Writing about Literature: The Central Message in The Lizard and the Sun | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G2:M4:U1:L5

Writing about Literature: The Central Message in The Lizard and the Sun

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RL.2.1: Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
  • RL.2.2: Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.
  • RL.2.3: Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.
  • RL.2.4: Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.
  • W.2.2: Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.
  • SL.2.2: Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.
  • L.2.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 2 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies.
  • L.2.4b: Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known prefix is added to a known word (e.g., happy/unhappy, tell/retell).
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can recount the story The Lizard and the Sun using the story elements. (RL.2.1, RL.2.2, SL.2.2)
  • I can write a paragraph describing the central message from The Lizard and the Sun. (RL.2.2, SL.2.2, W.2.2)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Collect student writing from Work Time B and use the Reading Literature Checklist to track students' progress toward RL.2.2 (see Assessment Overview and Resources).

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Song and Movement: "We Do What We Can" (10 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Oral Recounting: The Lizard and the Sun (20 minutes)

B. Independent Writing: Story Elements and Central Message of The Lizard and the Sun (25 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment 

A. Reflecting on Learning: Working to Contribute to a Better World (5 minutes)

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

  • Recall that students complete a cycle of instruction in Lessons 4-5 that is similar to that of Lessons 2-3. In Lesson 5, students orally recount and then independently write about the central message in The Lizard and the Sun by examining the story's key details (RL.2.1, RL.2.2, W.2.2).
  • In the Opening, students continue their work with prefixes to understand how they change the meaning of root words. This enables students to deepen their ability to determine the meaning of unknown words (L.2.4).

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • Students apply their understanding of story elements to orally recount and determine the central message from The Lizard and the Sun. By revisiting the Unit 1 guiding question, students continue to explore how pollinators are portrayed as making the world a better place in works of fiction.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Similar to Lesson 3, if students need additional support to write independently, consider pulling a small group of students during Work Time B to scaffold their writing process. Consider providing students time to orally tell what they are going to write before writing. Additionally, consider allocating additional time as needed.
  • Consider the ongoing use of poems or songs with clear rhythm and repetition in other parts of the school day to support student growth toward RL.2.4.

Down the road:

  • In Lessons 6-9, students will repeat the cycle of reading, role-playing, recounting, and writing about the story elements and central message with two new fables.

In Advance

  • Prepare sets of Meaning Makers card for the Opening by printing and cutting out cards.  
  • Pre-determine pairs for the Meaning Makers game in the Opening.
  • 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 2.I.B.6, 2.I.B.8, and 2.I.C.10

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to experiment with language and make meaning by creating their own words with prefixes.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to write their paragraphs independently after recounting The Lizard and the Sun only once. Provide additional opportunities for students to practice recounting to prepare for writing. Provide sentence frames and additional models to support independent writing (see Levels of support and Meeting Students' Needs).

Levels of support

For lighter support

  • During Work Times A and B, Invite students to mentor those who need heavier support as they recount The Lizard and the Sun and write paragraphs.
  • The supports in this lesson and Lesson 4 are similar to the supports in Lessons 2-3 because the tasks mirror one another. Based on student performance in Lessons 2-3, consider releasing students from some of the supports applied in those lessons to foster independence and to assess student progress.

For heavier support

  • During Work Time A, consider color-coding the Meaning Makers cards to clarify corresponding prefixes and base words. (Example: Underline both the dis- and the like cards in blue. Underline other base words that use the prefix dis- in blue as well.) (See Meeting Students' Needs.)
  • During Work Time C, distribute a version of pages 5-6 of the student notebook with sentence frames to support writing the paragraph. Refer to Fables and Folktales response notebook (example, for teacher reference) to determine useful sentence frames.
  • During Work Time C, 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 embed support for unfamiliar vocabulary by providing explanation and visual examples. This will help students make connections and support comprehension.
  • Multiple Means of Action and Expression (MMAE): Continue to support students in setting appropriate goals for their effort and the level of difficulty expected during this lesson.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Continue to provide targeted feedback that encourages sustained effort during each activity and encourages the use of specific supports and strategies, such as the Word Wall and peer support.

