Life in New Spain

We finally made it to the last 3 lessons! Group 4 taught their direct instruction lesson on Thursday on Life in New Spain. This was such an interesting topic. I loved learning about Life in New Spain myself. My colleagues who taught this lesson were Olivia Green, Amanda Almodovar, Cierra Torres, and Ganny Kim. To start out the direct instruction lesson they introduced a "LEARN" poster. The LEARN poster was introduced to the students to accompany the captains vs explorers game. The students were told if they had more points than the teachers by the end of the lesson, they would get a prize. I really loved this idea because it kept the students motivated through the whole lesson. Each student was provided with an explorer folder. Inside the explorer folder was everything that the students would need for the lesson. I really loved the idea of the explorer folder because it wasn't time-consuming. The teachers didn't have to pass out papers. The teachers also introduced fireworks. Every time the key term were underlined the teachers along with the students would act out the fireworks motion. I think the students enjoyed this. Throughout the lesson, there was a lot of turn and talk opportunities for the students. For example, the students were told to turn and talk about "Why the conquistadors needed gold?" I like the turn and talk method because it allows the students to share ideas with each other, and have them check with each other for a correct answer. The teachers also enforced thumbs up if you agree👍, thumbs down if you disagree 👎. There was a lot of information for the students to retain. Amanda, Ganny, Olivia, and Cierra did a wonderful job. Each teacher was enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and engaging.  Throughout the lesson, the students were copying down main points and key terms. The only thing I wish they did differently was have the students write less. Having the students write less would allow time for the guided practice. I can really tell each teacher worked very hard on the lesson. I know what it feels like to run out of time and rush a lesson. The teachers handled this very well and skipped to the independent practice. I think group 4 did a wonderful job and I truly enjoyed watching their direct instruction lesson. I can't wait to see inquiry and cooperative learning! Great job ladies💗!