A. Introduce Practice Essay Prompt - W.8.1, W.8.4 (5 minutes)

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

"I can annotate and determine the gist of a practice essay prompt."

• Explain to students that they will work in pairs to practice writing an argument essay and will write another essay independently for the end of unit assessment.
• Display and distribute Practice Argument Essay directions. Explain that this handout describes background on the essay topic, what their essay should include, and the resources they need to complete the task in the upcoming lessons.
• Read each section of the handout aloud, and instruct students to read along silently. Then, direct students to read the Practice Argument Essay directions once more, on their own.
• Think-Pair-Share:

"What is the gist of the Practice Argument Essay directions?" (Students should identify that their practice essay refers back to their anchor text and the film version of Farewell to Manzanar. The essay examines the extent to which the film conveys Papa's conflicted loyalties. The directions for the practice essay ask students to write an essay that explains how effectively the film conveys this significant idea from the text Farewell to Manzanar. They need to use at least two points to support the proposal, or claim, use evidence from both the text and film, and explain their reasoning. They should also write and refute a counterclaim.)

• Think-Pair-Share:

"What is the topic of the essay you will write? (Students should identify that their job is to write an essay that argues about how effectively the film conveys the significant idea from the text of Papa's conflicted loyalties.)

• Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group. Answer any questions, and clear up any misconceptions or concerns students have regarding the task.
• Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target.

C. Plan Practice Argument Essay – W.8.5 (15 minutes)

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

“I can use my understanding of the elements of an argument essay to create a plan for a practice essay.”

• Display and distribute the Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer.
• Remind students that they used a similar graphic organizer to plan their argument essays in Module 2, Unit 3. Review each section, asking volunteers to explain what kind of information they will write in each section. Focus especially on the Proof Paragraph sections, explaining that since in each Proof Paragraph students will provide evidence from the text and then evidence from the film, the Proof Paragraph sections look a little different. Note that there are places for students to write a point about the text, evidence from the text, and reasoning about that evidence. Then there are places for students to write how that point is treated in the film, evidence from the film, and reasoning about that evidence. Remind students that in the last lesson they noted that the evidence in each Proof Paragraph came first from the text, then from the film. On the Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer, there is a place to include evidence from both the text and the film. There is also a place to plan the reasoning about why each chunk of evidence supports the claim. Remind students that in the argument essay they wrote in Module 2, they used the term evidence sandwiches. In this argument essay, there will be double-decker evidence sandwiches in each Proof Paragraph (one evidence sandwich for the text evidence and one evidence sandwich for the film evidence. Inform students that in Lesson 13, they will more closely explore the evidence sandwiches in the Model Argument Essay: “How Farewell to Manzanar Conveys Jeanne’s Youth.”
• For ELLs and students who require additional support, the Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer ▲ can be used to help guide students’ thinking with prefilled information.
• If necessary, to further support students in using the planner, display the Model Argument Essay: “How Farewell to Manzanar Conveys Jeanne’s Youth” and the Model Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer to show how the organizer relates to and supports the writing of the essay. Guide students through this analysis with questions such as the following. ▲
• What vivid and precise language did the writer use in the introduction to catch the reader’s attention?
• Which sentences in the introduction give context?
• Where are the two evidence sandwiches for each Proof Paragraph in both the model essay and the model planner?
• Does the writer follow the planner for the counterclaim paragraph?
• What other sentences are in the conclusion of the essay that aren’t in the planner? What is the purpose of those sentences?
• Display the Characteristics of Argument Writing anchor chart.
• Ask:

“What is the difference between planning an informative essay and an argument essay?” (The focus statement in an argument essay is called a main claim; the elaboration in the argument essay will connect the evidence to the points given for supporting the proposal, so it is called reasoning; argument essays contain a counterclaim paragraph.)

• Explain to students that they will use the Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer to plan their essay. In this lesson, they will roughly sketch out what will go into each paragraph. In the upcoming lessons, they will have more time to add details to this graphic organizer as they plan and draft their practice argument essay.
• Tell students that as they plan, they should remember to support their ideas with information from the text and film versions of Farewell to Manzanar, going back into the text and note-catchers as needed.
• Release students who are ready to complete the collaborative planning independently.
• Draw the attention of students who need more support to the focus question section at the top of the Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer. Ask students to copy the focus question from the Practice Argument Essay directions to this space. Refer to Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer (example for teacher reference) for sample responses.
• Prompt students to Turn and Talk with their partners, allowing time for students to fill in the appropriate sections of their graphic organizers:

“What is the main claim of your argument?” (Responses will vary, but should convey either that the film does or does not effectively convey the significant idea.) If students need additional support, ask: “Based on the evidence you reviewed in the text and note-catchers, does the film effectively convey Papa’s conflicted loyalties or not?” ▲

“What context or background information will you need to give readers so they can understand this claim? Consider terms your readers might need to have defined.” (Responses will vary, but should include mention that the Wakatsukis were one of many Japanese American families forced to live in an internment camp during World War II; after the Pearl Harbor attack, the US government began to view Japanese Americans with suspicion; the government unfairly believed that they might try to help Japan win the war against the United States.)

• Refer to Argument Writing Plan graphic organizer (example for teacher reference) for sample responses.
• As students plan, circulate and ensure they understand the prompt and the main claim given in the directions.
• Distribute colored pencils, and invite students to use them to underline their main claim with the correct color: green.
• Direct students to the section of their Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer where it asks: “What are the two main reasons or points you will be offering to support this claim?”
• Explain that in an argument essay, it is important to identify valid and compelling reasons or points that support the main claim. If students struggle to understand the concept of points, prompt students to consider times in their own lives when they gave points to support an argument. Remind students what the points look like in the Model Argument Essay: “How Farewell to Manzanar Conveys Jeanne’s Youth”: they are the scenes from the text.
• Ask students to brainstorm with their partner to generate potential points that would emerge from the evidence and support their claim. Give students time to briefly discuss and brainstorm with one another.
• As students discuss, chart or record any ideas they come up with.
• Direct students to write the points down on their planning document, and reiterate that the rest of their planning for their essay should be aligned to these points.
• Release students to complete the rest of their Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizers in pairs. Remind students that they should use evidence from the text and film of Farewell to Manzanar for examples to explain their points. Also, explain that students don’t need to write in complete sentences in their graphic organizer. They can just take notes.
• Circulate to support students as they plan. Refer to Practice Argument Essay Writing Plan graphic organizer (example for teacher reference) as needed. If necessary, prompt by asking questions such as the following:

“Which moments from the text and film show Papa’s conflicted loyalties?”

“How faithful to the text are those moments in the film? If the details differ, is the significant idea still conveyed?”

• Assure students that they will have more time to add detail to this plan as they work to write each paragraph in the piece over the next few lessons. Refer to the Annotated Practice Argument Essay (example for teacher reference).
• Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target and the habits of character focus in this lesson, discussing what went well and what could be improved next time.