Close Read: “Revolutionary War, Part I” | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G4:M3:U1:L3

Close Read: “Revolutionary War, Part I”

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • I.4.1: Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
  • RI.4.2: Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize the text.
  • RI.4.3: Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.
  • RI.4.4: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words or phrases in a text relevant to a grade 4 topic or subject area.
  • RI.4.5: Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a text.
  • L.4.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 4 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
  • L.4.4a: Use context (e.g., definitions, examples, or restatements in text) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can explain what happened and why in the American Revolution using "Revolutionary War, Part I." (RI.4.3)
  • I can describe the overall structure of "Revolutionary War, Part I." (RI.4.5)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (RI.4.1, RI.4.3, RI.4.4, RI.4.5, L.4.4, L.4.4a)
  • Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (RL.4.1, RL.4.2)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Reading Aloud: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (20 minutes)

B. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Close Reading: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (25 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Determining Topic and Theme: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (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:

  • Similar to Lesson 1, students hear a read-aloud of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak, then ask questions and spend time reflecting. Be aware that students may be sensitive about and/or have questions about the blacksmith's slave. Use the informational text at the back of the book about each of the perspectives to discuss issues using a common text.
  • In Work Time A, students participate in a close read of "Revolutionary War, Part I," which focuses them on what happened leading up to the Revolutionary War and why, and also on the chronological structure of the text. Beginning in this lesson, the Close Reading Guide lists only the text excerpts, key questions to ask students, and instructional moves required. Continue to use discussion protocols (e.g., Think-Pair-Share, Conversation Cues and total participation techniques) to engage all students in collaborative discussion about the text.
  • In the Closing, students complete an exit ticket about the topic and theme of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (RL.4.1, RL.4.2). Students refer back to this at the end of Unit 2 to compare this text and the Unit 2 anchor text, Divided Loyalties.
  • In this lesson, students focus on working to become effective learners and working to become ethical people by collaborating in triads and showing respect as they reflect on the second half of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak.
  • Recall that the research reading students complete for homework helps to build both their Vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to the American Revolution. This kind of reading continues over the course of the module.

How it builds on previous work:

  • In the previous lesson, students read the "Revolutionary War, Part I" text for gist and to determine the meaning of unfamiliar Vocabulary. In this lesson, they read it closely.
  • This lesson is the third in a series of three that include built-out instruction for the use of Goal 4 Conversation Cues 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).

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Students may need additional support recording their answers on their note-catchers. Consider grouping together those students who will need help and providing teacher support when necessary.

Assessment guidance:

  • Review students' Close Reading note-catchers to ensure that they understand what happened and why, as well as the chronological structure of the text.
  • Review students' exit tickets. Refer to the Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.

Down the road:

  • In the next lesson, students will focus on the Loyalist perspective using Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak and an informational text.

In Advance

  • Strategically group students into triads for the work in this lesson, with at least one strong reader per triad.
  • Preview the Close Reading Guide: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (for teacher reference) and the Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (example, for teacher reference) in conjunction with the text to familiarize yourself with what will be required of students.
  • Post: Learning targets 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.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standard 4.I.B.6, 4.I.B.8, 4.II.A.2

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs by following the same routine for reading Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak as in Lesson 1; explicitly discussing text structure; and guiding students in a close read of "Revolutionary War, Part I" after having read it for gist in Lesson 2.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to identify text structures, as it requires them to employ metalinguistic awareness when some of them may struggle to comprehend the meaning of the text itself. Check for comprehension of the text while discussing its structure. Represent text structure visually when possible. Think aloud while reading the text to demonstrate the way in which text structure supports comprehension. Example: "I wonder what led to the Revolutionary War. Let's see how the text's organization helps us find out."

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • During the Mini Language Dive, challenge students to generate questions about the sentence before asking the prepared questions. (Example: "What questions can we ask about this sentence? Let's see if we can answer them together.")

For heavier support:

  • During Work Time A, distribute a partially filled-in copy of the Close Reading note-catcher. This provides students with models of the kind of information they should enter and reduces the volume of writing required.
  • Consider enlarging the Text Structures handout and posting it in a central location for students to refer to throughout the unit as they analyze texts with varying structures. Invite them to discuss familiar texts that follow the text structures listed, providing them with concrete examples for each one.

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): In this lesson, students interact with "Revolutionary War, Part I." 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): This lesson offers several opportunities for students to engage in discussion with partners. For those who may need additional support with expressive language, facilitate communication by providing sentence frames to help them organize their thoughts. This way, all students can benefit from peer interaction.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): In this lesson, students interact with "Revolutionary War, Part I." Throughout this unit, sustained engagement and effort is essential for student achievement. Some may need support to remember the goal of the work they are doing with this text. These students benefit from consistent reminders of learning goals and their value or relevance. Students who may need additional support with sustained effort and concentration are supported when these reminders are built into the learning environment.

