ELA GK:M4:U2:L9

Writing, Speaking, and Listening: Planning Opinion Writing

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

W.K.1: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or the name of the book they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic or book (e.g., My favorite book is...).
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.
SL.K.6: Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.
L.K.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
L.K.2a: Capitalize the first word in a sentence and the pronoun I.
L.K.2b: Recognize and name end punctuation.

Daily Learning Targets

I can use pictures and words to state an opinion about where to plant trees and provide a reason to support it. (W.K.1, W.K.8, L.K.2a, L.K.2b)
I can describe and paint a place where trees are planted. (SL.K.4)

Ongoing Assessment

Collect students' Opinion Writing planners and use the Opinion Writing Checklist to track progress toward W.K.1, W.K.8, L.K.2a, and L.K.2b (see Assessment Overview and Resources).

Agenda

Agenda	Teaching Notes
1. Opening A. Song and Movement: "Trees in Our Community" (5 minutes) 2. Work Time A. Preparing to Write: Matching Opinions with Reasons Game (10 minutes) B. Independent Writing: Planning an Opinion and Reason (20 minutes) C. Engaging the Artist: Watercolors (20 minutes) 3. Closing and Assessment A. Reflecting on Learning (5 minutes)	Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards: In Work Time A, students play a final round of Matching Opinions with Reasons. This game provides students with practice in formulating opinions with reasons that make sense in anticipation of the Unit 2 Assessment, Part II in Lesson 10. In Work Time B, students receive a blank version of the Opinion Writing planner and complete it using ideas from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart that are different from the ones they used in their previous opinion statements. In Work Time C, students continue to hone their watercoloring skills by painting a new scene. How this lesson builds on previous work: Students participate in the Matching Opinions with Reasons game introduced in Lesson 5. Students use ideas from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart to formulate and plan their final opinion statements. Areas in which students may need additional support: Students independently plan using their Opinion Writing planners. They were guided through this process in Lesson 7, but as students prepare for the Unit 2 Assessment, the planning process is done independently. Consider providing the Opinion Writing planner (from Lesson 7; example, for teacher reference) for students who may need a refresher on how to organize their ideas. Down the road: In Lesson 10, students will use their completed Opinion Writing planners to write their opinion statement for the Unit 2 Assessment, Part II. In Lesson 10, students are introduced to the watercoloring technique of layering.

Teaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Song and Movement: "Trees in Our Community" (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Preparing to Write: Matching Opinions with Reasons Game (10 minutes)

B. Independent Writing: Planning an Opinion and Reason (20 minutes)

C. Engaging the Artist: Watercolors (20 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Reflecting on Learning (5 minutes)

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

In Work Time A, students play a final round of Matching Opinions with Reasons. This game provides students with practice in formulating opinions with reasons that make sense in anticipation of the Unit 2 Assessment, Part II in Lesson 10.
In Work Time B, students receive a blank version of the Opinion Writing planner and complete it using ideas from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart that are different from the ones they used in their previous opinion statements.
In Work Time C, students continue to hone their watercoloring skills by painting a new scene.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

Students participate in the Matching Opinions with Reasons game introduced in Lesson 5.
Students use ideas from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart to formulate and plan their final opinion statements.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

Students independently plan using their Opinion Writing planners. They were guided through this process in Lesson 7, but as students prepare for the Unit 2 Assessment, the planning process is done independently. Consider providing the Opinion Writing planner (from Lesson 7; example, for teacher reference) for students who may need a refresher on how to organize their ideas.

Down the road:

In Lesson 10, students will use their completed Opinion Writing planners to write their opinion statement for the Unit 2 Assessment, Part II.
In Lesson 10, students are introduced to the watercoloring technique of layering.

In Advance

Prepare:

The Matching Opinions with Reasons game by removing the sentence strips from the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart and the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and mixing them up.
Student workspaces for Work Time B by placing copies of the Opinion Writing planners at each one.
Student workspaces with watercoloring supplies (see materials list).

Post: Learning targets and 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 1-3 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 by in part by CA ELD Standards K.1.A.3, K.2.B.5, and K.2.C.6

Important points in the lesson itself

The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to continue developing their writing skills and deepen their understanding of opinions and reasons.
ELLs may find it challenging to write independently while planning their opinion. Encourage them to use Word Walls and anchor charts, and to ask for support from a peer or you. Offer students the opportunity to rehearse what they are going to write a few times.

Levels of support

For lighter support:

During Work Time B, invite students to mentor those who need heavier support as they complete their writing.

For heavier support:

During Work Time B, consider working closely with a group of students to complete their paragraphs as a shared writing experience.

Universal Design for Learning

Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): Continue to support comprehension by activating prior knowledge and scaffold 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 and Expression (MMAE): Recall that many kindergarteners are still developing spellers and will benefit from environmental support to sound out words in their writing. Continue to provide students with explicit prompting to use environmental print when they cannot recall letter sounds or sight words, and emphasize process and effort by modeling how to sound out a word with tricky spelling.
Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Continue to encourage self-regulatory skills by helping students anticipate and manage frustration by modeling what to do if they need help from their partners. Consider offering sentence frames to strategically selected peer models.

