Cooperative Learning
Lesson
Lauren Finn
EDP 621, Summer I 2002
Abstract: In this lesson, the students will use the STAD
method to learn about ancient Egypt.
Goals:
1. The student will be able to
analyze why the Nile River was so important to the growth of Egyptian
civilization.
2. The student will be able to
discuss how pharaohs, pyramids, and religious beliefs influenced the Old
Kingdom.
Materials:
1. Student textbooks
2. Students’ individual
notebooks
3. Team summary sheets
4. Teacher-made worksheet
5. Teacher-made quiz
Procedures:
1. Write the words ancient
Egypt on the board and have the students copy the words into their notebooks.
2. Ask the students to write
words or phrases that come to mind when they think of ancient Egypt.
3. Call on volunteers to share
their ideas on ancient Egypt.
Write student responses on the board.
4. Circle the responses that
are stated the most frequently.
Have students write down any words or phrases that were not in their
notebooks.
5. Tell the students that they
will learn the historical significance of these terms in this unit.
6. Have the students read the
chapter focus on page 67. Discuss
any questions students may have.
7. Have students read silently
and take notes on section one (p.67-68).
8. Check for student
understanding by asking questions
– What is a delta? –
fan-shaped area of fertile land
– What was the significance of the Nile River delta in ancient
Egypt? – because it was so fertile, most ancient Egyptians lived
there
– What are cataracts? –
waterfalls
– What purpose did they serve?
– helped protect the Egyptians from foreign invasions
– What happened to the Nile
River every year? – flooded
– What was the significance of
this? – the flood waters left behind rich soil that was good for growing
crops
– What were basins and what
was their purpose? – bowl-shaped holes that were filled with water from
the Nile to water the crops during the dry season
9. Have students read silently
and take notes on section two (p.69-72).
10.
Check
for student understanding by asking questions
– Who united Upper and Lower
Egypt? – Narmer
– How did he do it? –
conquered Lower Egypt and marred one of its princesses; set up a new capital at
Memphis, a city on the border of Upper and Lower Egypt
– Who lived in the cities?
–kings, priests, government officials, and artisans
– Where did most Egyptians
live? – on large estates along the banks of the Nile
– What were Egyptian rulers
called? – pharaohs
– What does pharaoh mean?
– great house
– What did the Egyptians
consider a pharaoh to be? – a ruler, priest, and god; he was the center
of Egyptian life and ruled on Earth as gods ruled in heaven
– What were some of the duties
of the pharaoh? – saw that dams and irrigation canals were built and
repaired; built granaries, chose government officials; oversaw tax collection
and trade with other lands; carried out certain rituals
– For what were the pyramids
designed? – pharaoh tombs;
protect pharaohs’ bodies and personal belongings from floods, wild
animals, and robbers
– When were the pyramids
built? – the three summer months when the fields were flooded
– Who were the two most
important gods? – river god Hapi and sun god Re
– Why were they the most
important gods? – Egyptians depended on the river for water and fertile
soil and the sun to make crops grow
– How did an Egyptian earn
life after death? – the god and goddess of the dead weighed each person
on a scale after their death. If
the person had led a good life and knew certain magic spells, the scale balanced
and the person would get life after death
– How did Egyptians learn the
proper spells? – by studying the Book of the Dead
– How were bodies preserved?
– embalming
– Why were bodies of pharaohs
embalmed? – Egyptians thought that the soul could not live without the
body. It was important for a pharaoh’s
soul to live after his death so he would continue to take care of Egypt
11.
Have students break into their
study teams. Give each team two
worksheets with the above questions and two answer sheets. Give them the class period to study
together to master the material for tomorrow’s quiz
12.
Have students take the quiz
individually.
13.
Score the quizzes and determine
individual improvement scores and team scores.
14.
Return quizzes and review correct
answers.
15.
Recognize the teams as a Good Team
(15 points), Great Team (20 points), or a Super Team (25 points).
The
Student Teams Achievement Divisions format includes the elements necessary to a
cooperative lesson. The group
forms positive interdependence because the team needs every member to achieve in
order to obtain the group reward and improve their grade. There is individual accountability because each student must
take the quiz on his or her own and earn a grade. Social skills and face-to-face interactions are very evident in the
team study portion of the lesson.
The STAD method uses heterogeneous grouping in each study team. Evaluation is done via the individual
quizzes. There is an element of processing
of the
material through returning the quizzes and reviewing the correct answers. There is also processing in the group
process though the team recognition.
When
assigning students to teams, one must take into account not only different
academic ability levels of individual students, but also the classroom climate. According to Schmuck and Schmuck (p.46)
“if the members of a class have never developed the capacity for
interpersonal trust and closeness, they will have difficulty dealing with more
advanced sorts of group work, such as working on projects together and taking
successful field trips with one another.” It is important to have a friendly and safe classroom
climate to have successful group work.
There are many suggestions for different activities to build a positive
classroom climate in the Sapon-Shevin book.
Another
consideration is expectations and self-fulfilling prophecies. Students will have different
expectations for their group members.
These can be positive or negative.
