Student Name Brent Seager

Artifact #5
SPED 775: Formal Lesson Plan Two

Purpose
The purpose of this assignment was to implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

elements into the classroom by designing a lesson and activities to be taught in the classroom.

This assignment was divided into two different portions, which allowed for a more effective

assignment to be designed and implemented. While, selecting a topic to discuss during the

lesson was difficult, I used my experiences of teaching social studies to help me in selecting a

topic for the lesson. The assignment also included a video of me implementing the lesson plan in

my classroom, which was used to determine areas of strength and improvement. Even though

there were two other lesson plans and videos uploaded during this course, the second lesson plan

was significant as I could use the feedback from the first video to create and deliver an engaging

lesson.
Addressing the assignment requirements
The first part of the assignment was to create a lesson plan/activity for the classroom and

incorporate UDL, motivation, and engagement considerations in all activities. The lesson plan

was then reviewed by the instructor, and feedback was provided to ensure that all considerations

and elements were in place prior to teaching and recording the lesson. For the second part of the

assignment, I had to record the 50-minute lesson to be submitted to my instructor for review and

feedback. While I had 50 minutes of instruction, I had to take out 10 minutes of video to be

submitted for grading and feedback. Even though this assignment was challenging, it was

rewarding to have the instructor evaluate my teaching within the classroom.

Revisions
I did a review of the initial assignment, as it allowed me a second look at the assignment

and an opportunity to reflect on what went well and what could be improved in the future. The

instructor feedback provided listed concerns about differentiation, but with the UDL concepts
Student Name Brent Seager
Artifact #5
SPED 775: Formal Lesson Plan Two

contained, the instructor felt that the assignment could address the concerns. I did receive a

deduction of three points for this concern, but I did address the other aspects of the assignment.

With these considerations, I did not do much revising to the assignment other than checking for

mechanical and grammatical errors.

Things learned and how it contributes to development as a special educator
There were several things that I learned from this assignment that furthered my

development as a special education teacher. The first challenge that I faced with this assignment

was that I needed to design a lesson to target persuasive writing skills and also to be engaging

and motivating for the students. While many of the students in this classroom had difficulties

with writing and engagement, I kept in mind that the students in my classroom talked about

travel and different areas in the United States. Keeping this in mind, I designed a little known

historical fact presentation about different National Parks within the United States, I then had the

students select a park that interested them and describe to me why they wanted visit. I found that

the students were motivated and engaged in the lesson from the instruction, assignment, and

review stages. I also incorporated a review game at the end of the activity, the students really

enjoyed this Kahoot activity.

The assignment showed me how I can better implement and design instruction for visual

learners and other students that lack motivation and engagement using traditional learning

methods in the classroom. The Kahoot review game allowed me to see how the students were

on-task and paying attention during the presentation, as each student did quite well on the review

game. While I understand the importance of implementing traditional learning methods, this

assignment allowed me to step-out of the comfort zone and implement a lesson using engaging

and motivating activities. Because of this assignment, I have completely changed the way that I
Student Name Brent Seager
Artifact #5
SPED 775: Formal Lesson Plan Two

approach instruction and assignment development in the classroom, as I design instruction and

learning activities around the diverse needs of each student; as well as providing more options

for learning for each student. Even though I continuously monitor and adjust instructional

methods and student choices in the learning environment, this assignment showed me that

mixing up instructional methods and practices is an essential element to maintain an engaging

and motivating learning environment.