This document outlines an electricity unit plan for a special education classroom. It includes 5 phases: 1) introducing the unit and benefits of technology integration; 2) objectives and assessments; 3) integration strategies such as using a SMART Board for activities; 4) instruction using online videos and labeling diagrams; and 5) evaluation finding students engaged more with technology and hands-on experiments, with improvements like creating a customized webquest.

1. ElectricityTechnology Integration Plan Liza Risoli Spring 2011

2. Electricity Phase I – Relative Advantage The students in my special education class are in third, fourth, and fifth grade. Having the opportunity to utilize technology allows me to differentiate the lesson for each student. Presenting material in a digital or electronic way allows greater flexibility and accessibility. It is also a motivating tool to engage the students as many have attentional difficulties.

3. Electricity Phase II – Objectives & Assessments The enduring understanding that I hope to foster is the knowledge that we depend on electricity and use it everyday. Students will also learn the different ways we obtain electricity and how it travels from the source to our homes. Using technology tools is an added reinforcement of the objective as all technology requires electricity to run.

4. Electricity Phase II – Objectives & Assessments I will conduct pre-assessments to determine background knowledge and interest in the topic. Students will also be informally assessed during each discussion period. Final assessments include labeling images and conducting experiments using the scientific method.

5. Electricity Phase III – Integration Strategies Students have experience using the SMART Board. Students have experience using computers to play educational games, Microsoft word and Google images. Explicit instruction will be necessary and the unit must be scaffolded into several different steps over the course of 1-2 weeks.

6. Electricity Phase III – Integration Strategies After pre-assessing background knowledge on electricity, students will do a visual scavenger hunt and make a list on the SMART Board of the items in the classroom that use electricity.

7. Electricity Phase III – Integration Strategies Discuss characteristics of items that use electricity. Activity: Interactive picture sort – students take turns sorting pictures on the SMART Board.

8. Electricity Phase IV – Instructional Environment Students will explore how electricity reaches us via power lines. http://www.brainpop.com/science/energy/currentelectricity/

9. Electricity Phase IV – Instructional Environment Assessment: students will label the graphic below on the SMART Board in an interactive writing experience.

10. Electricity Phase IV – Instructional Environment As a class we will discuss the many sources of electricity. Using the SMART Board, students will view pictures and images representing wind power, solar power, etc. Video exploring water power http://eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=hydropower_home

11. Electricity Phase IV – Instructional Environment Students will explore the following webquest http://users.rcn.com/fcomeras/ Students who finish early will view the following link and choose an experiment to try. http://users.stargate.net/~eit/kidspage.htm#fluorescent

12. Electricity Phase V – Evaluation The students were more engaged when technology was implemented in the lesson. Individual computer time allowed students with attentional difficulties to really focus on the material without distractions from their peers. They also loved trying the hands on experiments to demonstrate what they learned.

13. Electricity Phase V – Evaluation Improvements: I would design my own webquest using very basic concepts and information. It would be used as a tool simply to reinforce the information that was explicitly taught. I would also have students view the videos again on their own and then discuss what they learned with a partner to reinforce the concepts.