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What is in this unit?• Lesson Plans with Step by Step Instructions• Personal Narrative Lesson with included
materials• Lesson on letter writing with examples• Poetry Lessons with Examples and
Rhyming Worksheets• Writing a Friendly Letter Power Point • Graphic Organizers• Fun Writing Ideas for Your Classroom• Writing Process Posters for Your Classroom• Self & Peer Editing Checklists• Rubrics for Assessing Writing• Common Core Connections• PDF and Power Point Formats for Easy
Language Lesson PlanTopic: Writing a Personal NarrativeCore Content Connections: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.3Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.5With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.6With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.Time: 45 minutes for 3 days (Break it down for writing the rough draft, peer reviews, and final draft.)
Materials: Personal Narrative Poster (Included) Writing a Personal Narrative Brainstorming Sheet (Included) Rubric for Grading Personal Narrative (Included) Examples of Personal Narratives http://www.thewritesource.com/studentmodels/ Beginning, Middle, and End Rough Draft Sheets (Included) Final Draft Personal Narrative Sheet (Included) Self Editing Check List (Included)
Procedure: Ask the students if they know what a personal narrative is. Take a few answers. Show the students the poster “What is a Personal Narrative?”
Explain that a personal narrative is a piece of writing that is all about them. A personal narrative is something that has really happened to them. It is
not made up. It is Non-Fiction not Fiction. You may want to describe the difference between fiction and non-fiction if this is something that you have not gone over. Review the Steps of the Writing Process. Posters are included in the back of this packet.
Explain that they will be writing about something that has happened to them. Give the students “Writing a Personal Narrative Brainstorming Sheet.” Have them fill this sheet out by writing down special people to them, special places that they have visited and describing the best day ever for them.
Procedure (continued): Explain to them that this sheet will help them to think about what they will want to write about. After they are finished, you may have time to share some of these in class.
Explain that every paper or letter has a beginning, middle and an end. So once they decided on what event in their life that they want to write on, they will receive the beginning, middle and end sheets. These sheets will help organize their story into three different parts. Each sheet also has a place for them to draw a picture of that part of the story. For younger students, you may want this to be their final draft. You should give each sheet to the students separately. You only want them to focus on one part of the story at a time. You can break this up into different days or work on these on the same day.
Once they are finished with the personal narrative rough draft sheets, you should explain that you are now on the “editing” part of the writing process. At this point give the students “self-editing checklist.” The students will begin to look at their paper and answer these questions. This would be a great time for some one-on-one conferences with the students. You can help them look at their paper answer these questions. Another great idea is to show an example of a personal narrative (whiteboard or smartboard) to the class and demonstrate how you fill out the self-editing checklist. This lets you know if the students understand this process.
Once their self-editing checklist is complete, the students should go back and make any corrections needed. You could meet with some students that you were not able to during this time. It would be ideal to be able to meet with every student, but I know that this is not always possible. The students will then start their final draft on the Final Draft Sheet given. They may have more than one sheet if needed.
Use the rubric given to grade their papers. It is always good to go over the rubric with the class before the writing begins so they know what is expected.
Language Lesson PlanTopic: Writing a Acrostic PoemCore Content:CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.4Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.4Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.
Time: 45-60 mins.Materials: Poster (What is a Acrostic Poem?) Included Football (Touchdown) Acrostic Poem Example of a Acrostic Poem
Brainstorming Sheet on FootballProcedure: Ask the class if anyone knows what an Acrostic Poem is. Brainstorm what it might be. Uncover the poster with the definition of an Acrostic Poem. Explain that an Acrostic Poem is one that uses the first letter of a word to make a poem about the word that it spells out. Show the example of the poem on the whiteboard or smartboard. Discuss how each letter represents a line or a word in the poem.
Let the students know that they will be practicing writing an acrostic poem about football. The word that we will be using is “Touchdown.” Have the class as a whole brainstorm some words that remind them of football or touchdown. Record the words on the sheet given. You can also make a copy of this sheet and hand out to the students to use on their poem.
Once you are finished brainstorming, give the students the sheet on “Touchdown.” Give the students about 25-30 minutes to come up with their poem. The students can then share their poems with others in the class or if time allows with the class. This assignment would be a great bulletin board or hallway display of their work.
Extra: Have the students pick their own topic and write an Acrostic Poem. This could be a homework assignment or an assessment to see if they understood the criteria for an acrostic poem.
Language Lesson PlanTopic: Letter Writing (Grades 2-5)Core Content:CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.5With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.6With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.2Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.Time: 45 minutes for two daysMaterials: KWL Chart (President Barack Obama)
Letter Writing Power Point (Included) Sample Letter (Included)Brainstorming SheetBarack Obama, Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes
President Barack ObamaThe White House1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NWWashington, KY 20500
Procedure: Day 1: Give each student a KWL chart on Barack Obama. Inform the students that they will be writing a letter to President Obama. Put a copy of the KWL chart on the white or smart board. Ask the students what they already know about Barack Obama? Record on your sheet and have the students record on their sheet. Next, ask what they would like to know about President Obama. Record this information on their sheets. Try to call on students who didn’t answer for the first part of the lesson. Read the book “Barack Obama, Son of Promise, Child of Hope” by Nikki Grimes if it is available. If not, use the fact sheet included. After reading the book or discussing the fact sheet, ask the students what new info. did they learn about the President. Have them record this on the (L) part of the KWL chart.
