Download Lesson Plan 1 Grade Level: 4/5 Number of Students: 23 Students

Lesson Plan 1
Grade Level: 4/5
Number of Students: 23
Students’ Linguistic Backgrounds: 3 ELLs (but pretty much fluent in English)
Instructional Location: classrooom
Length of Instruction: 45 min
Standard(s) Addressed

W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are
defined in standards 1–3 above.)

W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to
produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate
sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
Content Objectives
Language Objectives
-Students will discuss different places to
get ideas for poetry
-Students will explore poetry books and
find a poem they would like to share
- Students will
Text To Use
Title: “Where Do I Find Poetry?” Georgia
Hard
Genre: Poetry
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Strategy Focus
Identifying topics/ideas that poets write
about
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Materials Needed:
Assessment(s):
Smart board
“Where Do I Find Poetry?”
Various poetry books from the library
Writer’s notebook
Monitoring comprehension through
whole group discussions and walking
around during independent time.
Day 1 (Repeat for each day)
MINILESSON
Connect to Prior Learning
For this unit, we are going to be studying and writing poetry. Poetry is about looking
at the world with fresh new eyes. We are going to spend some time reading poetry,
looking at poetry and how it’s written, and writing some pomes of our own. We’re
going to start by reading a poem together and looking at where poets get ideas.
Strategy Teaching
Today we are going to look at where poets get their ideas by looking at a poem. It is
called “Where Do I Find Poetry”, and it is by Georgia Heard. It is about where we find
ideas for poetry.
Read the poem to the kids
I want to show you this because a poet or writer always starts with an idea. I think
Georgia Heard gives us some good advice about where ideas come from.
Active Engagement
Do you see the part where she says, “Poetry spinning all around me!” I think she is
saying that anything and everything all around you can be an idea for a poem. In the
poem the author wrote about the ants she saw on the ground. The author is taking
something she sees every day and truing it into a beautiful poem.
(Start a chart that says “Where Do Ideas For Poetry Hide?” and put “everyday
things” on the chart.) Turn and talk to someone next to you, read the poem again to
yourself, and think of where else Georgia Heard says we can find ideas. (After a few
minutes, have them share and add the ideas to the chart. Some examples are things,
dreams/hopes, people, everyday objects, etc.)
Link to Independent Writing
Today, I’m going to ask you to o back and explore all the poetry books that I pulled
out for you. While you are looking at the poems, I want you to notice what pomes
are your favorites and tab it with your name on it. I also want you to identify other
places where poetry hides besides the ones we mentioned.
INDEPENDENT WRITING
Students will independently explore poetry books. It will be a silent period so they
can think about the ones they really like, and not be influenced by others’ opinions.
During this time the teacher will walk around and discuss the poetry students are
reading. Monitor that they are on task and really thinking about the poems.
TEACHER-STUDENT CONFERENCES
Who will you hold conferences with? What will you ask during your conference?
How will you record the information you gather?
This is the first day of the poetry unit, before they have actually started writing, so
there will be no conferences yet.
SHARING TIME
Have the students share a favorite poem with a partner, and why they like it. Then
come back together and spend some time adding to the chart with more ideas that
students have collected.
Lesson Plan 2
Grade Level: 4/5
Number of Students: 23
Students’ Linguistic Backgrounds: 3 ELLs (but pretty much fluent in English)
Instructional Location: classrooom
Length of Instruction: 60 min
Standard(s) Addressed

W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are
defined in standards 1–3 above.)

