Write a Compare and Contrast Essay: Draft Proof Paragraph 1 | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA 2019 G8:M1:U3:L8

Write a Compare and Contrast Essay: Draft Proof Paragraph 1

In this Lesson

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Focus Standards: These are the standards the instruction addresses.

  • W.8.2b, W.8.5

Supporting Standards: These are the standards that are incidental—no direct instruction in this lesson, but practice of these standards occurs as a result of addressing the focus standards.

  • RL.8.1, RL.8.3, RL.8.4, RL.8.9, RL.8.10, W.8.2a, W.8.4, W.8.6, W.8.9, W.8.10, SL.8.1, L.8.4, L.8.6
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can demonstrate understanding of the excerpt of chapter 21 of Summer of the Mariposas.

  • I can draft the first Proof Paragraph of a compare and contrast essay. (W.8.2b, W.8.5)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Opening A: Entrance Ticket (W.8.2b)
  • Work Time B: Proof Paragraph 1 of Essay (RL.8.1, RL.8.9, W.8.2a, W.8.2b, W.8.4, W.8.9)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Engage the Learner - W.8.2b (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Read and Discuss: Summer of the Mariposas, Chapter 21 Excerpt (10 minutes)

B. Plan Proof Paragraph 1 - W.8.5 (10 minutes)

C. Draft Proof Paragraph 1 - W.8.2b (15 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Pair-Share - W.8.5 (5 minutes) 

4. Homework

A. Preread Anchor Text: Students should preread chapter 22 of Summer of the Mariposas in preparation for studying an excerpt from the chapter in the next lesson.

Alignment to Assessment Standards and Purpose of Lesson

  • W.8.2b – Opening A: Students analyze how an author developed the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.
  • W.8.5 – Work Time B: Students develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning their first body paragraph.
  • W.8.2.a – Work Time C: Students practice developing the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples by drafting their first body paragraph.
  • W.8.5 – Closing and Assessment A: Students develop and strengthen their writing with the support of peer feedback and revisions.
  • In this lesson, students focus on working to become effective learners, focusing on a characteristic of their choice as they draft their paragraphs.

Opportunities to Extend Learning

  • If students are identifying the parts of the Proof Paragraphs and planning them with ease, draw their attention to specific sentences within the paragraphs and ask what the roles of the sentences are and what effect there would be in removing those sentences, as is shown in Work Time A.

How It Builds on Previous Work

  • In the previous lessons, students analyzed the structure of the model essay using the Painted Essay® template and wrote their introductory paragraph. They build on those foundations to plan Proof Paragraph 1 in this lesson.

Support All Students

  • Students may need additional support while planning and writing their Proof Paragraphs. Group those students, and guide them in finding evidence to support their point. ▲
  • During Work Time A and B, group ELLs with partners who have more advanced or native language proficiency. The partners with greater language proficiency can serve as a model, initiating discussions and providing implicit sentence frames, for example. ▲
  • Chapter 21 again brings up the potentially sensitive topic of the supernatural as Odilia realizes she must deliver roses to the ghost La Llorona to redeem her. As previously noted, supernatural content may be scary or a may be a restricted topic for some students. Allow for time to process and respond to these topics during discussion, and reach out to families as needed. 

Assessment Guidance

  • Throughout Work Time A, circulate to monitor students’ planning skills on the Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer. If necessary, collect this organizer to provide feedback to students who may need it before the following lesson.
  • Throughout Work Time B, frequently review student work to ensure they are creating strong drafts for their essays that align to the Painted Essay® structure. Use common issues as whole group teaching points.

Down the Road

  • In the next lesson, students will plan and draft the second Proof Paragraph of their essays, drawing on the work they did in planning their introduction and Proof Paragraph 1, and especially their focus statement.

In Advance

  • Prepare Entrance Ticket: Unit 3, Lesson 8.
  • Review the Compare and Contrast Painted Essay® anchor (chart for teacher reference) to become familiar with what will be required of students over the remainder of the unit.
  • Ensure there is a copy of Entrance Ticket: Unit 3, Lesson 8 at each student’s workspace.
  • Post the learning targets and applicable anchor charts (see Materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • Continue to use the technology tools recommended throughout previous units 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 8.I.B.6, 8.I.B.7, 8.I.B.8, 8.IC.10, 8.I.C.11, and 8.I.C.12.

