrobe
Strands: Reading and Oral language
Subject: Literacy
Lesson duration: 50 minutes
Elements / Strand units:
• Commuicating
• Exploring
• Using
Identify the skills / concepts:
N/A for English Lessons
Children’s prior learning (if you have taught a previous lesson in this subject area):
The children will have already read up to Chapter 12 with their class teacher and so will already have
knowledge on the characters and setting of the story.
Organisational strategies for teaching and learning:
A variety of class configurations will be used; whole-class work; group work; pair work
Learning outcomes:
The children will be able to…
• Communicating: Demonstrate their engagement with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
through expressing personal opinions and reactions to the text.
• Understanding: Read, use and understand the following new vocabulary
• Exploring and Using: Explain their personal interpretations of setting of chapter 12 of the novel;
respond to the interpretations of other children in the class.
Assessment:
Teacher observation while students read; Teacher higher order questioning to check comprehension of
text
Differentiation:
Ask higher order and lower order questions so all students can get involved in the lesson
Differentiated graphic organiser based on setting
Ability grouping – teacher and SNA will spend more time with the students who require more attention
Resources:
• Copies of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
• Graphic organiser based on setting
• Cards with the different vocabulary
• Flipchart
Introduction (time allocated): 10 - 15 minutes before students
read
•
•
Activate Prior knowledge: the students will be asked
to recall on what has already happened in the novel up
until Chapter 12. The students will be asked in pairs to
discuss the main events that have occurred in the novel
up until now and the whole class will then discuss this
as a group.
Vocabulary: Using images, examples of use, childfriendly explanations, thought questions and active
responding, pre-teach the following words the children
will encounter in the chapter. The children will be asked
to look out for these words while reading.
Key questions:
What have been the main events
leading up until now?
Who are the main characters?
Where is the novel set?
What is the novel about?
What are features of narrative text?
Why are the features of narrative text
important?
•
Narrative Text: Using the prior knowledge the children
have on the novel, the students will be asked to pick out
features of narrative text. If unsure, the teacher will
explain what narrative text is to the students and will
help scaffold some of the children’s answers?
Development (time allocated): 2o minutes – during reading
•
•
•
•
Explain/Demonstrate: The teacher will model the use
of setting as a feature of narrative text with the use of a
graphic organiser. The teacher will explain what a
graphic organiser is and how it can be used to prompt
thinking while reading. E.g What is the climate of the
setting? Where is the novel set? Etc
Guided Practice: Explain: Now I’m going to keep
reading and I want you all to imagine the climate of the
setting. Is it warm? – put up your hand if you have a
question to share.
Independent Application: Explain: Now each of you
will complete your own graphic organiser using the
heading listed on the sheet. While you are reading, you
can share your different ideas on the each of the
headings on the worksheet.
While the students are reading chapter 12 of the novel,
the teacher will circulate and provide assistance if
necessary. The teacher will pay particular need to
groups that might need scaffolding in terms of thinking
of ideas and thinking of the relationship between the
story and the certain headings.
Key questions:
What is the climate of the setting?
Where is the novel set?
What is the mood or atmosphere of the
setting?
How does the setting affect the plot?
After reading (15 minutes)
•
•
•
Whole Class Discussion: The teacher will lead a whole
class discussion to check the students understanding of
each of the headings and the different features of
narrative text. The students will be encouraged to
respond to each other’s responses
Generate Higher Order Question’s: The teacher will
generate higher order questions based on what happened
in the novel. The teacher will help scaffold students
answers who require it.
Interpretation: The students will be asked of their
overall interpretation of the story and of Chapter 12.
Conclusion (time allocated): 2/3 minutes
•
Closure: Revise vocabulary words introduced earlier in
the lesson by playing vo-back-ulary. Ask children to
share with their partner what they think will happen in
chapter 13.
Key questions:
What do you think will happen in
Chapter 13?
Bachelor of Education / Professional Master of Education (Primary Education)
Lesson Planning Framework
School Placement, Primary Education, DCU Institute of Education
Date:
Class level: 4th Class
Subject: Geography
Lesson topic: Brazil
Lesson duration: 50 minutes
Strands: Human Environment
Elements / Strand unit:
People and other land
Identify the skills / concepts:
• Using pictures, maps and globes
• Questioning
• Analyzing
• Sense of place
Children’s prior learning (if you have taught a previous lesson in this subject area):
Students have already created country profiles based on other countries such as Denmark and New
Zealand
Organisational strategies for teaching and learning:
Individual work, Groupwork and Class work
Learning outcomes:
The children will be able to…
• Develop an awareness of the distinctive natural features of Brazil
• Develop mapping skills through engaging in practical use of maps, photographs of different scales
and purposes
• Study the location of Brazil using a variety of resources
Assessment:
Self Assessment – Can they answer their own questions
Teacher Assessment through observation of tasks
Teacher Assessment through questioning using both higher and lower order questions
Differentiation:
Ask higher order and lower order questions so all students can get involved in the lesson
Differentiated grouping in the tasks
Spend extra time with the group/s that require more assistance
Resources:
• Google Maps
• Map of the world
• Globe
• Mapping Brazil template
• Pencils
• Markers
• Brazilian food products such as coffee and papaya
• Powerpoint Presentation of a Brazilian photo gallery
Introduction (time allocated): 10 minutes
Key questions:
To introduce this lesson to the students, I will explain to the
students that they are going to be learning about a new country
today and that the teacher will show them pictures of the
different aspects and features. The pictures will show both the
landscape, the inner city and all the different features of Brazil.
What country do you think I am?
What country do these pictures look
like?
The teacher will also have other resources that are associated
Where do you think these products
with Brazil to help the students in guessing the country such as
come from?
coffee etc. The students will work in their groups to try and
guess which country it is and they will then discuss their guesses
as a whole class. If the students still have nit guessed the correct
country then the teacher will reveal it to them.
Development (time allocated): 35 minutes
Key questions:
In Groups, the students will then generate as many enquiry
questions as they can about Brazil. The teacher will remind the
students to keep the questions open questions and that they will
return to the questions at the end of this topic to see if they can
answer them.
Where is Brazil on the map?
The students will then be asked to refer to the atlas, globe and
satellite looking at the different pictures of Brazil and how it can
look using different resources.
How can we map our own map?
What features are you going to use on
your map?
What do you use at the side of a map so
people know the different features on
the map?
The students will then be asked to use a mapping Brazil
template to create their own map of Brazil. The teacher will
reiterate the importance of using a key so people can understand
the map. The students will decide on the different features they
want to include in their map and will decide on how they want
to represent them. The teacher will scaffold by modelling a few
examples of what they would include in their map e.g. Rivers.
The teacher will also introduce the students to the importance of
the conventions of mapping such as perspective, scale, symbols,
location and direction to ensure the students understand how to
add features to their maps correctly.
What are the different conventions of
mapping?
Conclusion (time allocated): 5 minutes
Key questions:
To conclude this lesson, the students will then look back on the
enquiry questions they generated at the beginning of the lesson
and see if they can answer any of them.
Can you answer some of the enquiry
questions you asked at the beginning?
How can we use the
conventions of mapping?
different
What oceans/seas surround Brazil?
Is it a landlocked country?
What are the main features of Brazil?
What does Brazil look like on a map?
Etc