Sandra I. Davis
As a teacher within the middle school system, I see the effects that hormonal changes have on the students daily. As the students enter school in the fifth grade, most of their bodies and attitudes are immature. As we watch them progress through to the eighth grade, changes occur which transform their bodies and attitudes into miniature adults. All this as a result of hormones!
This curriculum will present this concept of hormones, and the influences that hormones have on our physiological system and behavior. In teaching this unit the students will be exposed to various materials and teaching situations that will assist in the learning process. At the end of this unit, the students will have gained a knowledge of what hormones are, where the important hormones are synthesized and secreted from, how hormones are transported and recognized by receptors, and what occurs once a hormone reaches its target site.
The class that this will be taught to is a seventh and eighth grade learning center. The students attend full time and have learning disabilities and are socially and emotionally maladjusted. As such this curriculum will be presented in short simple lessons to understand terms. The material presented in this unit is also written on a much simpler level than how it was learned. This was done so that the students and teacher can use this curriculum in the classroom, It can be copied in sections as needed and handed out ta the students as reading material.
As the material in each lesson is presented the students will be tested to check mastery of the content before moving on. Testing can be based on teacher observation or teacher-made tests. Throughout the lessons, teacher-made worksheets, diagrams and activities will be utilized to supplement discussion, Examples of these materials will be presented with each lesson, but they are not all inclusive. The more materials, the more interest on the students part and learning will take place.
