Performance Task: Drafting Detail Sentence 3 and Completing an Informational Tree Collage | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA GK:M3:U3:L13

Performance Task: Drafting Detail Sentence 3 and Completing an Informational Tree Collage

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RI.K.1: With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
  • 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.5: With guidance and support from adults, respond to questions and suggestions from peers and add details to strengthen writing as needed.
  • 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.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.1b: Continue a conversation through multiple exchanges.
  • SL.K.3: Ask and answer questions in order to seek help, get information, or clarify something that is not understood.

Daily Learning Targets

  • I can show what I know about trees through writing and collage. (RI.K.2, W.K.2, W.K.5, W.K.7, W.K.8)

Ongoing Assessment

  • During Work Time A, continue to circulate and use the Informational Writing Checklist to document progress toward W.K.2, W.K.5, W.K.7, and W.K.8 (see Assessment Overview and Resources).

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Song and Movement: "We Depend on Trees" (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Independent Writing: Performance Task Writing Booklet (20 minutes)

B. Engaging the Artist: Completing an Informational Tree Collage (25 minutes)

3. Closing

A. Role-Play Protocol: Performance Task Writing Booklet (10 minutes)

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

  • This is the final lesson in a series of four in which students work to complete the performance task. In this lesson, students write a final sentence to state information about one animal that depends on the tree for food and finish collaging the tree. Following the lesson, the teacher will type the writing, attach the animal puppet template to a Popsicle stick, and affix both to the completed tree collage to create the final informational collage.
  • Work Times A and B contain repeated routines from Lessons 10-12 as students participate in writing and collage artwork to show what they know about their researched tree. Refer to those lessons for more detail, as necessary.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • In Lessons 10-12, students began writing and collaging for the performance task. In this lesson, they complete that process.
  • In this lesson, students review and recite the song "We Depend on Trees" from Unit 2 as practice for presentation during the Celebration of Learning.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • In Work Times A and B, students may need additional support with fine motor skills as they write, cut, tear, or glue. Consider offering any appropriate supports from Lessons 2-4.
  • This is the final lesson in which students work on their Performance Task Writing booklets and collages before the Celebration of Learning. Consider allocating additional time for students to complete all parts of these products to a high standard.

Down the road:

  • Recall that in Lessons 14-15, students will practice and present their learning from Units 1-3 for the Celebration of Learning. Students will perform various songs and poems from throughout the module, read a selection from their Living Things research notebook completed in Unit 1, and present their completed informational collages to classmates and other visitors.

In Advance

  • Prepare:
    • Collaging Materials for Work Time B by pre-cutting construction paper of the necessary colors into appropriate different sizes and shapes. Organize paper by tree type and place into bins at each workstation for ease of student use.
    • Enough copies of the animal puppet templates so each student can choose the animal that corresponds to the tree they researched. The following illustrates which animals correspond to which tree. Consider asking students their preference in advance to limit the number of copies made:
      • Weeping willow: bird, deer, rabbit, and beaver
      • Quaking aspen: bear, porcupine, and moose
      • Paper birch: hummingbird, porcupine, moose, and deer
      • Coast redwood: owl, deer, and squirrel
      • Live oak: squirrel, turkey, raccoon, and duck
  • Strategically pair students who researched different trees for the Role-Play protocol in the Closing. This allows them to practice sharing their information with someone who does not know about the tree before the Celebration of Learning.
  • Post: Learning targets, "We Depend on Trees," 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.B.7, K.1.C.10, and K.2.B.5

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs by returning to familiar content and instructional routines to complete the Performance Task Writing booklet and tree collage. Students practice oral language fluency and solidify content-specific Vocabulary while singing "We Depend on Trees." They describe what their tree provides and offer feedback on a classmate's writing in a structured discussion.
  • ELLs will benefit from recursive exposure to ways to provide feedback in Work Time B. For students who have struggled in previous feedback sessions, consider offering a personalized and illustrated sheet with options to say/contribute to a classmate's work.

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • During Work Time A, remind students that depend on and need are different words that mean the same thing.

For heavier support:

  • During Work Time B, as students complete their final sentence, provide index cards with illustrations of key words for those who have trouble writing. They can use the index cards as guides.

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): Continue to embed support for unfamiliar Vocabulary by providing explanation and visual examples. This will help students make connections and support comprehension.
  • Multiple Means of Action & Expression (MMAE): Continue to support strategy during independent writing by modeling how to physically touch the words/spaces on the sentence frame and draw lines for additional words you intend to write. This will help students recall their original ideas later in the writing process.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Continue to foster collaboration and community by providing prompts that guide students in knowing when and how to ask classmates or teachers for help.

