Reading Informational Texts: Understanding the Author’s Point of View | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G3:M4:U2:L2

Reading Informational Texts: Understanding the Author’s Point of View

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
  • RI.3.4: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words or phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.
  • RI.3.6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text.
  • L.3.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
  • L.3.5: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
  • L.3.5a: Distinguish the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).

Daily Learning Targets

  • I can find the gist of a narrative nonfiction text. (RI.3.4, L.3.4)
  • I can explain the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. (L.3.5a)
  • I can compare the author's point of view to my own point of view. (RI.3.6)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (RI.3.4, L.3.4)
  • Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (RI.3.6)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Reading for Gist: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (15 minutes)

B. Language Dive: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (10 minutes)

C. Modeling: Comparing Point of View (25 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (5 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: 

  • The structure of Lesson 3 is very similar to that of this lesson. Pay careful attention to the routines in this lesson in order to apply them in subsequent lessons.
  • In this lesson, students read and analyze the point of view of the authors of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. They first listen to the story for the gist and think about what the authors are trying to tell the reader about water (RI.3.4, L.3.4). Students then determine the authors'point of view about challenges related to clean water, comparing the authors' point of view and experiences to their own (RI.3.1, RI.3.6).
  • The pages of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind are not numbered. For instructional purposes, the page that begins with "In a small village in Malawi ..." should be considered page 3 and all pages thereafter numbered accordingly.
  • The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is a narrative nonfiction text--it presents factual information in a narrative or story-like style. Because of this, it is used to address Reading: Informational Text standards in this unit.
  • In Work Time B, students participate in Day 1 of a two-day Language Dive that guides them through the meaning of a sentence from The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. The focus of this sentence is explaining the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases (L.3.5a). Students then apply their understanding of the meaning and structure of this sentence when explaining the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in texts and during the Mid-Unit 2 Assessment. Refer to the Tools page for additional information regarding a consistent Language Dive routine.
  • Students practice their fluency in this lesson by following along as the teacher reads aloud The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind during Work Time A.
  • Students focus on working to become effective learners and working to contribute to a better world by discussing how William Kamkwamba, one of the authors of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, persevered and improved shared spaces when building a windmill for his village.
  • The research reading that students complete for homework helps build both their vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to water. By participating in this volume of reading over time, students will develop a wide base of knowledge about the world and the words that help describe and make sense of it.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • In Lesson 1, students reviewed three main issues related to water. In this lesson, they learn more about one person's experience with one of the issues: access to water.
  • Continue to use Conversation Cues to promote productive and equitable conversation.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Students may need additional support in their discussions when describing the authors' point of view and comparing it to their own. Consider providing sentence stems or frames for them to reference during these discussions.

Assessment guidance:

  • Review students' exit tickets as a formative assessment of their ability to distinguish the authors' point of view from their own; also, determine any common issues that could be used as teaching points in the next lesson.

Down the road:

  • In the next several lessons, students will repeat the reading routine in this lesson: reading a new text for the gist, thinking about the author's point of view related to challenges people face with water, and comparing it to their own point of view.

In Advance

  • Prepare a small label with the book title and authors to attach to a pin and place on the world map. This needs to be large enough to see, but not so large as to cover up too much of the map.
  • Review the Questions We Can Ask during a Language Dive anchor chart as needed (begun in Module 3, Unit 1, Lesson 7).
  • Preview the Language Dive Guide and consider how to invite conversation among students to address the questions and goals suggested under each sentence strip chunk (see supporting materials). Select from the questions and goals provided to best meet your students' needs.
  • Post: Learning targets and applicable anchor charts (see materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • Continue to use the technology tools recommended throughout Modules 1-3 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.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 3.I.B.6, 3.I.B.7, 3.I.B.8, 3.I.C.12

Important points in the lesson itself 

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to read The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind for gist and make connections between this text and what they have learned about the issue of water access so far in the module. They also have the opportunity to think about the authors' point of view about water access and compare it to their own and to examine the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in the text.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to describe the authors' point of view about water access and compare it to their own. Consider working closely with a group of students who need support beyond the modeling that is provided in Work Time C. Assure students that they will have chances to practice this more in subsequent lessons (see levels of support and the Meeting Students' Need section).

Levels of support
For lighter support:

  • During Work Time C, challenge students to think of examples of sentences that include words or phrases that communicate something other than the literal meaning. (Examples: The homework was a breeze. My mouth was as dry as a bone.) Encourage students to have fun and act out the literal and nonliteral meanings when possible.