Important Points in the Lesson Itself

  • To support ELLs, this lesson gives students time to design and write Proof Paragraph 1 for the compare and contrast La Llorona essay in a supported format that includes use of a graphic organizer and targeted questions that direct students thinking. Students have the opportunity to exchange feedback during the Closing of the lesson, which is an opportunity for ELLs not only to receive feedback on their own work, but to also see examples of their peers' writing.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to organize their Proof Paragraphs. If needed, encourage students to focus on writing the first sentence of each paragraph to capture the most essential information. A bulleted list of the rest of the information in each paragraph can be created for the time being, and students can return to writing full sentences later. 

Vocabulary

  • Proof Paragraph (DS)

    Key

    (A): Academic Vocabulary

    (DS): Domain-Specific Vocabulary

Materials from Previous Lessons

Teacher

Student

  • Compare and Contrast Painted Essay® anchor chart (example for teacher reference; from Unit 3, Lesson 6, Work Time A)
  • Compare and Contrast Painted Essay® anchor chart (one for display; from Unit 3, Lesson 6, Work Time A)
  • Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart (from Unit 1, Lesson 4, Opening B)
  • Text Guide: Summer of the Mariposas (for teacher reference) (Unit 1, Lesson 2, Work Time A)
  • Domain-specific word wall (from Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time B)
  • Work to Become Effective Learners anchor chart (from Unit 2, Lessons 4–5, Work Time D)
  • Compare and Contrast La Llorona sample student response (for teacher reference; from Unit 3, Lesson 4, Teaching Notes)
  • Work to Become Ethical People anchor chart (from Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time D)
  • Chart paper of Spanish words (one for display; from Unit 1, Lesson 2, Work Time A)

  • Vocabulary logs (one per student; from Unit 1, Lesson 2, Opening A)
  • Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer (first copy with first essay plan) (from Unit 3, Lesson 7, Work Time B)
  • Model Essay: “Peuchen” (from Unit 3, Lesson 6, Work Time A)
  • Compare and Contrast La Llorona note-catcher (from Unit 3, Lesson 4, Work Time B)
  • Compare and Contrast La Llorona note-catcher ▲ (from Unit 3, Lesson 4, Work Time B)
  • Painted Essay® template (from Unit 3, Lesson 6, Work Time A)
  • Informative Writing checklist (one per student; Unit 3, Lesson 6, Work Time B)
  • Summer of the Mariposas (text; from Unit 1, Lesson 1)
  • La Llorona by Joe Hayes (from Unit 3, Lesson 3, Work Time A)

New Materials

Teacher

Student

  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 3, Lesson 8 (answers for teacher reference)
  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 3, Lesson 8 (one per student)
  • Synopsis: Summer of the Mariposas, Chapter 21 (one per student)
  • Sticky notes
  • Online or print dictionaries (including ELL and home language dictionaries)

Assessment

Each unit in the 6-8 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 students' understanding of what they accomplished through supported, standards-based writing.

Opening

Opening

A. Engage the Learner – W.8.2b (5 minutes)

  • Repeated routine: As students arrive, invite them to complete Unit 3, Lesson 8 Entrance Ticket.
  • Once all students are ready, invite students to share responses to the prompt from their entrance ticket. Instruct students to Turn and Talk:

“What are the elements of an effective Proof Paragraph?” 

  • Responses may include the following:
    • Proof Paragraph 1
      • States the similarities (between the monster in the folklore and the way the author modernized it)
      • Provides facts and evidence from the text(s) that support Point 1
      • Elaborates: What do these facts and evidence show? Why?
      • Restates and/or reflects how this shows the similarities (between the monster in the folklore and the way the author modernized it)
    • Proof Paragraph 2
      • Transitions well from the first paragraph
      • States the differences (between the monster in the folklore and the way the author modernized it)
      • Provides facts and evidence from the text(s) that support Point 2
      • Elaborates: What do these facts and evidence show? Why?
      • Restates and/or reflects about how this shows the similarities (between the monster in the folklore and the way the author modernized it)
  • As students share, capture their responses on the Compare and Contrast Painted Essay® anchor chart.
  • Confirm accurate responses and explain while using the descriptions in parentheses above.
  • Repeated routine: Follow the same routine as the previous lessons to review learning targets and the purpose of the lesson, reminding students of any learning targets that are similar or the same as previous lessons.
  • Repeated routine: Follow the same routine to focus students on the term Proof Paragraph (the part of an essay that explains the writer’s reasoning in his or her own words with supportive evidence) in the learning targets and to use a dictionary to define the word. With students’ support, record the meaning of the term on the domain-specific word wall. Invite students to record the terms in their vocabulary logs.
  • Students may also use the vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart to deconstruct each term and add any relevant notes to the vocabulary strategies on this chart.
  • Focus students on the Work 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 today.

