Scenario
Kara Johnson - Teacher 4th grade
Lisa Dover - Librarian
1st meeting 11/8/10: during planning from 10:30-11:15. Kara asks Lisa to collaborate on a lesson to build students' background knowledge on Texas legends. Kara does not have an ample classroom library and lacks sufficient materials. Kara approached Lisa in the library on November 8 and had a collaborative planning conversation about possible lessons and materials for building background knowledge on Texas legends. Kara teaches fourth grade and would like to integrate social studies and reading objectives. Kara would like her students to use and build background knowledge to compare and contrast elements of the story while making text-to-text connections between Texas legends. Lisa will bring in some Texas relics that will arouse student interest in get students asking questions about Texas History and tradition. At this time students may have discussions about why living in Texas is special to them or what they like about living in Texas.
2nd meeting 11/10/10 after school from 2:30-3:15 : Lisa has suggested the use of two Tomie De Paola books: Legend of the Indian Paint Brush and The Legend of the Bluebonnet. Kara said she would create the category webs and Lisa said she would create the rubric for assessment.
3rd meeting 11/ 16/10 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time We will plan to meet on Kara's wiki page and discuss filling in the lesson plan template.
Final Meeting 11/ 29/10 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time We will talk via the cell phone to discuss final details of the lesson and the rubric before submitting the final product.
This is a plausible scenario. Kara is a conscientious teacher who knows the value of the library. In some schools, Lisa would have to be the most proactive of the collaborators.
How will you motivate students to engage in this lesson? What's in it for them?
1. Why are we asking students to engage in this learning experience? Goals/Standards
4th Grade TEKS
Social Studies
(20) Culture. The student understands the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to Texas. The student is expected to:
(B) identify customs, celebrations, and traditions of various culture groups in Texas
Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre.
Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:
3(A) summarize and explain the lesson or message of a work of fiction as its theme
3(B) compare and contrast the adventures or exploits of characters (e.g., the trickster) in traditional and classical literature.
Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Fiction.
Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction and provide evidence from text to support
their understanding. Students are expected to:
6(B) describe the interaction of characters including their relationships and the changes they undergo
Listening and Speaking/Listening.
Students use comprehension skills to listen attentively to others in formal and informal settings. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to:
27(A) listen attentively to speakers, ask relevant questions, and make pertinent comments
2. What do we want the students to learn? Performance Indicators/Learning Objectives - Too many. You are not assessing all of these.
Standard 1: Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.
Strand 1.1: Skills
Indicator 1.1.2: Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
Indicator 1.1.6: Read, view, and listen for information presented in any format (e.g., textual, visual, media, digital) in order to make inferences and gather meaning
Standard 2: Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge.
Strand 2.1: Skills
Indicator 2.1.5: Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions, and solve problems.
Standard 3: Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society
Strand 3.1: Skills
Indicator 3.1.4: Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess.
Standard 4: Pursue personal and aesthetic growth.
Strand 4.1: Skills
Indicator 4.1.2: Read widely and fluently to make connections with self, the world, and previous reading.
Standard 1: Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.
3. In what specific learning experiences do we want them to engage? Who will be responsible for each? Learning Tasks/Responsible Educator The purpose of this lesson is to build background knowledge and to make text to text connections between two Native American Texas Legends. The librarian will read the books Legend of a the Indian Paint Brush and The Legend of Bluebonnet Aloud to the students as the teacher models how to complete the category web the during the readings using an ELMO.
4. How will they communicate what they learned? Learning Process/Products
On Day 1 students will have their own copy of the read aloud and work in small groups fill in The Legend of the Bluebonnet category web. Day 2 students will have their own copy of the read aloud and work in small groups fill in The Legend of The Indian Paintbrush category web. Day 3 students will fill in the paper copy of the compare and contrast web. They will then use it as a model to complete a Venn diagram or similar compare/contrast web using Kidspiration.
5. How will they/we assess their learning? Assessment Criteria/Tool(s) We will devise a student rubric distribute before the lesson begins to assess the student work. The student rubric and teacher rubric will be the same.
6. What resources will the students/we need?
Students will need category webs for each book, compare and contrast web, copy of both read aloud books, rubric and Kidspiration.
From J. Moreillon, Collaborative Strategies for Teaching Reading Comprehension (Chicago: ALA Editions, 2007). Licensed under 5 Additional Points: Each of these is listed or described on the planning form (one point each):
Relevance to students’ lives (Why should students learn this? Why will they care?): Legends are stories that are past down from generation to generation. Both stories have special emphasis on Texas oral tradition which give these stories high interest and relevance. Students can can relate text-to text connections because both characters in both stories gave part of themselves to help their people. These stories help teach a moral of never give up and you can suceed in life. Agreed. Do students apply the text-to-text strategy in their outside of school lives?
Responsibilities for gathering or creating resources: Librarian - gathered books for read alouds: The Legend of the Bluebonnet and The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush. She will also assist the students with using Kidspiration. Librarian created the rubric for assessment. Teacher - created the category webs for days 1, 2, and 3. Teacher will also assist the students with using Kidspiration. Good. Hopefully, you will also review each other's work. Be careful not to drift into cooperation.
