Grade+1+Lesson+Plan

This lesson is part of a larger unit on communication, where students learn about ways to communicate and practice effective communication and listening skills. Within the unit, one week is spent concentrating on conflict resolution, although the concepts from the lessons are applied throughout the rest of the school year as the need arises. The first part of the week is spent defining conflicts, viewing examples of conflicts, the steps to take to resolve conflict, the consequences of various solutions, and practicing the steps to resolve conflicts by playing a free computer game called [|Cool School] to explore possible ways of resolving conflicts (see Figures 1, 2, and 3 below). In this interactive game designed for K-2 students, students choose which part of the school – gym, playground, classrooms, music building, computer lab, etc. – they want to visit to help solve conflicts including bullying, accusations of lying, ruining other people’s stuff, etc. For each conflict they are presented with four choices as to how to resolve it. They see the consequences of each choice they make, and earn letters of the alphabet for resolving conflicts peacefully. After learning about conflict resolution in theory and seeing virtual examples in Cool School, the following lesson fits into Infozone’s stages of [|Connecting] and [|Producing]. Students are asked to connect what they’ve learned to their own lives, and create either a drawing or skit that demonstrates how they could apply what they learned in real life. This approach is controlled inquiry, because first grade students are normally very unfamiliar with resources and choices available and would need to be given a lot of guidance (Callison 99). In this lesson they are connecting what they have seen virtual examples of to their own lives and the lives of others. Duration: Two class periods on consecutive days Materials needed: Blackboard, chalk, drawing handouts, skit handouts __ Class 1: __ 1.  Apply conflict examples to real life. · Review some of the examples of conflicts shown in Cool School. Ask students if they have personally experiences any of those scenarios. Then ask students to think about other kinds of conflicts they have seen or experienced in real life, either at home or at school. · Ask volunteers to name some of those conflicts they have personally experienced, either similar to what they saw in Cool School or not. · Write one-line summaries of the conflicts students offer on the board. 2.  Practice Conflict Resolution Activity & Assessment · Students practice finding solutions to conflicts. Ask students to pick one of the conflicts on the board and imagine that they are one of the people involved in the conflict. Then ask them to think about possible positive solutions to the problem. Tell them that today they will illustrate the conflict and a positive resolution (based on what was learned in earlier lessons & in Cool School) by presenting a skit or creating a drawing. Things to think about when illustrating the conflict include: o What is the cause of the conflict?: What is there conflict over? Is it an object, an action that was done, something that was said? o Who is involved?: Who is the conflict between? o How are they communicating? Does the conflict include body action, words, or both? What is being said? How are the people standing? Are they moving their arms as they talk? What facial expression do they have? · Ask students to decide whether they want to draw or act out a conflict, and divide the class into two groups accordingly. Give the drawing group the drawing handout, then explain the handout and help any drawing students that are undecided about their topic. Pair up students in the skit group that have chosen the same conflict, and pair undecided students with another student with a chosen conflict that they are interested in. Ask them to think about the conflict and how the exchange is expressed. Distribute the skit handout. Together, each group should come up with a short (4-5 sentence) conversation that illustrates the conflict. They should then write a resolution to the conflict. They can then practice their exchanges before presenting them to the class. The teacher and parent helper work with individual students an groups to answer questions and guide them through the process. __ Class 2: __ · Finish working on drawings and skits. Have students present their drawings/skits. After each piece is presented, analyze the scenario as a class and talk about the steps in the resolution process. Assessment consists of ensuring that students are using appropriate positive resolutions in their presentations. Work Cited Callison, Daniel, and Leslie Preddy. __The Blue Book on Information Age Inquiry, Instruction, and Literacy__. Westport, Conn: Libraries Unlimited, 2006.
 * __ Grade 1 Lesson Plan __**