Grade: 4th Grade

Craft Lesson: Description

Objective:
Student will be able to articulate the importance of using description in writing
through the analysis of Chapter 2 (Enter April) in The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatty
Snyder.
Standards:
RL.4.3
Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on
specific details in the text (e.g., a characters thoughts, words, or actions).
Materials:
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatty Snyder
Post-Its
Pencil
Procedure:
Tell student that we will be exploring the authors use of description
Ask children what they know about description
Begin reading chapter 2 (Enter April) from The Egypt Game
Stop at the top of page 14 and tell student to pay close attention to the
description of the Casa Rosada.
o The Casa Rosada was very different. Somehow it made April think of
Hollywood and home. It was very Spanishy-looking with great thick
walls, arched doorways, fancy iron grillwork, stained-glass panels in the
windows and tile floors in the lobby. Outside it was painted pink.
After reading about the Casa Rosada, draw on a post-it how you visualize the
building. Make sure to talk through your sketch as you do it (modeling)
o Arched doorways
o Iron grillwork
o Stained-glass windows
o Tile floors
Continue reading
Stop on page 15 to have student draw Carolines apartment on a post-it
based on the descriptions.
o Carolines apartment was on the third and top floor and fronted on the
avenue. Most of the buildings in the neighborhood were only one or
two stories high, so from where she stood she could get a pretty good
idea of the lay of the land. On one side of the Casa Rosada were some
small shops- a florist, a doughnut show and some others. On the other,
across a narrow alley, was a tall billboard that pretty much blocked the
view, but by leaning forward April could see the faade of a long low
building. She could tell that it was very dingy and the windows were
badly in need of washing. From her position- high and to one side- she

couldnt make out the sign; but from the interesting clutter in the show
windows it seemed to be some sort of second-hand store.
Continue reading
Stop on page 18 to have student draw the ancient figurine on a post-it based
on the descriptions.
o An old man was leaning over the counter right above her head. Oh
hello, April said and went on looking at a tiny statue with broad
shoulders, short legs and a hole in the top of its head. It looked almost
Egyptian and April had always been especially interested in Egyptian
stuff. After a moment she looked up again and the man was still there.
Whats that? she asked, pointing to the tiny figure.
Finish reading the chapter.
Have student share their drawings
Ask student what differences they see between the two pictures. (Carolines
apartment should be more detailed)
Ask student how author used description to help the reader
Ask student why the pictures were different and how the author could have
made a better image for us for the ancient figurine

Assessment:
Gauge student understanding based on student drawings and answers to questions
asked at the end of the chapter.
Writing activity:
Give students the following prompt after completing the lesson:
Describe a time in one of your favorite places. Use description like we saw in Enter
April in The Egypt Game. The story can be fiction or non-fiction, but detailed
descriptions must be used to describe the place.
Grade: 4th Grade

Craft Lesson: Organization- Sequencing

Objective:
Students will be able to articulate accurate sequencing of words through the
retelling of chapter 3 (Enter Melanie- and Marshal) from The Egypt Game.
Standards:
RL.4.3
Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on
specific details in the text (e.g., a characters thoughts, words, or actions).
Materials:
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatty Snyder
Post-Its
Pencil

Procedure:

Before reading chapter 3 (Enter Melanie- and Marshal) ask students what has
happened so far in the book
During the discussion, begin modeling words like first, then, and after
that to introduce sequencing
Model sequence of events by stating the most important events in the text in
order of when they happened (First, introduced the A-Z store and the
mysterious Professor, then the Professor watched as April, Melanie, and
Marshal played in the back of his store, then April went into the A-Z store
where she first interacted with the professor)
Explain that the words first, then, after that are ways that the author tells
us the order of events in a story
Explain that students will be doing something similar while they listen to
chapter 3
Encourage students to use listen for times the author uses these words to tell
us the order of events in the story
Give students a pad of post-its, and explain that as she listens, she will be
sketching important events that happen throughout the chapter
Tell them that one event will be drawn on each post-it, and to stick them to
the table in order as they go
Remind them that if they take too long on one sketch, they will miss out on
other important events, so they must draw quickly and listen carefully
Begin reading chapter 3 while observing students to make sure they are
listening and not getting behind (adjust reading speed accordingly)

Assessment:
After the chapter is complete, have students retell the story using their post-it
pictures, and words like first, then, and after that
Writing Activity:
Give students the following prompt after completing the lesson:
Describe a memorable event, moment, or tradition that you have from the winter.
Make sure to use sequencing words like we saw in, Enter Melanie- and Marshall in
The Egypt Game, to help explain the order of events in your memory.
rd

th

Craft Lesson: Vivid Verbs

Grade Level: 3 /4 Grade

Objective:
Students will be able to identify vivid verbs in writing, and articulate how it
benefits the writing.
Students will be able to incorporate vivid verbs into their own writing.
Standard:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.3.1.A
Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general
and their functions in particular sentences.

