Lesson Information
Introduction
Independent Work
Presentations
Current Events
Collaboration and Improvement
Jessica Kelley
Department of Education, American College of Education
LIT5203: Strengthening Literacy
Dr. Vicki Strunk
3/20/2022
Focus of Area of Growth
The identified area of growth/need is writing practice and instruction. Without a school-wide writing curriculum it leads to teachers having to find their own activities and lessons without guidance from specialists. This causes discrepancies between teachers, parents, and the school community within writing curriculum. With the structure of a school-wide curriculum, the instruction is better planned and understood by the educators and familiar with the families.
Research from Module 2
Academic literacy: The importance and impact of writing across the curriculum
Research from Module 2
Writing Information Literacy Assessment Plans: A Guide to Best Practice
Lesson overview
The students will be reviewing a current event of their choosing to write a summary based on that current event using sources such as articles, magazines, videos, newspapers, etc. This gives the students a chance to research a current event they are interested in and make sense of what is happening through their research. They will also present their findings to other students unfamiliar with their current event to educate them on their real-world event, as well as the other students educating them on their event.
The objective is demonstrating an understanding for key details by reading informational texts to analyze and evaluate real-world situations using articles, newspapers, magazines, watch videos etc., by summarizing what happened, showing understanding of the event.
Learning objectives
Materials & Technology
Standards
RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
RI.2.6 Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.
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.
W.2.8. Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
1. Introduction
Begin the lesson with eliminating misconceptions by:
2. Teacher Modeling
Using a teacher chosen event, the teacher will model how to complete the assignment based on the expectations on the rubric.
Teacher Chosen Event:
News Roundup: Japan’s Earthquake, China’s Lockdowns, & a Stuck Ship
The students will help the teacher fill out the “Current Events Report” to practice what they will be doing independently.
Definition Video Example
Thinking Job: What is a current event?
3. Student Choice Board
Choose one of these current events to research. | |
Students choose which current event they want to research. Each current event has an article hyperlinked, which can be posted on the school-wide digital platform so the students know where to go when researching their event.
After the students choose, they will circle it on their paper while the teacher comes around and checks their decision.
The students can use the article or research to find more information from other sources.
During this time the teacher will circulate, give feedback, and answer any questions the student may have.
During the practice presentations the students will be grouped with their peers of 2-3 who researched the same topic. This way they can share what they learned from the articles they chose to read or video they chose to watch. This will also be fact checking for the students to make sure their facts are accurate.
During the practice presentations the teacher will circulate and give the students feedback on their presentations in addition to reminders of their presentation expectations.
4. Practice Presentations
5. Small Group Presentations
For the final presentations the students will be grouped with others who chose a different topic. If you have a class of 20 students you should have 5 groups of 4 students in each group.
During the presentations, the students will have sticky notes to write their questions for the presenter to eliminate interruptions. These sticky notes will go in the “Parking Lot” for their current event. This way the students who researched that event can answer any questions others may have after the presentations have concluded.
The teacher will circulate during presentations and write down notes to add to their self-evaluations.
5. Self-Evaluations/ Assessment
After the presentations have concluded and the answers from the parking lot have been answered, the students will evaluate themselves on their research.
Teachers will make their comments for the students to read the next day all at once to maximize classroom instruction.
The teachers comments will include grows and glows, which will give positive feedback for each student.
6. Closure/Teacher Reflection
Colleague Survey
7. Final wrap-up
Was this lesson meaningful for the students?
Was the teacher able to give in the moment meaningful feedback throughout the activity?
Are the expectations outlined clearly?
Did the students have enough resources to complete the activity?
Were the students given a voice throughout the activity?
7. Final wrap-up
References
Defazio, J., Jones, J., Tennant, F., & Hook, S. A. (2010). Academic literacy: A case study in The importance and impact of writing across the curriculum. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10(2), 34–47. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ890711.pdf
Oakleaf, M. (2009). Writing Information Literacy Assessment Plans: A Guide to Best Practice. Comminfolit, 3(2), 80-90. https://surface.syr.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=istpub