Differentiated Lesson Plan
Topic: Reading and Writing
Grade Level: 5
Objectives
The students will:
Learn on word choices through listening to mentor texts.
Identify descriptive phrases and different word choices within the mentor texts.
Attempt to differentiate the word choices in individual works.
Use individual reading materials for searching instances of various phrases and word choices.
Share instances of descriptive phrases and different word choices with peers in different ways.
Apply the new knowledge learnt on descriptive phrases and different word choices to write on their own.
Generate writing, including language that produces mental imagery.
Essential questions
What are the word choices?
What are descriptive phrases?
What are the differences between word choices and descriptive phrases, and how can you use them in your writing?
Faith integration
A favorite chapter from the Bible, Genesis, was picked by the students as part of the introduction lesson homework, and it will be used to engage the students before the start of the lessons. There will be a storytelling session and discussions on the chapter, followed by a dramatization by the teacher to explain the chapter further. The students will be encouraged to perform a small skit on the chapter of the Bible also to show the art of storytelling, and the knowledge of the Bible to learn on the word choices and descriptive phrases that will start the lesson. In the skit, and have Robert in an active role that engages his brain and makes use of his motor coordination. The children will, therefore, write essential notes on what they have learnt in the chapter, before starting the main lesson on word choices and descriptive phrases.
Activating strategy
Lesson 1
For the lesson, have an empty pie outline on a SmartBoard. This board will be a collection point for descriptive phrases and different word choices that the students will find and share.
Lesson 2
For the lesson, let the students pick two favorite pages from a selected book, and tell them that you will reread the favorite pages they have chosen. Tell the class that you love to read aloud the favorite pages picked because the words used by authors are to catch the readers’ attention and put the powerful words used in mind (Nabors, 2017. p. 34). For the case of Robert, organize a list on the tasks to do for the lesson, and stick the plan on the desk. Go through the list of tasks and the books with him and make sure he understands what he is supposed to do during the lesson (Barton and Harn, 2012. p. 94). Make visible the important tasks to do by coloring or highlighting different tasks with different colors to raise his interest in completing the task.
Lesson 3- Workshop lesson on word choice and phrases
A book bin will be used for the lesson that contains picture books, poetry, professional text, chapter books, and magazines. I will use them to illustrate to the students on how to search a book bin for an instance of a word choice. It will be necessary to use a previously read book to ensure that the students have a good memory.
Explain to the students that various authors can make vast word choices because of knowing a lot of words. Among the ways that authors use is by reading many books. Students are then able to pick powerful words and phrases they find when reading. For Robert, engage him by introducing the books that were chosen for the lesson, and take him through the workshop session (Barton and Harn, 2012. p. 96). Let him read through the book with you at a quiet corner before the session and make sure he understands the aim of the discussion.
Lesson 4- Making good word choices when writing
Prepare a chart showing two columns. Label the first column as First Draft and the second column as Different Ways to Say This. Have three written stories from the previous lessons, and write them on the first column.
Accelerating strategies
Lesson 1
Have the class sit in a circle during the reading session. Ask the students if they found words to share with the rest of the class, ask which were their favorite words, and why? Let the students share their favorite words with another student. Be keen on the words shared and select powerful words that are important for the lesson, and discuss on the words chosen (Nabors, 2017. p. 41). Engage Robert in the session by asking the words that he found when reading the book. Let him share some of the words that he found with the class, and award him for discussing. Give Robert a five-minute quiet time to look for more words and continue reading the book at a corner, before returning to the discussion.
Lesson 2
Have the students pick and think about the powerful words they find in the favorite pages, and let them share the words with another student. Include Robert by asking him of other words that he found and let him share the powerful word choices that can be used for writing. Have the students together with Robert carry a homework task of writing different word choices and descriptive phrases on the book they will take home, and have them type the different words they have found; this will engage especially Robert in another task other than writing (Barton and Harn, 2012. p. 97). On homework done, reward the students with incentives like a gold sticker to motivate them.
Lesson 3
Begin by going over different books in the book bin for instances where the authors have used powerful word choices and descriptive phrases. Remind the students that the various examples are used to generate great images in mind, to help in reading. Look at how the authors group different powerful phrases.
