Shared Research Writing: Drafting the Focus Statement and Detail Sentence | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA GK:M3:U3:L3

Shared Research Writing: Drafting the Focus Statement and Detail Sentence

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • W.K.2: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory texts in which they name what they are writing about and supply some information about the topic.
  • W.K.7: Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of books by a favorite author and express opinions about them).
  • W.K.8: With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
  • SL.K.1: Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
  • SL.K.1a: Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others and taking turns speaking about the topics and texts under discussion).
  • SL.K.4: Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail.

Daily Learning Targets

  • I can use information from research to contribute to a piece of shared writing. (W.K.2, W.K.7, W.K.8, SL.K.1a, SL.K.4)
  • I can show what I know about trees through writing and collage. (W.K.2, W.K.7, W.K.8)

Ongoing Assessment

  • During Work Time B, circulate and listen as students contribute to shared writing to document progress toward W.K.2, W.K.7, and W.K.8 on the Informational Writing Checklist.

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Poem and Movement: "Clay Leaves" (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Role-Play Protocol: Reviewing Sugar Maple: Class Notes (10 minutes)

B. Shared Writing: Describing the Sugar Maple Booklet (15 minutes)

C. Engaging the Artist: Making a Sugar Maple Tree Collage (25 minutes)

3. Closing

A. Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol: Reflecting on Learning (5 minutes)

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

  • This is the second lesson in a series of three that takes students through the process to create an informational writing piece and collage based on research. The process includes research reading, note-taking, and informational writing as practice for the performance task.
  • In Work Time A, students review the Sugar Maple: Class Notes by participating in the Role-Play protocol. Recall that the Role-Play protocol is used to build comprehension and fluency with the information gathered through shared research in a fun, engaging, and playful way.
  • In Work Times B and C, students use the information on the Sugar Maple: Class Notes to inform the shared writing of the Describing the Sugar Maple booklet and the making of the sugar maple collage. This writing and engagement in collage serves as preparation for independent writing and collaging for the Performance Task: Informational Collage beginning in Lesson 10 (W.K.7 and W.K.8).
  • To set students up for success in creating high-quality artwork, look at the sugar maple tree templates and pre-cut construction paper of the necessary colors into appropriate sizes and shapes for students to layer in their collage and create texture.
  • In the Closing, students reflect on the habit of character of perseverance. Perseverance was first introduced in Module 2. In this lesson, students revisit the Perseverance anchor chart and reflect on the perseverance they used and will continue to use while working toward the completion of the informational collage.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • In Lesson 2, students worked together to create Sugar Maple: Class Notes. In this lesson, they review the notes to ensure understanding and to prepare for research writing.
  • In Lesson 2, students used the collage planner to plan their artwork of the sugar maple tree. In this lesson, students use the planner to inform the creation of their collage.
  • Work Time B contains repeated routines from Unit 2, Lessons 5-6. Refer to those lessons for more detail.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Consider grouping students with varying levels of language proficiency for the Role-Play protocol in Work Time A. The students with greater language proficiency can serve as models in their partnership, initiating discussion and providing implicit sentence frames.
  • In Work Times B and C, students begin shared writing and collaging about the sugar maple tree. They may need support with fine motor skills as they write and or glue. Consider offering any appropriate supports used in Lesson 2.

Down the road:

  • In Lesson 4, students participate in shared writing using the Sugar Maple: Class Notes to inform their writing of the Describing the Sugar Maple class booklet.
  • In Lessons 10-13, students follow a similar writing routine to write their own tree booklets and make a collage using research and notes taken in small groups during Lessons 5-8 for the Performance Task: Informational Collage.

In Advance

  • Prepare the sugar maple collaging Materials for Work Time C by pre-cutting construction paper of the necessary colors into appropriate different sizes and shapes.
  • Distribute Materials for Work Time C at student workspaces.
  • Strategically pair students for the Role-Play protocol in Work Time A. Consider pairing students with varying levels of language proficiency. The students with greater language proficiency can serve as models in their partnership, initiating discussion and providing implicit sentence frames.
  • Post: Learning targets, "Clay Leaves," and any applicable anchor charts (see Materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

Consider using an interactive white board or document camera to display lesson Materials.

  • 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 Standards K.1.C.10, K.1.B.6, and K.2.C.6

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs by inviting students to revisit nouns in the poem "Clay Leaves" and by providing explicit, whole class modeling of research writing with sentence frames. The step-by-step informational collage supports content knowledge acquisition through art and multiple modalities.
  • During the Closing, ELLs may find it challenging to remember how to say, explain, or use the word perseverance. Consider offering students the opportunity to practice pronouncing and segmenting the word by clapping and saying it with a partner. Consider using the support in the Meeting Students' Needs column to jog their memories and extend their understanding.

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • Before providing sentence frames or additional modeling during the role-play in Work Time A, observe student interaction and allow students to grapple with the language. Provide supportive frames and demonstrations only after students have grappled with the task. Observe the areas in which they struggle to target appropriate support.

