Writing a Book Review: Analyzing a Model | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G3:M3:U2:L8

Writing a Book Review: Analyzing a Model

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RL.3.10: By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 2-3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
  • RI.3.10: By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 2-3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
  • W.3.1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
  • W.3.4: With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and purpose.
  • W.3.5: With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
  • SL.3.1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can use the Painted Essay(r) structure to analyze a model. (W.3.1)

Ongoing Assessment

  • The Painted Essay(r) template (W.3.1)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Engaging the Reader: Model Book Review (15 minutes)

B. Reviewing Learning Target (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Analyzing a Model: The Painted Essay(r) (25 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Research Reading Share (15 minutes)

4. Homework

A. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal.

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

  • In this lesson, students analyze a model book review using the Painted Essay(r) structure to generate criteria for their own book reviews (W.3.1, W.3.5).
  • The Painted Essay(r) (Diana Leddy, Vermont Writing Collaborative) guides students to code each section of their essay a different color to understand each part, the content of each part, and how the different parts connect.
  • In the Closing, students are guided through a research reading share to hold them accountable for their research reading homework. Consider using the Independent Reading: Sample Plans if you do not have your own independent reading review routines.
  • In this lesson, the habit of character focus is working to become ethical people. The characteristic that students practice in this lesson is integrity, because they are sharing their research reading homework.

How it builds on previous work:

  • For homework, students began to consider reasons why they would or would not recommend Peter Pan to a friend in preparation for writing a book review.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Students may require additional support when reading for gist. Consider pairing students heterogeneously for this activity or consider grouping students who may need additional reading support together while you read aloud for them.

Assessment guidance:

  • Throughout Work Time A, frequently review student work to ensure they are color-coding accurately. Use common issues as whole group teaching points.
  • Consider using the Reading: Foundational Skills Informal Assessment: Reading Fluency Checklist or the Reading: Foundational Skills Informal Assessment: Phonics and Word Recognition Checklist to gather reading fluency and word recognition data from students during the research reading share in Closing and Assessment A.
  • Collect Recommending Peter Pan homework from Lesson 6.

Down the road:

  • In the next lesson, students will begin writing the introduction of their book review. Students will use the Peter Pan Recommendations anchor chart prepared by the teacher before the lesson to write their reviews.

In Advance

  • Strategically group students into pairs for work throughout the lesson.
  • Prepare: Independent reading review. Consider using the Independent Reading: Sample Plans (see the Tools page).
  • Review the Painting an Essay Plan from Module 1, Unit 3, Lesson 5 to familiarize yourself with the color-coding and the purpose of each choice of color.
  • Post: Learning target and applicable anchor charts (see Materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • Continue to use the technology tools recommended throughout Modules 1-2 to create anchor charts to share with families, to record students as they participate in discussions and protocols to review with students later and to share with families, and for students to listen to and annotate text, record ideas on note-catchers, and word-process writing.
  • Opening A: Consider finding examples of age-appropriate online book reviews to share with students.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 3.I.B.6, 3.I.C.10, 3.I.C.12, and 3.I.A.4

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to unpack a visual model. The familiarity of the Painted Essay(r) structure, used in Modules 1-2, allows students to focus on the language and content in their book reviews rather than on a new writing structure.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to determine the gist of the proof paragraphs in Work Time A, as the reasons introducing each paragraph are stated less explicitly than those in previous Painted Essay models (e.g., the Reading Contract and Poison-Dart Frog models), Remind students to think about the structure of the Painted Essay as they determine the gist of each paragraph and assure them that they will participate in Language Dives in Lessons 10-11 to better understand the reasons stated in each.

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • During Work Time A, encourage students to expand their sentences. Challenge them to include more than one piece of evidence to explain how they determined the gist, using various linking words to do so. (Example: "I know this because ____. Additionally, _____.")

For heavier support:

  • For Work Time A, create an interactive model of the Painted Essay template to support students with the model book review structure throughout the unit:
    • Enlarge the Painted Essay template to display on the construction board.
    • Make a copy of the Introductory Paragraph strips from Lesson 9 from the model book review. Color-code them according to the Painted Essay colors. Repeat for the Proof Paragraph strips in Lessons 10-11.
    • Use a removable fastener to attach each Introductory Paragraph strip to the introduction paragraph of the enlarged Painted Essay template. Repeat for the Proof Paragraph strips.
    • In this lesson, after sharing the gist of the introductory paragraph as a class, model detaching each point from the introductory paragraph and placing it next to the corresponding proof paragraph, concretely grounding students in the purpose of each section of the model book review.