Vocabulary

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

  • N/A 

Materials

  • "We Depend on Trees" (from Unit 2, Lesson 8)
  • Performance Task Writing booklet (begun in Lesson 10; added to during Work Time A; page 4; one per student; see Performance Task Overview)
  • Tree: Individual Notes (completed in Lesson 8; one per student)
  • Pencils (one per student)
  • Colored pencils (a variety of colors per student)
  • Describing the Sugar Maple booklet (completed in Lesson 4; one to display)
  • High-Quality Work anchor chart (begun in Module 2)
  • Performance Task Writing booklet (from Lesson 10; example, for teacher reference)
  • Stapler (one; used by the teacher to staple together Performance Task Writing booklet)
  • Model of Informational Collage (from Lesson 1; one to display)
  • Collage planner (completed in Lesson 10; one per student)
  • Construction paper (class set; a variety of greens and yellows per student)
  • Glue sticks (one per student)
  • Tree images (from Lesson 10; one set per student)
  • Tree collage templates (begun in Lesson 10; added to during Work Time B; one per student; see Performance Task Overview)
  • Animal puppet templates (one per student and one for teacher modeling; see Performance Task Overview)
  • Tree texts (from Lesson 5; two or three per small group)
    • "Paper Birch" (from Lesson 5; one per pair in this small group)
    • "Live Oak" (from Lesson 5; one per pair in this small group)
    • "Quaking Aspen" (from Lesson 5; one per pair in this small group)
    • "Weeping Willow" (from Lesson 5; one per pair in this small group)
    • "Coast Redwood" (from Lesson 5; one per pair in this small group)
  • Role-Play 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. Song and Movement: "We Depend on Trees" (5 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group.
  • Display the song "We Depend on Trees" and read the title. Tell students that they are practicing the song so they can present it to friends and family during the Celebration of Learning.
  • Follow the same routine established in Modules 1-2 to read the "We Depend on Trees" song.
    • Direct students' attention to the posted song.
    • Read the song with students and invite them to read along as you point to the text.
    • Invite students to do the motions or gestures to go with the song.
  • Provide specific, positive feedback on students' participation with the song.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with language: (Charades: Verbs) To reinforce the idea of what a verb is, consider playing a short game of charades with the verbs in the song "We Depend on Trees." (MMR, MMAE)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Independent Writing: Performance Task Writing Booklet (20 minutes)

  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning target and read it aloud:

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

  • Tell students that now they will talk, plan, and write the final detail sentence that shares information about an animal that depends on the tree for food.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What animals depend on the tree for food?" (Responses will vary, but may include: Squirrels eat nuts from the tree. Deer eat leaves and bark from the tree.)

  • If productive, cue students to add on to what a classmate said:

"Who can add on to what your classmate said? I'll give you time to think."

  • Use the same routine from Work Time A of Lesson 10 to guide students through writing the last detail sentence on page 4 of their Performance Task Writing booklets using their Tree: Individual Notes, pencils, and colored pencils. Refer to the following Materials as necessary throughout the routine:
    • Describing the Sugar Maple booklet
    • High-Quality Work anchor chart
    • Performance Task Writing booklet (example, for teacher reference)
  • After 10 minutes, circulate to use a stapler to staple pages 1-3 of students' Performance Task Writing booklet together.
  • Collect students' completed Performance Task Writing booklets to use again in the Closing.
  • Tell students that before the next lesson, you will type their writing and attach it to their collages to create the completed informational collage.
  • Tell students that next they will finish collaging their trees and also create the puppet to use while sharing their work during the Celebration of Learning.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with written expression: (Accessing a Print-rich Environment) Remind students of the many places they can access the names of different animals and how to spell them. (MMAE)

B. Engaging the Artist: Completing an Informational Tree Collage (25 minutes)

  • Refocus students whole group.
  • Display the Model of Informational Collage and focus students on the complete collage.
  • Tell students that today is the final day to work on their collage, so they should focus on adding to and finishing all parts of their artwork.
  • Direct students' attention to the High-Quality Work anchor chart and review as necessary.
  • Remind students that they should refer to their collage planner to help them think carefully about the colors, shapes, and textures they need.
  • Follow the same routine from Work Time C of Lesson 3 to guide students through using construction paper, glue sticks, and the tree images to finish collaging their tree onto the tree collage template.
  • Circulate to support students as they collage and to reinforce the habit of perseverance as necessary.
  • After 10 minutes, invite students to clean up.
  • Provide specific, positive feedback on their ability to collage accurately and with details.
  • Refocus students whole group and display the animal puppet templates.
  • Tell students that they will each get an animal puppet template to color accurately and use while sharing their completed collage in the next two lessons. Point out that they will create an animal puppet that represents the animal they wrote about in their Performance Task Writing booklets.
  • Model this process:
    • Select an animal puppet template.
    • Think aloud about how to find the animal in the applicable tree text.
    • Observe the animal closely in the text.
    • Based on your observations, think aloud about selecting the best colored pencils to create an accurate puppet.
    • Think aloud about coloring in the lines of the template, as well as the colors and textures you are creating.
  • Distribute animal puppet templates and tree texts to a pair of students in each research group.
  • Invite students to move back to their workspaces like their animal and begin accurately coloring their animal puppet template.
  • Circulate and support students as they work.
  • After 10 minutes, invite students to clean up.
  • Collect students' animal puppets and tell them that they will use them tomorrow as they practice sharing their complete informational collage before the Celebration of Learning.
  • For ELLs: (Oral Language Practice) To foster wider application of frames students have been using in structured feedback Work Times, encourage students to share their observations and questions with classmates about their collages and puppets as they create them.
  • For students who may need additional support with motivation and self-assessment: Invite students to share how their collage meets the criteria displayed. (MME)

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Role-Play Protocol: Performance Task Writing Booklet (10 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group and distribute their Performance Task Writing booklets.
  • Tell students that they will now use the Role-Play protocol to share their completed booklets. Remind them that they used this protocol in Lesson 3 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 one person reads his or her booklet, the other will role-play what is being read.
  • Invite students to begin the protocol.
  • After 5 minutes, gather students whole group and invite them to give a silent cheer for all the hard work and perseverance they showed while writing the booklets.
  • Tell students that in the next lesson, they will practice presenting their performance task booklets and collages.
  • For ELLs: (Leadership: Peer Modeling) Invite two students to model the role-play in front of the class. Consider asking students to contribute feedback to the role-play.
  • For students who may need additional support with self-regulation: Identify which partner will read first. (MME)

There are no new supporting materials for this lesson.

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