Single Subject Lesson Design
1. Design Your Own Lab
2. 9TH AND 10TH GRADE BIOLOGY
3. STUDENT INFORMATION
A. English Language Learners
1.) Readiness Level- 3 students Intermediate and 5 students Early Advanced English Learners
2.) Learning Profile – Multi-modal
3.) Interest – variety of interests – social time, music, art, cars, sports
B. Students with Special Education Needs
1.) Readiness Level – 5 students with mild learning disabilities or impairments ranging from
problems with visual memory and attention, verbal communication and comprehension, and auditory
and phonological awereness – one student has hearing aids.
2.) Learning Profile – multi-modal
3.) Interest – wide variety of interests – reading, social time, music
4. RATIONALE
A. Enduring Understanding – Designing experiments and creating scientific questions are essential to
all things science. Students will know what it is like to become scientists and formulate a question that they will
then test and collect data to provide answers.
B. Essential Questions –
1. How do scientists use the process of science to provide answers to the questions in our
world?
2. What kind of questions does science address?
3. How do we quantify and qualify the observations we make in our lives?
C. Reason For Instructional Strategies & Student Activities – Students will be able to use their
observations at home and turn them into a scientific question that can be tested and answered. Everyone is able
to participate even with minimal resources to investigate their hypotheses. Students can test any hypotheses
they want, thus allowing personal interests and learning styles to be addressed.
Instructional Strategies provide content (think-pair-share, model experiments, criteria for evaluation),
process (If IV then DV hypothesis starter, Sentence Frames), and product (Rubric, Peer Review) supports.
Student Activities provide supports for varied readiness levels (think-pair-share, sentence frames,
experiment examples, rubric), learning profiles (choose question and experiment), and interests (students
choose what they want to observe and question and how they want to go about testing it).
5. CONTENT STANDARD(S)
Grade 9 & 10 Investigation and Experimentation 1.a. Select and use appropriate tools and technology
perform tests, collect data, analyze relationships, and display data.
Grade 9 & 10 Investigation and Experimentation 1.d. Formulate explanations by using logic and evidence.
6. ELD STANDARD(S)
Writing – Advanced ELD – Organization and Focus - Develop a clear thesis and support it by using
analogies, quotations, and facts appropriately. Write a multiparagraph essay with consistent use of standard
grammatical forms.
7. LEARNING GOAL(S) - OBJECTIVES
After reviewing the scientific method, how to write a lab report, and independent and dependent
variables, students will be able to DESIGN THEIR OWN LAB EXPERIMENT AND WRITE A LAB REPORT, by using
appropriate tools and technology to perform tests, collect data, analyze relationships, display data, and formulate
explanations using logic and evidence. (Psychometer)
8. ASSESSMENT(S)
A. Diagnostic/Entry Level - Each student will be assessed for his or her ability to read and write prior to
this lesson. The teacher will use that information to differentiate the assignment and rubrics to meet the
students’ individual needs.
B. Formative – Progress Monitoring - The teacher will observe students working on classroom activities
and participating in classroom discussions and will use the below criteria to prompt students during the
instructional period, the guided practice as well as independent practice. The teacher will grade each lab report
using the attached rubric
.
C. Summative - Students will be able to design their own lab and complete a lab report. Students will
self assess their experiments and lab reports based on the attached rubric. The teacher will use the attached
rubric to grade each students work.
9. EXPLANATION OF DIFFERENTIATION FOR ELL & STS W/ SP ED NEEDS
A. English Language Learners
1.) Content – Readiness – Students will think pair share their ideas on questions to test and
how to set up their experiment as well as be a part of a classroom discussion with examples of possible
experiment designs. Grading criteria will be explained by the use of a rubric and graphic organizer.
Learning Profile – Students have had many experiences with the vocabulary and sentence frames used
in this project prior to assigning this assignment in all different teaching/learning modes. InterestStudents are able to choose their own question and experiment to test based on their interests and
supplies they have at home.
2.) Process – Readiness – This is a take home project so students have the benefit of parental
help and use of any items they may have at home. Access to me and the co-teacher is available via
email or before, during, and after school. Learning Profile- Students have hands on experience testing a
hypothesis and designing an experiment.
3.) Product – Readiness – A graphic organizer is available for students to help them plan and
organize their experiment and lab report. Students are given a rubric and will have the opportunity to
peer review. Students are encouraged to add graphs and pictures to help explain their experiment and
results.
A. Students with Special Education Needs
1.) Content – Readiness – Students will think pair share their ideas on questions to test and
how to set up their experiment as well as be a part of a classroom discussion with examples of possible
experiment designs. Grading criteria will be explained by the use of a rubric and graphic organizer.
