I. Content: Describe what it is you will teach. What is the content?

LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES 1 I. Content: Describe what it is you will teach. What is the content? This lesson will continue the simple machines unit by introducing inclined planes. Students will be asked to review levers and why it is a simple machine. From there students will be introduced to inclined planes. After learning about inclined planes and where they are applied in real life, students will be asked to explore the effectiveness of inclined planes. II. Learning Goal(s): Describe what specifically students will know and be able to do after the experience of this class. Students should know and be able to: Begin to understand the importance of simple machines Define and explain what a simple machine is To discuss and write about inclined planes by using scientific vocabulary (force, effort, load, resistance) Understand how an inclined is used to reduce the force of an object. Identify simpler solutions to various situations Working together in a small group III. Rationale: Explain how the content and learning goal(s) relate to your Curriculum Unit Plan learning goals. This lesson will be a continuation on why simple machines are important to real life situations. Smart Words Reader titled Inclined Planes. Students will be introduced to the scientific terms used to explain inclined planes such as force, effort, load, resistance, and acceleration). Important words and concepts will be recorded in the flipbooks to be used for reference in future lessons and activities. A discussion for learning will take place; students will be asked to look at various pictures of inclined planes in real life situations. Once students show they understand the various ways an inclined plane is used, students will be asked to explore the various ways inclined planes reduce force on certain objects. IV. Assessment: Describe how you and your students will know they have reached your learning goals. Read aloud o Guided reading questions o Turn and talks Students will be asked to turn and talk to partners at various times during the read aloud. This will assure that students are engaged and paying attention to the content Flipbooks o Shows students understanding of concepts and ideas

2 LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES UNIT Exploration/Data Sheet o Students will be working in groups of three o This will show how students are working together in small groups and if they can maximize learning time. o Data sheet will show if students can work on an experiment and record appropriate information Exit Slip o Students will be asked if they could make the connection that inclined planes can make lifting an object easier as well as providing acceleration. V. Personalization: Describe how you will provide for individual student strengths and needs. How will you and your lesson consider the needs of each student and scaffold learning? During this lesson all students will have the ability to access the content, form understandings, and share their knowledge. Reading excerpts from Smart Words Inclined Planes is a way to link literature and science to help students who connect to pictures, real life examples, and read alouds as a tool. Whole class discussion about inclined planes and turn and talks will help students who struggle to articulate in a classroom setting; turn and talks will give them opportunities to get their thoughts and ideas heard. Small groups of 3 will be pre-selected to ensure students will maximize their learning time and also to help students who are struggling with the materials to be in a group where they will be guided with insight and leadership skills. This will allow students to work together, develop, and contribute to the classroom learning community. Flipbooks and modeling on chart paper will help students understand the concepts and vocabulary words needed to understand simple machines. These will also help ELL learners who are still developing vocabulary; the flipbooks will help students connect diagrams with important vocabulary. The inclined plan activity will help students understand that inclined planes can used to push/pull an object up or accelerate an object. VI. Activity description and agenda: Describe the activities that will help your students understand the content of your class lesson by creating an agenda with time frames for your class. Be prepared to explain why you think each activity will help students on the path toward understanding. Time Student Teacher 7 minutes Turn and talk. Discuss what they think about simple machines. Have students come to rug with preselected partners. Have students turn and talk about the previous lesson that introduced levers.

LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES 3 3 minutes 10 minutes 10 minutes. 10 minutes 6 minutes Duration of class Listen to teacher. Write inclined planes. Listen to teacher. Write lever definition in flipbook. Turn and talk. Listen to teacher. Write definitions in flipbook. Draw diagram in flipbook. Listen to teacher. Point out load, resistance, force, and slope. Listen to teacher. Read over sheet with group members. Work in group to complete exploration. Pass out flipbooks and have students add inclined planes to the next section. Model for students to show how to spell the words correctly. Introduce inclined planes. Write lever definition on chart paper. Model writing in flipbook. Read excerpt from Smart Readers Inclined Planes. Have students turn and talk about inclined planes reading. Explain to students the different parts of an inclined plane. Introduce force, load, resistance, and slope. Model drawing diagram. Have students draw in flipbook. Transition to discussing various examples of inclined planes. Show pictures of inclined planes. Have students talk in groups about where they see force, load, resistance, and slope. Introduce exploration activity. Call students by preselected groups and have them look over the exploration sheet. Go over sheet with students. Show materials. Have students come and get materials and start the exploration. Walk around to make sure students are on task.

