Throughout my lesson the students learned how to work in

groups in order to test gravity using numerous different items.

Throughout the lesson the students were given a baggie of items in
order to test gravity using each of the items. They were surprised at
some of the results of their gravity tests. They all thought that the
heavier objects would hit the ground first, so they were very surprised
to see that the objects generally hit the ground at the same time. The
groups they worked in were very successful. The students worked
within their tables. I thought they would goof off a lot and not
complete the gravity test however; they surprised me and did very well
in the groups. None of the groups had any problems; they all worked
very well together and completed the entire experiment. Each of the
groups completed the same work however, there were no guidelines
regarding which two items that paired together in order to test. By the
end of the gravity test the groups had all tested many different items
and had made combinations differing from other groups. Some had
tested the coin and the pencil while others tested the coin and the
paper. They all did very different experiments and worked very well
together throughout.
I ended up not having the students rotate the jobs within the
experiment because the CT thought it would work better that way. So I
went around and assigned everyone a job. The students ended up
trading some of their jobs which I think the CT didnt like that much
because she suggested that I make a power point or some visual in
order to display who had which job so they wouldnt trade or mix them
up. I do think this would have been very helpful and if I knew I was
going to assign jobs before I taught the lesson I would have done this
however, I was okay with the students trading jobs. They didnt start
any arguments they actually raised their hands and asked me if it was
okay if they traded and I said sure as long as you both are okay with
trading.
This lesson was connected to the students because we all talked
about how gravity is what keeps US on the ground, and that gravity
was holding us all down while we were engaging in this lesson.
Throughout the gravity test the students tested objects they use on a
daily basis. We used paper clips, paper, pencils, balls, marbles, and
coins. These were all items that the students are exposed to regularly
so they were very familiar with the items. We also discussed how we
could complete the gravity test on items we found around the house.
There were no physical disabilities in this class, and since the 3rd grade
was departmentalized so the classes were broken up according to
development and academic level. While this division was already in
place the levels within each class obviously still differ. Throughout the
lesson I made it a point to walk around and work with each of the
groups, ensuring that all the students were staying on task and to clear
up any confusion the students may have had. I think this helped any

students who may have been struggling with the content. However,
the students were all very engaged in this lesson and were all very
willing to share their responses whenever we were in-group
discussions.
We also did a lot of group discussion where the students were
asking a lot of questions, I had some technical difficulties with the
computer and SMART board so the CT worked to fix that problem while
the students and I continued to discuss gravity. I had intended to pull
up two videos; one
was a gravity rap
that I just thought
the students would
love, and the other
was more of an
informational video.
I had gone in early
and pulled up the
links so I would just
have to click on
them when it was
time to show them
but the computer
got disconnected
from the time I set it
up until when I was teaching so the videos wouldnt load at all. The
computer wouldnt do anything at all; it was frozen for probably 10
minutes. While the CT worked to try to fix this I began discussing with
the students why there wasnt gravity on the moon. They then began
asking questions about the planets size and other things and I
happened to think about a picture I had on my phone (pic below). I
started describing the picture on my phone to the students telling
them that if the other planets were closer to earth, as the moon is, that
we would be able to see them just like we see the moon everyday.
They were all very interested in this and wanted to see the picture so I
let them pass my phone around so they could all see what it would
look like it Saturn was as close to Earth as the moon is. They all loved
the picture and were so interested in learning more about the planets.
Im kind of obsessed with planets and stars and space even though I
dont know that much about it I love to hear and talk about astronomy
so I of course loved this discussion. However, I wanted to aim the
discussion back to gravity so I started talking about gravity on the
moon again. Shortly after that the first video pulled up and the
students were able to watch it and jot down their notes on their desks!
Just as I thought the technology aspect of my lesson was back on
track, the second video wouldnt load and we had like five minutes left
so I gathered all the students in the front of the room and showed

them the rap on my iPad. While the screen was small and it wasnt
that loud the students loved it! I wish I would have been able to pull it
up on the big screen but I was glad that I got to at least show them the
video as best as I could.
The students really expressed their understanding of gravity
throughout the lesson. Since it was such a short class I didnt get into
the depth of the knowledge. Throughout discussions, they
demonstrated their understanding of the information by answering the
questions, asking me questions, and paying attention. I think they left
the class with an understanding of gravity, what it is, why we have it,
and the general ideas pertaining to gravity. I definitely think I would
teach this lesson, I really liked the lesson and I was pleased with how it
turned out. In the future, I would plan the lesson out where I assigned
jobs so I would have a visual ready, but I think I would decide if I was
going to assign the jobs or have then take turns while I was teaching
the lesson. Some days I feel like students would do great taking turns
with the jobs but other days they need to have an assigned job. In the
future I would also make a visual to go along with the lesson. Slides
showing the information regarding gravity, maybe an interactive
SMART board game. I would love to make this lesson part of an
Astronomy Unit!
As a learner I gained a lot of information regarding the ways in
which students respond to interactive lessons. I learned that taking
the time to make a lesson interactive and engaging rather than just
bookwork does get the students attention and they do appreciate the
lesson! While yes all of our professors tell us this I really got an
understanding of this through the science lesson. The science and
social studies class has a teacher assistant or sub teaching, and has
been like this since January. The students have only been doing
bookwork from what I hear. The other CTs didnt want me going on
the classroom so I never saw what they were going, but the kids told
me they just did bookwork. I also learned a lot about gravity myself!
As a teacher, I gained a lot of experience in a field I was initially not
confident in teaching. I was very pleased with the turn out of this
lesson and I was glad that I chose this topic. Still, as a human I could
learn so much more about gravity and am in no way an expert on the
topic, do feel like I have a better understanding and gained confidence
in myself as a science teacher. As a teacher I discovered ways to
engage the students in discussion, this lesson was one of the most
successful lessons Ive had. Typically I have to pull responses out of
students like pulling teeth but in the science and math lessons I didnt,
and I loved that. They were so willing to share and that taught me that
as a teacher, I should aim to make all my lessons this engaging and
interactive.
I gained essential skills in classroom management, the students
responded very well. They were respectful, appreciated my teaching,

and were excited for me to teach them. Since this was at the very end
of my IMB experience I was very confident in maintaining the students
during the lesson and I think that helped in making the lesson run
smoothly. I really liked this experience and am so glad that my science
lesson went well. I definitely needed this to feel confident in my ability
to teach science lessons in the future.