Lesson Plan for

Implementing NETS•S
Template with guiding questions
Teacher(s)
Name Angela Marquez

Position 2nd Grade Teacher

School/District City Schools of Decatur

Grade
Level(s) 2nd

Content Area All

Timeline March-May, 2024

Standards
● What do you want students to know and be able to do?
o The students will be able to research how different jobs impact their community.
o The students will use 6 guiding questions to aid in the research process.
o The students will be able to compose an argument in favor of a chosen job and write details to
support their selection as to why this job is the best choice or important to the community.
o The students will select a digital tool to showcase their learning.
● What knowledge, skills, and strategies do you expect students to gain?
o The students will be able to take notes by paraphrasing information/not plagiarizing
o The student will be able to use nonfiction text features to guide their research and pull out
important facts.
o The students will be able to create an opinion piece using their research and follow the 6+1
writing traits to produce a final piece.
o The students will be able to argue why and how their selected job impacts the community and
use evidence to support their reasoning.
o The students will be able to select which digital tool they will use to create an overall presentation
to be shared with an authentic audience.
● Are there connections to other curriculum areas and subject area benchmarks?
o This unit is an integrated piece, as students will be using both reading, writing, research, and
social studies standards to produce a final piece.
● Please put a summary of the standards you will be addressing rather than abbreviations and
numbers that indicate which standards were addressed.

In this unit, students will collaborate in a research project/presentation after researching on

a given topic (jobs). The students will use the writing process (independently) before
collaborating with another student (who chose the same job) to create a presentation using
a digital tool of their choice. Integrated standards include social studies standards that
involve topics such as needs/wants/consumers/producers, goods/services/and positive
character traits from some of Georgia’s Historical Figures (Jimmy Carter-Habitat for
Content Standards Humanity).
NETS*S In this unit, students will be charged with investigating credible online research to support
Standards: the guiding questions. They will use the information gathered to create a collection of

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 artifacts that cover real world topics. The students will use a variety of digital tools to
communicate their opinion on the topic and share this with an authentic audience.

Overview (a short summary of the lesson or unit including assignment or expected or possible products)

Students become junior ethnographers embarking on a class study of careers and the
roles they play in students’ lives and the community around them. They will learn more
about what it takes to pursue a particular profession, how that profession serves the
community, and the many factors that affect how the job gets done. No job is too
small and the well-being of the community is in the hands of many. Students will
gather research notes, create an opinion piece, and collaborate to create a
presentation of choice using digital tools to be presented to an authentic audience.

Essential Questions

● What essential question or learning are you addressing?

o How can jobs impact the community?
● What would students care or want to know about the topic?
o Describe and define your job.
o What does it take to be good at this job?
o How is this job important to communities?
o How has this job changed over time?
o What are some issues this job faces?
● What are some questions to get students thinking about the topic or generate interest about the topic?
o What kind of jobs do you already know about?
o What do your parents do?
o Can you think of jobs that already exist in the community (think about Decatur Square)?
● What background or prior knowledge will you expect students to bring to this topic and build on?

o Students might think about what job their parents do.

o Students might think about the job of a teacher.

o Students might think about jobs in the local community.

Remember, essential questions are meant to guide the lesson by provoking inquiry. They should not be answered
with a simple “yes” or “no” and should have many acceptable answers.

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See above

Assessment

● What will students do or produce to illustrate their learning?

o Students will produce researched notes that follow our 3Ps of notetaking.
o Students will produce an opinion piece as to why their job is important to the community.
o Students will produce a collaborative project using digital tools and present their findings to an
authentic audience.
● What can students do to generate new knowledge?
o Students will interview parents via Flipgrid and use the guiding questions provided to find out
more about what it takes to be in their parents’ selected profession.
o Students will take a walk to Decatur Square to visit local businesses. The students will gather
notes by interviewing store owners to find out how their job impacts communities.
o Students will participate in Career Day that includes a diverse group of parents to learn more
about various job descriptions and what these jobs have to offer.
o Students will later participate in a Job Fair, in which they will be the ones being interviewed by
local community members and parents.
o Students will create a resume for the Job Fair to see if they are qualified for the job.
o Students will participate in a Service Learning Project with Habitat for Humanity to get a sneak
peek on how organizations can help out community members.
● How will you assess how students are progressing (formative assessment)?
o During this process, most formative assessments will include 1:1 conferences in using the 3Ps of
notetaking.
o The teacher will conference with students daily to check in on the research process
(note-taking)-FORMATIVE.
o The teacher will conference 1:1 with students when producing their rough draft. Each check in will
follow a grade (scale 1-4), monitoring 6+! writing traits-FORMATIVE.
o The teacher will conference with partners when creating digital artifacts (SUMMATIVE).
o The students will also have an opportunity to self reflect on how they are progressing with
note-taking and have opportunities to change their reflection throughout the note taking process.
o The students will assess partner work using the rubric provided.
● How will you assess what they produce or do? How will you differentiate products?

