Lesson Plan Guide

Teacher Candidate: Julia Gephart

Date: April 27,2016

Grade and Topic: 4rd Grade, English Language Arts

Mentor Teacher: Dr. Cornelius

Length of Lesson: 50 min.

School: The University of Memphis

UNIT/CHAPTER OBJECTIVE/GENERALIZATION/BIG IDEA:

English Language Arts: The central focus of this lesson is to have students examine the life of an immigrant
through an online interactive tour and construct a narrative journal entry describing the experiences as an
immigrant in America in 1892.
LESSON OBJECTIVE:

Given an online site, TLW be able to read and explore the journey of an immigrant in 1892. TLW write a narrative
letter as a person who has just entered Ellis Island. They will write about their experiences based on evidence
found online with 100% accuracy.

STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

TN SS 3. Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what
happened and why, based on specific information in the text.

TN SS 3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, wellchosen details, and well-structured event sequences.
a. Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event
sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and description to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to
situations.
c. Use a variety of transitional words and phrases to manage the sequence of events.
d. Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely.
e. Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events.

ISTE 1. Creativity and Innovation: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop
innovative products and processes using technology.
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression.

ISTE 5. Digital Citizenship: Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology that
supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.
b. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.

MATERIALS:
TTW discuss with the class the first Immigrant to come to America. TLW use this website to review.
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/progress/jb_progress_ellis_1.html
Visual picture of Annie Moore, the first Immigrant to step foot on Ellis Island.
TLW explore this interactive tour to find information about the first immigrants and what life was like for
them. They will listen to audio, view videos, and find pictures.
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigration/tour/
TLW write a narrative journal entry using Microsoft word document
Vocab words list on board for reference when writing

BACKGROUND and RATIONALE:

The key concepts of this lesson include exploring an online website, and writing a journal entry describing the life
as an immigrant. We will be discussing Annie Moore, the first immigrant in Ellis Island.

Academic language:
Vocabulary: immigration, Ellis Island, American Citizen, The Registry Room, Detainees
Language Function: Discuss, explore, write.
Discourse: Students will discuss as a class Annie Moore and review the parts of a journal entry.
This lesson is preceded by a lesson on narrative essays.
I will build on this lesson by making a collection book of the journal entries for the students to review and
reflect on. Then we will begin studying parts of a letter.
Differentiated activities: Large font on Word document for students with visual impairments. Students with
writing disabilities will describe their persona as an immigrant orally individually. Students with hearing
impairments will be able to learn about Annie Moore through this site
http://www.libertyellisfoundation.org/annie-moore. Gifted students will paint in the paint document online a
picture of their persona as an immigrant including the proper clothes from 1892. (Can include props as well)
They will base their pictures off of images from online interactive tour site.

PROCEDURES AND TIMELINE:

Introduction: TTW ask students if they have any grandparents or relatives who were immigrants.
TTW tell students that we will be exploring the life of immigrants in America. They will also be writing
journal entries as the role of an immigrant describing their experiences. This is important because they
will learn about the hardships their ancestors endured to enter the new land. They will also be able to
work on their narrative writing skills. (5 min)
TTW introduce Annie Moore to class discussing her life and accomplishments as the first immigrant to
enter Ellis Island. (5 min)
Procedures:
TTW tell students that they will be going on an interactive tour of Ellis Island in 1892. They will need to read
through each story, observe pictures, and listen to audio with their headsets.
TTW discuss new vocabulary terms that they may see on the tour.
Vocabulary: Immigration, Ellis Island, American Citizen, The Registry Room, Detainees.
TLW begin exploring the interactive site. (15 min)
TTW tell students to open a word document to write a journal entry. They will pretend they are an
immigrant writing journal entry reflecting on their experiences traveling to a new land. They will need to
write in paragraph formats that include 3 to 6 sentences. Their letters should have an introduction, body,
and closure. (3 min)
TTW ask students what types of words could they include in their journal.
TLW answer scared, different, hesitant, exciting. (2 min)
TTW display vocab words on the board that students may use in their narrative journal including words
they discussed earlier.
TLW write their narrative journal. (15 min)
TLW save their journal in a file called My Journal Entry and upload it to the class website on Classdojo.
Differentiated learning: TTW prepare a word document with large font for students with visual
impairments. Directions will be printed out for students with hearing impairments. Students with writing

disabilities will describe their life as an immigrant to the teacher orally while other students are typing
their journals. Gifted students will begin painting their pictures on the paint application if they finish
their journals early.
If a computer lab is not available at the time of this lesson, students will rotate using the computers in
the classroom. Students who are at the computer will explore the interactive tour with a partner. Then
they will go to their seats and write their journal entry on paper. Students who are waiting with their
partners to use the computer will look at a printed map of Ellis Island and read more information about
Annie Moore. Gifted students will draw their picture on paper.

Closure: (5 min.)
TTW tell the class to close this lesson, lets review what we learned. TTW ask students who the first
immigrant was in Ellis Island.
TLW answer Annie Moore.
TTW ask what were some hardships immigrants had to go through while traveling?
TLW answer leaving their home and entering a new land, going through the long registry room, getting
seasick, going through inspection, having to look for new jobs.
TTW tell students that immigrants often wrote their family members letters to stay in touch, so
tomorrow we will be looking at parts of a letter.

ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE:
Formative assessment includes observing students body language and work online, collecting the journal entries
on the class website, monitoring their seatwork on the computer, observing their responses to the closure
questions.
There will be no summative assessment for this lesson.

The formative assessment links to the objective by having students examine the experiences immigrants had in 1892 on
the interactive tour and write about their experience as if they were an immigrant at that time.

MODIFICATIONS:
Those who have not mastered the objective will discuss the hardships and experiences immigrants had to go
through with the teacher. They will make a bulleted list of different experiences. Then the teacher will help them
create a short journal entry from the bulleted list. TLW receive vocab cards to help distinguish between new
words.
Those who are ready for enrichment activities will paint or draw a picture of an immigrant with clothes and
props based on photos they observed on the interactive tour. They will save and upload those photos to the class
website on Classdojo.