Generating Norms for Expert Animal Groups | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G4:M2:U2:L1

Generating Norms for Expert Animal Groups

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • W.4.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic.
  • W.4.8: Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; take notes and categorize information, and provide a list of sources.
  • SL.4.1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
  • SL.4.1b: Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles.
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can generate norms for effective collaboration with my expert animal group. (SL.4.1)
  • I can write what I know and questions about things I would like to know about my expert group animal. (W.4.8)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Expert Group Norms (SL.4.1)
  • KWEL charts in Expert Group Animal research notebooks (W.4.8)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Poster Walk Review (15 minutes)

B. Reviewing Performance Task and Learning Targets (10 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Revealing Expert Group Animals and Setting Purpose (10 minutes)

B. Generating Group Norms (15 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Engaging the Reader: Expert Group Animal Defense Mechanisms KWEL Charts (10 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: 

  • This lesson serves as a bridge from Unit 1 to Unit 2, allowing students to reflect on and celebrate their learning from Unit 1 by revisiting and adding to the Poster Walk posters from Unit 1, Lesson 1.
  • Students are put into expert animal groups and generate team norms for effective collaboration. They refer to these norms to ensure effective collaboration throughout the unit.
  • The general name for students' notebook is Expert Group Animal research notebook. These notebooks contain note-catchers and graphic organizers tailored for research on students' assigned animal. However, each notebook is titled and numbered the same across all expert groups, allowing easy reference across expert groups. (For example, page 1 of every Expert Group Animal research notebook is the KWEL chart.) There are duplicates of some of the notebook pages. This is to ensure that students have sufficient space to record their ideas.
  • Consider having students create research folders to store their notebooks and other notes, texts, and writings gathered throughout the module.
  • As in Unit 1, the Materials list references the complete Expert Group Animal research notebook as well as the specific material(s) used in the lesson. 
  • This lesson is the first in a series of three that include built out instruction for the use of Goal 3 Conversation Cues. Conversation Cues are questions teachers can ask students to promote productive and equitable conversation (adapted from Michaels, Sarah and O'Connor, Cathy. Talk Science Primer. Cambridge, MA: TERC, 2012. Based on Chapin, S., O'Connor, C., and Anderson, N.  [2009]. Classroom Discussions: Using Math Talk to Help Students Learn, Grades K-6. Second Edition. Sausalito, CA: Math Solutions Publications). Goal 3 Conversation Cues encourage students to deepen their thinking. Continue drawing on Goals 1 and 2 Conversation Cues, introduced in Module 1, and add Goal 3 Conversation Cues to more strategically promote productive and equitable conversation. In Module 3, Goal 4 Conversation Cues are introduced. See the Tools page for additional information on Conversation Cues. Consider providing students with a thinking journal or scrap paper. Examples of the Goal 3 Conversation Cues you will see in the next two units are (with expected responses):
    • To encourage students to provide reasoning or evidence:

 "Why do you think that?"

 "Because _____."

 "What, in the _____ (sentence/text), makes you think so?"

 "If you look at _____, it says _____, which means _____."

    • To challenge students:

 "What if _____ (that word were removed/the main character had done something different/we didn't write an introduction)? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner."

 "If we did that, then _____."

 "Can you figure out why _____ (the author used this phrase/we used that strategy/there's an -ly added to that word)? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner."

 "I think it's because _____."

    • To encourage students to think about their thinking (metacognition):

"What strategies/habits helped you succeed? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner."

 "_____ helped me a lot."

 "How does our discussion add to your understanding of _____ (previously discussed topic/text/language)? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner."

 "I used to think that _____, and now I think that _____.