o Students who are in the Tier 2 or 3 process, along with 504, IEP, or ELL students may require
reduced work. For example, while there are 6 guiding questions to be answered through
research, students may have work reduced to 3 or 4 questions. However, ALL students will be
given the opportunity to finish the work completely.

o In addition, these students will be given additional support with more check-ins. The ELL, Special
education teacher, and EIP teachers will be available to offer added support during our WIN time.

o A rubric will be used to assess the criteria based on 1-4 for note-taking, final published paper, and
collaborative artifact.

You must attach copies of your assessment and/or rubrics. Include these in your presentation as well.

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Partner Rubric
6+1 Writing Traits Rubric
3Ps of Note-Taking-SELF REFLECTION
Writing Process-SELF REFLECTION
3Ps of Note-taking (Expectations)
Sample 1:1 conferences/formative grading
Sample Note-Catcher
Sample Final Written Piece
Job Fair Questions/Students Get Interviewed
Flipgrid Parent Interview Questions
Flipgrid Rubric
Habitat for Humanity
Final Resume Example
SAMPLE JOB FAIR PHOTOS

Resources (answers provided in the box below)

● How does technology support student learning?

● What digital tools, and resources—online student tools, research sites, student handouts, tools, tutorials,
templates, assessment rubrics, etc—help elucidate or explain the content or allow students to interact
with the content?
● What opportunities did you have to collaborate with your students to discover and use new digital
resources to meet their learning goals? (Note: This meets part of ISTE standard 4.2)
● What previous technology skills should students have to complete this project?

Technology enhances the learning process by allowing students to showcase creativity and higher level thinking
skills. Technology can increase student engagement and motivation to more rigorous work. Therefore, the
students will use a variety of digital tools to aid in the research process.

Some digital tools that aid in the research process may include, Pebblego, GetEpic, Youtube videos, and online
books. See example HERE. When doing online research, the students will learn how to use keywords to help
them find reliable information.
The teacher will explain expectations for using digital tools for their research and provide 1:1 conferences to
ensure proper understanding and answer any clarifying questions. The main thing I am looking for here is are
they paraphrasing the content and are they placing the information under the correct guiding question.

The students will be presented with an array of digital tools to use for their presentation. They will include a
CHOICE BOARD of the following:
1. Book Creator (book)
2. iMOvie (video-PSA)
3. Canva (Poster)
4. Kahoot (game)
5. Popplet (infographic)
6. Flipgrid (Interview)
7. Screencastify (presentation +voice over)
8. Spotify for Podcasters (Podcast/Interview)
The teacher will provide a quick review on all the Digital Tools listed, most of which have been utilized this year.
The two new ones would be Screencastify and Spotify for Podcasters, so the teacher will be sure to spend
additional time on these. Videos for each will be showcased for clarity. The teacher will then meet with
collaborators to decide on how they would like to present their final piece-this is when they will inform the teacher
on which digital tool they would like to use in their final presentation piece to be later shared with an authentic

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audience. The teacher will answer any clarifying questions about the digital tools and ensure that the collab
partners understand the expectations in their presentation

Instructional Plan and Preparation

● What student needs, interests, and prior learning provide a foundation for this lesson?
o Prior to the launch, the teacher will come into the room dressed as Dr. Maniac Marquez, a
scientist (with purple hair/lab coat, and obnoxious goggles) will discuss why her job is important
in the community and activate background knowledge as to what jobs the students already know
about.
o She will get them excited about the learning and reveal key field trips, service learning projects,
and research, and digital projects they will participate in throughout the unit.
● How can you find out if students have this foundation?
o Follow the introduction of Dr. Manic Marquez, the students will be asked to get into groups and
generate a list of jobs that they may already know about, using an A-Z chart. The students will
share out and create a class list. The students can use this list, along with the field trip
information to Decatur Square, the interview with parents, and Career Day when deciding what
job they would like to research.
● What difficulties might students have?

o ELL students may have difficulty with vocabulary. It will be necessary to point or label items.
Being in groups will help provide exposure and practice to vocabulary words.

o Some students may have difficulty staying focused and on task. Placing students in groups and
providing movement breaks will help with this.

o Some students may need clarification on the note-taking process. providing 1:1 time to answer
any questions and demonstrate the process will be key.