Instructional responsibilities during implementation for each partner or joint responsibilities for both partners: Librarian will read aloud the books on days 1 and 2. Teacher will model how to complete the category web. Day 3: Both teacher and librarian will assist students in monitoring students while completing the compare/contrast web. They will both also assist the students in using Kidspiration to create an original Venn diagram or compare/contrast web. The teacher will be responsible for grading the assessment rubric. Why isn't the librarian also responsible for grading the rubric? Since both educators are monitor students' work it seems logical that both would assess the work.
Technology tools integration (or explanation of why technology is not part of the lesson/unit): Students will use Kidspiration to create an original Venn diagram or compare/contrast web using their paper web as an example. Good.
Materials (consumables such as graphic organizers, notemaking tools, art supplies): 1 category web for each book, compare/contrast web assessment rubric.
Feedback on graphic organizers. Italicize titles. No ":" after "by." All of the questions seem to be factual. Will students have an opportunity to respond to the literature in a personal/aesthetic way? Why are these legends important? What do they "mean" for Texans? Do your graphic organizers measure your social studies objectives?
Kara Johnson - Teacher 4th grade
Lisa Dover - Librarian
1st meeting 11/8/10: during planning from 10:30-11:15. Kara asks Lisa to collaborate on a lesson to build students' background knowledge on Texas legends. Kara does not have an ample classroom library and lacks sufficient materials. Kara approached Lisa in the library on November 8 and had a collaborative planning conversation about possible lessons and materials for building background knowledge on Texas legends. Kara teaches fourth grade and would like to integrate social studies and reading objectives. Kara would like her students to use and build background knowledge to compare and contrast elements of the story while making text-to-text connections between Texas legends. Lisa will bring in some Texas relics that will arouse student interest in get students asking questions about Texas History and tradition. At this time students may have discussions about why living in Texas is special to them or what they like about living in Texas.
2nd meeting 11/10/10 after school from 2:30-3:15 : Lisa has suggested the use of two Tomie De Paola books: Legend of the Indian Paint Brush and The Legend of the Bluebonnet. Kara said she would create the category webs and Lisa said she would create the rubric for assessment.
3rd meeting 11/ 16/10 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time We will plan to meet on Kara's wiki page and discuss filling in the lesson plan template.
Final Meeting 11/ 29/10 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time We will talk via the cell phone to discuss final details of the lesson and the rubric before submitting the final product.
This is a plausible scenario. Kara is a conscientious teacher who knows the value of the library. In some schools, Lisa would have to be the most proactive of the collaborators.
How will you motivate students to engage in this lesson? What's in it for them?
Supplement 1C―Collaborative Planning Sheet, Sample 3
4th Grade TEKS
Social Studies
(20) Culture. The student understands the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to Texas. The student is expected to:
(B) identify customs, celebrations, and traditions of various culture groups in Texas
Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre.
Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:
3(A) summarize and explain the lesson or message of a work of fiction as its theme
3(B) compare and contrast the adventures or exploits of characters (e.g., the trickster) in traditional and classical literature.
Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Fiction.
Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction and provide evidence from text to support
their understanding. Students are expected to:
6(B) describe the interaction of characters including their relationships and the changes they undergo
Listening and Speaking/Listening.
Students use comprehension skills to listen attentively to others in formal and informal settings. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to:
27(A) listen attentively to speakers, ask relevant questions, and make pertinent comments
Standard 1: Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.
Strand 1.1: Skills
Indicator 1.1.2: Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
Indicator 1.1.6: Read, view, and listen for information presented in any format (e.g., textual, visual, media, digital) in order to make inferences and gather meaning
Standard 2: Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge.
Strand 2.1: Skills
Indicator 2.1.5: Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions, and solve problems.
Standard 3: Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society
Strand 3.1: Skills
Indicator 3.1.4: Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess.
Standard 4: Pursue personal and aesthetic growth.
Strand 4.1: Skills
Indicator 4.1.2: Read widely and fluently to make connections with self, the world, and previous reading.
On Day 1 students will have their own copy of the read aloud and work in small groups fill in The Legend of the Bluebonnet category web. Day 2 students will have their own copy of the read aloud and work in small groups fill in The Legend of The Indian Paintbrush category web. Day 3 students will fill in the paper copy of the compare and contrast web. They will then use it as a model to complete a Venn diagram or similar compare/contrast web using Kidspiration.
Students will need category webs for each book, compare and contrast web, copy of both read aloud books, rubric and Kidspiration.
5 Additional Points: Each of these is listed or described on the planning form (one point each):
Feedback on graphic organizers.
Italicize titles.
No ":" after "by."
All of the questions seem to be factual. Will students have an opportunity to respond to the literature in a personal/aesthetic way? Why are these legends important? What do they "mean" for Texans? Do your graphic organizers measure your social studies objectives?
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