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Context:
Course name: English 9
Grade level: 9
Length of lesson: 90 min
Description of setting, students, and curriculum and any other important contextual characteristics
Students
There are 18 students in the class. One student has high-functioning autism and has difficulty with social
interactions. There are two ELL students in the class. One ELL has been learning English for five years
and one just began one year ago. The one who recently began learning a year ago is an emerging earner
and is able to ask and answer questions in discussion and use nonverbal communication to show she is
engaged in the conversation. The student who has been learning for five years is reaching ELP and is
able to speak and discuss reading material and ideas pretty fluently. Also, he is able to use supporting
evidence already in speaking and everyday language to help support his ideas. (WIDA) One of the
students has chronic illness and is often not in class. There are two students who excel in the class based
on their success on formal formative and summative assessments and also based on the speed at which
they complete these assessments and do well. These students do not want to move to an advanced class,
though, so motivating them to want to achieve higher is a main goal. Overall the class is quiet, and they
are mostly well-behaved.
Classroom
The classroom is set up in the pods outside of the high school. These pods were created due to overflow.
The pods have extremely loud AC so it can be really hard to hear within the classroom. There are 12
desks that sit sturdily on the ground. There are three desks that can wheel around the room. There is a
high table with three chairs around it. The school is 1:1 technology ratio, so I can rely on students
bringing laptops as their supplies.
Context
This unit will be completed during the second week of school. The first week will be based on summer
reading which was The Hobbit and My Antonia. This units focus is to get students introduced and
rolling in their SSR books, which they will read throughout the year. The unit will teach students
reading strategies that will help them find and use supporting evidence in the text. They will be
practicing with characterizations in the text. Also, the unit will give them an introduction to using
supporting evidence in writing about characters. The purpose of this unit is for students to begin forming
basic analytical skills that they will need in most classes in their high school and/or college careers. It
will also be important for helping them to develop strong arguments with supporting evidence that will
be more persuasive than unbacked arguments. This lesson specifically falls near the middle of the unit.
Students have been practicing coming up with predictions and connections already. They have also
experienced asking questions about a text based on title and date published and the first few pages of a
text. This lesson brings the ideas learned in the beginning of the unit about making predictions and
connections and uses them to help students identify important pieces of textual evidence in the books
that they choose to read. Student have already chosen their SSR books, and they have also set up a
classroom notebook. This notebook is not writing specific, its a place for them to keep activities that we
do in class, to take notes, and to practice using strategies. Using the notebook will help me keep track of
what they are learning and taking note of, and it will also help them practice notetaking.
Virginia SOL(s):
9.4 Students will be able to read, comprehend, and analyze a variety of literary texts including
narratives, narrative nonfiction, poetry, and drama.
l) Make predictions, inferences, draw conclusions, and connect prior knowledge to support reading
comprehension
m) use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process
2. Think-aloud of quotes I find interesting and modeling the strategy (15 minutes) Commented [SS1]: Here I use teacher think aloud to help
Before I begin reading, I set my notebook page up to look like this. [show the students my notebook with the students understand the process of completing a double
entry journal.
two columns labelled notes from the text on the left and my notes on the right. Also have slide 2 up
on the whiteboard. Give students a minute to set their own journals up]. On the left, I am going to write
quotes that I think are important in the book and on the left Im going to write a reflection on that quote.
I could write my immediate reaction to the quote or a prediction, a connection, or a question that this
quote inspires. My tangible notebook is already filled out, but I also write my notes into Google Slides
so that students can see it. Students all have computers and can access a PDF of the text online
(Appendix B) in order to read along. I begin reading from the beginning of the introduction in Eragon. I
pause after two or three important moments and think aloud. Ex. Hmmm. I think that this sentence is
really interesting because it makes me wonder about why this blue stone is so special. Is this sentence
relevant, though? To decide if a sentence is relevant, I usually ask 3 questions: Does it advance the
plot? Does it seem to be foreshadowing something? Does it tell us something new about a character or
the story? I think this stone is foreshadowing and it tells us something new that seems really important. I
think that this stone is going to be really important and probably going to be a big part of the story. I
predict that the stone has magical powers. So, on the left side, Im going to write the quote about the
stone disappearing. After I write the quote, Im going to put the page number in parenthesis. So it looks
like this. On the right side, Im writing, Prediction: The blue stone has magical powers. I will model
another quote about the elf girl. I also think that the elf girl is really mysterious. So on the left I am
writing the quote and the page number. On the right, I am writing, She seems really important and
powerful. I wonder what happens to her! [Throughout my time reading the introduction, I will stop and
make at least four notes: modelling each type of note I want students to make. Stopping points listed
below:
Stop: pg. 2: Three white horses cantered toward the ambush. Make connection to elves from The
Hobbit. Predict who the good guys are and what will happen next.
