Running head: ADAPTED LESSON 1

Adapted Lesson

Teresa Mature

SPE 514 - Survey of Special Populations

January 21st, 2011

Instructor Elizabeth Smail-Fluegel

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Adapted Lesson

Creating lesson plans for a regular classroom is a tough task. The teacher needs to ensure

that the lesson is appropriate for the students learning styles and for the topic being taught. To

complicate things, lesson plans have to be adapted to meet the needs of special needs students. It

is just like the saying goes, “A teacher’s job is never done!” The following lesson plan is an

adapted lesson plan I created. I adapted the lesson to teach special needs students in sixth

through eighth grade.

Original Lesson Plan Adapted Lesson Plan

Title: Thanksgiving *Read students a book about

Grade: 1st Valentine’s Day!

Brief Description: This is a two day activity (or at Brief Description:

least a 90 minute activity). Students will gather on • The class will work together

the floor and be read a story about Thanksgiving by with the teachers help, to

their teacher. The teacher will use this reading time create a paragraph about

as her direct instruction. Once the teacher is done what they learned. The

reading, the students will return to their seats and teacher will write the

write a paragraph (a few sentences) about what they paragraph on the board.

learned and why they plan on doing for Students will then copy the

thanksgiving. The writing time will be the indirect paragraph down.

instruction. They will also draw a picture to • Students will complete

represent what they wrote. Students are to guide paragraph as a group

themselves though their writing and drawing.

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The next day (or later in the afternoon, whatever the • Students will not present,

schedule allows), students will read their story to the since they will all be writing

classroom. the same thing.

Strategy: Students will work individually.

Objectives:

After being read a story about Thanksgiving by the

teacher, students will summarize what they have

learned, as well as explain what they are doing for

• Stude
1. Thanksgiving, in a three to five sentence
nts will work with the class
paragraph.
and teacher to create a
2. Once students have composed this
paragraph. They will then
paragraph, they will be expected to
copy it down on their
present it in front of the
handout.
class. Students are expected to speak

clearly and use appropriate volume.

• Stude
Materials:
nts will not present.
□ Find a book about Thanksgiving. A great

book is

Thanksgiving at Our House by P.K.

Hallinnan.

□ Handout for paragraph and drawing.

□ Pencils and crayons for all students.

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b. Ask them

questions throughout

Steps: the story.

1. Organize students

a. Gather students on the carpet in

the reading area or in the front of the

classroom.

b. Explain to students what they will

be doing for the assignment: You will

be reading them a story about

Thanksgiving and make sure they are

• The class will work
paying attention and understand.
together to generate a
Once the story is over, they will
paragraph about what
return to their desks and write a
they learned. The teacher
paragraph about what they learned
will write it on the
and what they plan on doing for
board. The students will
Thanksgiving. Once everyone is
then copy down the
done, each student will present their
paragraph.
paragraph in front of the class.

2. Read the story

a. Read the story to the students.

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4. Explain assignment

again

a. Students need to

write clearly when

i. “What do you think will
retelling what they
happen next?” or “What else
learned
could happen?”

- By asking them

these questions, it will

help them

make predictions about

the reading, help give

others ideas

about what to write

about, and keep them

interested.

3. Set up for assignment

a. Have everyone return to their

desk.

b. Hand each student the handout to

write and draw on.

c. Instruct each student to get out a

pencil and some crayons.

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a. While students

are writing, walk

around the classroom

and monitor their

writing. Assist

about as well as when informing the students when

reading/listener about what they plan needed.

on doing for Thanksgiving.

b. They are to draw a picture of their

idea of Thanksgiving. Students can

either choose to draw their picture

before or after writing (drawing • They will draw a picture

before may help some students gather of something about

their thoughts). Make sure you Valentine’s Day.

monitor students who draw first to

ensure that they get their paragraph

done.

c. Once everyone is done writing,

students will read their paragraph in

front of the classroom.

• Students will not
i. Students will speak clearly
present.
and at an appropriate volume.

6. Assist students
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to the

class. Students

should speak clear

and loud enough for

all to hear.

• Students will not present!

7. Presenting

a. Call students up one-by-one to

present their paragraphs.

b. After each student presents, lead a

big round of applause.

c. Once all students are done, praise

all students for sharing their

paragraphs.

Assessment

a. Students will be graded on

readability (words do not have to be

spelling right, but should be

readable.) • Students will be graded

on the completion of the

b. Students will also be graded on
paragraph and picture
how well they present their paragraph
(pass or fail).
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Strengths and Weaknesses of Lesson

The lesson I taught ran as smooth as can be expected in a special education room. The

children loved the lesson. One child was having a bad day though and acting out, so the lesson

ran much longer than expected. The lesson was definitely adapted enough to suit these students

well. Writing the paragraph as a group was the only way the paragraph would have gotten

written. The weakness was that I did not account for the distractions that occur in a special

education room, and we ran out of time for them to copy the paragraph down themselves.

Students and Adaptions

The students I taught were actually in middle school. The students were between sixth

and eighth grade, but are special needs students who read at a first grade level. I worked with the

four autistic students who stay in the special education room all day. When making the

adaptations to my lesson, I had the way they learn in mind. None of them are able to write by

themselves, which is why I changed the individual writing assignment to a group writing

assignment. They create a paragraph as a group every day, so this is something they are familiar

with.

Other Possible Adaptions

The only other adaption that the teacher recommended to me was to plan smaller lessons

and to allow more time for completion of assignments. I tried to fit a lot of things into two

periods.
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Conclusions

To conclude, lesson plans are always works in progress. What may work for one class,

will not always work for others. In this case, what may have worked one day, did not work

another day. There is a lot to account for when planning lessons and I learned that I need to

account for possible behavioral problems. The most important part to remember when implement

lessons is that we as teachers need to be flexible and patient when things change.