For heavier support:

  • During Work Time B, as students complete the writing at their workstations, remind them to use the charts, realia, and Word Wall in the classroom, as well as seek out support if they need it. Circulate to offer support with generating ideas. If needed, scribe student ideas with a highlighter, and they can trace your letters afterward.

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): Continue to support comprehension by activating prior knowledge and scaffolding connections for students. Continue to provide a visual display of questions and student responses on a chart or the board during discussions.
  • Multiple Means of Action & 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.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Continue to provide prompts and sentence frames for those students who require them to be successful in peer interactions and collaboration. Also support students in sustaining effort and/or attention by restating the goal of the activity.

Vocabulary

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

Review:

  • noun, high quality, focus statement, detail sentence, perseverance (L)
  • clay, leaves (T)

Materials

  • "Clay Leaves" (from Lesson 2; one to display)
  • Sugar Maple: Class Notes (completed in Lesson 2; one to display)
  • Role-Play Protocol anchor chart (begun in Module 2)
  • Describing the Sugar Maple booklet (pages 1-2; one to display)
  • Paper (lined; one piece per student)
  • Pencils (one per student)
  • Describing the Sugar Maple booklet (example, for teacher reference)
  • Model of Informational Collage (from Lesson 1; one to display)
  • High-Quality Work anchor chart (begun in Lesson 1)
  • Sugar maple collage template (one per student and one to display)
  • Glue sticks (one per student and one for teacher modeling)
  • Collage planner (completed in Lesson 2; one per student)
  • Sugar maple images (from Lesson 2; one set per student)
  • Construction paper (class set; a variety of browns, grays, and blacks per student and for teacher modeling)
  • Perseverance anchor chart (begun in Module 2)
  • Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol anchor chart (begun in Module 2)

Assessment

Each unit in the K-2 Language Arts Curriculum has one standards-based assessment built in. 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. Poem and Movement: "Clay Leaves" (5 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group.
  • Display the poem "Clay Leaves" and read the title.
  • Follow the same routine established in Modules 1-2 to read the poem:
    • Direct students' attention to the posted "Clay Leaves" poem.
    • Invite students to first listen as you read the poem fluently and without interruption.
    • Invite students to make up motions or gestures to go with the poem.
  • Remind students that some words in a sentence are called nouns, and that nouns are people, places, and things.
  • Invite students to show a thumbs-up when they hear a noun as you reread the poem.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with language: (Color-coding: Nouns) Consider color-coding the nouns in "Clay Leaves" and subsequent new poetry using the same color used in previous units. (MMR)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Role-Play Protocol: Reviewing Sugar Maple: Class Notes (10 minutes)

  • Refocus whole group and tell students they are now going to review the Sugar Maple: Class Notes they created in the previous lesson.
  • Display the Sugar Maple: Class Notes.
  • Remind students that there are many ways to review notes but that the purpose of reviewing notes remains the same: to better comprehend the information.
  • With excitement, tell students that today they will use the Role-Play protocol to review their notes! Remind them that they used this protocol in Module 2 and review as necessary using the Role-Play Protocol anchor chart. (Refer to the Classroom Protocols document for the full version of the protocol.)
  • Tell students that as you read the notes aloud, they can stand up and act out, or role-play, the notes to show their understanding.
  • Guide students through the Role-Play protocol to show their understanding of the class notes.
  • After reading all of the notes, gather students whole group and invite them to give a silent cheer for all the hard work and fun they had while reviewing the class notes.
  • Tell students that next they will work together to turn the notes into complete sentences in the Describing the Maple Tree booklet.
  • For students who may need additional support with motivation: Invite students to share a previous lesson in which the Role-Play protocol helped them better comprehend the information. (MME)

B. Shared Writing: Describing the Sugar Maple Booklet (15 minutes)

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

"I can use information from research to contribute to a piece of shared writing."

  • Remind students of the definition of a focus statement (a sentence that tells the big idea of your piece of writing).
  • Tell students that in a moment, they will go to their workspaces to use the class notes to write a focus statement about the sugar maple tree. Then they will return to the carpet with their ideas and write a focus statement as a class.
  • Display page 1 of the Describing the Sugar Maple booklet and follow the routine from Unit 2 to complete it with students:
    • Think-Pair-Share:

"What is the big idea of the text 'Sugar Maple'? What is the text about?" (the sugar maple tree)

    • Invite students to transition to their workstations to use the paper and pencils to draw and label a picture and write a focus statement that tells what the book is about.
    • After 5 minutes, invite students back to the whole group area with their paper. Elicit ideas from the group and record a focus statement on page 1 of the Describing the Maple Tree booklet. Refer to the Describing the Sugar Maple booklet (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
    • Ask:

"What picture should we draw that will show the big idea?" (sugar maple tree)

    • Quickly draw a picture of a sugar maple tree.
    • Repeat this process to complete page 2 of the Describing the Sugar Maple booklet using the question:

"How can we describe the sugar maple tree? How does it look?"

