LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St.

Georges

Unit Overview

This mini unit is designed for a Grade 5 English Language Arts class and will be covering the

general learning outcome number one in the program of studies. More specifically, this unit covers

two parts of the specific learning outcome 1.1. The first lesson is designed to encourage student

reflection of personal experiences and utilize this reflection to interpret the short story Amigo

Brothers by Piri Thomas. The second lesson involves students applying their knowledge from the first

lesson in order to both analyze character traits and create their own characters. The goal of the mini

unit is to provide students with the necessary skills and knowledge to answer the unit inquiry

question: How does my own experiences help me to understand the short story Amigo Brothers by

Piri Thompson and how can I apply this new understanding of the short story to my own

development of characters? This inquiry question is relevant because it directly relates to the

intended general learning outcome and the specific learning outcome. It encourages students to

develop and explore by using prior knowledge and experiences to understand the new information in

the short story and then apply the knowledge of the text to understand how to create characters.

Rationale

For both lesson plans, I have allotted time to classroom set up which saves time in the lesson

and allows the focus to be on the intended learning outcomes. The activities written on the

whiteboard for students to do if they arrive early are effective for classroom management because

they outline expectations and get students to start thinking about the lesson. I also use two different

hooks for both lessons to cause student engagement. In the first lesson I use a tool called focused

imaging which is an experiential learning instruction strategy that is learner centered and emphasizes

student experience. I decided to use this activity because it grabs student’s attention and encourages

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LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges
students to reflect on prior knowledge and experiences which aligns well with the purpose of the

lesson. In the second lesson, the hook or attention grabber that I chose to use was a video with Mr.

Bean. I decided to use this because it accommodates for visual learners and it provides an engaging

discussion on character traits.

I decided to do a more formal introduction to the material for the first lesson which included a

direct instructional strategy known as a structured overview where the teacher gives an overview of

the material. I chose to use this method when introducing the short story to jog student’s memory

about the reading. In the second lesson, I did not give a formal introduction to the material because I

thought it would be more interactive to jump straight from the video to analyzing the video for its

importance.

In the body of the first lesson I begin with an indirect instruction strategy where I use

reflective questions to focus the students towards the intended outcome. I used the interactive

instructional strategy “Think, Pair, Share” where students are expected to interact with one another

to develop ideas. This strategy is engaging because it requires peer and group interaction with

material. The end class activity is an exit slip intended to be used as a formative assessment check

where the teacher is able to assess the students understanding of the material.

In contrast with the body of the first lesson which mostly includes an interactive instructional

strategy, the body of the second lesson mostly includes direct instruction and reflective questions to

provide information on character analysis as well as engage students. The activity in the second

lesson is an interactive instructional strategy because the students interact with others in the class

and are given the chance to engage with the material by creating their own character. This is also a

formative assessment. I will use their work sheets to get an idea of where the class is at with

understanding how to create characters.

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The differentiation that I am providing for both lessons is mostly dedicated towards the ESL

student in the class and the student who cannot sit for long periods of time. I have created a

differentiation for these students because the other students do not have difficulty with reading,

writing, or participating in conversations at their desks. I have decided to provide more one on one

time with the ESL student to ensure their understanding of the task. I have not changed the material

rather the way the material is being presented by providing more supports. For the student who has

trouble sitting for longer periods of time, I have accommodated for comfort by providing a fidget

chair. This chair will help him to fidget in his desk and still stay on task. Both of the differentiations

did not include changing the material because the emphasis of interaction in the lesson plans provide

for thoughtful discussion both in pairs and with the whole class. I did not want to deprive students of

this opportunity.

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 LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges

LESSON PLAN #1
Grade: 5 English Language Arts Lesson
Title: Exploration of the Short Story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas
Lesson Duration (mins): 40 mins

Overview of lesson (150 words). Write a clear and concise paragraph that indicates what the lesson is, how it is
connected to the POS and what students will learn.

