Sunday, October 20, 2013

ELA Writing Lesson

ELA Writing Lesson:
Topic: Informational Texts
Grade Level: 6th Grade
A.      Learning Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to . . .
1.       Write informative/explanatory texts that convey ideas and concepts using relevant information that is carefully selected and organized.
2.       Introduce the topic of a created text.
B.      Common Core Skills:
1.       To write an informative text, conveying in an organized manor, their point of view about a specific topic they choose.
C.      Standards:
W.6.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts and information through the selection, organization and analysis of relevant context.
D.  Vocabulary:
1. Transitioning/Sequencing words: Words used in a piece of writing, to connect one idea to the next. They can direct the reader between main ideas, or they can indicate when things happened in a given sequence. Some examples: First, Second, Then, Initially, Lastly, In addition to, Therefore, etc. Prof. Campbell, Prof. Buckhoff, and myself, if you please, along with this link to Creative Commons license 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/>. 
2. Plot: The main events/ideas of a given piece of work whether it be a story, movie, poem etc.
3. Point of View: In order to express your point of view in your text about the movie/book you choose, you must consider the adjectives you’re going to use within your text. Certain context clues can lead your reader to assume you either liked or disliked the work you chose.
E. Materials would be: Smart board, notebook, pens, large display sentences on laminated pieces of poster board and highlighters.
F. I would have big, laminated sentences on the board, out of sequence. I would explain to the students that these sentences were how I would describe my routine of what I did before I came to school.  I would ask each student to read the sentences to themselves and think about the order in which they should be arranged for the story to “make sense.”
“I shut my alarm off.”                     “I watched the news.”                   “I graded papers during lunch period.”
“I brushed my teeth.”                    “I handed in my library book.”    “I ate breakfast.”
“I drove to school.”                         “I put on my green shirt.”             “I said goodbye to my husband.”
After the students analyzed these sentences independently I would ask for volunteers to move around the sentences in an order that would make sense.  Obviously some of the sentences can be placed in multiple ways and the story would still make sense.  Also, there are a couple details that don’t make sense for my story of how my day was BEFORE school.  This would exemplify how certain details are important and others are not.  When it came time to debate the order, I would ask the students to explain how I could reword the sentences so they would know specifically which order I did things. 
H. These words would be our transition words. I would have some transition words on poster board as well and I would place the words before certain sentences.  This would display that these transition words are ideal to help a reader understand sequencing/order in which certain plot points happened.  We would then discuss how I can introduce feeling into my story.  Together we could brainstorm certain adjectives that I can add to my sentences to make the students understand how I fell in the morning.  For example: “I tiredly shut my alarm off.” “I put on my favorite green shirt.” “I quickly brushed my teeth.” Etc. This would give the reader a better understanding of how my morning went.
I. Differentiation is present in the way I arranged the lesson from first independent thought, then visually and physically moving sentences in a sequence that would make sense.  It would also take a higher order to understand why or how certain sentences make more sense in a certain sequence, while others simply didn’t matter.  Also, brainstorming point of view context clues and sequencing words.
I would then have the students take out their notebooks and write a 10 sentence review of the movie/book they chose for homework the night before.  I would ask that they write a plot summary of the main ideas of the book/movie they chose. Remind them to use sequencing vocabulary to help the reader understand the order in which the events happened.  I would also have them review it and use the correct words to convey their point of view of the book/movie of their choice.  Once it was written, they would exchange their review with a classmate, where the classmate would read their review and guess what the author rated the movie.  Each reader would be equipped with a highlighter and a pen, to highlight the context clues that hinted toward point of view, and underline key points of the plot.
J. Higher Order Questioning:
What are some sequencing words?
 Can you tell if I’m a morning person, based off of how I presented the sentences in the beginning?
 What if I changed the sentences to; “I popped up happily and shut my alarm off.” “I eagerly brushed my teeth.” “I smiled and say goodbye to my husband.” How do these words make you feel about my point of view in the morning?
What are some ways I can add adjectives/context clues to make my morning sound less positive?
K.  How I would assess the class:
I would assess their grammar and use of context clues and transitioning words throughout their written review.  I would also assess the readers’ ability to read for point of view, when they exchanged reviews, by what they decided to underline and highlight.  The way in which the authors organize their main plot points and use transition words would allow me to assess their understanding of writing informational texts in an organized way.  The readers’ ability to guess the author’s rating would allow me to assess their understanding of how to assume point of view of a author.
L. Closure:
Were you able to guess the authors’ ratings?
How were you able to determine the authors’ point of views?

What are some key words that allowed you to understand the order in which things occurred in the book/movie?

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