This Teacher Performance Expectation for reading requires that I plan and organize, and adapt and implement reading comprehension strategies. Diverse needs of my students require that I be prepared to model and implement linguistic processing strategies, as well as literal, inferential, and evaluative comprehension skills practice in my lesson planning. Further, for reinforcement and accommmodation special learning needs and preferences, I can model and implement reading, writing, listening and speaking activities that involve these skills. My goal should be to facilitate students' continual improvement in their ability to decode and build their vocabulary toward habitual morphological and eytmological analysis, and ever greater automaticity and fluency.

      The following artifacts demonstrate my capability to implement these skills and processes, and how to continually address needs as they arise.  For example, one of the artifacts is an interdisciplinary 8th grade English and Science lesson that demonstrates my ability to implement interdisciplinary support with the use of expository structures for writing organization and content comprehension. For this lesson, students select a favorite science lab's content and events and represent them as elements of a story. For this, students will use a range of expository structures- cause and effect, compare and contrast, and the elements of a story.

     The Emergent Literacy Observation artifact demonstrates that I understand effective sequencing of the development of linguistic processes for decoding. These processes involved a 'word-wall' with rime families, and depicting and telling about a word with a specific onset and rime. The observation also notes the importance of including ideas about concepts in print, and the sheer value of daily reinforcement of a prosodic read aloud with visuals, with a particular focus on the day's content.

-Please also view the the other artifacts I have attached that reflect my understanding and ability to adapt teaching and learning reading comprehension skills for all content areas.

     I have learned I can adapt these literacy strategies to any content area and any age, so I can use everything I am learning about literacy for the multi-level, and language issues I encounter in my future classroom. Also, with careful timing in lesson planning and activity sequencing as I have demonstrated in these artifacts,  I will be able to allow my students ample independent practice time so I can engage and monitor specific individuals to assist and document goal maintenance, as well as facilitate productivity in small group work.

        The primary artifact I have selected to demonstrate my understanding of the Middle Level Science Subject Matter Teacher Performance Expectation is an 8th grade Physical Science  Lesson Plan for teaching the concept of density that addresses Standards: 

8a- Students know density is mass per unit volume; 8b- Students know how to calculate the density of substances from measurements of mass and volume; 9b- Investigation and Experimentation standard: Evaluate the accuracy and reproducibility of data. This 8^th grade density lesson plan demonstrates a balance of the focus of instruction between science information, concepts and investigations.

        The initial narrow focus of this singular lesson allows me to address a multitude of standards by employing a variety of captivating hands on activities such as exploring by handling various objects and describing their physical properties; weighing mL/ g to then be able to calculate the d = m/v equation; layering of several colored liquids to demonstrate the nature of density in liquids. These activities begin with ‘hands-on’ exploration, and continue with direct concept introduction insertions in which I describe what is density and what it is not,  and end with concept application for which students calculate the densities of pairs of identical quantities of ‘mystery’ liquids which are then colored and layered.

         These activities along with my direct concept introduction will draw written explanations and calculation demonstrations from students which illustrate their understanding of the concept of density, the related principles of mass and volume, and procedures of scientific investigation and experimentation in order to calculate the density of several liquids. The order and design of the calculation activities for weighing mL/g to be able to use the formula (d = m/v) for finding the density of several ‘mystery’ liquids and naming them involves reproduction of data via specific grouping of mystery liquids and precise calculations. However, different weight scales used by different groups called for an allowance of approximately 1% variance in matching the densities listed on the ‘mystery’ liquid chart, so students will also practice estimation while navigating some of the inevitable imperfections that scientists must often  take into account when gathering data. As such, the importance of attention to accuracy, precision and confidence in estimation was emphasized throughout the lesson. Please review the following artifact, A ‘Hands-On’ Lesson Plan: 'What is Density?' and the accompanying PowerPoint and worksheets. Please also view the other artifacts I have attached that demonstrate my mastery of The Middle Level Multiple Subject Teacher Performance Expectation for Science Subject Matter.

      The following artifacts reflect my ability to teach the state adopted standards in a way that: students use analytical thinking skills with timelines and maps to gain a sense of spatial scale; students use themes and concepts in Social Science to provide insight into an historical period or a particular culture; students use a multiple perspective; students use art, artifacts and literature to draw inferences and insight into an historical period or particular culture, and students apply all of this in group work, and group and individual research. As such, many ELL/D thinking, reading, writing, listening and speaking levels can be easily accommodated and are embedded in the content. The following artifacts I have attached were designed with all of this in mind.

        The primary artifact was produced for a 7^th grade Feudal Japan unit of study. It is a ‘webquest’, rather a list of 10 websites and their descriptions to be used for student and teacher research and exploration, teacher lesson planning, and global academic competition forums. Further, the artifact includes three lessons that collectively encompass all of the state adopted standards designated for a 7^th grade unit on Feudal Japan: 7.5, 1-6. These lessons were constructed with some of the data from the  prior ‘webquest’ included in this artifact, and their purpose of these three lessons is  to provide the initial scaffolding for the beginning, middle and end of a 7^th grade Japanese Feudalism unit plan.  Many of the websites used were critically evaluated among my colleagues. IWithin  the  artifact,  I have described the content of these sites, and specifically how my students and I might use them in my classroom. They offer a wealth of timelines, maps, art and artifacts from many sources and perspectives (ie: cultural, economical, gender, geographical, political, etc.) so from a variety of sources, students can draw inferences. I applied ideas from many of these sites to the lesson activities that are designed to offer extended concept exploration, introduction, and application. Some of these activities include: using group and individual research and writing models and opportunities for group and individual research and writing global competition and collaboration via thinkquest.org; using lively and impressionable role playing games that simulate life and outcomes in Japanese feudal society; using a net users system that uses Japanese art to mark periodization; reading Japanese folklore and applying inferences of its symbolism to  understand nuances of origins of Japanese traditions and feudal era preoccupations, practices, beliefs, etc. I will use these websites and the three lessons they inspired in my practice. I have also attached a Literature Connection artifact to explain in detail how folklore is an invaluable tool in teaching History- Social Science. The 2nd artifact, a 'literature connection' to Japanese Feudal culture offers an example of this.

        This Literature Connection artifact specifically address 7^th grade History-Social Science standards 7.5:4 and 5. After reading this short story and discussing and mapping this symbolism with symbols and labels on a Venn diagram, students will be able to attach these memorable images to these big ideas, and remember them, and apply them to more complex social constructs, people and events within Japanese Feudal society as the unit progresses. Also, the use of children’s stories read aloud with simple language and pictures is inclusive for ELL’s and many students with special needs

        The process of this ‘Webquest’ and ‘Literature Connection’ assignment and many others toward meeting this teacher performance expectation has been enlightening. The research, exploration and data selection process reminded me of many nuances of Japanese culture that were fascinating for me to revisit. I realized that there is a degree of depth that will effectively facilitate  coverage of all of the standards in a memorable way, so I can revisit many state adopted standards over and over again in my lesson planning, even as I am introducing new ones. I will strive to use the tools and skills for this TPE and continually re-evaluate so that I might use them most effectively for guiding my students toward optimum academic achievement.  Please review the many artifacts I have included to demonstrate my understanding of these Teacher Performance Expectations for History-Social Science subject matter.