Westing game intro literature unit
- 1. I. General Information Name: Jamie Snider Date: 9/8/2009 Curricular Area(s) Language Arts Grade Level: 7th grade Learning Support Group Size: 1 small group of 5-8 students Setting of Lesson: Learning Support Classroom- pull out services Time of Lesson: 20 minutes II. Rationale: This lesson will serve to introduce and motivate the students to participate in a read aloud of The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. III. Vocabulary: Fiction: the class of literature comprising works of imaginative narration Realistic Fiction: Realistic fiction, although untrue, could actually happen. Some events, people, and places may even be real. IV. Resources/Multimedia: The Westing Game book Graphic Organizer Character list Reader’s Response Journal V. Objectives/Adaptations Objectives: 1. Students will demonstrate comprehension of pre-reading activity by orally contributing to class discussion during anticipatory set questions and during introduction of the book, author, genre and synopsis. 2. Students will construct background knowledge about the topic of the book by recording their answers to the anticipatory set questions on a graphic organizer. The graphic organizer will be used later to assist in writing in their readers response journal during closure. VI. Pennsylvania Academic Standards:
- 2. 1.1. Learning to Read Independently: 1.1.5. GRADE 5 • Summarize the major ideas, themes or procedures of the text 1.3. Reading, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature: 1.3.5. GRADE 5 • Read and understand works of literature. VII. Lesson Body A. Introductory or Anticipatory Set: 1. The students will be asked if they have a favorite game. They will be asked to share the name of the game with their classmates. They will be asked why it’s their favorite game. 3 responses for each question will be collected and placed on a Ladder Graphic Organizer. 2. The students will be asked if they have ever played a game for money or a prize. How did it make you feel? The students will be asked to give two descriptive words to describe how they felt. These will be recorded on the graphic organizer. 3. The students will be told that the book we are reading is called The Westing Game. The teacher will explain to the students that they will be participating is this whole group read aloud of The Westing Game. Students will be required to participate in book discussions, make predictions, ask questions, as well as complete homework assignments in regards to each days reading. B. Procedures: 1. The cover of the book will be shown to the students. The title and author’s name will be read aloud to them. They will be asked if they have read this book before. 2. The students will be given background information about the author. The author was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin which is the setting for the story. She was an illustrator and loved to write novels that were “puzzles.” She felt the most important part of her books were the first line. She wanted to grab the reader’s attention in the first few words. She was compared with a magician because she often had tricked her readers before revealed the solution to her books. The students will be asked if they can remember any other books that had surprise endings. 3. The students will be told this book is a realistic fiction genre. The teacher will review the definition of fiction with the students and introduce the definition of realistic fiction with examples of each genre. • Realistic fiction is a form of fiction (not true) accurately reflects life as it could be lived today • everything in the story could happen to real people living in our natural physical world • the characters have normal human powers
- 3. • It has two parts: historical fiction and contemporary fiction • story may be set in real places, but the story is NOT based on history, nor does it contain elements of science fiction • Examples are: Because of Winn Dixie, A Year Down Yonder, Super Fudge, Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing, Hatchet Fiction has: • fiction has three main elements: plotting, character, and place or setting • is an imaginative form of narrative writing • all the characters are invented in the story • The story could not happen in real life. • Examples: Harold and the Purple Crayon, Grimm’s Fairytales, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. 4. A list of characters will be given to the students to introduce characters and to set a purpose for reading as well as motivate student involvement in the story. 5. Finally, a short synopsis will be read to the students to set background in story interest. C. Adaptations to Procedure: 1. Extended wait time will be given for responses 2. Character list read aloud 3. Graphic organizer will be completed together D. Closure 1. A short review of the author, genre and synopsis. The students will be asked to retell the synopsis in their own words as well as a description of the characters. The teacher will instruct the students to develop 2-3 questions that they have about the story and record them in their reader’s response journal. VII. Assessment: 1. Direct observation will be used while the students completed their graphic organizers 2. Oral responses will demonstrate comprehension of the lesson 3. The use of a graphic organizer will demonstrate comprehension and on task behavior. 4. The paraphrasing of the characters and synopsis will demonstrate reading comprehension.
- 4. Character list: Character Character description Turtle Wexler a 13 year old girl Grace Wexler mother of Turtle and Angela Jake Wexler husband of Grace and foot doctor daughter of Grace and fiance of Angela Wexler Dentin Doug Hoo a track star and son of Mr. Hoo Otis Amber delivery boy Denton Deere intern at local hospital secretary ( not a heir is at Sunset Sydelle Pulaski Towers by mistake) soup kitchen organizer ( former Bertha Erica Crow wife of Westing gets inheritance) 17 year old boy son of coffee Theo Theodorakis shop owner son of coffee shop owner disease Chris Theodorakis struck and wheelchair bound Sam Westing rich owner of a paper company Sandy McSouthers door man at Sunset Towers owner of restaurant atop sunset Mr.Hoo towers VII. Teacher Evaluation:
- 5. 1. The students accomplished the objectives. Today’s objectives were designed to familiarize the students with the policies and procedures for the small group instruction. The students remained on task and followed directions. They filled out their reader’s response journals, placed them in the right bin and participated during class discussion. 2. I did not have to keep explaining the topic and we were able to move on to the next part of the lessons. 3. The strengths of the lesson were the organization and preparation that went into planning the lesson and the materials for the students. The students were enthusiastic about the behavior management plan and the materials that were given during class, as well as the book that was chosen. I was also very comfortable with being in front of the class and had good behavior management with the first class. 4. Behavior management with the class is an area of improvement. There were times sidebar conversations occurred and sigh of boredom. I am hoping that as we progress with the story they will like the story enough to keep engaged and on task. I believe it will be a challenge and I will have to remain on my behavior management plan to make an effective lesson possible.