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): In the basic structure of this lesson, students get multiple representation cues with the color-coding provided by the Painted Essay(r) template. However, some students may find covering the entire essay in one lesson overwhelming. Consider chunking the explicit instruction for each part of the essay into multiple lessons to provide time for students to comprehend new information.
  • Multiple Means of Action and Expression (MMAE): This lesson offers several opportunities for students to engage in discussion with partners. Continue to support those who may need it with expressive language by providing sentence frames to help them organize their thoughts.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): In this lesson, students have opportunities to share ideas and thinking with classmates. Continue to support students' engagement and self-regulatory skills during these activities by modeling and providing sentence frames as necessary.

Vocabulary

Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T); Vocabulary Used in Writing (W)

  • Painted Essay(r), structure, analyze (L)

Materials

  • Performance Task anchor chart (begun in Unit 1, Lesson 1)
  • End of Unit 2 Assessment, Part II Prompt (one per student and one to display; see Assessment Overview and Resources)
  • Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (one per student and one to display)
  • Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (example, for teacher reference)
  • Colored pencils (red, yellow, blue, green; one of each per student)
  • The Painted Essay(r) template (from Module 1; one per student)
  • Painting an Essay lesson plan (from Module 1; for teacher reference)
  • Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Independent Reading: Sample Plans (for teacher reference; see the Tools page)
  • Recommending Peter Pan (from Lesson 6; one per student)

Materials from Previous Lessons

New Materials

Assessment

Each unit in the 3-5 Language Arts Curriculum has two standards-based assessments built in, one mid-unit assessment and one end of unit assessment. The module concludes with a performance task at the end of Unit 3 to synthesize their understanding of what they accomplished through supported, standards-based writing.

Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Engaging the Reader: Model Book Review (15 minutes)

  • Move students into pre-determined pairs and invite them to label themselves A and B.
  • Draw students' attention to the Performance Task anchor chart and read the prompt aloud. Remind them that they are working toward presenting a revised scene from Peter Pan with an explanation about how and why they revised it.
  • Tell students that before they can do this, they need to think about what they liked and didn't like about Peter Pan, as this will guide them in deciding which scene of the story they will choose to revise.
  • Distribute and display the End of Unit 2 Assessment, Part II Prompt and read it aloud.
  • Turn and Talk:

"In your own words, what will you be doing for the end of unit assessment?" (revising a book review about my opinion of Peter Pan)

  • Answer clarifying questions.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"What can we use to guide our writing? Why?" (a model; a model can help us to understand what information to include and give a structure to follow)

  • Remind students that adults at work often use models to guide them in creating work products.
  • Distribute and display the Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.
  • Invite students to follow along, reading silently in their heads as you read the model aloud.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is this text about?" (recommending Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens to a friend)

"Would the author of this text recommend it to a friend?" (yes, but with some cautions)

"Why would he/she recommend the story?" (It sparks the imagination.)

"What does 'with some cautions' mean?" (There are some things that the friend should be aware of before reading.)

"What are the cautions?" (Characters in the story are sometimes cruel.)

"Where might you see this kind of writing in the real world outside of school?" (Reviews are everywhere. Most online shops have customer reviews of the products; libraries sometimes have reviews of the books.)

  • Consider showing students an appropriate online book review. Emphasize that although a lot of people write reviews and have opinions about the books they read and the things they buy, some don't know how to write successful reviews. For example, they don't use evidence to support their claims, which makes it difficult to trust the reviews. Just saying you like something or don't like it isn't very useful. People who read reviews want evidence about why you like or don't like it.
  • Emphasize that the reviews they write, like the model, will be grounded in evidence, so people will be more likely to trust them.
  • For ELLs: (Read Aloud Twice) Consider reading the model book review aloud twice to provide additional opportunities to process and comprehend the language within.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Stop to Ask Questions) Consider asking questions that relate to a specific paragraph directly after that paragraph is read, allowing students to more easily navigate the text as they respond to each question. (Example: Ask "Would the author of this text recommend it to a friend?" after reading the first paragraph.) (MMR)
  • For ELLs: Mini Language Dive. "This story/really sparks your imagination,"
    • Deconstruct: Discuss the sentence and each chunk. Language goals for focus structure:
      • sparks: "What does the story do?" sparks literally means to light up or to stir up. Students can snap their fingers as they are sparking or lighting a match. Sparks figuratively means to inspire. Figurative language means something different from what it means literally and is used for effect. Your imagination is not an animal or person and isn't something that can be touched. (verb)
      • does the story spark 
      • really: "How much does the story spark your imagination?" really means very. If really is replaced by slightly, the meaning changes. It doesn't inspire you very much. (adverb)
    • Reconstruct: Reread the sentence. Ask:

"Now what do you think this sentence means? How does your understanding of this sentence add to your understanding of the Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens?" (The author uses this sentence to describe how the story inspires your imagination and brightens it like a spark would, which is one reason the author liked the book.)

