Student Grouping

When grouping students in the classroom, there are some factors I would need to consider. I would take each student’s performance/grades in the class and their skill set, into consideration. Over the course of the unit, depending on the learning outcomes of that lesson/unit, I will most likely alternate between homogeneous and heterogeneous grouping. If my goal in the lesson was to help the struggling students in that unit, I would form heterogeneous groups. If the purpose of the group learning activity is to encourage medium ability groups to learn at high levels then homogeneous grouping would be better. Students’ reading and writing skills would also be taken into consideration and categorized along with their science skills in the class in order to determine if they fall under the weaker, middle-range, or excelling students of the subject. Some potential problems could arise no matter which type of grouping you plan on utilizing. In choosing the homogeneous groups, the students will come to realization that they were placed into the “weaker” or “stronger” groups and tensions could potentially rise as a result. Also, the students in the lower skill level groups might see the task of the group more burdensome and overwhelming. In picking heterogeneous group, the weaker students of the group might not participate as much and “coat-tail” off of the stronger students of the group, without learning much.  

Graphic Organizers

Robert A. Jackson

Framing Our Reading: Vocabulary and Concept Development

 

	Text Citation or Link	Rationale for Choosing	Text Frame(s)	Strategies Used and Resource
Engagement Example	Young Blood: Elixir of Youth	This article hits all concepts of the Scientific Method, which students need to comprehend the components of. This article also enhances students’ scientific vocabulary with terms related to the cardiovascular and immune/lymphatic system.	Concept/ definition  Vocabulary/ definition	Previewing (McLaughlin    Book)
Guiding Example	Out of Touch	This article hits concepts of how cilia and flagella function. (Cell Biology) This article also enhances students’ scientific vocabulary with terms related to cell biology and physics. This article also compares and contrasts movements of cilia/flagella to a pendulum model in physics	Cause/ Effect Vocabulary/ definition Compare/ Contrast	Gallery Images (McLaughlin    Book)
Extension Example	Artificial Sweeteners Article	This article hits all concepts of the Scientific Method, which students need to comprehend the components of. This article also enhances students’ scientific vocabulary with terms related to carbohydrates, microbiology, and the digestive and immune system. This selection provides a debatable topic on the pros/cons of artificial sweeteners which can spark healthy discussion arguments and debates.	Concept/ definition  Vocabulary/ definition Point of View/  Debates	Discussion    Web (McLaughlin    Book)

*** - Highlighted in red are the concepts/terms from each article I will use.

The three biological terms/concepts I will use to discuss how I would utilize graphic organizers in order to teach them, are the Scientific Method, cardiovascular system, and the structure/function of cilia and flagella.

In general, graphic organizers have been shown to portray visual representations of ideas and concepts. They have also demonstrated benefits to teaching vocabulary as well. The actual images and visual designs of the organizers aide in allowing students to better remember information associated with the terms. Having students engage in open discussions, whether as a whole class or small group, also promotes the better understanding of the term/concept. The graphic organizers also contain information that the students can use to create oral or written summaries (McLaughlin, 2015).

In creating a graphic organizer to help students understand the concepts associated with the Scientific Method, I would have them use a Semantic Question Map. The Semantic Question Map is a variation on the Semantic Map, except its general design is fixed. The main concept/term is declared the central word of the map. In this case, the central word is “Scientific Methods.” The questions or components that stem out from the central word will be “Hypothesis,” “Materials/Methods,” “Data/Results,” and “Conclusion.” Depending upon the experiment or study the students are either using themselves as a lab experiment or one in which they are reviewing/analyzing, the words that “leaf” off of the “stem words” will be correlated to that specific experiment. This will help them to understand the components of the Scientific Method in relation to the experiment they are conducting or analyzing (McLaughlin, 2015).