Vocabulary

Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T)

Review:

contribute, community, opinion, reason, watercolor (L)

Materials

"Trees in Our Community," Version 1 (from Lesson 2; one to display)
Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart (begun in Lesson 3)
Places People Plant Trees anchor chart (begun in Lesson 5)
Opinion Writing planners (blank; from Lesson 7; one per student)
Pencils (one per student)
Opinion Writing Checklist (for teacher reference; see Assessment Overview and Resources)
Coastline scene sketch (one to display)
Watercoloring supplies:

Palette (one per student)
Cups of water (one or two per workspace)
Paintbrushes (one per student)

Respect anchor chart (begun in Module 3)

Materials from Previous Lessons

New Materials

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

Opening	Meeting Students' Needs
A. Song and Movement: "Trees in Our Community" (5 minutes) Gather students whole group. Display "Trees in Our Community," Version 1 and read the title. Follow the same routine established in Modules 1-2 to sing "Trees in Our Community": Direct students' attention to the posted "Trees in Our Community" song. Invite students to sing along as you point to the text. Provide specific, positive feedback on students' participation in the song.	For ELLs and students who may need additional support with self-reflection: (Reflection) Consider asking students to reflect on what they have learned since the first time they sang this song. Ask: "How was this time different from the first time we sang this song?" (MME)

Meeting Students' Needs

A. Song and Movement: "Trees in Our Community" (5 minutes)

Gather students whole group.
Display "Trees in Our Community," Version 1 and read the title.
Follow the same routine established in Modules 1-2 to sing "Trees in Our Community":

Direct students' attention to the posted "Trees in Our Community" song.
Invite students to sing along as you point to the text.

Provide specific, positive feedback on students' participation in the song.

For ELLs and students who may need additional support with self-reflection: (Reflection) Consider asking students to reflect on what they have learned since the first time they sang this song. Ask:

"How was this time different from the first time we sang this song?" (MME)

Work Time

Work Time	Meeting Students' Needs
A. Preparing to Write: Matching Opinions with Reasons Game (10 minutes) Tell students they have done excellent work gathering ideas about places and reasons to plant a tree. Tell students that today they will play the Matching Opinions with Reasons game using all of the ideas gathered on sentence strips from the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart and the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart to begin thinking about the different opinions of where to plant a tree and why. Follow the same routine from Work Time B of Lesson 5 to play the game: Distribute a sentence strip to each student. Invite students to read their sentence strips and decide whether they are a place or a reason. Invite places to spread out around the room. Invite reasons to move and stand next to a place that makes sense with their reason. Take turns orally processing the matches by forming sentences using the sentence frame: "Plant a tree ___________ because _____________." Invite the matched-up places and reasons to give each other a high-five. Collect the sentence strips and reattach them to the respective anchor charts. Provide specific, positive feedback on students' ability to engage respectfully in the routine.	For ELLs and students who may need additional support with metacognition: (Metacognition) Consider asking students how they decided to match their reasons to the places they chose. (MME)
B. Independent Writing: Planning an Opinion and Reason (20 minutes) Refocus whole group. Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and read the first aloud: "I can use pictures and words to state an opinion about where to plant trees and provide a reason to support it." Tell students that today they will work independently to plan a final opinion statement in preparation for the Unit 2 Assessment, Part II. Invite students to whisper into their hands the previous opinion statement they wrote during Lesson 8. Direct students' attention back to the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart and read the ideas aloud. Turn and Talk: "Where else would you plant a tree in our community? Select a different place." (Responses will vary, but students should use information from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart.) "Why would you plant it there? Select a different reason." (Responses will vary, but students should use information from the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart.) Tell students that they will find new Opinion Writing planners and pencils at their workspaces. Transition students to their workspaces and invite them to pantomime their selected reason as they move. Invite students to begin planning using the Opinion Writing planner. Remind students that they can use the words and symbols from the Places People Plant Trees anchor chart and the Reasons to Plant a Tree anchor chart to generate ideas. Circulate and support students as they plan their opinion statement by referring back to the anchor charts. After 15 minutes, signal to students to finish up their planners and clean up their workspaces. Collect students' Opinion Writing planners and use the Opinion Writing Checklist to track progress toward W.K.1.	For students who may need additional support with writing fluency: Invite students to rehearse their sentences aloud twice. On the second time, invite them to draw a line for each word they will write. (MMAE)
C. Engaging the Artist: Watercolors (20 minutes) Refocus students whole group and offer specific, positive feedback on their hard work when planning an opinion statement. Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and read the second one aloud: "I can describe and paint a place where trees are planted." Display the coastline scene sketch and using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group: "Which place will you be watercoloring today?" (a coastline) Point out the watercoloring supplies already at student workspaces. Transition students to their workspaces and invite them to begin watercoloring using the same routine from Work Time B of Lesson 5. Circulate as students watercolor to provide support with the routine and to invite students to describe the place that they are painting. After 15 minutes, invite students to turn to a partner at their workspace and share their watercolor painting, describing the place. Invite students to clean up carefully and put all materials--the palettes, the cups of water, and the paintbrushes--back in the appropriate locations. Tell students that they will add to the watercoloring in the next lesson as they learn a layering technique.	For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Practicing with Visual Content: Compare and Contrast) Encourage students to compare and contrast their watercolor paintings. (Example: "My watercolor is similar to my partner's because _________. My watercolor is different from my partner's because _______.") (MMR)

Closing & Assessments

Closing	Meeting Students' Needs
A. Reflecting on Learning (5 minutes) Refocus whole group. Direct students' attention to the Respect anchor chart and review the big ideas. Remind students that they can show respect in many ways: for themselves, for others, and for materials. Turn and Talk: "How did you respect your classmates while planning your opinion writing?" (Responses will vary.) "How did you respect the classroom space while watercoloring?" (Responses will vary.) Provide specific, positive feedback about the different ways students showed respect for their classmates and classroom space.	For students who may need additional support with verbal expression: Allow students 1 minute of think time before sharing with a partner. (MMAE)

Closing