4 LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES UNIT VII. List the Massachusetts Learning Standards this lesson addresses. 2.2 Describe different ways in which a problem can be represented, e.g., sketches, diagrams, graphic organizers, and lists Engineering Design: 3.1 Identify tools and simple machines used for a specific purpose, e.g., ramp, wheel, pulley, lever. VIII. Reflection a. In light of all areas of planning, but especially in terms of your stated purpose and learning goals, in what ways was the activity(ies) successful? How do you know? In what ways was it not successful? How might the activity be planned differently another time? b. What did you learn from the experience of this lesson that will inform your next LAP? After the lever/catapult lesson I was apprehensive to place students in pre-selected groups again. This lesson was the first lesson where students will explore a simple machine and using exploration to develop understanding of why inclined planes make pushing/pulling an object easier. During the discussion, students were able to understand why an inclined plane helps with moving heavier objects. They were able to give key examples of inclined planes such as ramps at Walmart, ramps off of a moving truck and low hills. Students were having trouble understanding why we would need a ramp if we could just walk up stairs at stores; one student raised her hand to say that some people are in wheelchairs and need a plane to get into the store. I decided to explain how my brother used a ramp to help push moving boxes into my second floor apartment when I was moving in. Students seemed to understand that Matt (my brother) needed an inclined plane in order push a heavy box instead of carrying it up the stairs. I wanted this lesson to focus on using an inclined plane when pushing heavy objects up, steering away from talking about the acceleration an object would get when going down an incline plane using a car (wheel and axles). Students were split up into groups of three to work with the materials. They were asked to look over what they would need for the exploration and why they would be using these materials. When walking around I noticed that students were starting to understand that the steeper the inclined plane, the more force is needed to drag or push an object up an inclined plane. I noticed that one student was struggling with the concept of inclined planes but before I was able to ask him for assistance, his partner decided to sit down and show him how force increases as the inclined plane became steeper. This was a powerful moment because it showed me that students are able to work with each other and help others who are struggling. There were some misconceptions during this lesson that had to be addressed. When asking students what was happening when they used the inclined plane or just pulled the object straight up students were explaining that there was more weight when

LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES 5 pulling it up so its heavier! and the weight is lighter when we pull it on an inclined plane. Although I explained to the students that the spring scales are being used to record force, students see the scale and assume we are weighing the object; this confused students because they were convinced that the weight of the object was decreasing and increasing as they pulled the objects on different inclined planes. Because of this I asked students if an object can change its weight when it is being held or pulled?; many students were quick to answer with well of course not Ms. Coakley!. After these comments and answers, I had students to then think about what the spring scales were used for if they were not showing the weight of the object?. Even thought students were able to explain that inclined planes make work easier, in their exploration sheets some students explained how it was harder to pull something an inclined plane than it was to pull it straight up. Because of this misconception, I was able to have a whole class discussion the next day to make sure students understood that inclined planes make work easier. If I were to teach this lesson again I would make sure I introduced force with various examples with the spring scale; I would explain that force and weight are two different ways to record from an object.

6 LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES UNIT Simple Machines: Inclined Plane Exploration Objective: I will use my knowledge of incline planes to explain force and work when using an incline plane. Materials: Piece of wood 3 science books Spring scale Plastic bag with hole Mystery object Step 1: On the table, make a ramp by stacking 1 book with the end of a piece of wood on the book. Step 2: Use spring scale to lift bag filled with objects straight up. Record how much force took to lift the objects in the chart below. Step 3: Use the spring scale to pull bag filled with objects up the ramp. Record the force used to pull the objects up the ramp in the chart below. Step 4: Stack 2 books on top of each other. Use the spring scale to pull the objects up the ramp. Record the force used to pull the objects up the ramp in the chart below. Step 5: Stack 3 books on top of each other. Use the spring scale to pull the objects up the ramp. Record the force used to pull the objects up

LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES 7 the ramp in the chart below. How much force is used? (Record in grams) Height of ramp Lifting Straight Up Using Incline Plane 1 book 2 books 3 books Observations: Looking at the chart, what can you state about the force when pulling the object straight up compared to using a ramp as an inclined plane? Is it easier to use an inclined plane or not when lifting heavy objects? Please explain using simple machine vocabulary.

8 LAP 3: INCLINED PLANES SIMPLE MACHINES UNIT Please sketch an inclined plane. Be sure to label the load, force, slope, and resistance.