  • Note that the student version of the "Challenge thinking" Goal 3 Conversation Cues (and expected student responses) are built into the Discussion Norms anchor chart in Closing and Assessment A. The "Provide reasoning and evidence" Goal 3 Conversation Cues are built into the Discussion Norms anchor chart in the next lesson. The "Think about thinking" Goal 3 Conversation Cues are not built into the Discussion Norms anchor chart, as these cues are best suited for teachers to prompt students. Conversation Cues and Discussion Norms are similar in that they seek to foster productive and collaborative conversation. Furthermore, Conversation Cues aim to ensure equitable conversation by gradually building student capacity to become productive, collaborative participants. Goal 1 Conversation Cues focus on the fundamentals of encouraging students to talk and be understood, whereas Goal 2 encourages students to listen carefully to one another and seek to understand. Goals 3-4 take students to deeper levels of conversation, from deepening their thinking to thinking with others.
  • The research reading that students complete for homework will help build both their vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to animals and specifically animal defenses. By participating in this volume of reading over a span of time, students will develop a wide base of knowledge about the world and the words that help describe and make sense of it.
  • In this module, the habit of character focus is working to contribute to a better world. The characteristic they collect in this lesson is: use my strengths when discussing expert group norms.

How it builds on previous work: 

  • In this lesson, students revisit the Poster Walk posters from Unit 1 to see how much they have learned about animal defenses since the beginning of the module. This is meant to be a celebration of their learning.
  • In Unit 1, students read texts to build background knowledge about animal defenses and indicated the animal they would like to research further in Unit 2. In this lesson, students receive a new research notebook that is specific to the expert group animal: 
    • Three-banded armadillo
    • Springbok gazelle
    • Ostrich
    • Monarch butterfly

Areas where students may need additional support:

  • Some students may require additional support coming up with group norms. Consider preparing a list of norms from which students can choose. 

Assessment Guidance:

  • Consider using the Speaking and Listening Informal Assessment: Collaborative Discussion Checklist during students' small group discussions in Work Time B. See the Tools page.

Down the road:

  • In the first half of Unit 2, students research in their expert groups using a web page. They read it multiple times: for gist and unfamiliar vocabulary, to unpack the text during a close read, and to organize notes in order to write an informative piece about their animal in the End of Unit 2 Assessment.

In Advance

  • Revisit Poster Walk groupings from Unit 1, Lesson 1 and prepare posters.
  • Choose expert groups, keeping in mind students' rankings on the Unit 1, Lesson 10 exit slip. Note that animals should be assigned intentionally for scaffolding purposes. The springbok gazelle works well for students who generally need extra support in reading and research tasks; the ostrich and the armadillo are appropriate for most students at this grade level; and the monarch butterfly works well for students who need a challenge. 
  • Prepare the Expert Group Animal research notebooks. 
  • Post: Performance Task anchor chart, What Do Scientists Do? anchor chart, learning targets.

Tech and Multimedia

  • Opening A: Set up Poster Walk on Google Docs in a folder. Students type their thinking into the Google Doc.
  • Opening A: Each of the web pages for the animals that students study in their expert groups in the rest of this unit has a slideshow option. As in Unit 1, Lesson 1, set up slideshows for each of the animals on technology around the classroom with an option for note-taking, or embed the links in a Google Doc.
  • Opening A: Set up these videos with a note-taking option as part of the poster walk: 
  • Work Time B: Students create group norms on a group Google Doc. They each type in their individual norms and then discuss in expert groups and revise.
  • Closing and Assessment A: Expert Group Animal Defense Mechanisms KWEL chart is set up as a collaborative team document that all students in the team add to--for example, a Google Doc.
  • Consider that YouTube, social media video sites, and other website links may incorporate inappropriate content via comment banks and ads. Although some lessons include these links as the most efficient means to view content in preparation for the lesson, be sure to preview links and/or use a filter service, such as Safe Share TV, for actually viewing these links in the classroom.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 4.I.A.1, 4.I.A.3, 4.I.A.4, 4.I.B.5

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to generate group norms, thereby making explicit cultural similarities and differences that will help them succeed.
  • ELLs may find the language of the group norms challenging. Ask them about the language structures in these norms through Mini Language Dives. ELLs may also need to express some norms specific to their needs--for example, norms that allow for sufficient time to think and speak. 

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • Invite students to identify Conversation Cues that encourage active listening. Ask how they might routinely embed these practices into their conversations.
  • Encourage students to brainstorm language that will help them elaborate on an idea in order to persuade classmates. Example: If a student wants to persuade the group to resolve conflict or disagreement first by having a few moments of silence, he or she might use phrases such as: "The benefit to being silent for a few moments is _____." "I hope you'll consider _____."

