How would you explain the need for lesson pacing in the classroom (age 5th and 6th grades, while considering)?

At the 5th and
6th grade levels, the ages of students range from 10 to 12 years of age. This coincides with the
so-called "tweens", or pre-teen age years. During this time, children are at a prime
stage of development, both mental and physical, that stems from their hormonal transformation
from children into adolescents. These changes entail further variations in terms of their likes,
their needs, their goals, their skills, and their levels of motivation. The fact that they are
at a transitional stage that is proportional to their social and emotional growth must serve as
an important keypoint to consider when differentiating  and pacing instruction.

According to Erickson, children of this age group undergo the phase of
"Industry versus Inferiority". In Freudian terms it would be the
transition from the Concrete Operational to the Formal Operational stage.
Kohlberg would affirm that they are at a "Pre-conventional
stage". Although different in name, these theories all coincide in that there is
a zone of developmental growth during this time that entreats the provision of motivational,
challenging, and relevant tasks to ensure student success.

All this being
said, lesson pacing should involve the following: a clear objective to establish relevance,  b)
a developmentally appropriate task based on student interests and capability,  c) a worthy
motivational reward,  d) consistent and ongoing observation and feedback.

Good teachers often know what their students need based on the curricular suggestions.
Great teachers, however, contrast themselves from good teachers in that they use assessment and
research tools to tap on the true likes and needs of each student. Far from a hard task, this is
actually a very doable thing.

Hence, the need for lesson pacing can be
explained by understanding the complexity of the target audience, by zoning in their need for
motivational and worthy tasks, and by consistently shifting their level of activity to address
their different intelligences. Because of the many changes taking place in the live of students
of this specific group, their processing levels will also vary. Some students will be
developmentally ready to work alone while others will always need a most knowledgeable other
(MKO). Therefore, by pacing, the teacher lets the student "bank in" time to absorb all
the new information and process is effectively.

By pacing a lesson, the
teacher is also able to split her lesson within mini lessons to be completed by small groups, or
by individual students. For example, when teaching History, a teacher will explain the purpose
of the lesson, the projects available for self-paced and group completion, and the resources
that are available to complete the activities. After doing this "game plan", the
teacher can roam around the students or smaller groups as the facilitator of the activities that
they will be engaged in. As the teacher meets with students, either individually or in smaller
groups, a good exchange of information takes place. From this information, the teacher can
continue to mold the lesson, switch objectives, or come up with new ideas for specific
students.

Again, pacing allows for the proper synthesis of the information
that the teacher bestows upon the student. Good pacing will ensure that this process is done
effectively, considering the complexity of this particular student population