Work Time

Work TimeLevels of Support

A. Read and Discuss: Summer of the Mariposas, Chapter 21 Excerpt (10 minutes)

  • Review appropriate learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

“I can demonstrate understanding of the excerpt of chapter 21 of Summer of the Mariposas.”

  • Repeated routine: Follow the same process as with previous lessons for students to read chapter 21 of Summer of the Mariposas, using the Text Guide:  Summer of the Mariposas  (for teacher reference). Instruct students to read the chapter excerpt independently and support struggling students as needed. If students do not finish reading the excerpt within the allotted reading time, distribute Synopsis: Summer of the Mariposas, Chapter 21 to each student to review the key details from the chapter. Then have students identify the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary, add words to the chart paper of Spanish words, reflect on their reading as they choose, and record the gist on sticky notes using the following resources as appropriate: vocabulary logs and Work to Become Ethical People anchor chart.
  • Gist: Odilia gives La Llorona the roses and they transform her.
  • Invite students to retrieve the following materials:
    • Compare and Contrast La Llorona note-catcher 
  • Direct students to Turn and Talk: 

“What is La Llorona's ultimate fate in Summer of the Mariposas?” (She is able to escape her grieving, ghost form and be reunited with her children by being made a permanent constellation in the sky.)

“How is this different than the original telling of the La Llorona myth, as described in La Llorona?” (In La Llorona, she undergoes eternal punishment and eternal regret. In Summer of the Mariposas, she is redeemed after protecting the girls and teaching them to be kind and humble.)

“Why does this happen to La Llorona in Summer of the Mariposas?” (La Llorona is redeemed because she has been kind and pure of heart—she has followed her heart and helped the sisters on her journey, so the mother goddess resolves her of her guilt.)

“What theme is developed through this resolution?” (The theme developed is that being kind and pure of heart can lead to a fuller, more meaningful life—and even to redemption.)

  • Think-Pair-Share:

“What impact does the modernization of La Llorona have on the theme?” (Responses may include the following: When Guadalupe Garcia McCall modernized the story of La Llorona, she changed the character from a self-absorbed and entitled woman to someone who is caring, gentle, and thoughtful. Also, in Summer of the Mariposas, La Llorona’s children still drown, but McCall decided to make it an accident rather than something La Llorona did out of anger. By making these changes to the character, the original theme of the legend is changed in the novel. Instead of the message that there is no redemption for someone who acts out of hubris and rage, the novel presents the theme that love, compassion, and being “pure of heart” can have redemptive powers.)

  • Direct students to add on to their Compare and Contrast La Llorona note-catcher with evidence from pages 323–325. Direct students to complete the final row of the note catcher.
  • Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning targets.
  • N/A

B. Plan Proof Paragraph 1 – W.8.5 (10 minutes) 

  • Review the appropriate learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

“I can draft the first Proof Paragraph of a compare and contrast essay.”

  • Invite students to retrieve the Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer.
  • Display and invite students to retrieve the Model Essay: “Peuchen.” Explain to students that they will first analyze the first Proof Paragraph of this model essay to help them plan the first Proof Paragraph for their La Llorona essays. 
  • Using the headings on the Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer, invite students to work in pairs to analyze the first Proof Paragraph in the model. 
  • Prompt students to Think-Pair-Share about the following questions:

“What is the main idea of the first Proof Paragraph?” (In Proof Paragraph 1, the author states the similarities between the original peuchen from folklore of Latin America and her own retelling of this “monster.”)

“How does the author’s evidence from the texts support the main idea in the Proof Paragraph?” (In Proof Paragraph 1, the author’s evidence shows how the physical characteristics of the Peuchen were maintained, which shows that the modernized depiction is similar to the original depiction.)

“How does the author elaborate on her evidence?” (In Proof Paragraph 1, the author elaborates on how the similarities between the original tale and her retelling make the peuchen character recognizable.)