Stop: pg. 3 He caught a glimpse of the elf running from the remaining Urgals. Ask: Why is it so
important to catch the elf girl?
Stop at the end. Prediction: the stone is magic. Reaction: the girl seems really important.]
3. Partnered structured practice (15 minutes) Commented [SS2]: The students have structured practice
At the end of the passage, I will ask students to think of one reaction, connection, prediction, or with taking these notes to help them get started..
question that they have. Now, I want you all to practice a little. Turn to your elbow partners and
together, take three minutes to think of a reaction, a connection, a question, and/or a prediction that this
introduction to Eragon has sparked. Write the evidence from the book, this can be paraphrased since
you dont all have the book, on the left side of your notebook, and write your notes on the right side. You
will each be expected to share your answer with the class.[give students 3 minutes. I will touch base
with a couple of pairs and ask one pair to focus on a connection, one on a prediction, and one on a
question. I will do this in case all students decide to do a basic reaction. This way they will be prepared
to share and the class will see a wide variety. ] So based on this introduction to a novel, what
connections can you make? Students will likely uphold their connection to their summer reading of The
Hobbit that we made the day before when looking at the cover of the book. Students, with prompting,
may also add ideas such as, This reminds me of this other book I read where the introduction was really
mysterious so I didnt really know what was happening. Good Connections. So what are some
predictions that you have for this novel? Students will talk about the stone that disappears most likely
since that was my example prediction. What do we think about the girl? Students might predict that
shes an important character. Some students might add that shes a queen based on the line about her
authority and her body guards. Some students might talk about the Shade. Thank you all for sharing!
Now, I want you all to spend the next 30 minutes working on your SSR. Everyone should have a book
that you are working on. As you read, I want you to think of at least one prediction, one connection,
AND one question from the text. Put these notes into your double-entry journal. Also, remember you can
take as many notes as you want, just make sure that you make a variety of notes: try to use all types of
notes evenly.. I suggest that you try to take at least one note every 2-3 pages. Sometimes you will get
really engrossed in the book and read more than that. If that happens, then you can go back and think
about what you liked as you read and add those to your journal, too. If youre not sure if a quote is
really relevant, think about what the function of it is. Ask yourself: does this quote advance the plot?
Does it seem to be foreshadowing something? Does it tell me something that I didnt know?
You will be leaving your notebooks in the classroom today and I will be looking over your double-entry
journals this afternoon, so make sure I can read and understand what you write!
5. Reflection (5mins)
Ok guys. Were going to take a few minutes to reflect on how much we liked todays new strategy that
we learned: the double-entry journal. I want you to turn to a new page in your class notebok or write
underneath the double-entry journal. Put the header, Reflection 9/15. Give me your rating 1-5. Then
tell me about how often you think youll use it when youre reading, how it will help you become a better
reader, and how you could use it in other classes and outside of school. After you finish, put your
journal on our class shelf to turn in your work. Ill look over what you all worked on today this
afternoon.
IV. Closing (3 mins)
Thank you guys so much for all of your hard work today. Keep reading your SSR and next class, well
practice using the double-entry story to write about a character.
Attention to Individual Student Needs: Detail specific actions/materials you will use to
differentiate your instruction to meet various individuals learning needs in this lesson.
I chose to talk about Eragon for the beginning of class because I know some of the struggling
readers in the class are reading that for SSR, and I thought it would be helpful for them as well as an
interesting example for students. Also, Eragon relates to the summer reading that the school requires for
9th grade, so the students have already experienced a plot to which they can make connections.
I start my conferences with ELL and struggling learners to make sure that they get some 1:1 time
on actually practicing the strategy before having to go off and try too hard on their own. While many
students in my class will understand the strategy, the struggling readers may need a bit more scaffolding.
The ELL students might need a second refresher on what the instructions were specifically so that they
can ask more questions without feeling put on the spot in front of the class. Also, the instructions may
not have been clear to them, especially the less-advanced English speaker. For the emerging ELP
student, she will have the option of writing her character paragraph in Spanish, especially if she decided
to read a book for SSR that is in Spanish. She will also have the option of having an oral exam where
she explains what she thinks about a character and why so that she does not have to worry about spelling
and can try to be more fluent. She will still need to point to certain passages and quotes that she thinks
help her argument.
