INTASC 7 - Instructional Planning Skills
The teacher plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, the community,
and curriculum goals.
Planning for instruction separates the good teachers from the great. Being prepared with a solid, rehearsed procedure for each lesson will boost any teacher’s credibility because they will seem confident, knowledgeable, and organized. In long term planning, teachers should consider the program expectations, developmental levels of students, their own comfort level with different approaches, and how to incorporate national standards and cross-curricular connections. When planning comprehensive lessons, teachers should consider the scope and sequence of each concept and how to effectively build upon previous knowledge. Teachers should consider how much material they will use in the lesson, the national standards being touched upon by each aspect of a concept, and what skills/experiences will lend to understanding for future comprehension-based lessons.
Important components of a general music lesson plan include behavioral objectives (with corresponding national standards), prerequisite knowledge, materials, opening set, procedure, and assessment. Behavioral objectives are crucial to planning because they are students oriented and define the expectations for the students. They state the learner, an observable behavior, content, criterion, and the condition. The opening set of a lesson grabs the attention of the students and motivates them from the start (if done well); this is done through questioning, review, visuals, humor, etc. And assessment is very essential in a lesson plan because it allows the teacher to observe if their lesson or curriculum is working or not. Assessment components of lesson plans include informative and formative assessments within the lesson and following it as well. Spiral curriculum is a huge key to long term planning. Concepts should be built upon gradually and not left untouched for too long when planning spirally. Cross curricular connections should also have a substantial place in planning.
I love planning. It's practically a hobby for an organizational nut like me. This is where I get to really show off my creativity. Planning is where a teacher gets to decide how he or she wants to put their own completely unique spin on their material. It's why we become teachers! I look forward to consistently planning for groups of students that I know very well during student teaching. This will give me the opportunity to really have a firm, professional grasp on the art of lesson/curriculum planning. I have started to get a taste of this during my practicum this semester. When I plan, I like to picture the actual students (if I know them well) and anticipate their questions and issues to make my planning decisions. Student-centered planning becomes student-centered learning. A good plan shows a teacher's competence and caring; that teacher will always have a job.
Important components of a general music lesson plan include behavioral objectives (with corresponding national standards), prerequisite knowledge, materials, opening set, procedure, and assessment. Behavioral objectives are crucial to planning because they are students oriented and define the expectations for the students. They state the learner, an observable behavior, content, criterion, and the condition. The opening set of a lesson grabs the attention of the students and motivates them from the start (if done well); this is done through questioning, review, visuals, humor, etc. And assessment is very essential in a lesson plan because it allows the teacher to observe if their lesson or curriculum is working or not. Assessment components of lesson plans include informative and formative assessments within the lesson and following it as well. Spiral curriculum is a huge key to long term planning. Concepts should be built upon gradually and not left untouched for too long when planning spirally. Cross curricular connections should also have a substantial place in planning.
I love planning. It's practically a hobby for an organizational nut like me. This is where I get to really show off my creativity. Planning is where a teacher gets to decide how he or she wants to put their own completely unique spin on their material. It's why we become teachers! I look forward to consistently planning for groups of students that I know very well during student teaching. This will give me the opportunity to really have a firm, professional grasp on the art of lesson/curriculum planning. I have started to get a taste of this during my practicum this semester. When I plan, I like to picture the actual students (if I know them well) and anticipate their questions and issues to make my planning decisions. Student-centered planning becomes student-centered learning. A good plan shows a teacher's competence and caring; that teacher will always have a job.
Artifact 1 (Long Term Unit Plan - HS General Music)
This is a hypothetical 3 week unit plan I created for a high school general music course. The theme of the unit is "Anthems." Students experience a large variety of concepts and skills through mostly popular and familiar music. There is a large emphasis on spiral curriculum in this unit as well as cross-curricular connections. In this file you will find my rationale for the unit and theme, a 3 week curriculum grid outlining concepts, skills, teaching strategies, assessments, and cross curricular connections, a fully realized lesson plan within each week, and a summative writing assessment prompt and rubric.
Artifact 2 (Lesson Plan - High School Choral)
This project shows how I would implement the CMP (Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance) approach in a choral ensemble. It shows criteria for selecting a particular piece, learning goals in all three domains, a full lesson plan, a 4 week time frame for rehearsing this one piece, a study guide, a written quiz, a concert reflection assignment and rubric, another writing assignment and rubric, a psychomotor skill test rubric, and a related reading excerpt.