Learning Profile – Students have had many experiences with the vocabulary and sentence frames used
in this project prior to assigning this assignment in all different teaching/learning modes. InterestStudents are able to choose their own question and experiment to test based on their interests and
supplies they have at home.
2.) Process – Readiness – This is a take home project so students have the benefit of parental
help and use of any items they may have at home. Access to me and the co-teacher is available via
email or before, during, and after school. Learning Profile- Students have hands on experience testing a
hypothesis and designing an experiment.
3.) Product – Readiness – A graphic organizer is available for students to help them plan and
organize their experiment and lab report. Students are given a rubric and will have the opportunity to
peer review. Students are encouraged to add graphs and pictures to help explain their experiment and
results.
10. INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES
(Describe what the teacher does. Include differentiation strategies.)
A. Anticipatory Set/Into – Review with students the scientific method and why we use it in science using
references to the Mystery Box lab, variables worksheets, gobstopper lab, and Cornell notes taken on A Bugs Life
and Sharks Tale completed previously. Discuss the important parts of a lab report.
B. Instruction/Through – Discuss examples of testable questions and experiment designs, then have
students think-pair-share their own ideas. Remind students that experiments must be done with supplies they
can get at home. Discuss and review the gobstopper lab and how to set up an experiment and have students
think-pair-share how they might set up the experiment to the question they want to test. Hand out and introduce
the graphic organizer to help students organize their thoughts and plans for experimentation.
C. Guided Practice/Through – Introduce and perform the Density Lab in class to reinforce what they
should be doing for the design your own lab as well as how to write a lab report. Guide students through the
steps of the scientific method as well as the parts of a lab report in class with verbal direction, think-pair-share,
and group hands on activity with the Density Lab.
D. Independent Practice/Through – Explain and provide the rubric for the lab report to clarify criteria for
their writing and design. Pair up students for peer review and revisions/suggestions. Revise and write up final
copy of lab report.
E. Closure – Have students share their experiment results with their neighbor. Review criteria and
rubric for students’ lab reports. Have students write a self-evaluation of how they met those objectives.
F. Beyond – Review how this lesson has been led up to by the gobstopper lab, density lab, and
variables worksheet practice. Talk about the importance of a well developed experiment and thorough lab report
in science. Explain more about the peer review system in science and the importance of being able to recreate
experiments and challenge other scientists finding to allow for more discoveries.
11. STUDENT ACTIVITIES
(Describe what the students do. Include differentiation activities.)
A. Anticipatory Set/Into – Students review the scientific method and why we use it in science in a think
pair share, using references to the Mystery Box lab, variables worksheets, gobstopper lab, and Cornell notes
taken on A Bugs Life and Sharks Tale completed previously.
B. Instruction/Through – Students think-pair-share their own ideas on testable questions. Students are
reminded that experiments must be done with supplies they can get at home. After discussing and reviewing the
gobstopper lab and how to set up an experiment and students think-pair-share how they might set up the
experiment to the question they want to test. Students use the graphic organizer to help organize their thoughts
and plans for experimentation.
C. Guided Practice/Through – In class, students perform the Density Lab to reinforce what they should
be doing for the design your own lab as well as how to write a lab report. Students are guided through the steps
of the scientific method as well as the parts of a lab report in class with verbal direction, think-pair-share, and
group hands on activity with the Density Lab.
D. Independent Practice/Through – Look at and discuss the rubric for the lab report to clarify criteria for
their writing and design. Students pair up for peer review and revisions/suggestions. Revise and write up final
copy of lab report.
E. Closure – Students share their experiment results with their neighbor. Students write a selfevaluation of how they met the objectives in the rubric.
F. Beyond – Review how this lesson has been led up to by the gobstopper lab, density lab, and
variables worksheet practice. Talk about the importance of a well developed experiment and thorough lab report
in science. Students think pair share possible errors in their data and how that could affect their results and
implications on future experiments.
