Two-Column Notes

Date:
11/8/16

Page #

Name:
Class/Subject:
Brianna Appelfeller
EDTL 2760
Bower, B., Lobdell, J., and Owens, S. (2010). Preview assignment. Bring learning alive! Methods to transform
middle and high school social studies. Palo Alto, CA: Teachers Curriculum Institute, pp. 22-26.
The Text Says
I Say
Notes (key concepts, direct quotes, etc.)
My notes, commentary

The TCI approach encourages a wide

variety of paths to a lesson.

Students answer questions relevant to

their life or relate to a personal experience
that foreshadows key themes of the
upcoming lesson.

We learned many of the best practices in class,

and this approach fits under two of these
practices. In relation to AIW (authentic
intellectual work), the TCI approach encourages
HOTS, or higher order thinking, because it gives
students a variety of different strategies in
which they can obtain an answer. The TCI
Approach also works well with the practice Dr.
Patterson called changing it up. By
introducing students to many different paths
and strategies, students will have a broader
knowledge about the subject.
According to the the keys of AIW, students
achieve more and enjoy the content more when
it can be connected to the world around them.
In my opinion, learning a subject becomes
much more relevant when I am absolutely
positive that I can apply it to my own life
outside of the classroom. Without this trait,
students will learn to only memorize the
information long enough to pass the test over
it. This is one of the worst things a teacher can
allow students to do, because they will not
retain information given to them, no matter

Every
page

In this preview, students recall compelling

advertisements they have seen. This helps
them link their prior experience to a lesson
on the use of propaganda in WW1.

Examples of each Preview assignment

how important.
This quote not only proves the AIW key of world
connectedness, but also the key of depth of
knowledge. Students will be able to use their
previous/current knowledge to apply to a
subject they havent learned yet. This will help
students connect to it on a more personal level,
and will make them more comfortable in
learning material if they already have a feel for
it. I like this example, because in WW1,
advertisements were used to support the war
efforts, and in the US today, we still use some
of the same tactics, were just selling a different
product.
Many of these examples seem to me like our
lesson plans for the week. They have almost a
SWBAT feel to them. Each is very different, and
looks to receive a different response from each
student. All of these example show how
students learn in many different ways, and by
using different strategies, we can teach
students in a better way.

Relation to previous MR: I related most of this blog post to our in-class work on AIW and other practices of
teaching. I did so within my commentary, but to sum it up, the AIWs directly relate to much of the
information being presented in this article. AIWs are an effective way to view and assess yourself as a
teacher.