Tips for the multigrade teacher
Multigrade teaching guide for Zambian teachers.

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Guide for organizing a Multigrade Teaching Workshop in your province,district,zone or school.
What is multigrade teaching ?
Classroom management
Multigrade material development
Tips for the multigrade teacher
Teaching in the multigrade classroom
Survey to assess the impact of a multigrade teaching workshop
Demonstration lesson plan for a multigrade lesson on the subject staggering option
Lesson plans integrated per grade.You can put yourself the lessons in the multigrade way.
More sample lesson preparations. Have a good time.
Lesson preparation book made by students.

The main function of the Multigrade teacher is to teach students by imparting knowledge .

The teacher is expected to be versatile and utilize different strategies to make learning meaningful and effective for all students in his or her classroom, no matter what individual differences may exist among the students.

The teacher should be able to understand differences between pupils, be able to motivate them to learn and guide them though their learning materials.

The teacher should be able to do this for all grade levels in the classroom, no matter what curriculum subject is being studied. The teacher should not only be a provider of knowledge but should also be a facilitator of learning.

Planning is a critical function for the Multigrade teacher. Appropriate planning by the teacher will result in classes which are more productive for the learners and easier for them to follow.

For each grade level for which the teacher is responsible, he or she must determine the answers to the questions:

 

 

-         Whom do I teach ?

-         What must I each ?

-         How do I teach ?

-         When do I teach ?

-           Why do I teach this ?

 

 

 

Once the teacher has determined the answers to these questions, he or she must then devise an implementation plan in order to achieve the objectives of the lesson. Such implementation strategies include lesson planning, selection of week activities, time- tabling . All these must be carried out before the actual lesson is given.

Another role which the MT must carry out is to monitor the progress of pupil's learning so as to ensure quality of education.

Therefore, assessment should be consider a continuous and integral part of the teaching process.

 

 

MT still need to develop their own additional materials like:

 

*designing and making small boards, flash cards, etc. to save time in the classroom and to maximize the time which pupils spend on learning tasks.

*Using local materials to develop instructional materials and to encourage learners to make their own.

*Designing  workbooks which are suitable for student use within the local context and conditions.

*Including within these locally designed materials and  workbooks activities and knowledge which are relevant to the local culture.

 

A MT must also be a researcher, research questions could be:

 

*What makes instructional materials and aids useful in teaching and learning in the local context?

*How can the enrolment rate be increased and the drop-out rate reduced?

*What types of games and sports should be played in the school ?

*What useful extra-curricular activities can be arranged and when?

*Why certain students are not learning as well as might be expected ?

*How to use local resources, including students and monitors, efficiently and effectively?

*What classroom strategies and management enhance learning for different activities?

Steps to undertake to prepare a week plan with the theme town

 

Grade 3-4

 

Steps

Subject/Sub subject

Topic

Grade

Remarks

Step 1

Language

Social Studies

 

The fieldtrip

 

3-4: visit the bus station.

 

The teachers must do the concrete fieldtrip before the do it with the children.

Prepare questions and new words.

Step 2

Subject 1

Language

a.         Vocabulary

 

 

 

 

 

 

b.        Reading

 

 

 

 

c.         Writing

 

 

d.        Spelling

 

 

      e.   Grammar

 

Reconstruction of the fieldtrip.

Nummering the new words and giving the explanation.

 

 

 

Answering the questions.

With the sentences you prepared in the voc. lesson, you can make a text. This text can be used as a reading text.

The pupils can write the

- Vocabulary list and

- The new sentences.

Dictation of the learned words or sentences depending on the grade.

Structure.

 

 

3-4: 15 words

 

 

 

 

 

3-4: 15 sentences

 

 

 

The children must find themselves as much as possible new words.

 

 

 

 

Frequent reading periods for each child are necessary, different times in the week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Use the sentences from the text.

 

Step 3

 

Subject 2

Mathematics

a.         Measurement

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

b.        Sets

 

 

 

 

    c.   Time

 

Distance from the bus station to the school. You need to measure concrete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The different colours and marks of busses and cars.

Number of people, male, female, intersection.

 

 

 

 

3-4 Measure the distance from the classroom to the house of the teacher. Talk about meter and ½ meter.