This lesson serves to build off of a Grade 5 English Language Arts Unit which includes exploring new information by
reflecting on past experiences and prior knowledge. This unit is intended to cover the general learning outcome 1 in the
program of studies and this lesson specifically covers the SLO: express ideas and develop understanding. The purpose of
this lesson is to get students to think critically about a short story called Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas and consider
their own feelings towards the text based on prior experiences. Students are provided guiding questions which serve to
focus student’s thoughts on the reading towards reflection and individual understanding. Students are provided time to
share their answers for the guiding questions with a partner and participate in a group discussion. This allows for
students to hear how their experiences differ from others and are encouraged to consider how this might affect
interpretation of the short story.

Alberta Program of Study: Goals and Objectives . Carefully select GLO and SLO that pertain to your lesson. Do not put in
10 SLO's just because you find a link. Choose selectively and think carefully about what is achievable for students to learn by the end
of the lesson/unit

GLO /GLE SLO/SLE

GLO 1: Students will listen, speak, read, 1.1 Discover and Explore
write, view and represent to explore
thoughts, ideas, feelings and experiences. Express ideas and develop understanding

 use appropriate prior knowledge and experiences to

make sense of new ideas and information
 use own experiences as a basis for exploring and
expressing opinions and understanding

Critical Questions
The unit inquiry question guides the unit...at the end of the two lesson students must be able to respond to the unit question. The inquire question is
a broad question and is linked to curriculum outcomes

Unit Inquiry Question: How does my own experiences help me to understand the short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thompson and
how can I apply this new understanding of the short story to my own development of characters?

Lesson Guiding Questions (These types of questions guide the lesson itself and are more specific questions. These can facilitate
dialogue, they can be used for formative assessment and can be used to facilitate pedagogical discussion with your students. Guiding
questions aim to provoke thinking and can be used for share/pair activities. Guiding questions are just that - guiding. A lesson should
have several guiding questions.

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Lesson Guiding Questions
1. Based on your own experience or prior knowledge, do you think the Amigo brothers did the right thing by training alone?
Why?
2. Based on your own experience or prior knowledge, if you were in the same position as Antonio or Felix, do you think you
would have left the boxing ring without knowing who won the match? Why or why not?

3. Based on your own experience or prior knowledge, how does this short story shape your view of competition?

4. How might others who have different experiences interpret and understand the text differently?

Learning Objectives
Students will…
Reflect on the short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas by
- Recalling prior experiences and prior knowledge
- Applying the prior experiences and prior knowledge to analyze the text

Annotated Learning Resources List

These must be relevant and age appropriate and from a reliable source. If it is on online resource provide an active link.. If it a book, cite the book
and author. Provide 2 -3 sentences (annotated) to indicate what the resource is and why you have chosen it. How does it support your lesson and
student learning?

Resource: Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas

http://www.harcoboe.net/storage/file/39/3B19C9FFCC/amigobrothersstory-piri-thomas.pdf

Material and Equipment

List: Art supplies, manipulatives, smartboard, online white board etc…

- Classroom Whiteboard
- Pencil
- Eraser
- Printed exit slips to hand out to students

Lesson Procedures

Introduction (4 min.):
Description of Hook/Attention Grabber; Expectations for Learning and Behavior; Transition to Body. Indicate the timing for each section

Prior to Students Arrival to Class 5-10 Minutes:

 Write on the whiteboard an activity that students can do if they arrive early before class. This is what should be written on the
whiteboard:
1. Before class starts, bring out your short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas that was handed out last class
2. Discuss with your elbow partner and table what you thought about the text
 On another part of the board, write down the three guiding questions that students will be considering in class:
1. Do you think the Amigo brothers did the right thing by training alone? Think about your own experiences and prior
knowledge.
2. If you were in the same position as Antonio or Felix, do you think you would have left the boxing ring without knowing
who won the match? Why or why not? Think about your own experiences and prior knowledge.
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 LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges
3. How does this short story shape your view of competition? Think about your own experience and prior knowledge.