Vocabulary

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

Review:

  • prefix, story elements, central message (L)

Materials

  • "We Do What We Can" (from Lesson 2; one to display)
  • Meaning Makers cards (one set per pair)
  • Story Elements and Central Message Class Notes: The Lizard and the Sun (completed in Lesson 4; one to display)
  • Fables and Folktales response notebook (from Lesson 3; one per student)
    • Independent Paragraph Writing Page: The Lizard and the Sun (pages 5-6 of the Fables and Folktales response notebook)
  • Fables and Folktales response notebook (from Lesson 3; example, for teacher reference)
  • Unit 1 Guiding Question anchor chart (begun in Lesson 1)

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.

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Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Song and Movement: "We Do What We Can" (10 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group.
  • Display the "We Do What We Can Do" song and invite students to sing the first verse chorally in a lizard's voice.
  • Review the definition of prefix (part of a word added to the beginning of another word to change the meaning).
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What prefixes are we learning?" (un-, non-, and dis-)

  • Introduce the Meaning Makers game.
    • Share that students will work with a partner to make new words using one prefix and one root word card. Say:

"Each partnership will receive a stack of cards. Some cards have root words on them. Some cards have prefixes on them. Work with your partner to put them together to make a new word."

    • Model this process with the cards for like and dis-. Say:

"Like is a word on its own, but when I put it together with the prefix dis-, it makes a new word: dislike."

    • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is the meaning of dislike?" (do not like)

    • Answer clarifying questions.
    • Move students into pairs and distribute sets of Meaning Makers cards.
    • Invite students to begin playing the game.
  • After 6 minutes, gather students whole group. Remind them that if they know the meaning of the prefix, they can use that knowledge to figure out the meaning of a new word.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with vocabulary: (Color-Coding: Prefixes) Color-code the prefixes and base word cards. Model examples and non-examples of matching prefixes with base words (see Supporting ELLs). (MMR)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Oral Recounting: The Lizard and the Sun (20 minutes)

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

"I can recount the story The Lizard and the Sun using the story elements."

  • Review the meaning of recount (to retell with only the important details) as needed.
  • Follow the same routine from Work Time A of Lesson 3 to guide students through orally recounting The Lizard and the Sun with a partner.
    • Display the Story Elements and Central Message Class Notes: The Lizard and the Sun and remind students to use the headings to recount the story.
    • Remind students that recounting the story orally is a way to plan for writing.
    • Model recounting The Lizard and the Sun aloud, using the class notes as your guide. Invite students to point to each section of the class notes as you model turning the notes into oral sentences.
  • Say:

"The lizard lives in a city with the emperor and other animals. One day, the sun stopped coming out. Everyone was cold and worried about the sun and started looking for it. The lizard never stopped looking until he found the sun sleeping under a rock. The sun woke up with the help of the lizard, emperor, woodpecker, singers, and dancers, and took its place in the sky to shine bright. The central message of the story is you should keep trying, even if you don't succeed the first time."

    • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is the recount about?" (The recount explains how the sun responds to the problem.)

    • Turn and Talk:

"What is your recount of The Lizard and the Sun?"

    • Circulate to listen in as students share; pre-select one or two students to share their recounting.
    • Give students specific, positive feedback regarding their ability to recount the entire story. Remind them that the fable is teaching them the central message by explaining the perseverance of the lizard.
    • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is the central message of The Lizard and the Sun?" (Keep trying until you succeed.)

Conversation Cue: "Do you agree or disagree with what your classmate said? Why? I'll give you time to think." (Responses will vary.)