In beginning the lesson, I would first explain the strategy of Previewing in that it is a comprehension strategy that includes activating background knowledge, setting purposes for reading, and predicting what will come next, based on what has been already read. In order to activate prior knowledge on the Scientific Method, a class discussion is then held and the students are asked to tell me what they know or recall about the Scientific Method from previous lessons and labs. I touch every component of the Scientific Method they have previously learned and relate it to one of their previous lab experiments. What is the main question they are answering? Do they have adequate background information on the topic or does further research on the topic need to be done? Formulate a hypothesis about the main research question. Have the materials and methods/procedures accessible and known in order to conduct the experiment. Gather data and analyze the results. Know whether or not the results supported the initial hypothesis. Draw conclusions and give an overall analysis of the findings (discussion). Each of these key concepts of the Scientific Method are harbored on in the initial classroom discussion, in order to activate the students’ prior knowledge. I will then introduce the Semantic Question Map to them, in which the central Scientific Method word, and the corresponding components (“Hypothesis,” “Materials/Methods,” “Data/Results,” and “Conclusion”) are all provided on the worksheet as well. They will be tasked with reviewing the article and providing what specific scientific components the researchers in the article used in their experiment (McLaughlin, 2015).

To further enhance student thinking on the Scientific Method, I will have them review the experiment they will be working on in class the following day. I will have them fill out a Scientific Method Semantic Question Map related to that experiments to have them better understand and comprehend the Scientific Method components of that experiment they will be working on.

This graphic organizational strategy for the Scientific Method helped me out greatly when I was in high school. I recall having a laid out methodical approach on how to conduct a laboratory experiment and how to write a proper lab report using the components of the Scientific Method. It was extremely valuable to me as I entered college as a Biology major.

 

 

 

Below is an example of a Scientific Method Semantic Question Map:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In developing a graphic organizer to assist students in learning about terms, vocabulary, and concepts in cell biology like cilia and flagella, I would try to use alphabet brainstorming. This graphic organizer is effective when students have extensive background knowledge, especially when they are engaged in looking over previous instruction and learning. It assists students in reviewing the terms and vocabulary from cell biology (Buehl, 2014).

In the beginning of the lesson, I have students recall information they have learned about the organelles of a cell. I provide each student with a blank Alphabet Brainstorming Organizer. The students will work in collaborative groups to fill out each letter of the alphabet in meaningful association or relation to cell and organelle structure and function. Students are to fill in as many letters as possible given a designated time period of fifteen minutes. Each group will have one presenter share with the class the terms/vocabulary they came up with for each letter and to justify how that vocabulary term fits with the topic. In particular, the students of other groups will want to listen in order to fill out the difficult letters they left blank. After reading and expanding their understandings once again, the groups then return to their alphabet charts to add new meaningful items related to the topic (Buehl, 2014). As a homework assignment, I will have the students write out the definition to each of the 26 words they came up with. This is to further extend their knowledge.

This sort of graphic organizer helped me out in the past when I was younger in studying geography and even some science vocabulary. I recalling playing the “alphabet game” when I was young and trying to come up with all countries and cities in the world that begin with the letter A, B, C, D, E, and so forth. This alphabet brainstorming really helped out with extending my vocabulary and general knowledge in not just geography, but sciences as well. The great part about the lesson is that students are able to revisit their lists after learning to add new in formation, and can eliminate erroneous information with the assistance of the group presentation and class discussion.

Below is an example of an Alphabet Brainstorming Organizer:

A: ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)	N: Nucleus
B: Bacteria	O: Organelle
C: Cilia	P: Peroxisomes
D: DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)	Q: Quaternary Structure (of Protein)
E: Endoplasmic Reticulum	R: Ribosome
F: Flagella	S: Substrate
G: Golgi Apparatus	T: Thymine
H: Hypertonic Solution	U: Uracil
I: Isotonic Solution	V: Vacuole
J: Junk DNA	W: White Blood Cell
K: Krebs Cycle	X: X-Chromosome
L: Lysosome	Y: Y-Chromosome
M: Mitochondria	Z: Zygote