This allows for time efficiency so that students know the expectations. It also provides students who arrive early a chance to interact with
the text and their classmates.

Focused Imagining 1-2 Minutes

 Ask students to close their eyes and imagine what it would be like to be a boxer. Would it be scary? Imagine that you have to
do a boxing match with one of your friends. Would you be nervous? Would you be afraid to hurt them?

This tool is an Experiential Learning Instruction Strategy which is learner centered and emphasizes student experience. I decided to use
this activity because it grabs student’s attention and encourages students to reflect on prior knowledge and experiences. It also provides a
segway into the purpose of the lesson, to understand a text by reflecting on prior experiences.

Introduction to class activity 1-2 Minutes

 Explain that we will be reflecting on the short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas that was read for homework the night prior
 Read the Background Information on the PDF out loud for the students to get an introduction to the story
 Ask if anyone has any questions about the background information.

This is a Direct Instruction strategy known as a structured overview where the teacher gives an overview of the material. I chose to
use this method when introducing the short story to jog student’s memory about the reading.

Body (30 min.): This is the largest part of your lesson. Write clearly and concisely. Image a substitute teacher picks up this
lesson; will they be able to carry it out based on your descriptions and instruction?

Writing must be descriptive and clearly organized. Specify activities/steps/scaffolding and transitions in lesson. Indicate timing of
each section. Identify teaching strategies, organization of class etc. How and when are you using formative assessment in your
lesson? Indicate differentiation and accommodation in the provided tables

Steps and Procedures Identify Teaching Strategies: ex. Direct

Guiding Questions Think 2 Minutes instructions, pair/share, jigsaw, whole group
 Read the guiding questions on the board and give students a discussion etc. When will you use these and why?
moment to consider their answers to the questions.

1. Do you think the Amigo brothers did the right thing by training
alone? Think about your own experiences and prior knowledge. Assessments
2. If you were in the same position as Antonio or Felix, do you think Indicate what these will be and when you would
you would have left the boxing ring without knowing who won the use them.
match? Why or why not? Think about your own experiences and
prior knowledge. Formative: Example: Observation/Anecdotal,
3. How does this short story shape your view of competition? Think Student/Teacher conferencing, check list etc..
about your own experience and prior knowledge When will you administer these and why?

This is an indirect instruction strategy where I use reflective questions to focus Summative Assessment: Example Rubrics,
the students towards the intended outcome. I chose to give students a few
minutes to consider their answers to give students the chance to think prior to
quizzes test etc, projects
discussion. The strategy Think, Pair, Share is also an interactive instruction
method where students are expected to interact with one another to develop
ideas and understandings.

Guiding Questions Pair 10 Minutes

 Students discuss their answers to the questions with their elbow
partner

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This is an interactive instruction method where students are provided the
chance to think about their own interpretations and experiences and then
share with a partner before sharing with the class. I chose to do this because
it provides students the time to think about their own opinions and it also
provides students the time to at least share with one other person if they did
not get a chance to share with the class.

Guiding Questions Share 10 minutes

 Students are provided the chance to share their answers with the
class. This is a more open discussion where the teacher responds by
only asking students to elaborate or clarify. The teacher will also
keep the students on task by refocusing their answer if the student
begins to talk about something unrelated.
 After the students are given a chance to share their answers, ask the
students how hearing different answers from their classmates may
have shifted their understanding of the text.

This guided discussion is intended to get the students to think about their
prior knowledge reading the text and relate the text to their experiences. It
also allows students to listen to others and understand how different
experiences can cause different interpretation and understanding of the
same text.

This guided discussion is also intended to be a formative assessment to the

teacher. Are there any students that look confused or overwhelmed? Are
there any students who do not want to share their answers because they did
not understand the short story? For the students who are sharing their
answers, is it clear that they understand the material and are reflecting on
their prior experiences to further their understanding?