W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to
produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate
sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
Content Objectives
Language Objectives
-Students will understand how to use
strong language in poetry
-Students will understand that poets use
different forms
-Students will explore poetry to find
strong language
-Students will share their poetry with
classmates, and do so appropriately
- Students will understand what strong
language means
Text To Use
Title: “Chanclas” Sandra Cisneros
Genre: Poetry
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Strategy Focus
Using poetic words and phrases that
convey meaning/emotion
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Materials Needed:
Assessment(s):
Smart board
”Chanclas”
Various poetry books from the library
Writer’s notebook
Index cards
Ziplock bags
Monitoring comprehension through whole
group discussions and walking around
during independent time.
Writing conferences
Day 1 (Repeat for each day)
MINILESSON
Connect to Prior Learning
Yesterday, we noticed where ideas for pomes hide with a little help from Georgia
Hard and other poets that all of you looked through. You found out that ideas can
hide anywhere. Sometimes, poets get ideas form animals, everyday objects,
family/friends.
Strategy Teaching
Today, I want you to notice how poets use strong and precise anguage to express
feelings and meaning. One way that poets get their message across is by using poetic
words and phrases. It’s important to look at other people’s words because it shows
us how we can use other people’s language to express our own thoughts in different
ways. Display and read out loud an excerpt from Chanclas by Sandra Cisneros.
Active Engagement
I’m going to look at the first part of this poem, and I’m going to see if there are any
words or phrases that really capture emotion or meaning. I’m looking for words that
say things in a different way, that helps me look at things with a poetic eye, and that
creates an image in my mind.
Do you see how a poet may choose to use poetic language instead of ordinary,
everyday language to express thoughts and feelings?
Read the rest of the poem to yourself and jot down a couple of words/phrases that
pop out to you as poetic (give them a few minutes to brainstorm their own ideas).
Turn and talk to someone next to you and share with them some of the words and
phrases that you collected and try to explain to them why your chose these
particular words.
Link to Independent Writing
Today, I’m going to ask your to go back and explore all the poetry books that I pulled
out for you. You’ll have a pile of blank index cards and Ziploc bags at your desk.
While you are reading the poems, I want you to notice the poetic language that oets
use. You might find a word that jumps out at you, or a phrase. When you find one ,
write it down on the index card and put it in your bag. Then go back to your desk
and free write some poems using the words and phrases you collected.
INDEPENDENT WRITING
Students will independently explore poetry books. It will be a silent period so they
can think about words and phrases that stick out to them. During this time the
teacher will walk around and discuss the poetry students are reading. Monitor that
they are on task and really thinking about the poems. Then they will go back to their
desks (or somewhere else if they choose) and free write poetry using these words.
TEACHER-STUDENT CONFERENCES
Who will you hold conferences with? What will you ask during your conference?
How will you record the information you gather?
I will hold conferences with 5 students, and I will do it with students who have
already started free writing so we can discuss that. I will ask them how they feel
about poetry, if they understand the ideas of strong language and how it makes
poetry different from other forms of writing. I will also ask about their writing so far
and how it displays strong language. I will record the information I gather in a
notebook that will have a section for each student.
SHARING TIME
Have students partner share what they were free writing. When they have shared
move on to another person. Do this until you have shared with 3 people.
Have the students share a favorite poem with a partner, and why they like it. Then
come back together and spend some time adding to the chart with more ideas that
students have collected.
Lesson Plan 3
Grade Level: 4/5
Number of Students: 23
Students’ Linguistic Backgrounds: 3 ELLs (but pretty much fluent in English)
Instructional Location: classrooom
Length of Instruction: 60 min
Standard(s) Addressed

W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are
defined in standards 1–3 above.)

