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Direct Lesson Plan 3

Jessica Williams

Subject: 4th Grade Writing

Central Focus: Identifying Theme

Essential Standard/Common Core Objective:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL4.2

Date submitted:11/5/2015Date taught: n/a

Daily Lesson Objective: Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem, from details in the text; summarize the

text.
21st Century Skills: Collaborating with Others

Academic Language Demand (Language Function and


Vocabulary): N/A

Prior Knowledge:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.1

Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing
inferences from the text.
Activity

1. Focus and Review

2. Statement of Objective
for Student
3. Teacher Input

Description of Activities and Setting

Over the past couple of weeks we have been reading several stories.
We also have learned how to find specific details within
a story. Who can tell me what a detail is?(CFU) Correct; a detail is a
fact or piece of information in the text. Today we will learn about the
main idea of a story, which is also known as theme.
Students will be able to identify the theme within Charlottes Web
written by: E.B White.
Students will come to the carpet and I will first discuss what theme
is. ELL students will sit up front on the carpet so they can see clearly
and listen closely (PID). Who can please tell me what they think
theme is?(CFU) Great Job. Details help us figure out what the story
is about. This is known as the theme. Today we will learn how to
identify the theme of a story.
Theme is the main idea of a story, let me read this short story to you,
and show you how I would figure out the theme of the story.
Katie invited Missy to her house to work on their biology project, but
Katie had no idea what a visit from Missy entailed. First of all, it was
raining and Missy neither bothered to take her boots off nor thoroughly
wiped them on the doormat. Then Missy ate a bag of hot chips on
Katies white bedspread without asking, and Missy is a sloppy eater, so
hot chip powder got all over the bedspread. Katie tried to be polite and
ignore Missys sloppy behavior, but then Missy threw her chip wrapper
on the floor. Offended, Katie pretended that she was sick and asked
Missy to leave. The next day Katie asked the teacher if she could work
by herself. After explaining her situation, the teacher allowed Katie to
work alone. Missy would have finished the assignment by herself, but
she spilled grape soda all over her assignment.
Who can tell me what the theme is? (CFU) It is hard to work
cooperatively with someone when they are messy and disrespectful.

Time

I know that this is the theme because in the story it describes the ways
that Missy was messy in Katies house, and how much it frustrated
Katie to the point she worked on the assignment alone.
Lets try to find another theme! Read the following passage aloud
with students:
Mr. Pig and Mr. Dog were hanging out at the food court of the animal
shopping mall. Mr. Pig was eating a huge feast of pizza and drinking a
large jug of fruit punch and Mr. Dog was watching him eat. Hey, Mr.
Pig. If you give me a slice of your pizza, Ill let you have the next bone
I find. Mr. Pig declined, even though it hurt his stomach to eat the last
three slices of pizza. Im sorry, Mr. Dog, Mr. Pig said, but I paid for
this pizza and its all mine. Mr. Dog sighed and waited for Mr. Pig to
finish, and then they left the animal mall together. On the way out, a
hunter spotted them and gave chase. Mr. Pig normally could have
escaped the hunter but since he was weighed down by such a large
meal, Mr. Pig collapsed and the hunter killed him. Mr. Dog easily
escaped. Later that night while returning to the scene, Mr. Dog caught
the scent of something delicious and began digging around a trash can.
He found a large ham bone with lots of meat and marrow still stuck to
the bone. Mr. Dog happily ate.
Who can tell me what you think the theme might be in this short story?
(CFU)
What details from the passage can you use to support your answer?
(CFU)
As a class we come up with the following theme: Being greedy can
cause you to lose your friends and in extreme cases your life.
Textual evidence to back up the theme: Mr. Pig wouldnt share the
pizza with his Mr. Dog and he was too full to run away from the hunter
and he died. This shows how his greediness caused him to lose his life.

4. Guided Practice

5. Independent Practice

Students will work in groups with partners, and be given a two


paragraph passage. ELL students will be paired with a strong English
learner to help them better understand the text (PID). They will need to
come up with their group the theme of the two passages. I will walk
around checking in on the groups, giving feedback and correction as
needed to make sure they are understand how to find/identify the
theme. Also with the ELL students I see who are struggling even with
help from stronger student, I will pull them out and work with them in a
small group (PID).
Now that we have found a theme together, I want you all to go home
and read the first three chapters of Charlottes Web and find a theme
and give details from the text to support it. Dont forget to find
evidence from the story to support your thoughts.
ELL learners will only have to read the first chapter and find a theme
for that chapter (PID).

6. Assessment Methods of
all objectives/skills:

7. Closure

I will grade the students homework assignment which they had to identify a theme in first
three chapters of Charlottes Web using details from the text. Since theme is subjective, as
long as their details back up the theme they found, I will consider them to have mastered
finding theme in a literary work.

Before we leave today, lets review what we have learned.


Who can tell me what theme is?
Why does having evidence from the story help you explain your theme?
What was the theme of the first passage I read to you?
What was the theme from the second passage?
All of these questions are checks for understanding.
N/A

8. Assessment Results of
all objectives/skills:
Targeted Students Modifications/Accommodations
ELL Student Accommodations: guided practice and
independent practice.

Student/Small Group Modifications/Accommodations


Extreme struggling ELL students I will work with in a small
group during guided practice really focusing on vocabulary and
concepts.

Materials/Technology: Charlottes Web by E.B White


Reflection on lesson:
*Modified slightly for use in ELED 3111, Smith, Fall 2015.

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