Lesson 4
Explain to the students that the task will be done together as a class to engage them and see if they understood picking word choices and descriptive phrases from books. Use the first story from the chart to illustrate word choices and descriptive phrases, and how they can be said in other different ways. The students then have to read out the words and pick the best alternatives. Include Robert in the discussion by letting him highlight the different words that he considers powerful and write the words down to engage the mind, and distinguish between word choices and descriptive phrases.
Teaching strategies
Lesson 1
Tell the students that they are to fill the pie on the smartboard with powerful word choices that they have shared. As they read out their words, put them on the smartboard inside the pie. Explains to the students that authors choose their words keenly. They need to pick interesting words and excite the audience (Barton and Harn, 2012. p. 99). Work with the students and guide them through the picking of words for writing. The students are to read on a selected book; meanwhile, let them read aloud the powerful word choices and phrases that have been written on the pie. For Robert, engage his motor movement by encouraging him to write on a section on the smart board words he has found.
Lesson 2
Instruct the students to think about the powerful word choices as they write them down. Remind them of the anchor chart that was filled with powerful words and phrases. As they write the words down, they should consider sharing them with the rest of the class. Engage Robert by discussing with one of the students on word choices and descriptive phrases. Let them come up with a list of words that they have reviewed and share with the rest of the class.
Lesson 3
Have the students look at examples of different word choices and descriptive phrases that they can share with the rest of the class during the workshop. Let the students decide if the words they have shared are powerful enough to be added to the anchor chart. Put the students in groups of four and have Robert engage in discussions in his group on the examples of different word choices and descriptive phrases.
Lesson 4
During the workshop, encourage the students to go through some of their previous works and find a place that they can use better word choices and phrases. For Robert, ask him to write down a list of words he can recall from the previous readings, and assist him in checking if the words are powerful enough to be used for writing (Nabors, 2017. p. 44). Let the students volunteer on the workshop to share on the revisions they have made as you wrap up the lesson. Engage Robert as well by encouraging him to write the words down as the students share with the class; this is to combine him with the class to finish the task.
Summarizing strategies
Spare some time before wrapping up the workshop to share on the work done, and this will give you some time to monitor the progress of the students and how they have understood the lessons. Let the students summarize the four lessons with three powerful words and descriptive phrases from each student. Use the exercise to check on the student’s progress as well. Make notes on the smartboard, and the anchor chart that was used by the students to look at the different word choices used and the descriptive phrases picked, this will make room for future references.
Use the notes and workshop to group the students according to their progress, to help individual students on areas to improve in the future. After arranging the students according to their levels of development, have a plan to teach each group on a summary of the lessons, and identify areas that may need improvement (Nabors, 2017. p. 45). Specify the lessons that will be used to base on the student work. Some of the ideas may include:
- The effect of word choice.
- Specify on the study of the different parts of a sentence; adjectives, nouns, verbs, among others.
- Use the concept of repetition to enhance imagery and fluency purposefully.
Have Robert make a summary of the words that he has written so far for all the lessons. Encourage him to look for more words from his classmates and ask him to write a separate list of the words he has found from other students (Nabors, 2017. p. 47). As his task at home, let him make a table showing the different words and descriptive phrases he found and let him present the words as a form of testing his progress with school work. To check his progress, guide him through a self-assessment test by writing questions that require a yes and no answer, and help him answer the questions appropriately.
A small test is also essential to test the students on word choices and descriptive phrases and how to pick and use them in writing. A two-part exercise will be generated to test the students; the first part is to choose the appropriate words, and which descriptive phrases are best used in the books that were read in the previous lessons. The second part will entail writing a small paragraph using the descriptive phrases and powerful word choices that were found and shared during the earlier lessons. Use the same test to test Robert and assess him together with the yes and no assessment test.
Re-teaching focus and strategy
As the students show they are more knowledgeable about their understanding of choosing words and picking the best descriptive phrases, make them select a book from the class that they will revise on, the following week. An additional number of lessons will be effective is further emphasizing on word choices and descriptive phrases. Final drafts on the progress, exercise, and homework given will be used for scoring purposes. Also, check on Robert’s progress before proceeding with the additional lessons to see if he needs further assistance before revising with the rest of the class.