Talk about meter, ½ meter and centimetre.

Measure the distance from the classroom to an important building. Talk about

 m, ½ m, cm, dam, hm.km.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3-4: drawing the clock, identify time.

 

 

Let measure the children.

Let them explain the way of measuring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The demonstration lesson of the table of multiplication can easy fit in this topic.

Step 4

 

Subject 3

Social Studies

a.         Science

 

b.        Geography

 

c.         History

 

 

 

The weather in town, the province in Zambia.

The climates.

 

Early Farmers.

 

 

3-4: The weather in the district, province.

 

 

The seasons, instruments to measure, the climates.

Step 5    Subject 4

 

 

 

 

 

             Subject 5

 

 

 

             Subject 6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

            Subject 7

 

 

 

            Subject 8

 

 

 

 

 

            Subject 9

Music

 

 

 

 

 

Creative activities

 

 

 

Home economics

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Physical Education

 

 

 

Religious education

 

 

 

 

 

Zambian Language

Listen to the sounds of the town.

The song If you are happy and you know it clap your hands.

 

The colours of the cars.

-          Mixing colours.

-          Making funny number plates.

Types of food, fruits, vegetables at the market place.

-          Making a fruit salad.

-          Making a vegetable soup.

In town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creation

 

 

 

 

 

Play roll: a little shop in town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3-4: Churches in town.

 

This music lesson is a demonstration lesson.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a demonstration lesson. Use the vocabulary on town for all the exercises.

Step 6

Have a look if you integrated the twelve skills in the week plan.

 

 

 

Step 7

Put all the subjects in a weekly timetable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A typical Multigrade lesson preparation

 

Lesson preparation in Multigrade Teaching

 

Grade = 3,4,5

Subjects = English/Maths

 

The story

 

The story of the mouse with the (7 tails)

 

A nice little mouse was very unhappy because it had no friends to play with.
Every day other children were laughing with the mouse, do you know why?

Because the mouse had seven tails.

Who can draw me a mouse with seven tails?

The unhappy little mouse complained to her mother, and asked her what to do?(all children look unhappy)

Mammy told the mouse that she must laugh back when the other pupils are making fun of her.

The mouse went to school with a big smile (all children a big smile), but all the children start laughing again and shout, hahahaha a mouse with seven tails.

The mouse came back home and was crying

The mother must think about another solution.

That same day the mother cut three tails (a pupil erases the tails from the BB).

But still the children kept on laughing.

Now the mother cut all the tails.

The day after when the mouse came at school she started immediately playing with the other children. But the children couldnt laugh anymore because the tails were gone.

So from that day all the children played with the mouse.

Since then the mouse comes home with a big smile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Content/method

Teacher activities

Children activities

Exercises/games

games individual work

Introduction

 

The story

 

Grade 3,4,5

The teacher tells the story of the little mouse with the seven tails.

 

The children sit in front of the class on the ground.

They will be active during the story

They will be crying, looking happy, and looking sad.

One of the children will come and draw a mouse with seven tails on the BB.

 

Development

Situation 1

Grade 3

 

Key-word list

Mouse, happy, school, to laugh, tail, smile, to walk, and more words found by the children.

 

 

 

Grade 4

 

Grade 5

 

 

 

Situation 2

Grade 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grade 4

 

1 x 7 = 7

2 x 7 = 14

3 x 7 = 21

4 x 7 = 28

5 x 7 = 35

6 x 7 = 42

7 x 7 = 49

8 x 7 = 56

 9 x 7 = 63

10 x 7 = 70

 

Grade 5

 

Situation 3

 

Grade 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grade 4

 

 

 

 

 

Grade 5 

 

Verbs/nouns/adjectives like to laugh, to walk, to cry, sad, bad, and happy.

 

 

 

 

Situation 4

 

Grade 3

 

Grade 4

 

 

Grade 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Situation 5

Grade 3

 

Grade 4

 

 

Grade 5

 

 

 

Situation 5

 

Grade 4/5/6

 

 

How many tails the mouse have? How many were cut the first time, how many the second times?

Can you tell me the story again? Can you play the story?