Vocabulary

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

  • structure, topic, theme (L)
  • founders, assembly (T)

Materials

  • Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (from Lesson 1; one to display; for teacher read-aloud)
  • Sticky notes (three per student)
  • Questions about Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak anchor chart (begun in Lesson 1; added to during Opening A)
  • Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Academic Word Wall (begun in Module 1; added to during Opening B)
  • Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Highlighters (one per student)
  • Infer the Topic resources (from Lesson 1)
  • Close Reading Guide: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (for teacher reference)
    • Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (one per student and one to display)
    • Text Structures (one per student and one to display)
    • Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (example, for teacher reference)
  • Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (one per student and one to display)
  • Strategies to Answer Selected Response Questions anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Criteria of an Effective Summary anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (answers, 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.

Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Reading Aloud: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (20 minutes)

  • Display Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak and briefly review the pages already read.
  • Follow the same routine from the Closing of Lesson 1 to reread the remaining pages of the text (starting at "The Midwife" through the end of 'The Patriots" page).
    • After each page, stop to ask:

"What is a ___________ midwife/barber/wigmaker/blacksmith/clockmaker/silversmith's apprentice? How do you know? What do the pictures tell you?"

    • After reading, Turn and Talk:

"What do you know now? What happened?" (Responses will vary, but may include: Ethan visited the midwife, the barber/wigmaker, the blacksmith's slave, the clockmaker, the silversmith's apprentice, the Old South Meeting House, and then helped the patriots spill the wooden boxes of tea into the harbor.)

    • Distribute sticky notes and invite students to record questions about the text.
    • Consider rereading, as needed.
    • Invite students to share their questions and then place them on the Questions about Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak anchor chart.
    • Invite students to spend 3 minutes reflecting silently.
    • Review the importance of respect on the Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart.
    • Invite volunteers to share their reflections.
  • For students who may need additional support with comprehension: Before reading, provide white boards and dry-erase markers as an option for students to record (in drawing or writing) their ideas. This will also help scaffold active listening for key details. (MMR, MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Colonist Chart: Charting Responses) Record student responses for what they think each person does on the Colonist Chart begun in Lesson 1. Include a sketch, as well as important bullet points for each colonist.
  • For ELLs: (Comparing Free Verse to Prose) Consider explaining that this book is written in free verse, or poetry that doesn't have rhyme or meter. Invite students to discuss and share ways free verse is different from prose. (It is written in lines, not paragraphs. Sentences are short, and they don't always follow the rules of English grammar. Sentences are not always complete.)
  • For ELLs: Mini Language Dive. "We boarded/the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, the Beaver/and dumped the tea,/though many Loyalists disagreed."
    • Deconstruct: Invite students to discuss the meaning of the sentence and grapple with the meaning of each chunk. Encourage extended conversation and practice with the focus structure in the highlighted chunk, keeping the following language goals in mind:
    • though: "What?"/Meaning: Though signals a contrast. Though contrasts the subsequent idea to the previous idea in the sentence. Suggested questions: ""What is another way to say this chunk?" (however, but, even though) "What if we replace though with because? How does that change the meaning?" (subordinating conjunction)
    • many Loyalists: "Who?"/Meaning: Loyalists are a group of colonists who wanted to stay with Britain. Many refers to the number of Loyalists, telling us there are a lot. Suggested questions: ""What if we replace many with few? How does that change the meaning?" (noun phrase)
    • disagreed: "Did what?"/Meaning: Disagreed is what the many Loyalists did. Disagreed means they did not agree with what was happening; they did not think it was right. Suggested questions: "Is there a familiar word or affix in this word? How does that help us understand the unfamiliar word?" (verb)
  • Practice: I like to ___, though ____.
    • Reconstruct: Reread the sentence. Ask:

"Now what do you think the sentence means?"

"How does your understanding of this sentence add to your understanding of the text and guiding questions?"

    • Practice: Consider inviting students to use the sentence to speak or write about their own work or lives. Suggestion: I love to _____, though many _____disagree. Ask:

"What is another way to say this sentence?"

B. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes)

  • Move students into triads and invite them to label themselves A, B, and C.
  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and select a volunteer to read them aloud:

"I can explain what happened and why in the American Revolution using 'Revolutionary War, Part I.'"
"I can describe the overall structure of 'Revolutionary War, Part I.'"

  • Focus students on the first learning target and tell them they will reread the text they read in the previous lesson.
  • Underline the word structure in the second target. Use the Vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart to review the meaning of the word (the arrangement of parts to create a whole).
  • Add new Vocabulary to the Academic Word Wall.
  • Tell students they will consider the topic and theme of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak at the end of the lesson.
  • For students who may need additional support with oral language and processing: Pair students with strategic elbow partners to ensure that they have strong, politely helpful partners to support their efforts in sharing their thinking and listening to their partner. (MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Using a Pattern to Model Text Structure) Discuss structure through analyzing a pattern of colors. Display a repeating pattern of two or three colors (example: blue, green, yellow, blue, green ...). Ask:

"Can you infer which color comes next?" (yellow)

"What is your evidence?" (I see blue and green.)