For SSR books, I worked hard to conference with each student in the first week of school to
gauge their interest levels. Unfortunately, this early in the year, I dont have a ton of my own data on
how well the students can read. However, I was able to get a sense of their reading commitment and
ability based on our discussions of the summer reading and the summative assessment for summer
reading. I tried to recommend books that would be interesting to students but also fit into what their
reading level seemed to be. Sometimes I gave harder texts to students but I thought the content would
help them to get through the book. As I check in with students about their reading in conferences, I can
allow students to start a new book if they really dislike one. If they like it but are having a hard time
with it, I will make sure to allow ample time to conference and potentially offer for them to come in
during lunch and other free study periods to work with me.
For the student with chronic illness, I will allow him to keep his class journal on his computer so
that he always has access to it and so that he doesnt have to write with a pen or pencil when his hand
shakes so much. This student will also still be asked and expected to complete SSR and try to keep up
with different reading strategies outside of the classroom. The student will be asked to try reading
various genres of books so that he can get a wide variety of experience even if he misses some whole
class articles or texts.
For the student with autism, I will allow him to go to the special education classroom with
permission to read with the special education instructor. He will be allowed to read out loud if that will
help him with comprehension and staying focused on the task. When it comes time to complete the
summative assessment, the student with autism has an accommodation allowing him to be tested in a
resource room where he can ask more questions and read out-loud. While he should be writing on his
own, the resource teacher can help him to read directions and make sure that he is using all of his tools.
She can remind him to use the double-entry journal and explain how to use it to him during the test.
For the diagnostic and formative assessment, I dont want to provide a ton of differentiation
because its early in the year, and I am still trying to understand where students need more help and
more differentiation in the future. For the student who is an emerging ELP student, I will let her know
that I want her to work on it but also that I understand if she is working through the text and doesnt
have time to do four different quotes in one class period. I will conference with her and check her
understanding orally to make sure that she understands how to do the double-entry journal and how to
choose evidence and talk about it. If she can verbally explain her reasoning, then I know she
understands. As I learn more about readers and their abilities, I can allow them this option of oral
demonstration of understanding. For some slower readers, this may be a faster option to check
understanding without having to slow them down more by requiring a lot of writing. I do want students
to at least write a little to have the practice and reinforcement.
Technology Use: Detail specific technology being used in the lesson with explanation for why it is
being used.
I am using Google Slides so that they are easy to edit and share with the class. Google slides allows me
to edit in front of students while the students have the presentation open on their computers. Then, the
students can see my edits easily on their computers even if they have trouble reading it on the screen.
Also, students can have the Google Slides at home to practice using the strategy outside of the
classroom.
How this lesson incorporates specific insights from course readings and/or class discussion:
For this lesson, I am working most closely with Beers during reading strategy known as the double-
entry journal. This journal is used to help students find evidence in the text and think closely about that
evidence. Since this is a 9th grade class, they will be expected to start becoming proficient at using
supporting evidence to back their claims. With the double-entry journal, the students can practice
thinking about how particular lines from the work can tell a lot about the work and what might happen
next. Looking back over the double-entry journal can also serve as a good reflection on what one has
read in order to help the students remember what they read. I am also using the workshop format which
we do most of the time in class. I teach a lesson on how to use this strategy, and then the students get a
little bit of practice together. Then, the students get a great deal of independent practice where I go
around and guide them occasionally.
I am also working with Bomers ideas of Calling other texts to mind when I have students made
connections. Students will also be practicing with Interpreting: Developing Hunches and following
them. This lesson will help move students towards being able to use more thinking strategies that
Bomer discusses such as Marginalia and sketching. By practicing locating good quotes in the work in
the double-entry journal, students are start to work more closely with the text. In the future, I can help
them practice more close analysis strategies starting from this point.
Materials Appendix:
Appendix A: Class Slideshow
Slide 1: Do Now
As you come in ....
1. Open your class journal and put the date at the top of the page
2. Label this entry Do-Now 9/15
3. Write one prediction that you have made about your SSR book based on the title, the cover,
and/or the first few pages.
4. Write one connection that you have made between your SSR book and something else that you
have read or watched.
Slide 5: Reflection
1. In your class journals, under the double-entry journal, add the heading Reflection 9/15
2. Rate the strategy on a scale of 1-5. (1 means you really dislike it and 5 means you really like it).
3. In full sentences:
a. Tell me how often you can see yourself using the strategy
b. Tell me at least 2 ways you think this strategy will help your reading comprehension
c. Tell me how you think you can use it outside of the English classroom.
Appendix B: Copy of text in class folder
Appendix C: Rubric for the Character Paragraph on the summative assessment