For heavier support:

  • Consider adding sentence starters to the Describing Point of View anchor chart introduced in Work Time C. Write the following under the Point of View heading in the second column: "Her/His/Their point of view is __________. Her/His/Their opinion is____________. She/He/They think(s) that ___________." Write the following under the Evidence from the Text heading in the third column: "One example is __________. For instance, ___________. One place we see this in the text is ___________."Encourage students to use these sentence starters when discussing point of view and to add to them throughout the unit.
  • Consider preparing a written model for comparing points of view during Work Time C. Underline any language students can use when comparing their point of view to the author's. Students can refer to this model during this lesson and in Lesson 3. (Example: The authors' point of view about water access is different from my own point of view because I live in a place where I can turn on my faucet when I want a glass of water, and one author grew up where there was very little water. My point of view is similar to the authors' because I also believe that we can all do something to help solve the problem of water access.)

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): In this lesson, students interact with The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Some may be overwhelmed by too much print on a page. For these students, offer a copy of the text with smaller sections on a page. Additionally, consider offering enlarged font on the copy for students who may benefit from this option for perception.
  • Multiple Means of Action and Expression (MMAE): Continue to support a range of fine motor abilities and writing needs by offering students options for writing utensils. Also, consider supporting students' expressive skills by offering partial dictation of their responses. Recall thatvarying tools for construction and composition supports students' ability to express knowledge without barriers to communicating their thinking.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Similar to Unit 1, students have opportunities to share ideas and thinking with classmates in this lesson. Continue to support their 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)

  • narrative nonfiction, point of view, compare, literal, nonliteral, purpose (L)
  • dawn, scanned, maize, power, scorched, starve, disappeared, sulked, windmills, produce, electricity, pump, drawing, arranged, surged, droughts, famine, depend, achieved, irrigated, the sun rose angry (T)

Materials

  • Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Academic Word Wall (begun in Module 1; added to during Opening A)
  • Vocabulary logs (begun in Module 1; one per student)
  • The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (one to display; for teacher read-aloud)
  • Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (one per student and one to display)
  • Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (example, for teacher reference)
  • Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart (begun in Module 1; added to during Work Time A)
  • Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart(begun in Module 1; added to during Work Time A)
  • World map (from Module 1; one to display)
  • Labeled pin (one to display)
  • Compass points (from Module 1; one to display)
  • Language Dive Guide: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (for teacher reference)
    • Questions We Can Ask during a Language Dive anchor chart (begun in Module 3)
    • Language Dive Chunk Chart: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (for teacher reference)
    • Language Dive Note-catcher: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (one per student and one to display)
    • Language Dive Sentence Strip Chunks: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (one to display)
  • Describing Point of View anchor chart (new; co-created during Work Time C; see supporting materials)
  • Describing Point of View anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)
  • Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (new; one per student)
  • Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (answers, for teacher reference)

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. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes)

  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and read them aloud:

"I can find the gist of a narrative nonfiction text."

"I can explain the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind."

"I can compare the author's point of view to my own point of view."

  • Underline the words narrative nonfiction text in the second target and explain that narrative means written like a story, and nonfiction means a text that presents information. So, a narrative nonfiction text is a text that presents factual information in a narrative or story-like style.
  • Point out the phrase point of view and remind students that they thought about the point of view of characters in Peter Pan and compared it to their own point of view in Module 3.
  • Underline and use the vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart to review and/or determine the meaning of the following words. Add them to the Academic Word Wall and invite students to add translations of the words in their home languages in a different color next to the target vocabulary. Invite students to add the words to their vocabulary logs:
    • compare (to say how something is similar to or different from something else)
    • literal (exact; the usual meaning of a word)
    • nonliteral (not literal; not using words in their most basic way)
  • Turn and Talk:

"What do you think you will be doing in this lesson based on these learning targets?"(We will read a new text and compare what the author thinks about something to what we think about it.)