12

To Lung

6

In creating a graphic organizer to aide students in remembering the components of the cardiovascular system, and the flow of blood, I have them utilize a sequential imagery map. This is a graphic organizer I personally created in order to help my college Anatomy and Physiology students remember facts about different organs in the body systems. This also can assist middle and high school students remembering the flow of blood in the human body’s cardiovascular system. This graphic organizer contains the sequential order of the components of how blood enters the heart and when it leaves the heart. I provide the students with an image showing the sequence of the flow of blood with the terms/vocabulary of the heart they are required to know. Below the organizer, they are to correctly identify the numbered labels of the heart and provide definitions on a separate sheet of paper.. Below is the example:

5 & 11

10

9

8

From Lung

7

1

4

3

2

1

1: ________________________________                            7: _________________________________

2: ________________________________                8: _________________________________

3: ________________________________                9: _________________________________

4: ________________________________                10: ________________________________

5:________________________________                 11: ________________________________

6:________________________________                 12: ________________________________

These sequential imagery maps have greatly helped me memorize the correct anatomical structures and flows of blood, food, lymph, air, etc., in the human body depending on the body system. They have been of great value to my students at both the high school and college level.

The graphic organizer I would provide an example of, and one which I definitely plan on utilizing in a Biology, Allied Health, or Anatomy & Physiology class would be the Word Roots/Prefixes/Suffixes chart. A majority of biology and anatomy and physiology related terms are derived from Greek and  Latin roots. I find it highly important for students to be able to define complex scientific vocabulary terms using the context clues and definitions of root words. In having students study the human body systems I would have them memorize the Word Roots/Prefixes/Suffixes I provide. I would then quiz them and create exams based on these biological roots/prefixes/suffixes in order to evaluate them.

Below is an example I personally created and one which I currently use for my students:

GREEK AND LATIN ROOTS, PREFIXES, and SUFFIXES

 

Instructions:  For each root in the list below, find a word that incorporates the root. The word does not have to be a medical or technical term. However, be sure that the word you choose includes the appropriate root with its given meaning, rather than just having the same letters without the correct meaning. For example, the word “apple” begins with the letter “a”, but it is not an appropriate word to illustrate use of the first root in the list, “a” meaning “without”. To verify that a particular root is appropriately used in the word, look up the word in a dictionary or glossary.

 

 

	ROOT	MEANING OF ROOT	WORD(S) CONTAINING ROOT
1	A-, AN-	not, without
2	AB-	away
3	AD-	toward
4	-ALGIA	pain
5	ANGIO-, ANGI-	blood vessel
6	ANTI-	against
7	ARTHR-	joint
8	BI-, DI-	two, double
9	BIO-	life
10	-BLAST	early stage, precursor
11	CARDIA-, CARDIO-	heart
12	CEPH-	head
13	CHONDR-	cartilage
14	CO-, COM-, CON-	with, together
15	CONTRA-	against
16	CUT-	skin
17	-CYST	bladder, hollow
18	-CYTE	cell
19	DERM-	skin
20	DIA-, DI-	through, across
21	DORS-	back
22	DYS-	painful, difficult, abnormal
23	EC-, EX-	out of, out from
24	-ECTOMY	excision of
25	-EMIA	of blood, in blood
26	EN-, END-, ENDO-	within
27	ENTER-, ENTERON	intestine
28	EPI-	on, upon, over
29	ERYTH-	red
30	EXTRA-	outside of, beyond
31	GASTR-	stomach
32	-GEN	producing
33	-GENESIS	origination or development of
34	GLYC-, GLYCO-	sweet
35	-GRAM, -GRAPH	record, write
36	HEM-, HEMA-, HEMO-	blood
37	HEMI-, SEMI-	half
38	HEPAT-	liver
39	HOMO-, HOMEO-	same, similar
40	HYDR-	water
41	HYPER-	above, over, excessive
42	HYPO-	below, under, deficient
43	HYSTER-, HYSTERO-	uterus
44	INTER-	between
45	INTRA-	within
46	ISO-	equal
47	-ITIS	inflammation
48	LEUC-, LEUK-	white
49	-LYSIS	loosening, dissolving, destroying
50	MACRO-	large
51	MAL-	bad
52	MENS-	month
53	METR-	measure
54	MICR-	small
55	MONO-	one, single
56	MYO-	muscle
57	NEO-	new
58	NEPHR-	kidney
59	NEUR-	nerve
60	-OID	like, similar to
61	-OLOGY	study of
62	-OMA	tumor, swelling
63	OPH-, OP-	eye
64	OS-, OSTEO-	bone
65	-OSIS	abnormal condition
66	-OSTOMY	formation of an artificial opening
67	-OTOMY	incision into
68	PARA-	beside,near
69	PER-	through
70	PERI-	around
71	PHOT-	light
72	-PNEA	breathing
73	PNEUM-	air
74	POLY-	many
75	POST-	in back of, after
76	PRE-	in front of, before
77	RETRO-	behind
78	-RHAGE, -RHAGIA	bleeding, bursting forth
79	SCLER-	hard
80	-STASIS	a stationary condition
81	SUB-	below, beneath
82	SUPER-, SUPRA-	above, beyond
83	THERM-	heat
84	THROMB-	clot
85	TOX-	poison
86	TRANS-	across, by way of
87	TRI-	three
88	UR-	urine
89	-URIA	of urine, in urine
90	VAS-	vessel, duct
91	VIT-	life