For heavier support:

  • Ask ELLs to return to the first poster and restate particular sentences about what was learned. Example: "Some animals live in burrows. Some animals live in nests."
  • As students continue to work in groups, remind them how to speak about general and ELL-specific group norms. Examples: 

"I should listen carefully to my group mates."

"It is challenging for me to express my ideas in English. I need extra time to think of the words."

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): In this lesson, support learners with auditory processing needs by writing keywords that students use during class discussions on the board as visual cues. Re-teach affixes and roots by providing students who may need additional support with a "cheat sheet" they can use to analyze words they see in today's learning targets and in the performance task.
  • Multiple Means of Action & Expression (MMAE): Recall the importance of supporting self-monitoring and executive function skills. In this lesson, facilitate student management of information and resources by allowing students to identify unknown words and record them in their vocabulary log. Also, Modify Expert Group Animal research notebooks for students who need extra support organizing written work or need directions simplified. Give students who may need additional support with writing sentence frames and/or the option to draw their ideas about group norms.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Throughout this unit, sustained engagement and effort is essential for student achievement. Some students may need support to remember the goal for the work they are doing during the unit. Recall that students who may struggle with sustained effort and concentration are supported when these reminders are built into the learning environment.

Vocabulary

Key: (L): Lesson-Specific Vocabulary; (T): Text-Specific Vocabulary; (W): Vocabulary used in writing

  • collaboration, effective, norms, inform, information, informational, using my strengths, physical, habitat, defense mechanisms, predators, norms (L)

Materials

  • Poster Walk posters (from Unit 1, Lesson 1)
  • Directions for Poster Walk Review (one for display)
  • Markers (a different color for each group) 
  • Equity sticks
  • Performance Task anchor chart (see Unit 1, Lesson 1)
  • Researchers Do These Things anchor chart (from Unit 1, Lesson 2)
  • Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart (from Unit 1, Lesson 1; teacher-created and added to in Work Time B; see supporting materials)
  • Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)
  • Piece of paper (one per student and one per expert group)
  • Expert Group Animal research notebooks (one per student and one to display; see Teaching Notes)
    • KWEL chart (page 1 of Expert Group Animal research notebook)
  • Discussion Norms anchor chart (begun in Module 1; added to with students during Closing and Assessment A)
  • Discussion Norms anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)

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. Poster Walk Review (15 minutes)

  • Build up excitement for this unit by reminding students that they ranked their animal choices for additional research in Unit 1, Lesson 10. Tell them their expert groups and animals will be revealed later in the lesson.
  • Remind students that in Unit 1, they began to explore animal defenses by closely reading texts about them.
  • Point out the Poster Walk posters from Unit 1, Lesson 1.
  • Display the Directions for Poster Walk Review and ask for volunteers to read them aloud while the rest of the group follows along and reads silently in their heads.
  • Explain that today they will be in the same groups they were in for the original Poster Walk in Unit 1.
  • Remind students of their groups and ask them to move to sit with them. 
  • Distribute different colored markers to each group and assign the groups a starting place. 
  • Ask students to begin. Give them 2 minutes to work on each chart, and then rotate. 
  • At the end of 10 minutes, invite students to go back to the poster where they began and read through all of the new comments on the poster.
  • Use equity sticks to call on groups to share what they notice about their learning from Unit 1 compared to what they know now. 
  • If productive, use a Goal 3 Conversation Cue to encourage students to think about their thinking:

"How did our work in Unit 1--research notebooks, informational texts, discussions about diagrams, and Science Talk--add to your understanding of animal defense mechanisms? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner." (Responses will vary.)

