Intro to Adjectives

______________________________________________________________________________________
SUBJECT AREA: English Language Arts
CCSS: Literacy: CCL.1.5b Dene words by category and by one or more key
attributes (e.g., a duck is a bird that swims; a tiger is a large cat with stripes).
PERSONNEL: Teacher
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS (Technology):
Yellow Pail
Stuffed Zebra Toy
Whiteboards and Dry Erase Pens
LESSON LENGTH: 30 minutes
MANAGEMENT STANDARDS:
! Students will practice working independently to come up with their own original
ideas.
! Students will wait to be called on to speak.
ANTICIPATORY SET:
Behavioral Objective (Do): Students will be able to describe objects using a
variety of adjectives.

Transfer (Learning theory/citations): Students will apply the adjectives in
writing to describe nouns and create longer, more descriptive sentences.
METHODOLOGY (Teaching):

Today we will be working with adjectives. By show of silent hands, who can tell
me what an adjective is?... Correct, an adjective is a word used to describe a person,
place, thing, or event.
In order to connect visual and auditory learning, and to help EL students with both
written and oral language acquisition, the instructor will write the following phrase on the
board and have students read it aloud all together.
An adjective is a word used to describe a person, place, thing, or event.
Now which sentence sounds more interesting.
The happy little boy ran quickly through the cramped hallway. OR The boy ran
through the hallway...Why?
Students will be given time to think, the ultimate goal is for students to
understand that adjectives make writing and speaking more interesting. Student answers
should be taken as long as student can determine why they made that choice.
For example, if students says I chose the second sentence because it is shorter
and gets to the point, the instructor will not immediately claim the answer is wrong.
This is part of the methods used to develop a stewing pot of ideas and lower the affective
filter of each student. If all students dont understand the purpose of adjectives, the
following additional example will be given:
The field was nice. or The field was beautiful, filled with bright yellow flowers
growing in the warm sun.
The instructor will take more volunteers to choose the sentence with adjectives
and informally gauge the students understanding. Ultimately, the answer will be clarified
by the instructor.
Guided Practice:
We will start by describing this item with at least two adjectives
- Instructor will display the first item which is a yellow pail and give students one
minute to write on their individual whiteboards any adjectives they can attribute to the
pail.
Target Answers: Yellow, shiny, big, large, hard, smooth
Differentiated Learning: While the low achieving students may need more time
and help to complete this first task, the GATE students will be allowed to silently write on
their boards as many adjectives as they can about the given item and form a sentence
with them. With white boards, students are able to complete work at their own pace
without distracting other by providing verbal answers and halting the thought process of
students who need more time. The list of adjectives will not be limited to just two
answers, but that it the minimum target for each student regardless of achievement level.
The next item presented will be a stuffed zebra toy. The students will again be
given one minute to derive a list of adjectives that pertain to the item.
Copyright1995mcondon

Target Answers: Black, white, striped, fluffy, soft
Independent Practice:
For the final task, students will be invited to come up with as many adjectives as
they can think of. Each student will work with a partner to create the longest list in the
class. The top three groups will receive a prize at the end of the day. This creates a fun,
competitive atmosphere for students to brainstorm different adjectives. By creating an
exhaustive list of adjectives, they are demonstrating their understanding of describing
words. Also, by working with a partner they are building upon their own knowledge by
using the knowledge of their peers.
With whiteboards, students are given an outlet to both write and speak their
words. This will be especially helpful for the EL learner and my struggling students. In
grouping the students, partnerships will be based on mixed achievement levels.
ASSESSMENT (objective verb):
Students will be given the attached Adding Adjectives worksheet. This will
assess their understanding of the definition of adjectives. The worksheet also provides
sentences where students will be prompted to fill in the blanks using appropriate
adjectives. The students will earn two points for defining adjectives and one point for
each adjective listed.
A score of 5 demonstrates satisfactory understanding of the standard.
A score of 4 demonstrates minimal understanding of the standard.
A score of 3 or less demonstrates insufficient understanding of the standard and
calls for reteaching of the lesson or small group remediation.