 

WRITING EXERCISE ON ROOTS, PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES

 

Instructions: Using your list of roots, prefixes, and suffixes, give a definition of each word below.  Do not look the words up in a dictionary or textbook.

 

 

 1. microcephalus ‑      __________________________________________________________

 

 2. chondrocyte ‑         __________________________________________________________

 

 3. gastroenteritis ‑       __________________________________________________________

 

 4. hyperpnea ‑                        __________________________________________________________

 

 5. hypodermic ‑          __________________________________________________________

 

 6. neuralgia ‑               __________________________________________________________

 

 7. osteoblast ‑             __________________________________________________________

 

 8. toxemia ‑                __________________________________________________________

 

 9. nephrectomy ‑        __________________________________________________________

 

10. leukocyte ‑                         __________________________________________________________

 

11. hemangioma ‑        __________________________________________________________

 

12. antidiuretic ‑          __________________________________________________________

 

13. polyuria ‑               __________________________________________________________

 

14. dysentery ‑                         __________________________________________________________

 

15. subcutaneous ‑       __________________________________________________________

 

16. hyperglycemia ‑     __________________________________________________________

 

17. cystitis ‑                 __________________________________________________________

 

18. biogenesis ‑            __________________________________________________________

 

19. myocardium ‑        __________________________________________________________

 

20.intravascular -         __________________________________________________________

References:

 

 

Buehl, Doug (2014).  “Alphabet Brainstorming.” Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning.

 

            Newark , DE. 4^th Ed. P. 73-74.

 

Hudson, Paige (2015). “Science Corner: The Importance of the Scientific Method.” Elemental

            Blogging. <http://elementalblogging.com/importance-of-scientific-method/>.

 

McLaughlin, Maureen (2015). “Comprehending Content Area Text.” Content Area Reading:

            Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. Pearson. 2^nd Ed. P. 54.

 

 

McLaughlin, Maureen (2015). “Using Comprehension Strategies to Guide Thinking.” Content

Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. Pearson. 2^nd Ed. 

P. 85.

 

McLaughlin, Maureen (2015). “Using Comprehension Strategies to Extend Thinking.” Content

            Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. Pearson. 2^nd Ed.

            P. 96-97.

 

 

McLaughlin, Maureen (2015). “Teaching Vocabulary in the Content Areas.” Content

            Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. Pearson. 2^nd Ed.

            P. 116-119.