Slidedeck can be used in introducing the topic of how Jobs in My Community.

Management-- Describe the classroom management strategies will you use to manage your students and the
use of digital tools and resources.

● How and where will your students work? (Small groups, whole group, individuals, classroom, lab, etc.)
o Students will work independently during the note-taking process.
o Students who are utilizing the digital tools (Pebblego/Epic/Online links/Videos) with ease will have
the option to partner with someone else researching the same career.
o Students who need additional support may work 1:1 or in small groups with teachers. In some
cases, these students may be partnered with another student who can offer assistance. This will
be determined based on need and behavior.
o During the digital project, ALL students will partner to select a digital tool from the choice board
provided (listed above).
● What strategies will you use to achieve equitable access to the Internet while completing this lesson?
o By providing an assortment of digital tools for digital project creation, in addition to allowing voice
and choice in the final project selection, the teacher will ensure that all students have equitable
access to tools and resources and have enriched opportunities to go above and beyond the
expectation.

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 o With student engagement being heightened with the application of digital tools, students will have
a higher rate of motivation and enthusiasm for their learning, as they learn to take ownership and
self-reflect on their learning throughout the process.
● Describe what technical issues might arise during the Internet lesson.
o Wi-Fi access may be slow or limited or shut down completely. It is important to have authentic
books pulled from the class library or media specialist so that the learning can continue.
o Student Chromebooks may not be working properly. It is important to be ready to allow students
to partner or see if iPads are available temporarily.
o Students may lose their Quick Card, which allows them access to the main Launchpad/hub. It is
important for the teacher to provide backup Quick Cards to prevent loss of time learning.
o Students may forget how to access sites such as Pebblego or Epic. It is important for the teacher
to display access codes in a location that can be easily seen.
● Explain how you worked with students to resolve or trouble-shoot them? (This meets part of ISTE
standard 4.2.)
o Students will be instructed to use additional books if they are not able to access the internet or
Google Classroom. Since their notes are written, initially, the learning can continue with ease.
o Students who are unable to access their Launchpad or if the Wi-Fi seems to be spinning, the
students will know to shut it down and try again, as this typically solves the issue.
o If students forget how to access various sites, they know to ask a peer first, before coming to me,
especially if I am in a 1:1 student conference.
o If students forget how to use a digital tool selected from the choice board options (listed above),
then troubleshooting videos will be provided for them to use, if they are unable to reach me
because I am in a conference with a student/s.
● Please note: Trouble-shooting should occur prior to implementing the lesson as well as throughout the
process. Be sure to indicate how you prepared for problems and work through the issues that occurred as
you implemented and even after the lesson was completed.

Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities – Describe the research-based instructional strategies you will
use with this lesson.

● How will your learning environment support these activities? What is your role? What are the students'
roles in the lesson?
o The learning environment is inviting and calming. Students know that it is OK to make mistakes,
but it’s not OK to give up. We have built a culture of community and the students have
established routines that they follow. There is a behavior system in place and the students are
familiar with the process. They know that after reflection, they are invited back into the activity to
try again. My role is to facilitate the learning process and provide that safe environment. The
students’ role is to ask clarifying questions, while demonstrating respect and responsibility for
their learning.
● How can you ensure higher order thinking at the analysis, evaluation, or creativity levels of
Bloom’s Taxonomy?
o I like to use the Loti Decision Chart to ensure that technology is serving a high purpose and goes
beyond replacement. In doing so, I can provide an authentic learning experience that
incorporates digital tools that allow students to showcase their creativity and reach those higher
order thinking skills. When students are motivated, they are more apt to try challenging concepts.
They are often surprised at what they can achieve. It is the teacher’s responsibility to provide
EXPOSURE and OPPORTUNITY!
● How can the technology support your teaching?
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 o Technology fosters engagement, motivation, a sense of purpose to express oneself creatively,
and engage in higher order thinking skills.
● What authentic, relevant, and meaningful learning activities and tasks will your students complete?
o Service Learning Project with Habitat for Humanity
o Field Trips: Walk to Decatur Square
o Career Day
o Job Fair
o Parent Interview
o Collaborative Digital Project
o All explained and listed above
● How will they build knowledge and skills?
o Students will have ample opportunity to practice speaking and listening skills as they ask
questions and respond to questions during field trips, service learning projects, and the job fair.
o Students will practice using collaborative skills during their digital project with a partner.
o Students will practice taking notes and writing a final piece on a job of their choice.
● How will students use digital tools and resources to communicate and collaborate with each other and
others?
o After the notes and final paper are written, the students will communicate with a partner to
discuss and decide on which digital tool they would like to use in their final presentation.
o They will collaborate in the creation of the final design, and decide what information is most
impactful to cover in their creation.
● How will you facilitate the collaboration?