  • Remind students that as they plan their first Proof Paragraph, they should explain how the evidence they have chosen supports their thinking. Ask students to refer to their notes from the activity they did when entering class.
  • Invite students to retrieve the following materials:
    • Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer 
    • Compare and Contrast La Llorona note-catcher 
    • Painted Essay® template
  • Tell students they are now ready to plan the first Proof Paragraph of their La Llorona essays. Explain that in this lesson, they are planning and drafting the first Proof Paragraph, and in the next two lessons they will plan and draft the second Proof Paragraph and the conclusion.
  • Invite students to complete the planning for Proof Paragraph 1 on their Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer. As they finish, recommend that students orally rehearse the sentences they will use to write about their comparison point(s), evidence, and analysis with a partner. Circulate to support students as they plan and to identify common issues to use as whole group teaching points. Prompt them to identify the evidence they will use to show the similarities between the two depictions of La Llorona. Students may reference Summer of the Mariposas and La Llorona by Joe Hayes.
  • Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning targets.

For Lighter Support

  • Invite students to sketch ideas for their Proof Paragraphs into the graphic organizer first and then go back later and write.

For Heavier Support

  • As in Lesson 7, in Work Time B, consider having students dissect the model essay by providing them with sentences from the Proof Paragraphs of Model Essay: "Peuchen" cut into strips of paper. Students can glue each of the scrambled strips to the appropriate place on a separate copy of the Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer to activate and reinforce their thinking about both the topic and structure before using this same graphic organizer to plan their own Proof Paragraphs.

C. Draft Proof Paragraph 1 - W.8.2b (15 minutes)

  • Review the appropriate learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

"I can draft the first Proof Paragraph of a compare and contrast essay."

  • Allocate devices to students so that they may type their essays.
  • Guide students through drafting their Proof Paragraph. Use one or more of the following prompts to guide students through writing Proof Paragraph 1:
    • How are La Llorona's depictions in Summer of the Mariposas and in La Llorona similar? 
    • Find a quote from both texts that demonstrates this similarity. 
    • Elaborate on how these quotes from the text are showing this similarity between the two depictions of La Llorona.
    • How do the similarities maintain certain characteristics of La Llorona? Why do you think these characteristics are maintained in both texts? 
  • Model writing parts of the paragraph as needed. Refer to Compare and Contrast La Llorona sample student response (for teacher reference) for a sample response.
  • Invite students to work in pairs to write Proof Paragraph 1. Refer students to the Model Essay: "Peuchen," the Compare and Contrast Painted Essay(r) anchor chart, and the Compare and Contrast Informative Writing Plan graphic organizer for the La Llorona essay to write their first Proof Paragraph.
  • Circulate and support students, prompting them to identify how their evidence supports the point that, in some ways, the two depictions of La Llorona are similar.
  • Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning targets.
  • N/A

Closing & Assessments

ClosingLevels of Support

A. Pair-Share – W.8.5 (5 minutes)

  • Invite students to break into pairs. Students will share their first Proof Paragraph and provide feedback against relevant criteria on the Informative Writing checklist and Compare and Contrast Painted Essay® anchor chart. Ask for a volunteer pair to model this exchange with, using prompts such as “What evidence did you use to support your point?” or “How did you explain how your evidence supports your point?”
  • Focus students on the Work to Become Ethical People anchor chart and remind them of the habit of character recorded: respect, as students are sharing out their planning work and developing their understanding of the task.
  • Invite pairs to begin discussion with each other and to revise their work as they discuss where necessary. Remind students that they should only revise when they agree with the feedback. Circle and monitor the discussions to ensure students each share their reasons and evidence.
  • Invite students to reflect on the habits of character focus in this lesson, both in their work to be respectful partners and the goal they picked from the Work to Become Effective Learners anchor chart earlier in the lesson, discussing what went well and what could be improved next time.

For Lighter Support

  • Have students use colored pencils to circle and underline criteria from the Informative Writing checklist on their partners' graphic organizer. Invite students to identify and share, with their partner, two specific things the writer has done well and two specific things that are missing or could be improved. As students analyze their peers' work in a structured and detailed way, they will increase their awareness and understanding of effective and ineffective writing. 

For Heavier Support

  • Prepare a list of language that students can employ while giving peer feedback that is directly relevant to Proof Paragraphs in compare and contrast writing. This will also help direct students' attention to essential elements of their peers' writing. Examples might include the following:
    • "The (similarities/differences) in this Proof Paragraph are (clear/confusing/inaccurate)." 
    • "I think you need another (similarity/difference) in this Proof Paragraph."
    • "I think you need more/fewer (information/details/words) in this part and more in this part."
    • "Can you find an example from the text to support this (similarity/difference)?"
    • "It is necessary to explain this idea further with more details."
    • "I like ________________ because it _________________."

Homework

Homework

A. Preread Anchor Text

  • Students should preread chapter 22 of Summer of the Mariposas in preparation for studying an excerpt from the chapter in the next lesson.

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