DESKContributing Resources

Davis School District values teachers as professionals and therefore gives us all the opportunity to share our best lessons and ideas with each other.

It is our chance to become a community of learners and share our knowledge of what works.

LEARNING FIRST!

Why do we have DESK lessons?

Effective DESK Lessons

are:

• Aligned with DESK standards

• Clear, concise, and creative

• Models of effective practice

What makes DESK lessons GREAT?

Thank you for asking!

It’s very simple to submit a lesson or

resource to DESK. First, let’s examine

what an effective DESK lesson looks

like.

How can I contribute to DESK?

DESKEffective Lessons

The DESK Template

A template has been provided in order to make submissions easier to write as well as easier to use.

Let’s take a closer look…

…and learn how to write

EFFECTIVE DESK

LESSONS

The Parts of the Template

The template is divided into sections that will aid in creating a simple, easily understandable resource for all who view it.

Course

• What grade is this lesson for?

• What is the subject of this lesson?

• Fill in the “Course” section as follows:

Grade Subject

Example: 1st Grade Math

or5th Grade Science

Davis Essentials

• What standard does this lesson address?

• The full standard or part of the standard may be used here

Example: Number Sense

orThe Earth’s Surface

Skills and Knowledge

• What skill or specific topic is this lesson focusing on?

Example: Simple Addition and Subtraction

orEarthquakes

Title

When naming your lesson,

keep in mind that it is the

only thing displayed on the

resources list. Imagine you

are the teacher looking

through the lessons…what

information would you be

looking for in the title?

You may want to include in

the title the skill the lesson

addresses. So instead of

“Monkey Math” you may

want to title your lesson

“Monkeying Around with

Polynomials”.

Example: Ten Flashing Fireflies: Adding and Subtracting

orRumble Shake: Earthquake Cause and Effect

Title should bebold and

ALL CAPS

Author / Source

• Give credit to the source of your lesson

• If you created the lesson around a borrowed idea, you can give credit in this way: “idea for lesson borrowed from _______”

Example: Fabulous First Grade Lessons by Dr. Osaka Dogood

orMrs. Nelly, Mountainside Elementary

Submitted by

• Your name and school

• If you created this lesson or resource with the help of others, you can list all of the names or simply put your grade-level team

Example: John White, North Elementary

or3rd Grade team, South Elementary

Objectives

• Describe what students will know and be able to do after the lesson has been taught

Example:Students will be able to model joining and taking away sets

orStudents will be able to describe how earthquakes change

landforms

Lesson Description

• Briefly describe the lesson content and activities

Example:Students will listen to a story about catching fireflies, make

connections to addition, and then model addition using counters.

Lesson Materials and Resources

• Create a bullet list of all materials needed to teach the lesson

• Common items such as computer or internet can be excluded

Example:• Ten Flashing Fireflies, by Philemon Sturges• Ten counters per student• Glue sticks, scissors

Instructional Activities

• Step by step description of your lesson

• Detailed, clear, concise

Example:1. Read the book Ten Fireflies to students2. Students should predict the quantity of fireflies

before each page is turned3. After the story, ask students to recall a part of the

story while you illustrate it on the board4. Label the illustration with numerals and help

students make the connection to addition

Formative Assessment

• What can the teacher do to assess if learning occurred?

• What activities or practice can students do to demonstrate learning?

Example:1. During the partner activity, observe as students

model adding fireflies and connect to the number sentence.

2. Ten Flashing Fireflies practice page

Extending the Lesson

• This section is optional

• How can the same objective be taught in a new and different way?

• How can students achieve a deeper understanding?

Example:1. To reteach, use connecting cubes to model addition,

then have students draw model and write addition sentence.

2. To enrich, students use larger numbers and a hundreds chart to explain and justify their addition sentences.

DESKWriting your DESK lesson

Getting Started

First, decide on a lesson to share:1. Do you have a favorite lesson?2. Do you love a lesson a colleague has shared

with you?3. Have you ever wished there were more lessons

to choose from under a standard on my.DSD DESK resources?

Next, open the template that is included in the module and write the lesson

The following three slides offer a few reminders…

Effective DESKLessonsare:• Aligned with

DESK standards

• Clear, concise, and creative

• Models of effective practice

1. Choose a standard from your grade-level DESK (see Module 1.1 for review, if needed)

OR2. Align your lesson idea with a standard

from your grade-level DESK

THEN3. Fill in the DESK template as instructed

in this Module

Remember…

Effective DESKLessonsare:• Aligned with

DESK standards

• Clear, concise, and creative

• Models of effective practice

Write the lesson with your audience in mind

• Be clear with directions… have someone who hasn’t taught your lesson read it to see if it makes sense

• Use concise language… say what you mean in as few words as possible

• Be creative… the most desired resources are those that teach a concept in a new, interesting way; keep in mind the different learning styles of students and offer options for practice

Remember…

Effective DESKLessonsare:• Aligned with

DESK standards

• Clear, concise, and creative

• Models of effective practice

Lessons thoughtfully consider:

• Learning modalities… include visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning activities

• Effective use of technology• Ability of students… are the

learning activities appropriate for independent learning or will they require significant teacher support?

• Appropriate use of vocabulary… using correct terminology instead of descriptive language, or “baby” words

Remember…

Submitting a Lesson…

• Submit DESK Lessons to content supervisors using the templates on the DESK website

• Attach any practice pages, rubrics, games or activities to the lesson submission

• Share DESK lessons and resources on my.DSD with other educators

DESKThank you for contributing!