Brainstorming Sheet: Hand out a brainstorming sheet to each student.You can put them in groups of 3 or 4 to do this activity. Inform them that the letter that they are writing to the President will discuss a problem or issue that you would like him to solve. Brainstorm some ideas on what problems are we facing in America. (See Brainstorming Sheet and Sample Sheet).
Day 2: You may want to do this part on the next day. Show the power point about letter writing. Explain the different parts of a letter. Show the sample letter to the President. Point out the different parts of the letter on this sample. Have the students to begin to write their letters following the steps of the writing process. Have the students pick a topic to write on based on their brainstorming exercise. Have them get their topic approved by teacher before writing. You wouldn’t want them to start writing on a inappropriate topic.
Once they have their rough draft finished, they will get with another student for peer editing. The teacher should also conference with each student if possible. Remember, these are going to the President. Remind the students to use their best handwriting if writing them.
The students will then revise their letters and write or type their final draft. Before the final letter goes in the mail, the teacher will review each letter. The teacher will mail all the letters together to the White House.
Evaluation: The finished letter will be an evaluation on the student’s writing skills. The students can save their final product on google docs to share with you. This way you can evaluate their final product while sending the printed copy to the President.
Fact Sheet• President: 2009 to Present• Born: August 4, 1961 in Honolulu, Hawaii• Married to: Michelle Robinson Obama• Children: Malia and Sasha• He was a lawyer and graduated from Harvard Law School• He decided to enter politics in 1996 as a Illinois State
Senator.• He likes to play basketball and golf.• He favorite teams are the Chicago Bears and the Chicago
White Sox• Barack can speak Indonesian and some Spanish• He worked at Baskin-Robbins as a teen. • He has read all the Harry Potter books.• He is the 44th President of the United States
Information found at: http://www.inclusiveclassrooms.org/inquiries/access-writing-process/letters-president-obama
President Barack ObamaThe White House1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.Washington, D.C. 20500 Dear President Obama: Congratulations on becoming the 44th President of the United States of America. My name is Samantha and I am a student in the 3rd grade. I hope that you are a good president. I could not vote for you because I was only nine years old. I am writing to you because I want better school lunches. I know that you are trying to make the food healthier, but the food does not taste good. I bring my lunch most of the time now, because I don’t like the food. My friends feel the same way. It would be great if we could have healthy school food that tastes good.
Thank you for reading my letter. I hope that you can help us have better school lunches. Sincerely yours, Samantha
Language Lesson PlanTopic: Writing LimericksCore Content Connections: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.5With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.6With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.2Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Time: 45 to 50 mins.
Materials: Limerick Exit Slips Limerick Poster and Examples Twimericks: The Book of Tongue Twisting Limericks by Lou Brooks
Procedure: Ask the class, if they know what a Limerick is. Write some of their answers down for all the class to see. Show the posters on limericks. Limericks are normally funny poems that contain only five lines. The lines each have a specific rhythm and rhyme pattern. A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds (or the same sound) in two or more words, most often in the final syllables of lines in poems and songs.
Read the class a book that has limericks. My favorite is “Twimericks: The Book of Tongue Twisting Limericks” by Lou Brooks. After reading the limericks, have the students point out the rhyming words.
The students will write their own limerick. Have the students brainstorm words that they would like to use in their limericks. Once they have a list of rhyming words, they can make up a silly poem that goes with the words.Exit Slip/Share (5-10 mins): Students will complete an exit slip at the end of the lesson. The exit slip requires students to look at two poems. One poem is an example of a limerick and one poem is not. Students must distinguish between the two poems and correctly circle the limerick.
Which one of these poems is a limerick? How do you know?
* STAR Circle the limerick and explain why.by Kaitlyn GuentherThere once was a wonderful starWho thought she would go very farUntil she fell down And looked like a clownShe knew she would never go far.
* The moon is a week old - A dandelion to blow Scattering star seed. By Ruby Lytle
Exit Slip: Limericks
Which one of these poems is a limerick? How do you know?
* STAR Circle the limerick and explain why.by Kaitlyn GuentherThere once was a wonderful starWho thought she would go very farUntil she fell down And looked like a clownShe knew she would never go far.
* The moon is a week old - A dandelion to blow Scattering star seed. By Ruby Lytle
Language Lesson PlanTopic: Writing a Quatrain Poem & Rhyming WordsCore Content Connections: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.4Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.4Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.Time: 3 day unit on Rhyming Words and Creating a Poem (appox. 30 -45 mins. daily)
Materials: Rhyming Words Matching Sheet (Included) Rhyming Words Memory Game Cards (free on TeachersPayTeachers) Examples of Quatrain Poems (Included) Brainstorming Valentine’s Day Sheet (Included) Poem Handout for Students (Included) Picture Book with Rhyming Words (Green Eggs and Ham)
Procedure: Tell the class that in honor of Valentine’s Day, we are all going to write poems. Before we can write poems, we must learn about “Rhyming Words.” Ask the class, “What are rhyming words?” A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds (or the same sound) in two or more words, most often in the final syllables of lines in poems and songs.