  • For ELLs: (Practicing with Something Familiar) Check comprehension of the word compare by inviting students to compare two books they've read this year, describing the size, shape, cover, and content of the books. Provide the following sentence frames for support: One way the books are similar is _______. One way the books are different is _____.
  • For ELLs: (Checking Comprehension of Concepts) Remind students that they discussed examples of literal and nonliteral language in the book Peter Pan in Module 3. Consider writing the following sentence from a Module 3 Language Dive on the board: "Like a puppy, it strained and wiggled to meet him at the door." Review that it refers to Neverland and him to Peter and that strained and wiggled is an example of nonliteral, or figurative, language. Invite students to briefly discuss the literal and nonliteral meanings of the words strained and wiggled and why the author chose to use them in this sentence. (Neverland cannot literally strain and wiggle, only people or animals can, but the author uses those words to help us imagine how excited Neverland was to see Peter.)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Reading for Gist: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (15 minutes) 

  • Display the cover of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Read the text on the back cover:
  • "The true story of a boy whose great idea and perseverance lit up his home and inspired the world."
  • Turn and Talk:

"What do you notice about this book? What do you wonder?" (Responses will vary, but may include: I notice a windmill on the cover. I wonder what harness means. I wonder how someone can harness wind.)

  • Tell students that they will first read this text for the gist, and then read it to think about the authors' point of view about water and compare it to their own point of view or experiences with water.
  • Display pages 2-3 and follow the same routine from Work Time A of Lesson 1 to guide students through reading this book for gist:
    • Read the whole book aloud.
    • Turn and Talk:

"What is the gist?" (It is about how a boy helped his village by building a windmill and using it to make electricity.)

    • Review the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart.
    • Distribute and display Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.
    • Display and reread each section of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, using total participation techniques to discuss the gist of each section and any unfamiliar vocabulary and inviting students to record notes in the appropriate parts of Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Refer to Finding the Gist and Unfamiliar Vocabulary: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
    • Think-Pair-Share:

"What are the authors trying to tell the reader about water?" (The authors are trying to tell the reader that many people do not have access to water, but people can work to solve this problem.)

  • Focus students on the Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart and remind them of what it means to persevere.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"How did William persevere?" (Responses will vary, but may include: William wasn't able to go to school and couldn't read English, but he wanted to help his village. He kept trying to read and eventually figured out how to build a windmill that would help his village.)
"What did it look like when William persevered? What did it sound like?"(Responses will vary, but may include: William read books and gathered supplies to build a windmill; he said, "Magetsi a mphepo ... I will build electric wind.")

  • Add students' ideas to the "What does it look like?" and "What does it sound like?" columns on the Working to Become an Effective Learner anchor chart.
  • Repeat, discussing what it means to take care of and improve shared spaces and the environment, discussing how William improved shared spaces, and adding students' ideas to the "What does it look like?" and "What does it sound like?" columns on the Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart.
  • Invite students to find the part of the text that tells where William lived (page 3; Malawi). Display page 3 and invite students to chorally read the text.
  • Focus students on the world map. Ask whether any of them know roughly where Malawi is on the map. Invite those who think they know to go to the map to point.
    • Place a labeled pin on Malawi and explain that it is in the continent of Africa. Show students each of the continents on the map.
    • Display the compass points. Remind students that they can use compass points to explain where places are.
    • Point to the pin marking your location. Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"Which continent do we live in?"(Responses will vary.)
"Where are we in relation to Malawi?" (Responses will vary, but students should use the compass points.)

  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the first learning target.
  • For students who may need additional support with fine motor skills: Offer choice with the note-catcher by providing a template that includes lines or additional space for each section. (MMR, MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Noticing Literal and Nonliteral Meanings) Before rereading the text for gist, turn to page 3, point to the second half of the first sentence, and invite students to do the same as you read it aloud. Ask:

"What do you think the author means that nightfall 'hurried poor farmers to bed'? Can nightfall actually hurry people to bed?" (Responses will vary.) 

  • Point out that sometimes authors use words or phrases to mean something different from the literal, or exact, meaning of the language. Tell students that they will talk more about this later in the lesson and invite them to listen for this kind of language when rereading and determining the gist of the text.
  • For ELLs: (Modeling and Thinking Aloud: Determining Gist) Consider modeling and thinking aloud determining the gist of the first section of the text before asking students to do so in pairs.
  • For ELLs: (Sharing Personal Connections) Invite students to share any experiences or personal connections they have with the continent of Africa or the country of Malawi.

B. Language Dive: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (10 minutes) 

  • Tell students they will now participate in Day 1 of a Language Dive using the same format from Module 3.
  • Focus students' attention on the Questions We Can Ask during a Language Dive anchor chart and remind them that they thought of their own questions to ask during a Language Dive.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"What is one question you can ask during a Language Dive?" (Responses will vary.)