    • Tell students that they are now prepared to write a paragraph about The Lizard and the Sun. Like the lizard, they will work hard all the way to the end!
  • For ELLs: (Finger Recounting) Recount the story on fingers to help keep track of the story elements.
  • For students who may need additional support with organizing ideas for verbal expression: Before sharing, invite students to briefly draw a few illustrations as visual supports for their oral recount of the story. (MMAE, MME)

B. Independent Writing: Story Elements and Central Message of The Lizard and the Sun (25 minutes)

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

"I can write a paragraph describing the central message from The Lizard and the Sun."

  • Review the meaning of the underlined words as needed:
    • Central message: the important thing that [the author] is trying to teach us through this book
    • Paragraph: a group of sentences that develop an idea
  • Remind students that the oral recount will help them write their paragraph. Say: "Now you will have the chance to write down how the lizard responded to the challenge in the book and tell the central message."
  • Use the same routine from Work Time B of Lesson 3 to guide students through writing a paragraph of their recounting on Independent Paragraph Writing Page: The Lizard and the Sun, which is pages 5-6 in their Fables and Folktales response notebooks.
    • Repeat your oral recounting of The Lizard and the Sun from Work Time A and count the sentences said. Point to different parts of the Story Elements and Central Message Class Notes: The Lizard and the Sun during your recount.
    • Confirm that the oral recount was six sentences.
    • Turn and Talk:

"What story elements did I use to describe the beginning of my oral recount?" (The story elements used to describe the beginning of the oral recount are the character, setting, and problem.)

"What story element did I use to describe the middle of my oral recount?" (The story element used to describe the middle of the oral recount is character's response to problem.)

"What story element did I use to describe the end of my oral recount?" (The story element used to describe the end of the oral recount is how the problem was solved.)

    • Confirm with students that these are common story elements used to describe what happens in a story.
    • Remind students that the oral recount ends with the central message. 
    • Turn and Talk: 

"What is the definition of central message?" (the important lesson that the author is trying to teach us)

    • Distribute students' response notebooks.
    • Transition students to their workspaces and invite them to open to pages 5-6 of their response notebooks. Tell them that they may talk with an elbow partner for support while writing their own paragraph.
    • Invite students to begin writing.
    • Circulate to support students while they write. Refer to Fables and Folktales response notebook (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
    • After 15 minutes, refocus whole group and invite students to close their Fables and Folktales response notebook and gather in the whole group meeting space.
    • Invite students to give you an air high-five for their hard work today as writers.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with strategy development: (Modeling and Thinking Aloud: Writing Paragraphs) Model and think aloud writing one or two sentences of a paragraph based on the oral recount. (MMAE)
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with planning: (Color-Coding: Informational Paragraphs) While modeling, color-code each part of the paragraph. (MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Recalling Language Dives) Invite students to adapt language drawn from the Language Dive in Lesson 1 and from the Mini Language Dive in Lesson 4 to write their paragraphs. (Examples: Although it may seem impossible, you should always keep trying. The lizard did not stop to rest until she found the sun.)

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Reflecting on Learning: Working to Contribute to a Better World (5 minutes)

  • Direct students' attention to the Unit 1 Guiding Question anchor chart, and read the question aloud:
    • "What does it mean to make the world a better place?"
  • Briefly review the story elements and central message from The Lizard and the Sun. Turn and Talk:

"How did the lizard try to make her world a better place?" (She tried to find the sun and didn't give up until she did.)

Conversation Cue: "Why do you think that?" (Responses will vary.)

  • Preview tomorrow's work: reading another folktale with a central message!
  • For ELLs: Ask students about the phrase her world. Example:

"What do you think this question means by her world?" (the world around the lizard; the part of the world that the lizard has the power to change) 

  • For students who may need additional support with motivation: Revisit the learning targets and ask students to give specific examples of how they worked toward achieving them in this lesson. Invite students to rephrase the learning targets now that they have more experience with recounting and writing paragraphs. (MME)

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