12. RESOURCES (Attach any materials needed to implement the lesson, such as a power point presentation, graphic
organizer, reading…)
Design Your Own Lab Rubric
DYOL Graphic Organizer
Name:_________________________
Design Your Own Lab
Question
Hypothesis
IV:
DV:
If IV then DV hypothesis:
Materials
Methods
Design a Lab Rubric
4
(30 pts)
Clear if IV then
DV hypothesis
Correctly
identifies IV DV
and control
Data collected
is clear and easy
to understand
3
(20 pts)
Unclear if Iv
then DV
hypothesis
Does not clearly
ID all variables
Data collected
is somewhat
unclear
2
(10 pts)
If / then
hypothesis is
not present or
very confusing
Some Variables
unclear or
incorrectly
labeled
Data very
unclear
1
(5 pts)
No hypothesis
or not testable
No variables
correctly
described
No meaningful
data present
Analysis clearly
explains what
data means and
conclusion
refers to and
completely
discusses
hypothesis and
asks new
questions
Analysis does
not completely
explain what
data means
conclusion
doesn’t ask
meaningful new
questions or
explain clearly
when referring
back to
hypothesis
Analysis does
not explain what
data means,
conclusion
doesn’t refer to
hypothesis or
ask any new
questions
Analysis or
conclusion
completely
missing
Self Reflection
I had a hard time completing this lesson plan. I am positive that practice and time will
make it easier, but I do not feel that I was prepared well enough to succeed at making this lesson
plan. I also think I could design a better lesson if I was completely designing the whole lesson
myself, rather than have had some parts already decided by my co-teacher. I had the easiest
time with describing the teacher and student activities because I have prepared to teach the
lesson and have been active in supporting my co-teacher in the assignments leading up to this
one. I had the hardest time with the rationale and differentiation plans. It is difficult for me to pull
unobvious objectives from a scientific lesson where the purpose and benefit of the lesson are
very straight forward. I also had a difficult time with differentiating the lesson for my students that
are ELL or with special needs. With 40 students in each class, we are making lessons multimodal to benefit and support everyone’s learning profiles. There is opportunity for individual
attention while students are performing activities, but I find it difficult to explain a differentiation for
all 13 students with a special learning need. To be honest, I struggled through this lesson plan
and did not feel it helped me prepare to teach the lesson to my students. I hope to gain a better
understanding of the process and parts of writing a lesson plan.
Single Subject Lesson Design Rubric
Design Component
& Criteria
Approaching
Title, Curriculum Area &
Grade Level
0.5 points
Provides a title that is
related to the lesson activity
Student Information
1 point
Rationale
1 point
Standards and Objectives
2 points
Assessment
1 point
Differentiation
1 point
Identify the names of the
students that need
differentiation (both ELL &
Students w/ Sp Ed needs)
Describes the rationale for
teaching this lesson (big
ideas, enduring
understandings, essential
questions) …
Both CA Content and ELD
Standards are identified and
each is addressed in an
objective that contains a
condition, verb, and criteria
Provides an assessment for
each objective and
articulates if it is diagnostic,
entry-level, formative or
summative assessment
Describes the students
differentiation strategy for
the individual students…
Instructional Strategies
1.5 points
Provides an into, through
and a beyond activity for
lesson…
Student Activities
1.5 points
Describes what the
students will do during the
into, through and beyond
activity of the lesson…
Resources
0.5 points
All instructional materials
needed to implement the
lesson are listed.
Self-Evaluation
(1 point will be deducted
if not included)
Provides a copy of the
rubric with the lesson
plan…
10 points possible
Meets
(includes the criteria for
Approaching)
& addresses the unit it
belongs to and in what
curriculum area and grade
& describe each of the
students readiness level,
learning profile and interests
Exceeds
(includes the criteria for
Approaching & Meets)
& describes where it fits
within a unit plan, i.e. Third
lesson in a 4-week unit on
Colonization.
& includes prior successful
differentiation strategies for
each student.
& addresses how the
instructional strategies and
the student activities are
suited to meet the standard
and objective of the
lesson…
& each objective is labeled
by the type (cognitive,
affective, psychomotor or
language) and the number
of the standard it addresses
& clearly communicates to
students about the
expectations (rubric)
& explains how the
assessment is a valid
(authentic) and reliable
(consistent) way to assess
student learning.
& labels the strategy (lesson
content, process or product)
and the way it addresses
the students identity and
developmental needs
(readiness, interest or
learning profile)…
& describes in detail the
steps the teacher will take
to implement the lesson
(anticipatory set, instruction,
guided practice,
independent practice,
closure and beyond) any
need materials (i.e. graphic
organizer, ppt, model,
rubric)…
& each activity is student
centered with multiple
opportunities for the
instructor to check for
understanding…
All instructional materials
that are needed to
implement the lesson listed
and described.
& provides how the
strategy will be assessed
for effectiveness and
altered if needed.
& highlights or circles the
evaluated criteria for each
lesson component…
& identifies which of the six
facets of understanding it is
designed to address.
& provides a sample of
student work.
& provides script for
teacher and times for each
activity.
& provides times for each
activity.
& all materials listed for the
unit are listed and/or
provided, such as power
point, graphic organizer,
sample student work,
assignment rubric, quiz...
& provides evidence for
each criteria marked.