o Once the written work is complete, students will select a partner to create the digital piece.

o Students will be allowed to choose their partner for this activity (although at times, and if
necessary, equity balls-balls with student numbers, are pulled to assign partnerships.

o The students know that the teacher will have a final say in the selection process, if she feels a
partnership will not be productive.

Differentiation

● How will you differentiate content and process to accommodate various learning styles and abilities?
o Students who are in the Tier 2 or 3 process, along with 504, IEP, or ELL students may require
reduced work. For example, while there are 6 guiding questions to be answered through
research, students may have work reduced to 3 or 4 questions. However, ALL students will be
given the opportunity to finish the work completely.

o In addition, these students will be given additional support with more check-ins. The ELL, Special
education teacher, and EIP teachers will be available to offer added support during our WIN time.

o A rubric will be used to assess the criteria based on 1-4 for note-taking, final published paper, and
collaborative artifact.

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 ● How will you help students learn independently and with others?
o Students need opportunities to practice both. They will get the opportunity to do both during this
unit of study.
o The students will have opportunities to work in groups (when activating prior knowledge).
o The students will have opportunities to work independently, by following the 3Ps of notetaking.
o The student will have opportunities to work independently by writing their final piece.
o The students will have opportunities to work collaboratively when SELECTING and CREATING
an authentic digital piece.
● How will you provide extensions and opportunities for enrichment?
o A choice board of digital tools will be provided.
o Students will be able to select from a list of complicated to less complicated digital tools.
o Some students will be able to combine a couple of digital tools for their final presentation.
o If students have a digital tool in mind that is not listed on the choice board, then they will have to
reveal the tech tool and showcase how they will use the tool for their final digital project.
● What assistive technologies will you need to provide?)

o Students with IEPs will utilize Co:Write and noise canceling headphones to take notes and
complete the final written piece.

o Students with Tier support and 504s may select Book Creator to support their learning, as they
are familiar with all of the built in accessibility features that this platform has to offer.

Reflection
● Will there be a closing event?
• Absolutely! The students will participate in a Celebration of Learning. The parents will be invited
to interview their child, along with their classmates. The parents will be given 5 questions to ask
their child and others. The students will use their research, along with speaking and listening
skills to showcase their knowledge of the career research.
• They will showcase their Resume along with their digital content.
• If the parents select them for the job, the students will be awarded a medal that will be placed
around their neck.
● Will students be asked to reflect upon their work?
• During the note-taking process, students will be asked numerous times to reflect on their ability to
note-take using the 3Ps. They will have opportunities to change their score, each day.
• During the final written piece, students will be asked numerous times to reflect on their ability to
use the 6+1 writing traits and keep track of their progress. They will have opportunities to change
their score, each day.
• During parenter work, the students will be asked to grade their partners using the rubric above.
• Once the final unit is completed, the students will be asked to provide a GLOW and GROW
based on their overall experience. Students will share their feedback with the class.
• Other students will have an opportunity to offer feedback to other students as well. I really like
how you….Next time, you may consider….
● Will students be asked to provide feedback on the assignment itself?
• Students will offer feedback to other students virtually, in written form, or verbally.
• The feedback to each other will depend on the final digital tool selected from the choice board.
• Students who use Book Creator, Spotify for Podcasters, or Flipgrid, for example, will be able to
leave feedback on the platform.

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 • Students who select a different format will be able to receive feedback in written form (sticky note)
and/or verbally when the class gathers to reflect and offer overall feedback on the experience.
• The teacher likes to gather input and suggestions on ways to improve the unit and encourages
students to provide insight on the experience.

Also answer the following questions:

● How will you know if the students found the lesson meaningful and worth completing?
• The number one way that I know that the lesson and student learning is a success is by the level
of engagement happening in the room. I like to call it “The Busy Hum.” During this time, students
are focusing on their work, eliminating interference and outside distractions. They are meeting
with the teacher 1:1, asking clarifying questions, and collaborating at appropriate times. During
this time, the students are problem solving by themselves or asking a reliable peer before coming
to the teacher. The students are taking pride in their work, as they are able to make decisions
about their learning from start to finish. The students are happy and are sad when I tell them it’s
time to clean up! Any visitor can see the level of ownership and engagement when they step into
the classroom. This is what teaching is all about!

