I.

​HEADING:
Emily Doran
May 17, 2019
Fourth Grade
English Language Arts
55 minutes

II. ​RATIONALE AND BACKGROUND:

The purpose of this lesson is to increase the students’ comprehension skills through literature circles.
Literature circles provide students with the opportunity to engage in critical thinking and reflection as they
read and discuss different books. The students were able to choose the books that they were most
interested in. This lesson will also allow the students to refer to details and examples in a text when
explaining what the text explicitly says and when drawing inferences from the text. This lesson meets
Pennsylvania Standard A-K.1.1.1: Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text
explicitly says and when drawing inferences from the text and A-K.1.1.3: Describe in depth a character,
setting, or event in a story, drama, or poem, drawing on specific details in the text. The students are
familiar with the routine of literature circles. The students are also familiar with citing evidence from the
text, and discussing it with their peers. The context of the classroom is supportive of children’s literacy
through the literature circles, a print-rich environment, and a plethora of books in different genres
available. Students will be asked to determine various comprehension skills of the novel on their purple
comprehension ticket. This information will give the teacher data on those who are able to refer to details
and examples in a text, identify figurative language, and determine the meaning of unknown words, and
and those who are not, so that the teacher may explicitly work with those students in the future.

Facts about learners Adaptations

· ​28 students in the class
· D.T, G.S, J.R, A.G, R.G, A.R,H.C, C.Y,
and L.M are identified as gifted
· ​i-Ready Reading Levels
· 4 ​Below-Grade level in Reading
students
· 17 ​At-Grade level in Reading
students
· 7 ​Above-Grade level in Reading
students
· Different materials and strategies will
be utilized throughout the lesson to
ensure that all learners’ needs are met.
o Visual: teacher modeling,
directions/expectations on board
o Auditory: Books also available on
Youtube to listen to
o Grouping: flexible and strategic
grouping based on students’
reading interests
 III. ​LESSON OBJECTIVES:

● Students will be able to recall information from a story read aloud and summarize what happened.
● Students will be able to describe in depth a character or event in the story, drawing on specific
details in the text.
● Students will be able to interact and discuss the events in the story.

IV. ​LIST OF MATERIALS:

● Novel Study Booklet

● Website: ​https://vimeo.com/161793169#
● Google Slides Presentation-Literature Circles
● Novels:
o The Tale of Despereaux​ by Kate DiCamillo
o Tiger Rising ​by Kate DiCamillo
o The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane ​by Kate DiCamillo
o Flora & Ulysses ​by Kate DiCamillo
o Raymie Nightingale ​by Kate DiCamillo
● Purple comprehension tickets-Day 7
● Pencils

V. ​PROCEDURES:

Initiation/motivation (​ 5-10 minutes)

1. The teacher will bring the class to the front of the classroom. The teacher will ask the students the
name of the author that we have been studying (Kate DiCamillo). The teacher will then have the students
think about the novels that they are reading right now. “What is the theme in your novel?” The teacher
will make a list of these themes on the board. The teacher will then show the students a video interview
with Kate DiCamillo. The teacher will then ask the students, “Why do you think Kate DiCamillo chose to
write it this way? What do you think she might be trying to learn or teach herself?”

Lesson Body (​ 45 minutes)

2. The teacher will have all of the students open their Novel Study booklets to the “Publicist’ page. The
teacher will review that the students should use their purple ticket to discuss their favorite part of the
story. The students will then record each students’ best paragraph in their booklet. They do not have to
write the entire paragraph, just the page number and paragraph number. As a group, the students will
then vote on their favorite part of the story and complete the page together. The students will summarize
the paragraph into their own words and write why they chose it.
3. The teacher will review the job of the ‘Publicist’ using the Google slides presentation. The students
chose who would be the publicist yesterday. The teacher will review who is the publicist with the
students. The teacher will remind the students that the publicist will lead the discussion today.
4. The teacher will then call the students by the title of their book to get their materials and meet their
group and their work spot. As the students begin working, the teacher will meet with each of the groups
to ensure that they are working and that there are not any questions.
5. As the students are finishing in their groups, the teacher will pass out the Day 7 comprehension
tickets (purple tickets). After the discussion is finished, the students are permitted to move around the
room and complete their reading independently. The teacher will conference with the students as they
are reading and completing their purple ticket.

Lesson Closure
1. The teacher will collect the students’ purple comprehension tickets as an exit slip when they are
finished. The teacher will go through the purple tickets to see who may need additional instruction on one
of the comprehension skills.

VI. ​EVALUATION:

Informal:
1. Students will be informally assessed through observation and discussion.

Formal:
2. Students will be assessed formally through the novel study booklet and purple
comprehension ticket. This data will inform the teacher of which students need more explicit
instruction in the understanding of the text, as well as figurative language.