Make Lessons Meaningful

Remembrance Day Lesson

Remembrance Day is fast approaching and I thought it would be beneficial to brainstorm lesson plan ideas that students would find meaningful. This day is a very important day. It is an opportunity to remember and appreciate what our soldiers did for our country. 

The lesson plan that I created coincides with my genius hour question: how can I engage my students. Once again, looking at how I can create meaningful experiences for my students to help them be excited about learning! 

This was my idea that I focused on this week: 

I would either find a roster of veterans currently living in Ontario with their addresses, or I would speak with veterans at a local legion to collect their mailing addresses and some personal information about who they are and what they did for our country. 

Each student would receive information about a veteran. Students would be required to compose a letter that shows the student's appreciation for what they have done. In connection to the Language Arts curriculum, students will be required to ensure they have all the elements of a letter and edit their work for spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Students will write their first draft and revise it multiple times throughout the week. It is important for myself, the teacher, to explain the value of these letters and the meaning behind putting so much effort into writing them. 

Students will write their final draft the day before Remembrance Day. On the day, students will fill in the mailing address on the envelope. We will stamp all of them and send them off to the veterans we are thanking. 

Remembrance Day (2014). Retrieved from http://dgh.tldsb.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2014/11/Remembrance-Day.jpg

This lesson is an excellent opportunity to provide meaning for what they are doing in the classroom. Students need to be motivated in one way or another when they are learning. They need to find purpose in what they are doing, otherwise why do it?

Finding A Purpose

Some Engaging Ideas for Lesson Plans

This week I have been looking at the importance of making lessons meaningful and providing a purpose for students to learn. Students are engaged when they have a purpose for what they are learning about. 

I have been brainstorming lesson lesson plan ideas that are meaningful and I wanted to share my ideas with you!

Visual Arts Lesson: "Know Your Lines"
Focus: Element of Design - Line

For this lesson I will have students create their own classroom colouring book! It has been proven that colouring is an excellent way to reduce stress and anxiety. It is a very relaxing process. This lesson is an excellent way to introduce mental health awareness into your classroom. I will teach a quick lesson on Lines and how line can create different emotional responses in viewers.

I would share some examples:

Curved Lines: Calm, Flowing Energy Viewer Response

Onj, J. (2012, January 15). Starry Night Line Art (Online Image) Retrieved from https://missjunieong.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/van-gogh-line-art.jpg

Vertical Lines: Stable, Anchored Viewer Response

The Elements of Design (2015). Online Image. Retrieved from http://www.bhiec.com.au/aaart_esl/images/pdfs/designwkshts.pdf

Each student will create their own page for the colouring book. First, they will create a rough draft of their idea. They will use two types of lines we've learned about. 

They will respond to these questions:

1. Why did you chose to use these types of lines?

2. What emotional response do these lines bring to the viewer?

Students will draw their final copy using black marker on white card stock and write their rationale/response on the back. I would like to collect all of them after the lesson. I would make a couple copies and bind them together to create our very own classroom colouring book! Students can colour the book that they made if they need a break to de-stress or have a bit of free time to relax! This lesson plan is awesome for providing students with a purpose for creating art. The book will help to raise mental health awareness! 

Till next time!