W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to
produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate
sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
Content Objectives
Language Objectives
-Students will understand that poetry
can be written about anything, even
ordinary objects
-Students will write a poem as a class
-Students will explore objects in the
classroom and write poetry about them
-Students will share their poetry with
classmates, and do so appropriately
- Students will understand what
everyday object means
Text To Use
Title: “Mi bicicleta/My Bicycle” Jorge
Argueta
Genre: Poetry
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Strategy Focus
Materials Needed:
Assessment(s):
Smart board
“Mi bicicleta/My Bicycle”
Various poetry books from the library
Writer’s notebook
Various objects in the classroom
Monitoring comprehension through
whole group discussions and walking
around during independent time.
Writing conferences.
Collecting ideas by making close
observations of ordinary objects
Day 1 (Repeat for each day)
MINILESSON
Connect to Prior Learning
The last couple of days, we’ve been reading a lot of poetry to get an idea of where
poets get ideas and what poets do. We are now going to write lots of poems using
the things we discovered. One common thing that poets do is closely observe the
things that are around them and see them in a whole new way.
Strategy Teaching
Today, I want to teach you how to look at an object that you might have seen
everyday and see it with poet’s eyes. Look at the following poem. (Display the poem
on the Smartboard)
Looking at an object in a brand new way is what sets a poet apart from other
writers. I don’t usually think of a bicycle like a spotted horse faster than the wind. I
don’t think of it as a dragon dancing. However, Jorge Argueta makes me see a bicycle
like this – in a way that I’ve never thought of – and that’s what poetry can do.
Active Engagement
So I picked an object from our classroom that you see everyday, the floor. I want you
to look at the floor, but this time I want you to observe it loosely with poets eyes.
Think about what the floor reminds you of, use your sense to notice things you’ve
never seen before, and use your words to create an image of this floor. For example,
instead of writing “the floor is dirty”, you might write something like “the floor is a
platform, keeping all the remains of the day”. So now you try it out. Look at the floor,
and see if you could come up with a sentence or phrase that we can add to a poem
about the floor. (Share ideas when done to create a class poem).
Link to Independent Writing
Today and everyday when you are trying to find ideas, you can look at the objects
around you and look at them with brand new eyes. When you go back to write look
around you and see if you can find inspiration from objects in our classroom.
INDEPENDENT WRITING
Students will independently write poetry, using objects in the classroom for
inspiration. They can sit anywhere in the room, as long as they are not distracted. I
will walk around to discuss what they are writing and make sure everyone is on
task.
TEACHER-STUDENT CONFERENCES
Who will you hold conferences with? What will you ask during your conference?
How will you record the information you gather?
I will hold conferences with 5 students, and I will do it after students have been
writing for a little bit, so we can discuss that. I will ask them how they feel about
poetry, if they understand the ideas of looking at objects with new eyes, and seeing
things in a different way. I will also ask about their writing so far. I will record the
information I gather in a notebook that will have a section for each student.
SHARING TIME
Have the students come back to the carpet and bring the poems they wrote. Use an
author’s chair so one person shares to the whole class. Draw sticks to select who will
share. Have students read their poem without saying what the object is they wrote
about. See if the rest of the class can guess what it is based on their descriptions.
Lesson Plan 4
Grade Level: 4/5
Number of Students: 23
Students’ Linguistic Backgrounds: 3 ELLs (but pretty much fluent in English)
Instructional Location: classrooom
Length of Instruction: 60 min
Standard(s) Addressed

W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are
defined in standards 1–3 above.)

W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to
produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate
sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
Content Objectives
Language Objectives
-Students will use personal experiences
to write poetry
-Students will share their poetry with
classmates, and do so appropriately
- Students will understand what a
personal experience is
Text To Use
Title: “Meet Danitra Brown” Nikki Grimes
Genre: Poetry
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Strategy Focus
Materials Needed:
Assessment(s):
Smart board
“Meet Danitra Brown”
Various poetry books from the library
Writer’s notebook
Monitoring comprehension through
whole group discussions and walking
around during independent time.
Writing conferences.
Identifying ideas from personal
experiences
Day 1 (Repeat for each day)
MINILESSON
Connect to Prior Learning
Yesterday, we looked at everyday objects to get ideas for poems. Many poets use
this as an inspiration for their writing. Another very common source is personal
experiences.
Strategy Teaching
Today, I want to teach you how poets get their ideas by looking through their own
notebooks at personal experiences. This is a poetry collection by Nikki Grimes called
“Meet Danitra Brown”. All of the poems in this book are about experiences that the
girl has with her best friend Danitra Brown. I want to read to you a pome in this
book called “Ladies of the House”, which tells about the time Danitra’s mom had a
cold and she couldn’t come out to play. (Display on the Smartboard).
Nikki Grimes writes about a personal experience in this pome, like a small moment.
Instead of writing it out as a story, she takes the story and turns it into a poem. This
is important because poets get their ideas from different places, including small
moments from their lives.
Active Engagement
(Students should have their writer’s notebooks with them). So I want you to look
through your writers notebook. Look at all the seeds you have collectied from this
past year. I want you to find a story that yoru want to turn into a poem and star it.
(Give the time to look through their entries. Then share some of the things they are
thinking about).
Link to Independent Writing
Today and everyday when you are trying to find ideas, you can look through your
notebook and find personal experiences to write about. When you start writing your
poems today, some of you may want to start with the personal experience and some
of you may want to continue to write about objects. Remember, when you get suck
on an idea to look through your notebook.
INDEPENDENT WRITING
Students will independently write poetry, using ideas in their notebook for
inspiration. They can sit anywhere in the room, as long as they are not distracted. I
will walk around to discuss what they are writing and make sure everyone is on
task.
TEACHER-STUDENT CONFERENCES
Who will you hold conferences with? What will you ask during your conference?
How will you record the information you gather?
I will hold conferences with 5 students, and I will do it after students have been
writing for a little bit, so we can discuss that. I will ask them how they feel about
poetry, if they understand the ideas using their own small moments to create poetry
that is meaningful to them. I will also ask about their writing so far. I will record the
information I gather in a notebook that will have a section for each student.
SHARING TIME
Have the students share in groups of four, making sure everyone gets a chance to
share.
Lesson Plan 5
Grade Level: 4/5
Number of Students: 23
Students’ Linguistic Backgrounds: 3 ELLs (but pretty much fluent in English)
Instructional Location: classrooom
Length of Instruction: 60 min
Standard(s) Addressed

