Determining the Main Idea: “Population Growth” | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G3:M4:U1:L10

Determining the Main Idea: “Population Growth”

In this Lesson

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These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
  • RI.3.2: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
  • RI.3.4: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words or phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.
  • RI.3.9: Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
  • W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
  • W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories.
  • 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.

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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can determine the main ideas and supporting details of "Population Growth." (RI.3.1, RI.3.2)
  • I can compare and contrast the main ideas and supporting details on pages 22-23 of One Well with "Population Growth." (RI.3.9)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" (RI.3.1, RI.3.2)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Engaging the Reader: "Population Growth" (5 minutes)

B. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A.Close Reading: "Population Growth" (25 minutes)

B. Determining the Main Ideas: "Population Growth" (15 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Comparing and Contrasting: "Population Growth" with One Well, Pages 22-23 (10 minutes)

4. Homework

A. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal.

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards: 

  • This lesson follows a similar structure to Lesson 8, in which students hear a new informational text read aloud, complete a close read to determine its main ideas and supporting details, and then compare those ideas and details to those found on two pages in One Well (RI.3.1, RI.3.2, RI.3.4, RI.3.9, W.3.7, W.3.8, L.3.4).
  • Students practice their fluency by following along and reading silently as the teacher reads "Population Growth" aloud in Opening A.
  • In this lesson, students focus on working to become effective learners with a characteristic of their choice.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • In the previous lesson, students read pages 22-23 of One Well to determine the main idea and supporting details. In this lesson, they read another informational text with similar content and then compare the two.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Students may need additional support determining the main idea and supporting details in a text. Invite those students who may require additional support to sit together for teacher help. Assessment guidance:
  • Review students' Determining the Main Ideas note-catchers and Research Note-catchers: Demands on Water to identify common issues for use as whole group teaching points.
  • Collect the Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs homework from Lesson 7. Refer to the Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs (answers, for teacher reference) as necessary.

Down the road:

  • In the next lesson, students read and determine the main idea and supporting details of pages 24-25 of One Well.

In Advance

  • Strategically group students into pairs for work in this lesson, with at least one strong reader per pair.
  • Post: Learning targets and applicable anchor charts (see materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • 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 in part by CA ELD Standards 3.I.B.6, 3.I.B.7, 3.I.B.8, 3.I.C.10

Important points in the lesson itself 

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs with opportunities to engage in familiar routines for determining the main ideas and supporting details of the text, to build on their learning from the previous lesson by participating in a close read of another text about population growth, and to compare and contrast the two texts in preparation for the work they will do in the endof unit assessment.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to compare and contrast pages 22-23 of One Well with "Population Growth" in pairs. Continue to model and think aloud the process and provide students with additional time outside of this lesson if needed. Invite students to compare and contrast familiar and concrete examples whenever possible (see Levels of support and the Meeting Students'Needs section).

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • The supports in this lesson are similar to those in Lessons 7-8, as the tasks mirror one another. Based on student performance in Lessons 7-8, consider releasing students from some of the supports applied in those lessons to foster independence and to assess their progress.

For heavier support:

  • During the close read, help students by encouraging them to act out the meaning of the sentences of the text when possible. 

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): Continue to support students by creating additional or individual anchor charts for reference during this lesson to aid with comprehension.
  • Multiple Means of Action and Expression (MMAE): Continue to facilitate student management of information and resources by allowing them to identify unknown words and record them in their vocabulary log. Also consider offering scaffolds during close reading, such as activating prior knowledge with questions based on previous readings of the text.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): When students share with a partner, this is a good opportunity to foster community and support students to provide each other with positive feedback. Continue to discuss strategies for how to give a compliment or ask questions for further understanding.

Vocabulary

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

  • slew, development (T)

Materials

  • "Population Growth" (one per student and one to display)
  • Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart (begun in Module 1)
  • Research Note-catcher: Demands on Water (begun in Lesson 9; added to during Work Time A; one per student)
  • Close Reading Guide: "Population Growth" (for teacher reference)
  • Research Note-catcher: Demands on Water (begun in Lesson 9; example, for teacher reference)
  • Domain-Specific Word Wall (begun in Lesson 1; added to during Work Time A)
  • Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" (one per student and one todisplay)
  • Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" (example, for teacher reference)
  • Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: Pages 22-23 of One Well (from Lesson 9; one per student)
  • One Well (from Lesson 2; one per student)
  • Exit Ticket: Comparing and Contrasting Texts (from Lesson 8; new; one per student)
  • Exit Ticket: Comparing and Contrasting Texts (example, for teacher reference)
  • Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs (homework from Lesson 7; one per student)
  • Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs (answers, 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

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Engaging the Reader: "Population Growth" (5 minutes) 

  • Move students into pre-determined pairs.
  • Distribute and display "Population Growth." Tell students that although this is a complex text for adults, just as they have with other complex texts, they will use the strategies listed on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart to work through it piece by piece to better understand it.
  • Read the text aloud as students read along silently in their heads.
  • Think-Pair-Share:

"What is the gist of this text? What is it mostly about?" (Responses will vary, but may include: The more people who move into an area, the more stress there is on local water resources.)