● In what ways do you think this lesson will be effective?

o Our goal as educators is to ultimately prepare students to become LIFELONG LEARNERS,
beyond the four walls of the classroom. When we allow students opportunities to problem solve,
fail, persevere, and use real world tools, such as the digital tools provided in the choice board,
students are more likely to feel a sense of pride and confidence in their ability to effectively
become a contributing member of society. Speaking and listening skills, along with many writing
skills are integrating amongst the social studies standards. There is so much learning taking
place! This lesson/unit is an excellent example of how to build current and future success in
student learning.
● Why do you think this?
o Students need continuous opportunities to build student agency!
o They need to know it’s ok to fail at something, but it’s not ok to quit.
o They need to experience challenges and rigor early on and know that this is a part of the learning
process.
o Students need to have opportunities to collaborate, self reflect, and offer feedback on their work
and the work of others.
o These are all attributes to life long learners.
● What problems do you anticipate and why?
o I anticipate absences being a problem.
o Since the work is scaffolded nicely, the students who miss even a day, miss a lot. Being a school
daily is very important, especially when it comes to the collaboration piece. Absences occur often
at this school, so it is important to ensure that parents know that the work will be coming home
and can be accessible via Google Classroom if the student is absent.
o If a student is absent and I am forced to send the work home, 9 times out of 10, the work will
never be complete. The challenge for me will be to find additional time within the instructional day
to provide added support and time to complete the missed work.
● How would you design and/or teach this lesson differently if you had more time?
o Great question, because TIME is always an issue.
o If I had it my way, no student would be absent at all. But since we know that will never be the
case, then I can try the flipped classroom approach, in which I pre recorded videos and post them
on Google Classroom, along with all the links that are listed above.
o I would have the parents sign a “contract” indicating that the work missed MUST be completed at
home.
o Most importantly, what I would ultimately like to do is EXTEND this task to really allow the
students to become entrepreneurs in which they create their own business based on their very
own culture. In this way, students will not only be able to research their culture, but they will also

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 be able to create artifacts based on their culture and sell those featured artifacts during our
Cultivating Culture in the Community Day Or 3Cs Day! During this day, students will become
producers and consumers as they go around and buy/sell using classroom money. Parents, other
grade levels, and community members can also take part in this spectacular day in which every
voice is ultimately given a chance to be heard.

Closure: Anything else you would like to reflect upon regarding lessons learned and/or your experience with
implementing this lesson. What advice would you give others if they were to implement the lesson? Please
provide a quality reflection on your experience with this lesson and its implementation.
This unit reaches a Loti 6 because students are creating authentic artifacts during many parts of this unit. They
are tapping into their higher level thinking skills and showcasing what they have learned with an authentic
audience.
I think this is a great unit for any 2nd-4th grade classroom. There are so many skills and available resources
posted that teachers are welcome to use. I would advise any teacher using this unit to plan it out by weeks. This
way, you can ensure that you are able to fit it all in.

Reflection:
I have always been a huge technology fan; always looking for ways to incorporate the use of technology into my
instructional practices that reach beyond substitution status. Since starting my journey at KSU, I have been
granted permission to do what I know is right-provide students with HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTION that indeed
incorporates the authentic and creative use of technology into all subject areas. You see, I currently teach at a
K-2 school. Over the four years that I have been there, technology has always seemed to take a back seat. Most
teachers at my school use technology simply for Boomcards or Starfall. When I came onboard in 2020, I was told
that 2nd graders are too young for technology. Cleary, I disagreed and did my best to incorporate technology
while using the minimal tech that was provided. Prior to my experience at CSD, I came from a PBL school, which
clearly advocated for everything KSU has focused on: personalized learning, voice and choice, student feedback,
student agency, and so much more! I STRONGLY believe that given this new day and age, with a new generation
of learners who struggle to stay engaged, the need for authentic use of technology is ABSOLUTELY necessary in
ALL grades, K-12. So often, the younger grades get counted out; I am here to advocate the importance of tech
integration, even at the K-2 level. I have recognized the importance of advocating for what’s right. I do believe if
teachers knew how technology can transform learning through professional development, then more teachers will
be on board. I will do my part at the school/district level to advocate for or provide PD that supports the
instructional use of technology from now on!

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