Dr.

Seuss Lesson Plan- Alyssa DiFlora

EDU 465- Bordentown Regional Middle School
March 2, 2016
Subject/Topic: 8th Grade Language Arts Story Analysis
Length: Cores 1,2,3
Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.4
Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning
words or phrases based on grade 8 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.4.A
Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a
word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a
word or phrase.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.4
Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development,
organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
(Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards
1-3 above.)
Objective: SWBAT identify main idea and hidden theme by assessing
a classic work of Dr. Seuss.
Materials:
Dr. Seuss YouTube Video
Poster Paper
Markers and Colored Pencils
Binders
Pens and Pencils
Procedure:
1. Students enter the room. Students complete general
housekeeping (agenda writing, collecting hw, phones away, etc.)
2. Students complete their DOL and have SSR time.
3. Class goes over DOL on the Document Camera.
Mentor-Teach Model:

4. Class brainstorms different childrens stories and themes aloud

on the board. What are the morals of these stories? Do
you agree or disagree?
5. Teacher explains to class how these innocent and whimsical
stories have deeper meanings and are trying to convey
messages. These stories convey messages that we may
overlook and not even notice or understand. Clearly,
there is more than meets the eye. These stories are forms
of propaganda that are disguised in childrens stories.
Some of Dr. Seusss stories hold messages about US
History that we may not have ever realized.
6. Class watches The Sneetches on YouTube for 25 minutes. As
you are watching, take notes of some themes or
messages or lessons that you learn or see in the clip.
Prepare to share.
7. Class discusses reactions and themes and lessons found in the
movie on the board/aloud.
Independent Practice:
8. Teacher has students in literature circle books create posters
portrayed a theme from The Sneetches as a singular symbol.
Now that we have analyzed the themes behind this Dr.
Seuss classic, what I would like for you to do is create a
poster using 1 theme from the movie in one symbol. I
want you to draw the photo and also give it color. I also
want an explanation on the back of the poster saying:
What theme did you choose? What does the photo
represent? Why? What does this make you think of? Work
of these, then well do presentations.
9. Students work in groups to create posters, as teacher circulates
around the room.
Closure:
10.

Class has a brief presentation session for their posters.

Assessment:
The assessment for this lesson would be the themes that the students
come up with in their notebooks, and through the effort that the
students put into their posters.
Differentiation:

The students are allowed to choose any theme that they like and can
create their posters with their own unique style, all while collaborating
in a group.

Live Text Narrative Reflection:

Overall, I felt that the lesson went very well. In my opinion, the most
successful part of the lesson was the engagement that the students
had when watching the Dr. Seuss short film. As I scanned the room, I
saw that the students were actively taking notes, as instructed, and
were captivated by the movie. This showed me that these students
enjoy visuals and film. Something that I didnt expect during the lesson
was the amount of participation and hand-raising! The other day, I
decided to let students know through PowerSchool that their
participation was lacking, and their grades have been starting to show
that. In doing this, I feel that the participation rate went up due to my
initiative. I also thought that the lesson was fun and the students
genuinely enjoyed it. A strength of mine during the lesson was my
sense of humor. Mrs. Poole told me that she saw a different side of me
in front of the kids that I had been holding back since I was more
reluctant. She was astonished. I think that the students learned how to
analyze characters, themes and morals, not only through a movie, but
in a piece of literature as well. I assessed the students by having the
students put their hands on their chests and give me 1 finger up if they
mastered the lesson, 2 fingers up if they felt good about the lesson,
and 3 meaning that they did not understand the concept. Based on my
assessment, I received many 1s and 2s, implying that I met the goals
and objectives of my lesson. I think that the modeling that I did both
during the lesson and when I gave directions helped the students to

visualize what I was looking for, especially for their posters. A

challenge that I had was the lack of participation on one of the sides of
the room. Either it was because most of the shy students were on that
side, or they didnt want to participate. I could have cold-called on the
students more. After the movie was done, the class came up with 17
themes and morals and I was shocked and was really happy with the
results. I feel that I got through to the students and the students were
able to see that I have a sense of humor (which they see all the time)
and a personality.