Detailed Lesson Preparation Guide

Elementary Education
Name: Lauren Stone

Title: Girls Only, Boys Only! An Educational Debate

Grade: 3rd

Concept/Topic: Evidence-Based Argumentation Using Text Citations

Time Needed: 50 min- 1 our

Identify Desired Results:

- Students should be able to cite specific textual evidence to support claims
about their opinion on privatized versus public schools based on gender.
- Students should be able to communicate their opinion effectively (clear,
articulate, logical).
- Students should think critically about the topic at hand in relation to their
own lived experiences and/or current issues.

Standards:
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.1: Read closely to determine what the text
says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual
evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from text.

Prior Knowledge/Connections:
Students will be expected to draw upon their experiences in their schooling (in this
case, a co-ed school) and use this knowledge to help formulate an opinion on the
debate between co-ed versus privatized schools. They will hopefully make
connections with other lived experiences and current issues to contribute to their
argument. They will also be asked about their prior knowledge about debates in
general and how they can use this to help them in the debate we will be having
today.

Lesson Introduction/Hook:
The lesson will begin with an introduction about what a debate is. Students will
participate in a class discussion about their prior knowledge/experiences with
debates and the teacher will leverage their knowledge into a formal
definition/explanation of a debate. This will be followed by a
demonstration/modeling of how to conduct yourself during a debate and the type of
language the students should be using (I agree with, I disagree with, etc.). The
model will start with the reading of a short article that is filled with facts (example:
could be about a certain animal species, I used an article about Cheetahs and had
my TA had one about Elephants). Display the article on a projector and read through
the article out loud to students, highlighting facts that you plan on using in the
debate and explaining to students why you are picking those facts. Have a
condensed list of the facts you highlighted already written on a separate sheet of
paper (o save time) to show students how they can formulate their thinking. Then,
model a debate with a TA (or whoever is available). Mine was which animal is cooler,
a cheetah or an elephant? The students are able to see how you choose facts, how
you use them in a debate, and how to conduct yourself in a debate.

Lesson Development:
After modeling the debate, pass out the article, Girls Only, Boy Only! (link found in
materials consider accommodations for ELLs). Instruct them to read the article
carefully, highlighting facts as you did with your article. Inform students that they
will need to pick a side (co-ed or privatized) and be able to defend and support their
thinking. Every student is expected to speak, even if they are just saying that they
agree or disagree with someone else. Once students are wrapping up their initial
reading, tell them to consolidate their thinking into a few facts from the article or
connections with their lived experiences. After students have finished
reading/picking their points, have them go to opposite ends of the room depending
on which side they take (be aware of the possibility that all students may go to one
side if this happens, while the students are conferring with their peers, have a few
select students that you know are up to the task try and play devils advocate and
defend the opposite side). Once students are among their like-minded peers, have
them confer with each other to determine which points they want to make, and
avoid the repetition of the same facts over and over. From this point, they will
decide who speaks first and the debate begins. Depending on the amount of time
allotted for this lesson, students can speak several times if desired, however every
student must say something (accommodations can be made for students as
necessary). Encourage students to not only use their articles but to make
connections with their lives and with current social issues. Have them practice
critical consciousness by posing scenarios for them to consider. Mention that this is
a real current issue and that many people face the decision to choose between
schools and a lot of kids are forced to go to a certain kind of school put yourself in
their shoes if you are for co-ed schools and had to go to a privatized school, how
would you feel? You as the teacher will be the mediator; make sure students are on
task, engaged, and participating respectfully. Giving immediate positive feedback to
each speaker is highly encouraged as it will make students feel more comfortable
and willing to speak.

Specific Questioning:
- What are the benefits of ____?
- The negatives?
- The challenges?
- Should the priority be academics or social skills?
- What about cost?
- What experiences do you have that support your thinking?
- Does this make you appreciate your school?
- How would your life change if you were only around girls or only around boys
all the time?

New Vocabulary:
Co-Ed: An education system in which both men and women attend the same institution or classes
Sex: Gender
Privatized: (In this context) An education system in which men and women are separated and exclusively
attend separate schools based upon their sex
-
Concluding the Lesson/Closure/Debriefing:
When concluding this lesson, push students critical consciousness through further
questioning (questions really just depend on your specific class/students).
Encourage them to talk to their friends and family. Potential follow-up activities
could include a creative writing prompt to imagine yourself going to a school you
did not want to go to and how it would affect you as a person now and in the future.
Materials/Resources:
- A copy of Boys Only, Girls Only! for every student
- Writing utensil
- Projector
- Outside articles (or collection of facts made to look like an article)