Read the class a book that has rhyming words. My favorite is “Green Eggs and Ham” by Dr. Suess. Have the students try to pick out the rhyming words on each page that you read.
Give the students the “Rhyming Words Worksheet.” After giving them the sheet and going over the directions, give the students 10 minutes to complete the sheet. Go over the sheet together as a class. Be looking for any students may be having problems with this concept.
The rhyming word cards can be placed in a learning center for the students to practice their rhyming skills.
Procedure Continued:The next day or the second part of this lesson will be constructing the poem. Introduce the topic of the poem will be Valentine’s Day or other ideas related to Valentine’s Day. Give the students the brainstorming sheet. You could put the teacher blank copy on the white board or smart board. Have the students give you ideas or suggestions about what words remind them of Valentine’s Day. Once they have completed their brainstorming sheet, they can start thinking about their poem. Explain that we are going to write a Quatrain Poem. Show examples and explain that it is a short 4 line poem. The students will begin their rough draft of their poem. Have them refer back to their brainstorming sheet for word ideas. This will not be done on their “heart” poem sheet. We will save this for the final draft.
After the students have their rough draft done, they may do peer or teacher conferencing to improve their poem. They will then begin to revise and write their final draft on their sheet. The teacher may want to look at their rough draft before they approve it and give them the paper for the final draft.
Let the students know that their work will be displayed and they will have a poetry reading for their parents. This will give them a little extra motivation to do their very best work.
Assessment: The assessment will be their final draft of the poem. You will look to see if it is a “Quatrain” poem and it has rhyming words in the correct locations.
Poetry Reading: Invite the parents in to hear what the students have written. This can be done before a “Valentine’s Day” party. Instead of clapping at the end of each student reading their poetry, have them snap their fingers. This is what is done at most poetry readings. This is a great way to gain parent involvement and showcase what the students are learning.
A limerick: a funny poem with five lines.How to write a limerick:The first, second and fifth lines rhyme with each other and have the same number of syllables (typically 8 or 9).The third and fourth lines rhyme with each other and have the same number of syllables (typically 5 or 6)Limericks often start with the line "There once was a..." or "There was a..."
Limerick: St. Patrick's Dayby Leanne GuentherThere once was a shamrock named Pat,Who tripped on a root and went splat, She ripped her best leaf, And sobbed in her grief,And ruined her favorite hat.
Limerick: There was an Old Man in a Treeby Edward LearThere was an Old Man in a tree,Who was horribly bored by a Bee; When they said, 'Does it buzz?' He replied, 'Yes, it does!''It's a regular brute of a Bee!'
• There are 5 parts of a Friendly Letter1. Heading: (Date) For Example: February 1, 20152. Greeting: For Example: Dear Punxsutawney Phil,3. Body: This is where you introduce yourself. You
would also ask Punxsutawney Phil the questions that you came up with in the body of the letter.
4. Closing: You can put several things here. Examples are: Love, Your friend always, or Sincerely.
5. Signature: This is where you sign your name.
February 1, 2015
Dear Punxsutawney Phil, Greeting
Heading
My name is Mrs. Schuhmann. I have learned a lot about you the past few days. I wanted to write you letter to ask you some questions.
My first question is, “Why are you afraid of your shadow?” I am not afraid of my shadow, but I am afraid of snakes. Are you afraid of snakes?
My next questions is, “What is your favorite food?” I learned a that groundhogs like strawberries. Do you like strawberries?
Well, I hope that you don’t see your shadow. I am ready for spring. Hope to hear from you soon! Your Friend,
Mrs. Schuhmann
Body
Closing
Signature
February 1, 2015
Dear Punxsutawney Phil,
My name is Mrs. Schuhmann. I have learned a lot about you the past few days. I wanted to write you letter to ask you some questions.
My first question is, “Why are you afraid of your shadow?” I am not afraid of my shadow, but I am afraid of snakes. Are you afraid of snakes?
My next questions is, “What is your favorite food?” I learned a that groundhogs like strawberries. Do you like strawberries?
Well, I hope that you don’t see your shadow. I am ready for spring. Hope to hear from you soon! Your Friend,
Mrs. Schuhmann
Can you remember the parts of a letter? Where do these words go? Closing, Heading, Body, Signature, and Greeting
Check the Contents: Yes No
Heading
Greeting
Body
Closing
Signature
Check Capitalization, Spelling, Punctuation
Do all sentences begin with a capital letter?
Do proper nouns begin with a capital letter?
Does the letter have correctly spelled words?
Do all sentences have correct ending punctuation?
Other:
Peer Editing Checklist
Directions: Find someone to read your rough draft. They will make corrections and give you suggestions. You will do the same for them. Remember, to give helpful comments, not hurtful ones.Writer’s Name:____________________ Peer Editor:________________________
Directions: Read over your letter. Look to see you have the correct parts of a letter. Check for the other items listed below. Correct anything that you check “no” to.