Identifying Sight Words

A universally designed lesson for first grade using the Promethean

Smart Board

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008High Incidence Accessible Technology Team – MCPS – 2008http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/hiat

A universally designed lesson…

The following slides describe a lesson using the Promethean board with ActivPrimary software in Rachael Love’s first grade classroom. The lesson is annotated with just a few examples of how the concepts of UDL apply to the tools, teaching strategies, and methods of expression and assessment that Ms. Love uses with her students.

Identifying Sight Words

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

Phonemic Awareness-Sound Boxes

This first activity allows students to mix and fix words. They are identifying letters and corresponding sounds, deleting, substituting, and adding sounds to form new words. They are segmenting one syllable words into phonemes, and blending 3-4 phonemes into a word. These sound boxes work almost like a game, and the students are very motivated to move around to mix and fix the words. They are doing CVC and CCVC words.

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

How UDL applies

This lesson demonstrates how Ms. Love uses flexible teaching methods to engage students: Instructional activities (finding sight words)

relate to a meaningful context (a poem on a current topic)

Students are motivated by the colors and marker tools on the board

Students learn from each other because they can all see others’ responses

How UDL applies

The Promethean board is a flexible tool that overcomes barriers to learningUsing the software to move letters around

levels the playing field for kids who have poor fine motor skills

This method promotes trial and error. It allows students to take risks because they won’t have to erase

Phonemic Awareness-Shared Writing

Shared writing is an important way to incorporate writing into reading. Here they are taking turns writing words from a sentence that was dictated to them by me. I included sight words and a new “ap” family word that we practiced together. Some students just write the initial sound and I will finish the word. We read the finished sentence together. Here they are also practicing knowledge of print by writing left to right and by practicing their spacing as well as good mechanics. “Here is the cap.”

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

How UDL applies

This lesson uses flexible teaching strategies so that ALL students participate meaningfullyStudents can write as much as they are

able, and ALL students are working toward the same objective

Working as a group on a product that everyone can see means that each student has something to contribute

Lesson Description7) While students began their independent work, I did a quick

formative assessment in small groups to check what they learned. The assessment will include using “activotes”. They look like this:

Each student has their own “activote”. This is a wireless device that students can use to plug in their answers. I know which numbers are on each students “activotes” so that I can analyze data.

The questions I asked allow me to see if each student can compare, categorize, and identify initial, medial, and final sounds. It also allows me to check to see if they can rhyme “ap” family words. It will allow me to check most of the phonics and phonemic awareness objectives that were practiced earlier.

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

How UDL applies

This lesson uses a flexible method of assessment to inform teachingWith Activotes, answers are anonymous

and no one is put on the spotAll student answers are recorded, not just

the one or two students that are called onStudents answer non-verbally and without

writing so oral language and writing skills do not pose barriers for some

The Wireless Formative Assessment

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

The Results

Rachael Love – MCPS - 2008

How UDL applies

This lesson uses a flexible assessment tool that saves the teacher timeThe graph shows that students understand

the “ap family” wordsOne student can be provided individual

supportThe assessment tool did not single that

child out of the group