Lesson Planning Form for Accessible Instruction Calvin College Education Program

Teacher: Janneke Cole

Date: 10/26/16

Subject/ Topic/ Theme: Language Arts/Narrative writing/Varying Sentences 2

Grade: 6th grade

I. Objectives
How does this lesson connect to the unit plan? Conjunctions are an important piece of good narrative writing. Conjunctions help to
portray emotion and engage readers.

cognitiveR U Ap An E C*

Learners will be able to:

define a conjunction/correlative conjunction

R,U,Ap

use conjunctions in their writing

Ap

recognize conjunctions when used in others (fellow students) writing

create their own sentences/stories using conjunctions

An

physical
development

socioemotional

Common Core standards (or GLCEs if not available in Common Core) addressed: W.5.3.b., L.5.1.a., L.5.1.e., and L.5.2.b
*Note: ACS teachers have split up the 5th/6th grade standards. This unit is being taught using 5th grade standards per ACS language arts teachers request.
(Note: Write as many as needed. Indicate taxonomy levels and connections to applicable national or state standards. If an objective applies to particular learners
write the name(s) of the learner(s) to whom it applies.)
*remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, create

II. Before you start

Identify prerequisite
knowledge and skills.

-Students should have a good understanding of the previous lesson- interjections

Pre-assessment (for learning):

-Check their understanding of yesterdays lesson before covering new material with the warm up.
Outline assessment
activities
(applicable to this lesson)

What barriers might this

lesson present?

What will it take

neurodevelopmentally,
experientially,
emotionally, etc., for your
students to do this lesson?

9-15-14

Formative (for learning):

-Asking students to volunteer their answers throughout the lesson

Formative (as learning):

-Students will write their own stories by adding on to the previous days assignment
Summative (of learning):
Provide Multiple Means of
Representation
Provide options for perceptionmaking information perceptible
-Reading definition of conjunctions
-playing Conjunction video
-reading conjunction definition
aloud to students and having them
write it.
Provide options for language,
mathematical expressions, and
symbols- clarify & connect
language

Provide Multiple Means of Action

and Expression
Provide options for physical actionincrease options for interaction

Provide options for expression and

communication- increase medium
of expression
-Students identify interjections in
their classmates writing & in their
own writing
-Students talk about conjunctions
as a class
-Students underline conjunctions in
the song

Provide Multiple Means of

Engagement
Provide options for recruiting
interest- choice, relevance, value,
authenticity, minimize threats
-Show the music video
-Engage in class discussion
-Use their own time to work on
their own writing.
Provide options for sustaining
effort and persistence- optimize
challenge, collaboration, masteryoriented feedback

Provide options for comprehensionactivate, apply & highlight

Provide options for executive

functions- coordinate short & long
term goals, monitor progress, and
modify strategies

Provide options for self-regulationexpectations, personal skills and

strategies, self-assessment &
reflection

Materials-what materials
(books, handouts, etc) do
you need for this lesson
and are they ready to
use?

-Unit plan handout

-Interactive whiteboard
-red markers
-computers for all (for Silas)
-Youtube videos of Schoolhouse Rocks Conjunction (Media component)

How will your classroom

be set up for this lesson?

Students will be in cluster groups of 4-5.

III. The Plan

Time

Components

10
min

9-15-14

Describe teacher activities

AND
student activities
for each component of the lesson. Include important higher order thinking questions and/or
prompts.
-WARM UP: Write instructions on the front board.
Students should enter the classroom, read the front
1. Put your writing homework from yesterday on
board, take out their homework from yesterday, and
your desk so I can check it.
get right to their independent reading.
2. Read your independent reading book and take
note of interjections that you find in your book.
3. Write the interjection they find on the back
board.

-Tell students to switch stories with the person next

to them. Using a green marker, have them
underline the interjections and short sentences in
their friends story.

5 min

-They must keep their friends story until I tell

them to return it.
-when they are finished they may read their book in
their seats.
-have each student return their partners writing to
them after they have underlined all of the
interjections/short sentences.

Motivation
(opening/
introduction/
engagement)

When students are finished with their friends

paper, they should read their independent reading
books.

-In an effort to jog students memories, explain that

we will play a game called Narrative Charades.
-Explain that you will read a sentence and it is their
job to show the mood of the sentence by using their
facial expressions.
-ex: Oh no! I failed my test! they would
show distress, sadness, etc.
-Read the following clues and allow them to
respond:
a. The yellow vase! It was gone!a
b. Oh, no! A ghost was in the house!
c. I won the race! The trophy was
mine!
d. Help me! I cant hold on much
longer!
e. Youre almost there! Dont give
up!

9-15-14

Students should switch papers with the student next

to them and underline each others interjection/short
sentence use.

