The Art of Biography

Appendix

In this unit I plan to use Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts to guide my instruction. Specifically I will focus on:

1. Characterization: Reading for Literature RL#3- Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision. Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).

2. Text evidence: Reading for Literature RL #1- Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Students will write down EXACT evidence from the text to support answers.

3. Inferring: Reading for Literature RL #1- Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Students will use different strategies to make inferences from the text.

4. Vocabulary: Reading for Literature RL#4- Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts. There will be 15 words from this unit for students to master, we will do a variety of activities with these words.

5. Narrative Writing: Writing #3- Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences. Students will use their own experiences to improve their writing.

6. Cause and Effect: Reading for Informational Text RI#3-Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g, through comparisons, analogies, or categories). With cause and effect, one can look at different causes and list the effects, or one can look at one cause and list all of the effects of that cause.

Lesson Plans

Every day, my class is broken down into six parts, bellringer, modeling, group practice, independent practice, exit slip, and homework.

Bellringers are completed at the beginning of class when the bell rings, hence the name, bellringer. It is a quick 3-5 minute activity that allows the teacher to take attendance and take care of other duties such as passing out papers, collecting homework, etc.

Modeling is where the skill or task is modeled by the teacher. This is where I usually do a think aloud, and ask the students to jump into my mind with me. It helps me to show them the thought process necessary to arrive at the right answer. There are times when students find their own ways of thinking to arrive at the correct answer, but most students have no idea how they should be thinking. One of my main objectives in every lesson is to give students examples of the thought processes possible to incite critical thinking. Modeling is one of the most important steps for a teacher. It must happen.

Group practice is where students are given the opportunity to practice a skill, task, or activity with other students. Hopefully, there is at least one student in the group that understands. Usually, they are able to help other students. Often, I have found that students have the ability to explain things in different ways to students that may not understand it the way I taught it. I often hear, "Mr. Smith, all you had to say was…..!" During this time, I walk around to see which students are having trouble with the task and I send those students to a table to work with them during independent practice time.

Independent practice comes after group practice. It is when students practice a skill, task, or activity independently. This allows me to see which students truly understand what it is that I am trying to teach them. As this is happening, I usually have a group of students that I noticed were struggling during group practice, and I'm working with them to ensure their understanding.

Exit slips are a quick way to check student understanding at the end of class. It is called an exit slip because it is required for students to exit the class. If I did not give students a question to answer, I often use the 3-2-1 method to gauge what the students felt about the lesson for the day. For example, I may write on the board:

3-Write three things you enjoyed about the lesson today.

2-Write two things you found interesting.

1-Write one thing you have a question about.

I usually switch these up based on what I would like to learn from my students. They are also a chance for me to take suggestions on how I could make my lessons better. I often use the reasonable suggestions in class to show them that their voices are being heard. I remember when one student pointed out that I did not have an example. This taught me how closely they are paying attention to my lessons, and that they should have time to reflect on lessons, this ensures that all of us are improving.

Homework is pretty self explanatory. Homework can be used to reinforce the lesson for the day, or it can also be used to give students practice on things I may not have time to get to during class. I may give students a book report, to ensure independent reading at home, or I may give them a vocabulary handout to review the vocabulary for the unit. Homework completion tells me a lot about my students: the value of education, life at home, etc.

This is how my lessons are developed on a daily basis. The following is a sample lesson plan from the unit. I will use the format explained above. A graphic organizer will be used with this lesson.

Bellringer: Write one adjective about a family member and write two things that proves this adjective is true about them.

Example:

My sister Ashley-Responsible

1. She pays all of her bills on time

2. She makes sure her house is spotless at all times

Here model an example about Jack: see first column of graphic organizer

Group Practice: At your table, complete the first two columns of the graphic organizer. Find three pieces of evidence in the text that shows Jack is irresponsible, next find three pieces of evidence that prove Jack is determined.

Independent Practice: On your own, complete the third column of the graphic organizer. Think of your own adjective to describe Jack and give three pieces of evidence that prove it.

Exit Slip: 3,2,1

3-Write three new things that you noticed in the book today.

2-Write two things you want to know about Jack.

1-Write one question you would ask Jack Gantos.

Homework: Complete a book report on the first part of the book, pages 3-54.

LOCATING SUPPORTING EVIDENCE ACTIVITY

After you complete the graphic organizer, use the information to write a response to the following prompt:

One of the reasons Jack Gantos wrote Hole in My Life was to motivate children to think about the consequences of their actions. How would the experiences of Jack Gantos motivate students to do well as they work during the school year and look ahead to their future?