- I can write short constructed responses to answer questions about my research reading text. (RL.3.1, W.3.1)
These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:
- RL.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
- RL.3.2: Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
- RL.3.3: Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
- W.3.1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
- L.3.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
- L.3.4c: Use a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., company, companion).
Daily Learning Targets
Ongoing Assessment
- Research Reading review form
Agenda
Agenda | Teaching Notes |
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1. Opening A. Launching Independent Reading Journals (10 minutes) B. Reviewing Learning Target (10 minutes) 2. Work Time A. Mini Lesson: Writing Short Constructed Responses to Answer Questions: Rain School (15 minutes) B. Independent Writing: Writing Short Constructed Responses to Answer Questions: Research Reading Text (20 minutes) 3. Closing and Assessment A. Working to Become Ethical People (5 minutes) 4. Homework A. Complete Affixes Practice II in your Unit 1 homework. B. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal. |
Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:
How it builds on previous work:
Areas where students may need additional support:
Assessment guidance:
Down the road:
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In Advance
- Prepare:
- Independent reading journals.
- A copy of the independent reading pages of the 3M1 Unit 1 Homework Resources (for families) to display. The pages required are those that show the layout of an entry into the vocabulary log and the page of independent reading prompts.
- Writing Constructed Responses anchor chart (see supporting materials)
- Review the Think-Pair-Share protocol. (Refer to the Classroom Protocols document for the full version of the protocol.)
- Post: Learning targets, Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart, and Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart.
Tech and Multimedia
- Work Time B: Students use speech-to-text facilities activated on devices or use an app or software like Dictation.io to write their short constructed responses.
Supporting English Language Learners
Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 3.I.B.6, 3.I.B.7, 3.I.C.10, 3.I.C.11
Important points in the lesson itself
- The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to celebrate cultural and educational diversity, access a reading journal as a way to solidify reading comprehension and application, discuss what it means to write a short constructed response, explicitly identify the two most basic parts of a sentence in English, practice responding to questions that will appear on the Mid-Unit 1 Assessment, and establish a safe environment for sharing diverse perspectives.
- ELLs may find the subject-predicate concept challenging, as it may differ from their home language. The subject-predicate feature of English is key: Once students are able to grasp this concept, they will have a leg up on communicating clearly and accurately in English. See levels of support and the Meeting Students' Needs column for specific supports.
Levels of support
For lighter support:
- Before explaining the parts of the sentences students write in Work Time A, invite them to analyze the good example of a student response and identify the parts (i.e., a subject and a predicate).
- Encourage students to deepen their thinking. (Example: "What other details could the author have provided to convey Thomas's challenge? Which details do you feel are more effective at conveying the challenge: your details or the author's? Why? I'll give you a minute to think and write or sketch. Can you say more about that? I'll give you a minute to think and write or sketch.")
For heavier support:
- Copy sentences from Waiting for the Biblioburro and Rain School. Cut them into strips, separating the subjects from the predicates. Shuffle the strips and invite students to organize them according to subjects and predicates. Then, students can match the subjects to the corresponding predicate to create meaningful sentences.
- Students' home language systems will have similarities and differences to the English subject-predicate system. Invite students to compare their home language with English. If students don't know their home language system, encourage them to investigate with family. Examples:
"Do you have to use a subject in English?" (Yes, most of the time.)
"Do you have to use a subject in your home language?" (Answers will vary.)
- Clarify the difference between a noun and a verb. Invite students to point to people, places, and things around the room that are nouns. Act out various verbs with them. On a T-chart, write the nouns and the verbs. Ask about abstract nouns and stative verbs. (Example: "Where do we put response on the T-chart? Where do we put am?") Encourage students to combine the nouns with the verbs into meaningful sentences.
- In preparation for the Mid-Unit 1 Assessment, encourage students to politely stop you or their peers when they don't understand what is being said. (Example: "Sorry, but I don't understand you. Could you say that again? What do you mean by that? Can you give an example?")
- Also encourage them to initiate and extend conversations. Example: "I'd like to share something. I think that _____."
- As students prepare for the Mid-Unit 1 Assessment, build enthusiasm and reduce anxiety by providing a quick model of the discussion with two confident students. Take 2 or 3 minutes to sit in a circle with the two students, sharing what you like about your books and a challenge you faced. As you model, display any helpful phrases you or the students use.
Universal Design for Learning
- Multiple Means of Representation: As students prepare to construct a written response, some may need additional support breaking down the question. Consider varied methods of representing the different parts of the question that students will be expected to respond to (e.g., create an anchor chart with columns for each part of the question or use different colors to color-code them).
- Multiple Means of Action and Expression: Depending on the strategy that you employ (e.g., columns, color-coding) when teaching how to write a constructed response, make sure to match the options for student expression. (Examples: If you represented the information in an anchor chart with columns, provide a graphic organizer that is organized in the same way. If you used color-coding, allow students to used colored pencils when constructing their response.) This will help students generalize strategies across multiple questions.
- Multiple Means of Engagement: Students will be asked to engage in an independent writing task in this lesson. Some may need additional support with building their independent writing stamina. Consider offering predetermined breaks in which students can choose from a list of appropriate activities, such as getting a drink of water or stretching. Over time, students will build stamina and the breaks can become less frequent.
