1 Lesson, 2 Lessons, 3 Lessons Planned!

It's the first week of fieldwork and Group 1 taught their three lessons on Native Americans. Three lessons?! can you believe it. When I first heard that I would be teaching three lessons I was very overwhelmed. It sounds scary, but the important part is to understand the difference between these three lessons and how they are each effective. The three lessons are Direct Instruction, Inquiry and Cooperative Learning.

A Direct Instruction lesson should be the first lesson taught to students when learning a new topic. This lesson includes straightforward, explicit teaching to teach specific content. This lesson is teacher directed, meaning the teacher is in front of the class teaching the entire time. Teachers often use a powerpoint or other presentation software to teach a direct instruction lesson that includes key words and definitions for the students. After the teacher teaches the new material the students participate in a guided practice activity to develop automaticity of skills and master the content.

Inquiry lessons focus on student's understanding of the material learned in the Direct Instruction lesson. Students are actively participating in problem solving strategies. The teacher first models the expected behavior of the students and then let's them work on their own. Students observe, develop hypotheses and investigate solutions to enhance their knowledge. In an inquiry lesson, students are learning through their own experiences. The teacher has little to teach in an inquiry lesson, he or she should be observing students helping when needed. At the end of the lesson students are asked to give their conclusion and prove why it is true. 

Cooperative lesson students work in groups on a given project that will eventually be presented to the rest of the class. The goal of the project is for students to show what they have learned through the Direct Instruction and Inquiry lessons. Often times students are given different roles requiring students to interact with the rest of the group as they work. Cooperative lessons promote interdependence, social development and individual accountability. Students are often required to give feedback to group members as well as other groups to help them succeed.