    • Practice: ______really sparked my imagination.

B. Reviewing Learning Target (5 minutes)

  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning target and select a volunteer to read it aloud:

"I can use the Painted Essay(r) structure to analyze a model."

  • Underline the words Painted Essay(r) and remind students that they used this in Module 1 when writing their reading contracts.
  • Review the meaning of the words structure (how something is organized, arranged, or put together; if students are unsure, invite a student to look it up in the dictionary for the group) and analyze (examine in detail).
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Shades of Meaning) Write the words structure, arrangement, organization, and composition on a different shade of the paint chip and discuss shades of meaning in relation to the writing process. (MMR)
  • For students who may need additional support with comprehension: To activate background knowledge, connect the meaning of the word structure to architecture. Discuss how architects build different structures based on the need, such as a house versus a skyscraper versus an airport. Connect this to writing by saying that authors use different text structures based on each author's purpose. (MMR)
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Display the Painted Essay(r) Template) Display the Painted Essay(r) template introduced in Module 1, connecting the meaning of the word structure to a structure that students are familiar with and will be using as the basis of their writing. Invite students to share one way in which they analyzed the Painted Essay(r) structure in the previous module, using their Vocabulary words in context. (Example: "I analyzed the Painted Essay(r) structure by looking closely at each paragraph to determine its purpose.") (MMR)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Analyzing a Model: The Painted Essay(r) (25 minutes)

  • Refocus students on the Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.
  • Invite them to follow along, reading silently in their heads as you read aloud the first paragraph.
  • Turn and Talk:

"What is the gist of this paragraph?" (brief overview of the story; clearly states the focus statement with reasons)

  • Cold call students to share out and record the gist next to the first paragraph on the displayed model. Refer to the Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Invite students to work in pairs to determine the gist of each remaining paragraph.
  • After 10 minutes, refocus whole group and use total participation techniques to select students to share out.
  • Guide students through using the colored pencils and their Painted Essay(r) template to color-code their Model Book Review: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens. Refer to Painting an Essay lesson plan for further detail.
  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the learning target.
  • If productive, cue students to think about their thinking and to compare ideas:

"How does our discussion add to your understanding of the book review? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner." (Responses will vary.)

"How is what _____said the same as/different from what _____ said? I'll give you time to think and write." (Responses will vary.)
  • For students who may be uncomfortable sharing their own preferences with the entire class: Consider allowing them to share what their partner said so that they still have a chance to speak in front of the class. (MMAE, MME)
  • For students who may need additional support with comprehension: Consider chunking the Painting an Essay lesson plan over multiple lessons to minimize the complexity of the comprehension task. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: (Revisit Mini Language Dive Focus Structure) Remind students of the Mini Language Dive in the Opening. Encourage students to think about the meaning of sparks your imagination as they determine the gist of Proof Paragraph 1.
  • For ELLs: (Sentence Frames) Provide sentence frames for students to choose from when discussing the gist of each paragraph. Encourage students to use evidence to explain how they determined the gist.
    • "The gist of the paragraph is _______. I know this because ______________."
    • "The paragraph is mostly about _____. I know this because ______________."

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Research Reading Share (15 minutes)

  • Focus students on the Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart and remind them specifically of integrity. In the context of research reading homework, this means trying to do it each day, even when it is tough to do so, and if it isn't possible, being honest when recording the dates and pages read in their journals.
  • Refer to the Independent Reading: Sample Plans to guide students through a research reading review.
  • Collect Recommending Peter Pan homework from Lesson 6 to generate an anchor chart for Lesson 9.
  • For students who may have completed some of the prompts in their independent reading journal orally with a family member or friend: Allow these students to have some notes or drawings to use for this sharing time. Consider meeting with them in advance to prep them for the research reading share and minimize the threat associated with sharing. (MME)
  • For students who may need additional support with verbal expression: As groups of students interact, listen for language errors that are impeding communication. Sit with one group and discuss the language error and why it's impeding communication. Encourage the group to identify a clearer or more accurate way to express the communication. (MMR)

Homework

HomeworkMeeting Students' Needs

A. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with writing: (Oral Response) Read aloud, discuss, and respond to your prompt orally, either with a partner, family member, or student from Grades 2 or 4, or record an audio response. (MMAE)

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