Teacher: Makayla Triplett Subject Area: English

Grade Level: 6th Length of Lesson: 4 days in class

Desired Results
Indiana Academic Standard(s)
6.W.3.3
Write narrative compositions in a variety of forms that-
 Engage and orient the reader by developing an exposition.
 Organize and event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically, using a variety
of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts
from one time frame or setting to another.
 Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop
experiences, events, and/or characters.
 Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory
language to convey experiences and events.
 Provide an ending that follows from the narrated experiences or events.

Enduring Understandings Essential Question(s)

Students will be able to compose a
personal narrative highlighting a
particular moment in their lifetime. They
will be able to use descriptive words,
sequencing and effective pacing to
interest their reader.
How do you write about one particular
moment in your life, but describe it well
enough that the reader can imagine
themselves in your shoes?

Knowledge and Skill Objectives

Students will use descriptive details that highlight the senses. They will also use
sequencing techniques that create a clear flow from one description to the next.
Students will focus on one specific moment and be able to describe that moment in
great detail. Students can use pacing techniques to create an effective tone.

Assessment Evidence
Students’ work will have at least three paragraphs; an introduction into the moment, the
moment itself, and the aftermath. Students will have effectively used descriptive details
in their writing to enhance the narrative. Reader’s should be able to clearly imagine the
moment themselves. Can compare it to a snapshot into a movie.

Learning Plan
Learning Activities
Begin lesson by introducing the idea of one moment personal narratives. I will go
through examples of a specific moment that I would write about for my narrative.
This will help them realize how narrow and specific their moment needs to be.
We will then go over some examples of descriptive details, paying close attention
to the five senses for descriptions. For homework the first night, I had them go
home and write their first introductory paragraph and share what they had to the
class the next day. With help from Ms. Small, we gave critiques for each student
who had volunteered their writing. We continued this process the next day and
finished writing the second and third paragraphs. Each student then had to get
two peer edits and go through the revision process to create a final draft. The
option to read their final draft out loud was given, and each student turned in a
printed copy of their final draft.
Resources and Materials
Students only needed a notebook and writing utensil, as well as the computer lab for
typing their final draft.

Required Accommodations/Modifications
Some time extensions were needed for struggling students.
Name____Makayla Triplett_____________________ Date__4/10/2018_____ Period__7__

Lesson Plan Evaluation & Teaching Reflection

Was the content worth knowing? Support your response.

Yes, writing a personal narrative is a very important writing objective. It allows students to
express themselves and get used to writing about themselves. Using descriptive details helps get
ideas across when describing anything. This lesson also required them to focus on one moment
which can sometimes be difficult. Focusing on the most important moment will help them narrow
down their writing in a testing environment. This activity is also one of my favorites so it was fun to
teach!

Describe how the activity was developmentally appropriate.

The activity was developmentally appropriate for the students because they only needed to
write three paragraphs, so I wasn’t asking them to go into crazy detail, just enough to see their
moment clearly. The 6th graders have used descriptive writing many times in the past so they
knew how to do, it was more just a matter of applying it appropriately. Some them really enjoyed
writing in this style.

Give an example of how you know the activity was interesting to the children.
Any time I asked for volunteers to read their narratives out loud, I had serveral hands shoot up.
Sometimes the same students would volunteer multiple days and share the new things they had
added to their writings. Students were given the freedom to write about any moment in their lives
and some of them had fun choosing silly moments, important moments, or just a “really cool”
moment.

Describe how the activity included opportunities for the children to test their knowledge.
I asked the students to include descriptions from all of their senses in order to make their
writing more interesting. And they did! By having them use those sense and some figurative
language, their writing was so descriptive and interesting. I loved when they used onomatopoeia
and metaphors in their writing. I was so proud!

Describe a follow up activity that would build on concepts you have presented.
Ms. Small tries to get creative writing assignments in every once in a while so I think if do
another narrative writing, I think they could use their descriptive knowledge and include it in future
writings. I know that some of the students will use what they learned when they take their ISTEP
in the nest couple weeks.

What behavior(s) did you observe while presenting the activity? What do you think caused the
behavior(s)?
At first the students were very chatty because they were trying to help each other come up with
ideas for that one moment but once they knew what they were writing about, they got down to
business. I think they did this because it was something they enjoyed. And I also think it is
because they want to prove to me that they can do well. It is different when I assign things than
when Ms. Small does. I also had a lot of questions asked by the students about whether or not
they were doing well, what else they could add, and other questions about how to use
descriptions.

How did you involve the children in the closure of the activity?
I allowed for students who wished to, to share their narrative to the class. Quite a few of them
shared and it was really fun to hear everyone’s. The class really like the funny ones and I was so
impressed that these students can write so well. Ms. Small and I had made a list for students we
thought would be good in an advanced English class and we used their writings to help us gage
where we thought they would thrive.

Describe what changes you would make and what you would keep the same if you presented the
activity again.
I would love to have spent more time and maybe have made the narratives longer but because
we had a limited amount of time, I was hesitant to add any more to their agenda. I did love the one
moment task though. I wanted to challenge them to use more description than they ever have
before and they did so well! Some students really are great writers and I can’t wait to see what
else they can come up with as the school year comes to and end.