Conversation Cue: "Who can tell us what your classmate said in your own words?"(Responses will vary.)

  • Tell students they will dig deeper into this text later in the lesson.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with activating prior knowledge: (Activating Prior Knowledge) Before reading, activate students' prior knowledge by inviting them to discuss in pairs what they have learned about population growth and its affect on water supply. Encourage them to refer to their completed Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: Pages 22-23 of One Well from Lesson 9. (MMR)
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Reading Aloud Twice) Consider reading "Population Growth" aloud two times before inviting students to discuss the gist of the text in pairs. (MMR

B. Reviewing Learning Targets (5 minutes) 

  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning targets and select a volunteer to read them aloud:

"I can determine the main ideas and supporting details of 'Population Growth.'"

"I can compare and contrast the main ideas and supporting details on pages 22-23 of One Well with 'Population Growth.'"

  • Remind students that they have seen both learning targets for different pages of One Well and other informational texts in previous lessons in this unit.
  • Focus students on the Working to Become Effective Learners anchor chart and invite them to read the habits of character on the chart to themselves. Tell students to choose a habit to focus on as they work with their classmates today. Cold call students to share with the whole group and select one as a class.

For ELLs and students who may need additional support with motivation: (Working on the Same Learning Target) Invite students to discuss how they previously worked toward each learning target. (MME)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Close Reading: "Population Growth" (25 minutes) 

  • Invite students to retrieve their Research Note-catcher: Demands on Water.
  • Follow the Close Reading Guide: "Population Growth" to guide students through reading the text closely and adding to their research note-catchers. Remind them to use the vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words and phrases. Refer to the Research Note-catcher: Demands on Water (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Add new words from the glossary to the Domain-Specific Word Wall with translations in home languages.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional help with vocabulary: (Parts of Speech: Explaining Function) As students determine the meaning of the words in their glossaries, invite them to determine the part of speech of each word and write it next to the word on their glossaries. Challenge them to "prove" which part of speech each word falls under. Provide a sentence frame for support and add each word to the Examples column of the Parts of Speech anchor chart. (MMR)
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with expressing ideas: (Sentence Starters) Encourage students to use the sentence starters on the research note-catcher when sharing their thinking about the issue, impact, action, and call to action. (MMAE)
  • For students who may need additional support staying on pace during the close read: Consider gathering these students in one place in the room to support them quickly and quietly as they closely read the text. (MMAE, MME)

B. Determining the Main Ideas: "Population Growth" (15 minutes) 

  • Distribute Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" and use the same routine from the Closing of Lesson 6 to guide students through determining the main idea(s) and supporting details of the text.
  • Refocus whole group and use a total participation technique to select students to share their main ideas and supporting details. Refer to the Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the first learning target.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with strategy development: (Fishbowl: Determining Main Idea and Details) Invite two confident students to model and think aloud the process for determining the main idea and supporting details before inviting the rest of the class to complete their note-catchers. (MMAE)
  • For students who may need additional support with organizing ideas for written expression: Give students an opportunity to verbally recall their learning and rehearse their ideas with a partner before writing. This may allow them additional time to organize their thinking. (MMAE)

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Comparing and Contrasting: "Population Growth" with One Well, Pages 22-23 (10 minutes) 

  • Invite students to retrieve their Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: Pages 22-23 of One Well and place it side-by-side with their Determining the Main Ideas Note-catcher: "Population Growth" from this lesson.
  • Invite students to retrieve their copies of One Well and turn to pages 22-23 of the text and place it next to the "Population Growth" text.
  • Distribute the Exit Ticket: Comparing and Contrasting Texts.
  • Invite students to work in pairs to record the similarities and differences between the main ideas and supporting details of the two texts.
  • Circulate to support students. Refer to the Exit Ticket: Comparing and Contrasting Texts (example, for teacher reference) and ask questions to guide students' thinking:

"How are the main ideas of the two texts similar?"

"How are the supporting details of the two texts similar?"

"How are the main ideas of the two texts different?"

"How are the supporting details of the two texts different?"

  • Use a checking for understanding technique (e.g., Red Light, Green Light or Thumb-O-Meter) for students to self-assess against the second learning target and how well they demonstrated the habit of character they decided to focus on today. Select one or two students showing they met the learning target to provide evidence.
  • Collect the Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs homework from Lesson 7. Refer to the Language Dive IV Practice: One Well: Verbs (answers, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with planning: (Modeling and Thinking Aloud: Comparing and Contrasting) Consider modeling and thinking aloud the process for comparing and contrasting pages 22-23 of One Well with "Population Growth." (MMAE)
  • For ELLs: (Sentence Frames: Heavier Support) Encourage students to use the displayed sentence frames created by more proficient students (see Lesson 8, "For lighter support") when comparing and contrasting the texts in pairs and when writing on their exit tickets.

Homework

HomeworkMeeting Students' Needs

A. Accountable Research Reading. Select a prompt and respond in the front of your independent reading journal.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with written expression: (Oral Response) Read aloud, discuss, and respond to your prompt orally, either with a partner, family member, or student from grades 4 or 6, or record an audio response. (MMAE)

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