  • Celebrate these achievements! Then, ask students to return to their seats.
  • For ELLs: Provide students who need heavier support with a sentence starter or frame to aid in language production. For example: "In the photograph, I see...." Provide students who need lighter support with different frames, such as: "In Unit 1, I learned...."
  • For students who may need additional support with reading fluency: Have a fluent reader pre-read the posters to readers who may need additional support so they can begin to formulate their ideas about each one. Remind them that they can tell a group member their idea and she or he can write it on the poster. (MMAE)

B. Reviewing Performance Task and Learning Targets (10 minutes)

  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets. Invite students to read the first learning target silently in their heads as you read it aloud:
    • "I can generate norms for effective collaboration with my expert animal group."
  • Ask the following question and then use equity sticks to call on students to share:

"What is collaboration?" (Collaboration is working with others.)

  • Ask, and then use equity sticks to call on students to share:

"What does effective mean? So what is effective collaboration?" (Effective means successful in achieving the desired outcome, and effective collaboration is successful collaboration that results in achieving the desired outcome.)

  • Ask, and then use equity sticks to call on students to share:

"So knowing what the rest of the learning target means now, what do you think norms might be?" (Norms are a list of rules that will guide them in how to interact with one another as they work in their expert animal groups.)

  • Add any new academic vocabulary to the permanent Academic Word Wall (begun in Module 1).
  • Read the second learning target aloud as students follow along:
    • "I can write what I know and questions about things I would like to know about my expert group animal."
  • Draw students' attention to the Performance Task anchor chart and read the prompt aloud. Remind them that they are working toward writing a choose-your-own-adventure narrative. Point out the added bullet points below the performance task prompt. Review each of the bullet points with students. Explain that students may not understand these components now, but that these things will be a focus of class learning.
  • Explain that before they can write about their expert group animal, they need to research more about it.
  • Point to the second bullet point of the prompt ("an informational page ...") on the Performance Task anchor chart and ask for a volunteer to read it aloud:

"An informational page with a physical description of your animal, its habitat, its defense mechanisms, and predators"

  • Tell students they will work on this part of the performance task in this unit. Underline the words informational, physical, habitat, defense mechanisms, and predators. 
  • Remind students of the affixes and root work they did in Unit 1. Ask them to discuss with an elbow partner, and then cold call students to share responses:

"What word(s) do you recognize in the word informational that may help you understand what this word means?" (Identify the words inform and information and what they mean: Inform means to give facts or information; information means facts provided or learned about something). 

  • Ask students to discuss with an elbow partner, and then cold call students to share responses:

"So you know what inform and information mean, but what do you think informational writing might be?" (Informational writing is writing that provides information or an explanation.)

  • Tell students that the suffix -al comes from Latin and means "relating to" or "character of"; so, in this instance, informational means relating to information.
  • Add informational to the Academic Vocabulary Word Wall.
  • Focus students on the other underlined words and remind them that they encountered these words in Unit 1. Refer students to the temporary Domain-Specific Word Wall.
  • Ask them to discuss with an elbow partner what each of those words means.
  • Select students to share the meaning of each word with the whole group and correct and clarify any inaccuracies.
  • Ask:

"So, based on the anchor chart, what kind of information will we be looking for during our research?" (We need to find information about what the animal looks like, where it lives, and how it defends itself.)
  • For students who may need additional support with auditory processing: As students respond to questions, write key words they use on the board. (MMR)
  • For students who may need additional support with vocabulary: Provide a short "cheat sheet" of common prefixes and suffixes that they can refer to during discussions about affixes and root words. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: Check that students understand the vocabulary by asking comprehension questions with the target used in the classroom context. Example:

"What does collaboration mean when you work in your expert animal group?"

  • For ELLs: Add synonyms to the Academic Vocabulary Word Wall in a lighter color next to the new academic vocabulary. 

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Revealing Expert Group Animals and Setting Purpose (10 minutes)

  • Tell students the moment they have been waiting for is here--they will now find out the animal they will research and write about for the performance task. 
  • Share assigned animals and expert groups with students. Invite them to move to sit with their groups.
  • Set the purpose for researching for the performance task by pointing out the Researchers Do These Things anchor chart. Invite students to popcorn-read the bullet points on the chart.
  • Ask:

"What things did we do on this list when researching general animal defense mechanisms and the defense mechanisms of the millipede in Unit 1?" (We researched the question "How do animals' bodies and behaviors help them survive?" or We researched by reading different informational texts about animal defense mechanisms and gathered notes in our research notebooks, or We participated in Science Talks.)