Vocabulary
Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T); Vocabulary Used in Writing (W)
- constructed, integrity, predicate, response, subject (L)
Materials
- Research reading texts (from Lesson 2; one per student)
- Independent reading journals (one per student)
- 3M1 Unit 1 Homework Resources (for families; independent reading pages; one to display)
- Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart (from in Lesson 3)
- Affix List (one per student)
- Equity sticks (class set; one per student)
- Close Read Note-catcher: Rain School (from Lesson 5; one per student)
- Writing Short Constructed Responses anchor chart (new; co-created with students during Work Time A)
- Writing Short Constructed Responses anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)
- Research Reading review form (one per student and one to display)
- Working to Become Ethical People anchor chart (begun in Lesson 2; added to during Closing and Assessment A)
- Working to Become Ethical People 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
Opening | Meeting Students' Needs |
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A. Launching Independent Reading Journals (10 minutes)
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- Chunk the text into manageable amounts, e.g., sentences or paragraphs. - Underline important people, places, and things. - Read aloud. - Read repeatedly. - Silently paraphrase the chunks. - Summarize what you read for someone else, perhaps first in your home language. |
B. Reviewing Learning Target (10 minutes)
"I can write short constructed responses to answer questions about my research reading text."
"When I ask a question, I'm looking for you to respond, to give a response. What is a response?" (an answer)
"What strategy can you use to figure out the meaning of this new word?" (affixes, roots, or reference)
Chart Here
"What is the translation of constructed in our home languages?" (gousiin Mandarin)
"So, do you mean_____": "So we know what con-, struct, and -ed mean. So what do you think it all means together? What does constructed mean?" (to build by putting parts together) "What do you think a short constructed response is?" (a short answer that is written by putting the parts together)
"Are these academic words or topic words? How do you know?" (academic, because they could be found in texts on any topic)
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"Who can explain why we want to learn to write good constructed responses?" (to briefly respond to questions about the research reading text; to show what we know about our text) (MMR)
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Work Time
Work Time | Meeting Students' Needs |
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A. Mini Lesson: Writing Short Constructed Responses to Answer Questions: Rain School (15 minutes)
"In Rain School, what was the lesson and how was it conveyed through details in the text?"
"Where might we find the answer to this question?" (on the Close Read note-catcher from Lesson 5)
"Looking at your note-catcher and the anchor chart, how might you answer this question in no more than two sentences?" (The lesson in Rain School is that while overcoming a challenge, we can learn new things. This is conveyed with the details that while building the school, Thomas learns how to make bricks from mud, how to build walls and desks from mud, and how to make a roof from grass and saplings.)
"So, do you mean_____?" (Responses will vary.)
"What are the components of a complete sentence?"
"What are the subjects in the sentences written on the board?" (Responses will vary.)
"What are the predicates in the sentences written on the board?" (Responses will vary.)
- Underline each requirement in the question: In Rain School, what was the lesson or message and how was it conveyed through details in the text? - Ensure students understand that each part of the question will be required in their answer. - Point to the S at the end of details and explain that this tells them they should find more than one detail from the text. - Record this as criteria on the Writing Short Constructed Responses anchor chart. Refer to the Writing Short Constructed Responses anchor chart (example, for teacher reference) as needed.
- Underline each one. - If there is a missing component, invite students to identify which is missing and how they could improve the response. - Finalize the response to this question as an example constructed response. (Example: The challenge in Rain School was that there was no school for Thomas and the other children when they showed up. The teacher and children overcame the challenge by building a school and desks from mud and building a roof with grass and saplings.) |
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B. Independent Writing: Writing Short Constructed Responses to Answer Questions: Research Reading Text (20 minutes)
"What are some things you like about your research reading text? Why?"
"What will you need to include in your answer to this question?" (at least two things I like, and a reason for each)
"What are some things you like about your research reading text? Why?"
"What are at least two things you like about your research reading text? What reason do you have for liking each of those things?"
"What strategies did you use today to help you read closely to answer the questions?" (Responses will vary, but could include going back to the text to find answers to the questions and talking with their partner about answers they find.) "How did these strategies help us to better understand the text?"
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- "I like the _____ because _____." - "I also like the _____ because _____." (MMR)
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Closing & Assessments
Closing | Meeting Students' Needs |
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A. Working to Become Ethical People (5 minutes)
- Reading research reading book for 20 minutes - Recording unfamiliar vocabulary in vocabulary log - Selecting and responding to a prompt in independent reading journal
"I behave with integrity. This means I am honest and do the right thing, even when it's difficult, because it is the right thing to do."
"What does integrity look like? If you saw someone behaving with integrity, what would you see?" (Responses will vary.) "What does integrity sound like? If you heard someone behaving with integrity, what would you hear?" (Responses will vary.)
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"The words with and integrity are often used together as a phrase and can be learned as a phrase." (Example: "I behave with integrity.")
"What else do you do with integrity?"
"I _____ (play games/talk to friends/do my independent reading) with integrity." (MMR)
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Homework
Homework | Meeting Students' Needs |
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A. Complete Affixes Practice II in your Unit 1 homework. B. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal. |
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