The key words are written down on the BB.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teaching the table of multiplication.

 

How many tails the mouse has?

Seven children stand in a circle.

Teacher will teach, by the same method till 3 x 7.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The teacher will write down five sentences.

We will analyse the sentences and put the words in verbs, nouns and adjectives columns.

 

 

 

 

The dictation of ten words.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reading and learning the table of seven by games.

 

 

All the children will be saying one sentence of the story.

The children will play the story.

 

 

The children read a lot of times all the words.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The children read the tables of multiplication.

 

Children answer individually.

A child will draw a set with seven elements.

Another child will write

1 x 7 = 7

And so on till 3 x 7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the pupils will read their story or a part of the story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The children write down the words individually.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the children sing the table of multiplication, but grade of 3 can keep on drawing.

Table of multiplication games:

 

1.         One child in front of the class and will say a table, the other students will answer.

2.         Two children in line, every time they give a good answer they make a step forward. The one who will be the first in front or back of the class wins.

3.         One child claps the table in her hands the others have to answer.

4.         Two children will stand in front of the class reciting the table. If they make a mistake the other pupils can put their finger in the air.

5.         All the children stand up and the teacher is asking the table. When a pupil gives a good answer he or she can sit down.

6.         All the children sit down. The teacher is asking the table. When a child gives a good answer he or she can stand up.

1.         Concrete children in a circle.

2.        Semi concrete is the story.

3.        Semi abstract sets on the BB.

Abstract 3 x 7.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Write the tables of multiplication of 2, 3,4,5,6.

Write down the story in 5 to 10 sentences.

 

 

Write all the new words in your book.

After writing you will dictate the words to your friend. Correct the words and then start over.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pupils finish their writing exercises.

 

 

 

Write all the new words in your book.

After writing you will dictate the words to your friend. Correct the words and then start over.

 

Complete the table of seven.

Write also the table of six and learn by heart the both tables.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Complete the table of multiplication and learn by heart.

Complete the list of 20 words in each column.

Learn the words.

 

 

 

 

 

Make a drawing of the story.

 

 

Complete the list, correct with your friends and prepare your dictation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Timetable for a multigrade class

 

Grade 3 and 4

 

Day /period

Mon

Tu

We

Thu

Fri

remarks

Period 1

Gr 3-4

Concrete Fieldtrip

Gr 3

Writing

Vocab.

Gr4

Math

Measur

Gr 3-4

Reading

Text

Words

Gr 3

Exercices on Language

Gr4

Maths

Ti me

Gr3

Test on Maths

Gr4

Individual reading

 

Period 2

Gr 3-4

Concrete

Fieldtrip

Gr 3-4

Reading

Text

 

 

 

Gr 3

Exercises on Maths

Gr 4

Spelling

Dictation

Gr 3

Maths

Time

Gr 4

Exercises on

language

Gr 3

Individual reading

Gr 4

Test on maths

 

Period 3

Gr 3-4

Vocab

Reading

Gr 4

Writing

Text

Gr 3

Math

Sets

Gr 3

Spelling

Dictation

Gr 4

Exercices on Maths.

 

Gr 3-4

Social Studies

History

Early farmers

Gr3-4

Test on language

 

Period 4

Gr 3

Math

Measur.

Gr 4

Writing

Voc

Gr 4

Maths

Sets

Gr 3

Writing

Text

Gr 3-4

Social Studies

Geography

The climate

Gr 3-4

Language

Grammar

Structure

Differentiated

Exercises.

Gr 3-4

Test on language

 

Period 5

Gr 3-4

Home economics

Type of fruit

Gr 3-4

Social Studies

Science

Gr 3-4

Physical

education

Gr 3-4

Industrial Arts

Gr 3-4

Test on Social Studies

 

Period 6

Gr 3-4

Physical

Education

Gr 3-4

Creative activities

 

Gr 3-4

Religious education

Gr 3-4
`Zambian language

Gr 3-4

Correction of the test

 

Period 7

Gr 3-4

ZL

Music

Gr 3-4

ZL

Music

 

 

Gr 3-4

Creative activities

Gr 3-4

Music

Gr 3-4

Music and other subjects.

 

 

 

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