Students must be in a group that allows them to break out of negative
expectations. Teachers must also
be aware of their own expectations and make sure that they are not influencing
negative student behavior through self-fulfilling prophecies. Teachers place students in teams based
on how they expect each student to perform. Teachers need to keep an open mind about individual
students’ “level” and realize that students may make great
improvements.
Leadership
takes an important role in STAD.
Teachers using this method are demonstrating a more democratic type of
leadership, and hopefully this style will carry into the teams. Students have the chance to showcase
their different psychological bases of influence and power. Students in a STAD team would have a
choice to display expert and referent power. While teachers are usually viewed as having reward power, in
a team all students can have this power.
Everyone has the potential to contribute to the team score. These teams can also foster connection
power that can benefit students in the small teams and in the general classroom
setting.
Conflict
could be an issue in the STAD model if the students do not have a positive
relationship. There could be
conceptual conflict as well as interpersonal conflict. However, if there is a cohesive
classroom environment, the likelihood of conflict is greatly reduced.
While
there are some risks using the STAD method or any cooperative learning model,
there are many benefits.
Friendships are made and interpersonal power and skills are increased. Every person is valued as an important
member of the group as everyone has an equal chance of bringing points to the
group. The classroom becomes
desegregated and children of different backgrounds and abilities are accepted.
1. What is a delta?
2. What was the significance of the Nile River delta in ancient
Egypt?
3. What are cataracts?
4. What purpose did they serve?
5. What happened to the Nile
River every year?
6. What was the significance of
this?
7. What were basins and what
was their purpose?
8. How was the Nile River
important in ancient Egypt?
9. Who united Upper and Lower
Egypt?
10.
How did he do it?
11.
Who lived in the cities?
12.
Where did most Egyptians live?
13.
What were Egyptian rulers called?
14.
What does pharaoh mean?
15.
What did the Egyptians consider a
pharaoh to be?
16.
What were some of the duties of
the pharaoh?
17.
Why was the pharaoh important in
ancient Egypt?
18.
For what were the pyramids
designed?
19.
When were the pyramids built?
20.
Who were the two most important
gods?
21.
How did an Egyptian earn
life after death?
22.
How did Egyptians learn the proper
spells?
23.
How were bodies preserved?
24.
Why were bodies of pharaohs
embalmed?
25.
Why were the pyramids significant
in ancient Egypt?
1. fan-shaped area of fertile land
2. because it was so fertile, most ancient
Egyptians lived there
3. waterfalls
4. helped protect the Egyptians from
foreign invasions
5. flooded
6. the flood waters left behind rich soil
that was good for growing crops
7. bowl-shaped holes that were filled with
water from the Nile to water the crops during the dry season
8. The Nile River provided fertile land,
water for crops, and protection from foreign invasions.
9. Narmer
10. conquered Lower Egypt and marred one of
its princesses; set up a new capital at Memphis, a city on the border of Upper
and Lower Egypt
11. kings, priests, government officials,
and artisans
12. on large estates along the banks of the
Nile
13. pharaohs
14. great house
15. a ruler, priest, and god; he was the
center of Egyptian life and ruled on Earth as gods ruled in heaven
16. saw that dams and irrigation canals
were built and repaired; built granaries, chose government officials; oversaw
tax collection and trade with other lands; carried out certain rituals
17. The pharaoh was the center of Egyptian
life and was considered a god. He
was in charge of many aspects of Egyptians’ daily lives.
18. pharaoh tombs; protect pharaohs’
bodies and personal belongings from floods, wild animals, and robbers
19. the three summer months when the fields
were flooded
20. river god Hapi and sun god Re
21. the god and goddess of the dead weighed
each person on a scale after their death.
If the person had led a good life and knew certain magic spells, the
scale balanced and the person would get life after death
22. by studying the Book of the Dead
23. embalming
24. Egyptians thought that the soul could
not live without the body. It was
important for a pharaoh’s soul to live after his death so he would
continue to take care of Egypt
25. The pyramids protected the body and
belongings of the pharaoh so he could continue to protect Egypt even after his
death.
Name Date A-
Matching:
___1.
Fan-shaped area of fertile land A. Narmer
___2.
He united Upper and Lower Egypt B. pharaoh
___3.
waterfalls C. delta
___4.
bowl-shaped holes used for irrigation D. cataracts
___5.
great house E. basins
Multiple Choice:
6. When were the pyramids built?
A. in the winter
B. in the summer when the fields were flooded
C. in the fall
7. What is the name of the process of
preserving bodies?
A. embalming
B. mummy
C. sealing
8. What was the book that had the spells
Egyptians needed to know for the after-life?
A. The Bible
B. The Book of the Dead
C. The Book of Spells
9. What was the purpose of the pyramids?
A. To guard against foreign invasion
B. To shade fields from the sun
C. To be pharaohs’ tombs
10. Who lived in cities?
A. kings, priests, government officials,
and artisans
B. the poorest people in the kingdom
C. farmers
Short
Answer:
11. How was the Nile River important in
ancient Egypt? (hint – what
did it provide for people?)
12. Why was the pharaoh important in
ancient Egypt? (hint – what
did people consider him? Of what
was he in charge?)