  • Ask:

"How did engaging in these activities help us learn more about animal defense mechanisms?" (When we researched, we were able to learn about different examples of defense mechanisms that animals use, or Science Talks helped us to talk about what we learned with others and helped us understand things that might have been confusing to us.)

  • Point out these bullet points:
    • "Analyze data and facts, and draw a conclusion."
    • "Think about how new ideas or learning connect to what they already know."
  • For students who may need additional support with reading: Pre-read the Researchers Do These Things anchor chart and share with them the discussion questions about this anchor chart in advance. (MMR)
  • For students who may need additional support with reading: Provide an audio recording of one bullet point from the Researchers Do These Things anchor chart to listen to and practice repeating in advance; then, invite them to read that bullet point to the class. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: Discuss the activities that scientists engage in by providing some sentence frames that help them develop a list. Examples:
    • "A scientist observes ______."
    • "A scientist asks questions about ________."
    • "A scientist reads about __________."
    • "A scientist takes notes about __________."
  • For ELLs: Provide sentence frames that can help build the response to the prompt: "How did engaging in these activities help us learn more about animal defense mechanisms?" Examples:
    • "After asking questions, a scientist is able to ______."
    • "After reading about ______, a scientist is able to _________."
    • "After talking with other scientists, he/she is able to __________."

B. Generating Group Norms (15 minutes)

  • Tell students that in order to effectively work in groups, they will find it helpful to generate a set of norms. Remind them that norms are a list of rules that guide them in how to interact with one another as they work.
  • Focus students on the Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart.
  • Read aloud the habit of character recorded.
  • Invite students to tell an elbow partner what using my strengths means in their own words using the anchor chart as a guide.
  • Invite students to discuss with an elbow partner and cold call students to share their responses with the whole group:

"What does using your strengths look like? What might you see when someone is using his or her strengths?" (see Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)).

  • Record student responses in the appropriate column on the Working to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart.
  • Record use my strengths on the academic word wall. Invite students to add translations of the words in their home languages in a different color next to the target vocabulary.
  • Once again, remind students of the habit of character of focus: using my strengths. Tell students they will need to use their strengths as they work with their peers in their expert groups.
  • Explain that when we think about norms for a group, it is a good idea to consider these questions:
    • What do you need from everyone else to do your best work?
    • How should the group resolve conflict or disagreements?
    • How can we listen to and include everyone's ideas in our group?
  • Consider writing these questions on the board and suggesting some norms that would go with each one. For example: Everyone in the group has a chance to speak during discussions. When a disagreement arises, someone else in the group should say back both points of view, and the group should discuss.
  • Distribute one piece of paper to each student.
  • Give students 5 minutes to independently think about and write down two norms they might suggest to their group.
  • Use equity sticks to select students to share their norms with the whole group. Help students make adjustments to make their norms more effective for the group.
  • Distribute one piece of paper to each expert group. Tell groups to select someone as recorder and ask the recorder to write the expert group animal and group members' names on the piece of paper. 
  • Invite students to share their norms with their group and to record them on the paper.
  • Circulate to support groups in choosing and recording norms.
  • For students who may need additional support with organizing ideas for written expression: Provide sentence frames to record their ideas about group norms. For instance: "To do my best work, I need everyone to ..." and "When we disagree, my group should...." (MMAE)
  • For students who may need additional support with written expression: Allow students to draw a sketch to share their ideas about group norms. (MMAE)
  • For ELLs: Provide students with sentence frames that help them participate in generating group norms. Examples for general norms:
    • "I should listen carefully to my group mates."
    • "I should listen carefully to my group mates before I speak." 
  • Examples for ELL-specific norms:
    • "I am learning another language. Sometimes I need help from my peers."
    • "It is hard for me to express my ideas. I need my peers to be patient."