    • If productive, use a Goal 4 Conversation Cue to encourage students to explain why a classmate came up with a particular response:

"Who can explain why your classmate came up with that response? I'll give you time to think."

  • For students who may need additional support with fine motor skills: Continue to vary methods for responses by offering options for drawing utensils and writing tools. (MMAE, MME)

C. Engaging the Artist: Making a Sugar Maple Tree Collage (25 minutes)

  • Refocus whole group.
  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and read the second one aloud:

"I can show what I know about trees through writing and collage."

  • Tell students that now that they have started writing about the maple tree, they can begin their maple tree collages.
  • Display the Model of Informational Collage and focus students on the trunk, bark, and branches.
  • Tell students that today they will begin by collaging the trunk, bark, and branches of the maple tree.
  • Remind students that as with all work, they should ensure that their collage is of high quality.
  • Direct students' attention to the High-Quality Work anchor chart and focus them on the first two bullets:
    • "has carefully planned and created artwork"
    • "includes details in the artwork and writing"
  • Remind students that these are the criteria to focus on while collaging.
  • Display the sugar maple collage template and tell students that this is the paper they will use to create the collage. Tell them that it has the outline of a sugar maple tree for them to collage onto.
  • Tell students that they will start to collage the trunk, bark, and branches of the sugar maple. Point to the trunk, bark, and branches on the sugar maple collage template.
  • Model how to select accurately colored pieces of paper to use for your collage of the trunk, bark, and branches by using the sugar maple images for reference. Ask:

"When is it better to use rectangular pieces of paper? When is it better to use square pieces of paper?" (Rectangular pieces are good for the trunk, branches, and bark because they are long and thin. Square pieces are better for the leaves because they are small and more similar to the leaf shape.)

  • Demonstrate how to use the glue stick to glue down and layer the pieces of paper, covering all white space. Tell students that when they layer to collage, they need to put the paper on top of other pieces to cover all of the white space.
  • Emphasize that collaging is a process that takes time, patience, and perseverance. It is not something they will finish right away, and they may be able to layer only on a small part of the template in one day.
  • Remind students that they planned their collage in the previous lesson using the collage planner.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"How can you include details in your collage?" (Responses will vary, but may include: select different colors, sizes, and shapes of paper to help with layering for accurate colors and textures.)

  • Remind students that they should use their sugar maple collage planner to determine which colors and shapes they will need to collage the trunk, bark, and branches.
  • Point out the sugar maple collage planners, sugar maple collage template, sugar maple images, construction paper, and glue sticks already at their workspaces.
  • Transition students to their workspaces and invite them to begin collaging.
  • Circulate and support students as they work on their collages by reminding them to refer to their collage planners and the sugar maple images and to select accurate colors and shapes. Reinforce the habit of perseverance as needed.
  • After about 15 minutes, tell students to finish and begin to clean up by putting away Materials in the designated areas.
  • Tell students that they do not need to finish their collages today. They will continue to work on them in the next lesson.
  • For ELLs: (Metacognition) Consider asking students how creating a collage can help us generate discussion and learn language.
  • For students who may need additional support with self-regulation: Use a visual timer as students complete the assessment. (MME)
  • For students who may need additional support with planning: Support strategy development by providing small plastic bags of pre-selected colored paper pieces for students. Offer one bag at a time for students to use in creating the collage (e.g, a bag for bark, then a bag for leaves, etc.). (MMAE, MME)

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol: Reflecting on Learning (5 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group and offer specific, positive feedback on their writing and collaging.
  • Direct students' attention to the Perseverance anchor chart and ask:

"What does persevere mean?" (to challenge yourself, keep trying even if something is hard, and ask for help if it's needed)

  • If productive, cue students to agree or disagree and explain why:

"Do you agree or disagree with what your classmate said? Why? I'll give you time to think."

  • Confirm students' understanding by reading the big ideas of the Perseverance anchor chart aloud.
  • Tell students that they are revisiting the habit of character perseverance in this unit because they need to have perseverance as they work to complete the informational collage.
  • Tell students they are going to use the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face protocol to reflect on perseverance. Remind them that they used this protocol in Unit 1 and review as necessary using the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol anchor chart. (Refer to the Classroom Protocols document for the full version of the protocol.)
  • Guide students through the protocol using the following prompt:

"How can you show perseverance as we continue researching and working toward the final informational collage?" (Responses will vary.)

  • Invite students to return to their seats and offer specific, positive feedback on their ideas and reflections about perseverance.
  • With excitement, tell students that they will continue to reflect on perseverance as they continue researching, writing, and collaging to practice for the final informational collage.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Reinforcing Vocabulary) Consider adding another round of the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face protocol and invite students to generate examples of times they have used perseverance during the school day. (MMR)
  • For ELLs: (Asking for Support) Invite students to say how they can ask for help if it's needed. If they are unsure, consider modeling ways to ask for help.

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