Alignment to Assessment Standards and Purpose of Lesson

• Work Time A: Students complete the Mid-Unit 1 Assessment. They read "An Account of the Moon Landing" and answer constructed response questions about vocabulary, figurative language in the text, the author's point of view, and how that point of view is conveyed in the text. (RI.6.1, RI.6.4, RI.6.6, L.6.5c)
• In this lesson, students focus on working to become effective learners by reading and answering questions independently for the mid-unit assessment. Prompt students' perseverance by reminding them that assessments are meant to inform instruction. Use assessment data to make choices about what should be retaught and how to adjust the pacing. Encourage students not to be afraid of making mistakes; an accurate assessment is crucial for tailoring lessons to students' needs.

Opportunities to Extend Learning

• Some students may not need extensive review of the assessment directions. Release them to begin working on the assessment while clarification is provided to other students who need more support.

How It Builds on Previous Work

• In the first half of this unit, students read excerpts of informational texts and primary source documents, building background knowledge about the Space Race and analyzing the author's point of view and use of connotative and figurative language. This lesson continues those routines in an assessment, in which students apply their learning to a new informational text.

Support All Students

• As with any assessment, students may feel nervous about reading and answering questions about new passages independently. Point out all the preparation they have had through activities, homework, and in-class reading time. Also, remind them that there will be other opportunities throughout Module 4 to demonstrate what they have learned.
• If students receive accommodations for assessments, communicate with the cooperating service providers regarding the practices of instruction during this study and the goals of the assessment.
• For some students, this assessment may require more than the 35 minutes allotted. Provide time over multiple days if necessary.
• An opportunity to track their progress after the assessment helps students reflect on and celebrate their growth.

Assessment Guidance

• All assessment materials for Mid-Unit 1 Assessment: Analyze Point of View: "An Account of the Moon Landing," are included in the Assessment Overview and Resources.
• When assessing and providing feedback on this assessment, use the answer key and sample student responses (see Assessment Overview and Resources) to help complete students' Track Progress recording form.
• Using information from this assessment, students are tracking progress toward anchor standards:
• R.1: By the end of Grade 12, I will be able to: 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 the text.
• R.4: By the end of Grade 12, I will be able to: Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
• R.10: By the end of Grade 12, I will be able to: Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

Down the Road

• In the next lesson, students read a new text to better understand the political context of the Space Race and determine the central idea and the main claim of the text by engaging in a close read. This text starts to introduce different perspectives about the Space Race and its legacy as students shift their focus to argument texts.
• Students' Mid-Unit 1 Assessments will be returned in Lesson 8 with feedback.