  • Reread page 8 of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.
  • Focus on the sentence:
    • "Without water, the sun rose angry each morning and scorched the fields, turning the maize into dust."
  • Use the Language Dive Guide: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind and Language Dive Chunk Chart: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind to guide students through Day 1 of a Language Dive of the sentence. Distribute and display the Language Dive Note-catcher: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind and Language Dive Sentence Strip Chunks: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.
  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the second learning target.

C. Modeling: Comparing Point of View (25 minutes) 

  • Tell students that now that they have had a chance to read this book and think about what the authors are trying to tell the reader about water, they can think about the authors' point of view and compare it to their own point of view.
  • Remind students that they compared the point of view of characters in Peter Pan to their own in Module 3. Clarify that this kind of thinking is similar, except now they are working with informational texts and will think about the point of view of the authors, instead of a character in the text.
  • Direct students' attention to the Describing Point of View anchor chart and read aloud the definition for point of view.
  • Tell students that since an author's point of view is what the author thinks about the topic or issue and that in this unit the topic is challenges people face related to clean water, when describing the point of view of this book, they need to think about what William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer thought about people's ability to access water.
  • Tell students that to determine an author's point of view, they must first think about the purpose of the text, or why the author wrote it. Tell students that with informational texts, authors are usually trying to answer a question, explain something, or describe something.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is the purpose of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind? What are William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer trying to answer, explain, or describe?" (They are describing how William's village did not have water, and how William solved this problem by figuring out how to build a windmill.)

"Based on this book, what do William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer think about people's ability to access water? What in the text makes you think so?" (They think everyone should have access to clean water.)

"Based on this book, what do William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer think about how this problem can be solved? What in the text makes you think so?" (They think it can be solved with hard work and perseverance.)

  • If necessary, model using the sentence frames:
    • "Their point of view is _____."
    • "One place we see this in the text is _____."
  • Example: "Their point of view is that access to water is a problem people can, and should, individually do something about. One place we see this in the text is on pages 12-13, when they write about how William realized that he could try to build a windmill as a way to bring electricity and water to his village."
  • Add students' ideas to the Describing Point of View anchor chart. Refer to the Describing Point of View anchor chart (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"What did we do to determine the authors' point of view in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind?" (First we thought about the purpose of the text, and then we thought about what the authors think about the topic or issue in the text. We found evidence in the text that supports our thinking.)

  • Record students' ideas on the Describing Point of View anchor chart. Refer to the Describing Point of View anchor chart (example, for teacher reference).
  • If productive, cue students to think about their thinking:

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

  • Tell students that sometimes an author's point of view is different from the reader's, and that this is usually because the author's experience with the topic he or she is writing about is different from the reader's experience.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"What is William Kamkwamba's experience with accessing water? What in the text makes you think so?" (He lived in a place that was going through a drought. Therewasn't enough water to drink or to grow crops for food.) "What is your experience with accessing water?" (Responses will vary.)

  • If necessary, model using the sentence frame:
    • "William Kamkwamba lived in a place that had difficulty accessing water. One place we see this in the text is _____."
  • Model comparing William Kamkwamba's experience with accessing water to your own. Be sure to explain any similarities and differences between yours and William Kamkwamba's experiences.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"In the text The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, the authors' point of view about accessing water is that everyone should have access to water and that the problem of accessing water can be solved with hard work and perseverance. How is this similar to or different from your own point of view?" (Responses will vary.)

  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the third learning targe
  • For students who may need additional support with auditory processing: As students share during the Think-Pair-Share, record and repeat each response for visual representation of information. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: (Describing Point of View Chart: Using Sentence Starters) Encourage students to use the sentence starters in the Describing Point of View anchor chart (see "For heavier support") when describing the authors' point of view about the issue of water access.
  • For ELLs: (Comparing Points of View: Written Model) As you model comparing points of view, consider displaying and referring to the written model (see "For heavier support"), and encourage students to refer to this example when they compare their own point of view to the authors'.

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (5 minutes) 

  • Distribute the Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View.
  • Read aloud the questions on the exit ticket and invite students to complete it. Refer to Exit Ticket: Comparing Point of View (answers, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • For students who may need additional support with organizing ideas for written expression: Provide students an opportunity to verbally recall their learning and rehearse their ideas with a partner before writing. This may allow them additional time to organize their thinking. (MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Verbal Writing Practice) Give students an opportunity to verbally recount their learning and rehearse their sentences with a partner before completing the exit ticket. This may allow them additional time to organize their thinking.

Homework

HomeworkMeeting Students' Needs

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

  • For ELLs: (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

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