W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are
defined in standards 1–3 above.)

W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to
produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate
sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
Content Objectives
Language Objectives
-Students will learn how to use line
breaks and stanzas
-Students will break up a poem that is
read aloud
-Students will share their poetry and do
it in an appropriate way
- Students will understand what a line
break means
-Students will understand what a stanza
is
Text To Use
Title: “Soup of the Stars”
Strategy Focus
Genre: Poetry
Title: “Poem For My Friend” Patricia Hubbell
Genre: Poetry
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Title:
Genre:
Using line breaks and stanzas to convey
feelings and meaning
Materials Needed:
Assessment(s):
Smart board
“Soup of the Stars”
“Poem For My Friend”
Various poetry books from the library
Writer’s notebook
Monitoring comprehension through
whole group discussions and walking
around during independent time.
Writing conferences.
Day 1 (Repeat for each day)
MINILESSON
Connect to Prior Learning
We have been talking about where poets find ideas and made a chart of where
poetry hides. Today we begin talking about the tools poets use. These are things
poets do to help us get the meaning of the poem and to feel the music in the poem.
Strategy Teaching
Today I want to show you how poets don’t write words all across the page like a
story. I am going to read this poem (“Soup of the Stars”) out loud. Notice when I read
how I stop just a little at the end of each line where the poem breaks and goes into
another line. Listen to the pauses where I stop. Notice how my voice sounds as I
read it.
If the poet wrote it like a story, it would sound like this. (Read the poem again
without pauses). Did you notice how the first time when I paused a little, the poem
gave us a stronger feeling and we could really get what the poem was trying to say.
Do you see that the poet put “without eating” at the end of the stanza? He made us
notice by putting only those two words together. No other words are with them, so
we slow down there and really notice those words.
Listen again as I read it with the breaks in the lines. Listen how I pause at the breaks.
Feel how you can really understand what the poem is saying. (Read the poem again).
Active Engagement
Now I want you to try making a poem from these two lines. The title of the poem is
“Poem For My Friend” by Patricia Hubbell. I will read it first. (Read it like a story,
without pauses). Get with a partner. Listen as I read it one more time without
stopping. As I read it write the two sentences down in your writer’s notebook. Your
job is to think about where to want to break the lines. Mark where you want the
reader to pause. This is where you want to have the reader stop a little before going
to the next line. Really think about it and what you want to emphasize. When you
are done, share with other partners and see what they did the same or different.
Now look at the poem when I display it, and listen as I read it the way the author
chose to write it.
Link to Independent Writing
So today you can think about where you want to break your lines so the reader can
understand it better, and can feel what you want emphasized.
INDEPENDENT WRITING
Students will independently write poetry, using ideas in their notebook for
inspiration. They will think about how they want to break up their poems. They can
sit anywhere in the room, as long as they are not distracted. I will walk around to
discuss what they are writing and make sure everyone is on task.
TEACHER-STUDENT CONFERENCES
Who will you hold conferences with? What will you ask during your conference?
How will you record the information you gather?
I will hold conferences with 5 students, and I will do it after students have been
writing for a little bit, so we can discuss that. I will ask them how they feel about
poetry, if they understand the idea of line breaks to convey meaning and important
ideas. I will also ask about their writing so far. I will record the information I gather
in a notebook that will have a section for each student.
SHARING TIME
Use author’s chair and have students share any poem of their choosing to the whole
class.