As an education major at West Virginia State University, I have developed various engaging methods and strategies that allow academic learning to occur in an educational setting. These engagements link directly to educational outcomes, and some examples include fun activities like interactive learning games, as the video evidence demonstrates. My day three unit plan adjusted the objective: "By the end of the unit, the students will use evidence and rationale to support the explanation that the environment can influence traits." The instructional activity that was used to replace my originally planned formative assessment of a small group discussion with a T-Chart and manipulatives was changed to an in-class whole group activity that was moved to the front of the room, with two students taking turns to play the game "Slap it!" As the video displays, the pace slowed, and there was a discussion between the players; once they matched the target I asked them to find, the student would identify if the picture showed a trait inherited or influenced by the environment. Before we started this game, I had a discussion to give directions and examples through discussion and review of what a trait is and linked it directly to today's learning objective. This is shown in this secondary video.

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How do students make connections between the learning object and the activity? Students had to slap the picture I asked them to match with swatters, and then the winner had to tell me if they thought this was inherited or environmental traits being displayed and give a reason as to why. Some pictures had multiple, and the opposite team members could earn points if they had a reason that was just as valid! My best example was the pictures I used from student interests surveys, the professional football player, the professional singer/songwriter, and the professional gymnast, which displayed talent but that could be inherited physical features to enhance the ability or environment for training and developing themselves professionally. Students picked up this very easily and would debate this, and we made the third "in the middle row" shown in the photo of the finished game.

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Eventually, the placement of the students became an issue due to too many distractions and student behaviors. The placement became students returning to their seats, and it was the student's responsibility to remember the players in front of each other for turns and which team they were on; this was held accountable by the entire class because they did not have anyone cheating! Student engagement was apparent, and the learning objectives were being met. However, the student behaviors also became an issue due to the specific placement of this activity, how the students were aligned in the room that set them up to be so close to one another, and the time of day, which was close to dismissal. They were already exhausted from the day.

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After the adjustments were made for the students to be sat in their seats at the desk and then brought to the front of the class, the lesson was more organized, was on pace, and students focus was more directed to the students at the front of the class and instead of being apart of the distractions of the talking and breaking of the standard routine seating placement. This was a learning moment for me, but it was a quick response to try this and change on the go with a responsive way to make little changes to alter the desired outcomes for my engaging lesson to be successful with my students to obtain the objective.