A pattern can also be called a structure. How did this structure make it easier for you to tell which color comes next?" (You know what to expect because you know the pattern.)

  • Say:

"Texts also have a pattern or structure, because it makes it easier for readers to understand when they know what kind of information to expect."

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Close Reading: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (25 minutes)

  • Remind students that digging deeper into the text can help them to understand it better, so they are going to dig deeper into this text in this lesson.
  • Direct students' attention to the Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart and briefly review what collaboration looks and sounds like.
  • Distribute highlighters.
  • Guide students through the Close Reading Guide: "Revolutionary War, Part I." Refer to the guide for how to integrate:
    • Highlighters
    • Infer the Topic resources
    • Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I"
    • Text Structures handout
  • Refer to the Close Reading Note-catcher: "Revolutionary War, Part I" (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the learning targets.
  • For students who may need additional support staying on pace during the close read: Consider gathering these students in one place in the room to support them quickly and quietly throughout the close read portion of the lesson. Give prompts to help students stay on task, point out where the class is, or offer sentence frames as needed. (MME)
  • For ELLs: (Reordering Event Questions) Consider switching the order of Event Questions 1 and 2 in the Close Reading Guide. Invite students to first write each date in the When column of their Close Reading Note-catcher, and then refer back to each date in the text to determine the event that occurred at that time. The concrete dates will provide students with an anchor for where to look for important events, within an otherwise potentially overwhelming amount of text.
  • For ELLs: (Enlarged Text: Adding Timeline) After discussing that "Revolutionary War, Part I" follows a chronological text structure, model adding the events from the text to a timeline at the bottom of the "Revolutionary War, Part I" enlarged text (see Lesson 1, "For heavier support"). Invite students to do the same and explain that one way to see whether a text structure is chronological is to see if creating a timeline makes sense.

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Determining Topic and Theme: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (10 minutes)

  • Remind students that now that they have heard the whole book, they can consider the topic and theme.
  • Turn and Talk:

"What is a topic?" (what the book is about)

"What is a theme?" (a big idea related to the real world that the author wants you to take away from reading the book)

  • Think-Triad-Share:

"What is the topic of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak?" (perspectives on the Boston Tea Party/American Revolution)

  • Note that students may say just "the American Revolution" or "the Boston Tea Party" here. In this situation, invite students to consider how Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak is different from an informational text listing the events of the Boston Tea Party. Emphasize that it is showing the reader different perspectives on the event, which is crucial to their understanding of the event.
  • Distribute and display Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak.
  • Read the first question and invite students to work in triads to complete it, based on the discussion they had. Refer them to the Strategies to Answer Selected Response Questions anchor chart as needed.
  • Invite students to turn their exit ticket over to hide the next question.
  • Think-Triad-Share:

"What is the theme of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak? What big idea does the author want you to take away?" (War can divide a country, a city, neighbors, friends, and families.)

  • If productive, use a Goal 4 Conversation Cue to encourage students to explain others' ideas:

"Who can explain why your classmate came up with that response? I'll give you time to think and write." (Responses will vary.)

  • Invite students to turn their exit ticket back over and record their answers to the next two questions, thinking about the discussion they just had.
  • As time permits, invite students to orally summarize the text in triads. Each student will have 15 seconds to summarize the text. Refer students to the Criteria of an Effective Summary anchor chart as needed.
  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against how well they did collaborating.
  • Collect exit tickets for assessment. Refer to the Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (answers, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • For students who may need additional support with comprehension: Provide a copy of Exit Ticket: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak preprinted with the definitions of "topic" and "theme" to support students' understanding of these terms. (MMR, MME)
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Rephrasing Selected Response) Encourage students to rephrase each question--and answer it--before they read each answer choice. Example: "Think about what the question is asking. Look at the first question: 'What is the topic of Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak?' How else can we ask this question?" ("What is this book about?") (MMR, MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Noticing Plural) Focus students on the plural -s in details and answers in Question 2, Part B: "Which details from the text best support your answer to Part A? Underline the best answers." Share that, unlike most selected response questions, this means they may choose more than one answer.

Homework

HomeworkMeeting Students' Needs
  • 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) Students may benefit from discussing and responding to their prompt orally, either with a partner or family member or by recording their response. (MMAE)
  • For students who may need additional support with reading: Support students in selecting a prompt to respond to, rephrasing the prompt, and thinking aloud possible responses. (MMR)

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