Materials:
Koi and the Kola Nuts by Verna Aardema
Paper
Pencil
Procedure:
Place the following words on the board: ran, say, fly
Ask students what these have in common (students should reply with: they
are verbs)
Ask what we know about verbs (responses should include: they are action
words)
Have students look at list of words. Ask them why these verbs are not verbs
that we should include in our writing
Have students think of vivid verbs as another way to say the verbs on the
board. Record them under their equivalent word
Explain to students that they will be using these types of words in their
writing, but first they will be looking to see how an author has used vivid
verbs in their writing
Have students get out a piece of paper, and instruct them to write down any
vivid verbs they hear during the reading of Koi and the Kola Nuts by Verna
Aardema
Read Koi and the Kola Nuts by Verna Aardema
Have students share which verbs they heard. As students are sharing, write
their verb on the board. When a student shares a notable verb, find it in the
text to discuss. Read the sentence with the vivid verb in it. Ask the students
how the verb improves the sentence. Ask the students for examples of a less
vivid word that the author could have used that would have kept the meaning
of the sentence the same.
o Possible vivid verbs:
Sobbing
Lashing
Exclaimed
Crawling
Explain to students that they will now be using vivid verbs of their own.
Have the students write the following sentence on their paper:
o The dog ran across the yard to his toy.
Ask students to identify the verb in the sentence. Once students have
identified the verb, ask students for examples of vivid verbs that could be
used to replace it.
Replace the verb in the sentence on the board and read it to the students
Explain to the students that they will now be doing this on their own and in
their own writing
Write the following sentences on the board and have students write them on
their paper:
o Billy hit the table and the vase fell to the ground.
o Cindy slid down the hill on her rusty, old sled.

Have students find their own vivid verbs to replace the ones in the sentences
Give students the opportunity to share their ideas with their shoulder
partners
Walk around the classroom to aid students who are struggling
Give advanced students the option to write their own sentences using vivid
verbs

Assessment:
Collect students papers to evaluate their understanding and use of vivid verbs.
Also, gauge their understanding through involvement and accuracy during
discussion.

Grade: 4th Grade

Craft Lesson: Personification

Objective:
Students will be able to identify personification in piece of literature, as well
as articulate the understanding of personification.
Students will be able to incorporate personification into their writing.
Standard:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.4.5
Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances
in word meanings.
Materials:
If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks by Faith Ringgold
Writers notebooks
Pencil
Procedure:
Have students look at the cover of If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa
Parks, and ask them what they see or notice (students may notice the title- a
bus cannot talk because it is not living, or the face on the bus- buses do not
have faces)
Ask students for examples of times they have heard or read about something
that is not living that did actions living things do
Have students share their ideas
Tell students that when a non-living thing is given living actions, that is called
personification
Tell students that they will see personification in If a Bus Could Talk: The
Story of Rosa Parks
Read If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks
After reading If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks, ask students what
examples of personification they found in the book (the students should be
able to say that the bus was given living actions- it could talk)

Inform the students that we will be looking at the first two pages of the book
and identifying how we know that the bus could talk
Read through the first page. Ask students if there are any hints in the text
that tell us that the bus is different (bus is said to be strange looking)
Read through the second page and ask the students if there are any hints
again. Do not read the last paragraph on the 2 nd page. (when the bus is
talking, it says someone said) Ask students if there are any other hints that
tell us that the bus is talking (students may answer: the pictures)
Have the students brainstorm an object and some possible living traits it
could have
Have students share their ideas with their shoulder partners, then share out
Inform students that they will be writing about their object using
personification
Give students the freedom to write a story of their choice in their writers
notebooks, as long as it includes personification and a story line
Circle the room to ask students about the personification that they are using,
and how they are using it
Assessment:
After students have completed their stories, collect writers notebooks to gauge
student understanding of personification.

Grade: 3rd/4th Grade

Craft Lesson: Dialogue

Objective:
Students will be able to identify who is talking in piece of literature, as well as
articulate how dialogue is beneficial to the telling of a story.
Students will be able to implement dialogue into their writing.
Standard:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.3.2.C
Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue.
Materials:
Peppe the Lamplighter by Elisa Bartone
Procedure:
Tell students to think about the ways we know that characters are speaking
while we are reading Peppe the Lamplighter
Read Peppe the Lamplighter
After reading, ask students to share with their shoulder partners the ways
that they knew someone was talking in the book
Have students share to the large group. Have students give specific examples
in the book. Revisit these examples as students share them
Place the book on ELMO and look at pages specifically (start with page with
illustration of market

Tell the students that you are going to read through the page again while
they follow along
Read the passage
Ask the students what more ways they can see that tell them who or when
someone is speaking in the text (students should see quotation marks and
words like: said, answered)
Continue to look at and read different pages on the ELMO to convince
students that this idea is consistent and valid
Tell students that they will be learning how to incorporate conversation into
their own writing
Use the board to model the following: tell the students about a conversation
that you had had earlier that day. First, tell the story, then explain how you
can tell the same story that you told on paper
Write the conversation on the board
Explain that to indicate that someone is speaking, a quotation mark goes at
the beginning of their words, and that the same mark goes at the end of their
words
To say who is speaking, the name and a word to describe how they said what
they are saying (like said, exclaimed, explained, yelled, shouted, sang,
whispered) goes after their words
A comma is placed after their words, but before the quotation mark, to show
that it is all one sentence
Point all of these specifics out on your written example
Write a conversation as a class. Ask students to share a conversation that
they had at lunch/breakfast that day
Write the conversation on the board without quotations or stating who said
what
Ask the students for directions in how to show that this was a conversation
and who said what
Repeat this task until students have grasped the concept
Have students get out their writers notebooks so that they can practice on
their own
Tell students to write out conversations from their past that stand out to them
When students need help, have them first ask the people working around
them to help clarify, then the teacher
Walk around to monitor student understanding (because this is the first
lesson, student work will not be perfect. Encourage students to not skip
details in their conversation)
Assessment:
Collect student work to gauge understanding of dialogue. Use work in writers
notebooks to help direct future lesson on dialogue.