Online constructivist learning in the primary grades requires a new form of teaching skills. In this lessons students need to navigate the internet, design and develop Mind Maps, create a multimedia presentation and collaborate online. As the students work through their assignments they are developing the skills to organize and communicate their thinking while participating in an online learning environment. The mind maps assist the students by organizing their ideas and thoughts regarding the characters in the story and applying that knowledge into their final multimedia presentation. This reflective tool will further deepen and personalize a learners understanding of the story.

 

       This lesson incorporates the Constructivist Instructional Model by scaffolding from each assignment. Through the Mind Maps the students identify their ideas and views. The students take the lead in their own learning by directing and organizing information within their literacy groups. The final multimedia presentation asks each student to combine their thinking with the other members of the group to produce a unified product. The diversity offered in the final assessment further develops the learner’s literacy and research abilities (Matthews, 1994). The students are able to choose the medium that best suits there learning needs.

      

       The Conceptual Change Model is also present in this lesson plan. The students create a a final multimedia presentation that is meaningful to them. The student’s learning occurs against the background of the student’s current concepts to organize their investigation (Posner, Strike, Hewson and Gertzog, 1982). The lesson provides the students with the opportunity to develop a community of learning within their literacy groups. Together the students actively access what they know and apply their knowledge to create a new multimedia presentation. The students connect their ideas to form a bigger picture of their learning, beyond the surface understanding of the text.

      

       The lesson plan is rooted in constructivism. The final multimedia presentation follows the restructuring phase of constructivism by providing the students the opportunity to make inferences about the characters and ideas in The Lion King. The students are able to understand that there are a variety of ways to interpret ideas. The self-assessment rubric allows the students to reflect on their learning. Technology allows the students the ability to guide their own learning by using the online learning tools in a personalized and meaningful way.