If students dont understand the directions, offer

them an example.

Students should be using facial expressions to show

their emotional response to the statement.

-Tell students that today we will be focusing on

how to use longer sentences, conjunctions, and
precise comma placement to create mood.

Students should be listening here

-Ask them to turn in their packet to the definitions

page

...turn to the correct page in packet...

-Read the definition of conjunction/correlative

conjunctions and write it on the board.
-write the acronym FANBOYS on the board (For
And Nor But Or Yet So) ---> not limited to these,
but they are the most common

...and writing the definition of conjunctions here.

-Tell students that we are going to use the color red

to identify conjunctions in pieces that we read.
-Introduce Conjunction video. Ask students to
sing along and underline (In red) the conjunctions
in the lyrics.
-show the Schoolhouse Rock Conjunction video
-Display Varying Sentences to Create Mood and
ask them to turn to the page in their packet.

Students should be listening, singing, and

underlining conjunctions while the song plays.

Students should turn to the Varying Sentences to

Create Mood page in their packet.

-Explain that a conjunction comes either before or

after a comma because a conjunction is usually
used to separate the first and second part of the
sentence.

20
min

-Explain that correlative conjunctions come in

pairs; they must be used together. Read the
following sentence and ask a student to identify the
correlative conjunctions:
-I want either the pancakes or the waffles for
breakfast. (Answer is either/or)

Development
(the largest
component or
main body of
the lesson)

-Tell students to follow along as you read and look

for conjunctions and how commas are used
throughout the piece.
-When you have finished reading, ask students
what they noticed about your voice as you read.
-Ask them, what did the author provide me that
helped me to know where I should slow down in
the sentence?
-guide them to respond that it was the use of
commas and conjunctions.
-Read the following sentence:
Sheilas hands were full so she put down her
favorite thing, the yellow vase, in the shape of a
sun, just to shift things around in her arms.

9-15-14

-Ask students, what did you notice about my voice

One student will be called on to answer this

question.

Students should be following along with the

reading.

If students dont know the answer here, prompt

them by asking them, what do you notice about the
sentences that I read more slowly? (answer youre
looking for is commas/conjunctions)

-Instruct students to take out their computers and

go to the Language Arts IXL.
-have them go to the Conjunction section in
______

5 min

-Students should take out their computers and

spend 5 minutes using the Conjunction section of
the LA IXL

-Spend five minutes reviewing conjunctions

-tell students to turn in their packet to their stories
from yesterday
15
min

Closure
(conclusion,
culmination,
wrap-up)

Students should be editing and adding to their work

from yesterday.

-Instruct students to reflect on the skill theyve

learned by continuing to write on yesterdays topican unforgettable experience at school or on a field
trip.
-Instruct students to use the lines they skipped to
add to their story.
-Remind students to include longer sentences
and insert commas and conjunctions to control pace
and mood.
-Tell students that when the finish they should
underline with red the conjunctions that they use.

Your reflection about the lesson, including evidence(s) of student learning and engagement, as well as ideas for improvement
for next time. (Write this after teaching the lesson, if you had a chance to teach it. If you did not teach this lesson, focus on the
process of preparing the lesson.)

This lesson covered WAY TOO MUCH. The first class was very overwhelmed by the time we got to the
commas part of the lesson and I was getting frustrated and anxious about the fact that I could tell that they
were losing focus. So I changed the lesson quite a bit. Instead of watching the video after talking about the
definition of conjunctions, I showed them the video first. This allowed them the opportunity to figure out what
a conjunction was based on the information provided in the video. After the video played I wrote the definition
and acronym on the board which was just providing a concise way of saying what they already understood
(because they had learned it in the song). I also tried to be flexible- when one of the students saw the acronym
and responded that he had missed highlighting a bunch of conjunctions the first time through, I broke from the
lesson plan and had the students go back and look for conjunctions they missed the first time because they
didnt have all of the information yet. I also cut out the IXL piece- I was running out of time and wanted to be
sure that the students had enough time to review their own writing and see their use (or lack thereof) of
conjunctions. The correlative conjunctions aspect proved to complicate things more than they needed to, so I
opted to leave that out in the second class as well.
Before I wrote these lessons I was given a curriculum that ACS uses (its new this year) for teaching writing.
Bethany told me I could use it as a launch pad of sorts so that I had an idea of what needed to be covered. I
took a few examples/in class readings from this curriculum, as well as the ideas of what to cover, but the lesson
was mostly comprised of my own ideas. I did find that the curriculum was asking me to cover too much in one
class period- there were too many pieces of information included in the lesson and the students were very
overwhelmed. I would rather cover one thing and have them learn it very well than cover many things and
allow their understanding to be very superficial.

9-15-14