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Engaging the Reader: Expert Group Animal Defense Mechanisms KWEL Charts (10 minutes)

  • Distribute Expert Group Animal research notebooks. 
  • Tell students that their notebook is specific to their expert group animal and this is the place where they will record their notes and thinking about their animal. Give students a couple of minutes to look through the notebook. 
  • Refocus whole group and invite students to open to the KWEL chart on page 1 of their notebook. Focus students on the questions at the top of the chart and read them aloud as students follow along, reading silently in their heads:

"What does your expert group animal look like?"

"Where is its habitat?"

"What are its predators?"

"How does it use its body and behaviors to help it survive?"

  • Remind students that, according to the Performance Task anchor chart, these things must be included in their informative piece. Explain that the final question is in bold because that is the focus of the research. 
  • Remind students that similar to Unit 1, they will record their knowledge, questions, evidence, and learning about their expert group animal on this KWEL chart. Invite them to record the name of their expert group animal at the top of the chart.
  • Ask students to take several minutes to independently list what they think they already know about their expert group animal and its defense mechanisms in the K column.
  • Invite students to share what they recorded with their expert groups, referring to their group norms as necessary. 
  • Remind students that they will continue to learn about animal defense mechanisms and will look for evidence from various texts to either confirm or revise their current knowledge. As a result, this KWEL chart will grow throughout the unit as a way to document their growing knowledge. 
  • Repeat this process with the W column. Remind students that scientists often ask "Why?" or "How come?" or "What if?" This questioning process helps motivate them to conduct experiments or research a topic. 
  • Introduce students to the student version of two new cues that will help motivate them to research a topic and "Challenge thinking" (Goal 3 Conversation Cues) as they discuss animal defense mechanisms and other topics in Grade 4 and beyond:

"What if _____?" 

"I wonder why _____."

  • Tell students that these two new cues will be added to the Discussion Norms anchor chart today. Focus student attention on the Discussion Norms anchor chart and add the "Challenge thinking" cues. See the Discussion Norms anchor chart (example, for teacher reference). Ensure students understand how to use these cues. 
  • If students struggle to formulate questions, encourage them to refer to the Performance Task anchor chart to see what kinds of information they will need to include on their informational page and in their narratives. Remind them to try to use the new cues added to the Discussion Norms anchor chart.
  • Focus students on the learning targets. Read each one aloud, pausing after each to use a checking for understanding protocol for students to reflect on their comfort level with or show how close they are to meeting each target. Make note of students who may need additional support with each of the learning targets moving forward.
  • Repeat, inviting students to self-assess against how well they used their strengths in this lesson.
  • For students who may need additional support with fine motor skills: Enlarge or modify the Expert Group Animal research notebooks (add bigger spaces for writing, draw writing lines in boxes, put fewer words on each page, etc.). (MMAE)
  • For students who may need additional support with comprehension: Write the questions that scientists often ask themselves ("Why?" "What if?" and "How come?") at the top of the W column of the KWEL chart to refer to as they come up with their own wonders about their expert group animal. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: For students who need heavier support, restate questions in different ways. Examples:
    • "Where does your expert group animal live?"
    • "Who are its enemies?"
    • "What helps your animal to survive?"
  • For ELLs: Provide students who need heavier support with sentence frames for recording what they know:
    • "I know that the three-banded armadillo lives _____."
    • "I know that the three-banded armadillo eats _____."
  • For ELLs: Provide students who need heavier support with sentence frames for recording what they would like to know:
    • "I want to know how _____."
    • "I want to know where _____."
    • "I want to know what _____."
  • Tell ELLs that the questions they asked on the KWEL chart are questions they should ask when they read.

Homework

HomeworkMeeting Students' Needs

A. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal.
  • For students who may need additional support with written expression: Provide sentence frames for their responses or allow them to share their learning in other ways, such as drawing or discussing what they've learned with their family, a partner, or teacher.
  • For ELLs: For all homework assignments in this unit, read the prompts aloud. Students can discuss and respond to prompts orally, either with you, a partner, family member, or student from Grades 1 or 2, or record an audio response. If students have trouble writing sentences, they can begin by writing words. Consider providing a sentence starter or inviting students who need lighter support to provide sentence starters.

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