Reflection Exit Slip 8 Minutes

 Students are provided a lined paper that is approximately ¼ of the
page to write down their reflection of the short story
 Students must write their name on the paper
 They may chose to answer one of the questions discussed in class
OR they may talk about how their opinion has changed from the
beginning of class to the end of class
 The only requirement is that students reflect on the text based on
prior experience
 Teacher collects the exit slip once completed

This is a formative assessment check where the teacher is able to assess

where the students are at with understanding the text based on prior
experience.

Differentiation
Provide at least one.
Provide an example of an alternative way to deliver information to students. Imagine that you have some students that struggle with writing, what ways can you
differentiate your instruction to support students learning?

1. One student in the class has trouble sitting for long periods
of time without moving around. For this lesson I will give
him the class wobble chair so that he can move around
during the class.

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2. There is one student in the class who is an ESL student.

This student is able to read the short story although has
trouble writing his responses. While there is a working
period where students are writing their exit slip, I will work
one on one with him to ensure he understands the task
and has enough time to write out his response.

Consolidating and Closure: In this part of your planning you are providing time for ensuring that students learned
and understood what was intended in the lesson. If they haven't you will need to revisit your lesson plan or re-teach
(if necessary) Here you could provide an exit slip or walk through a guided whole group and/or small group
discussion. This part of the lesson can act also as a transition from lesson body into closure...cleanup and getting
ready for the next class. Don't forget to time this too and to indicate very clearly how you will facilitate consolidation
and closure. Provide Clear steps and indicate process. Often 5 mins is allotted for this section but that is not enough
time. To consolidate, clean up and get students ready for transition can take up to 10 - 15 mins depending on the
lesson

Closing remarks and Segway into Next Class – 2-3 Minutes

 Closing statements: Now that we have analyzed the short story and related the short story back to our own experiences
to better understand the material, I would like you all to think about how the characters in the story were built. Were
they easy to picture? How did the author distinguish between two different characters – Antonio and Felix. Think about
the two characters for next class

Pack up – 1 Minute
Students are given time to put the short story into their binder and pack up for the end of class.

Reflective Notes: You will only fill out this section after your deliver your lesson.

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LESSON PLAN #2
Grade: 5 English Language Arts
Lesson Title: Character Creation
Lesson Duration (mins): 40mins

Overview of lesson (150 words). Write a clear and concise paragraph that indicates what the lesson is, how it is
connected to the POS and what students will learn.

This lesson serves to build off of a Grade 5 English Language Arts Unit because students use their prior knowledge of
interpreting texts based off of experience and apply this knowledge to character analyzation. Students will think about
how the two characters in the short story Amigo Brothers were described and then students continue to think about
character traits by analyzing the character Mr. Bean from a video. The students are told by the teacher other character
traits and the teacher provides a worksheet for the students to create their own characters in partners. This worksheet
allows for the students to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of character creation. The purpose of this
lesson is for students to apply their knowledge of characters from the short story Amigo Brothers by developing their
own characters.

Alberta Program of Study: Goals and Objectives . Carefully select GLO and SLO that pertain to your lesson. Do not put in
10 SLO's just because you find a link. Choose selectively and think carefully about what is achievable for students to learn by the end
of the lesson/unit

GLO /GLE SLO/SLE

GLO 1: Students will listen, speak, read, 1.2 Discover and Explore
write, view and represent to explore
thoughts, ideas, feelings and experiences. Express ideas and develop understanding

 read, write, represent and talk to explore personal

understandings of new ideas and information

Critical Questions
The unit inquiry question guides the unit...at the end of the two lesson students must be able to respond to the unit question. The inquire question is
a broad question and is linked to curriculum outcomes

Unit Inquiry Question: How does my own experiences help me to understand the short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thompson and
how can I apply this new understanding of the short story to develop characters?

Lesson Guiding Questions (These types of questions guide the lesson itself and are more specific questions. These can facilitate
dialogue, they can be used for formative assessment and can be used to facilitate pedagogical discussion with your students. Guiding
questions aim to provoke thinking and can be used for share/pair activities. Guiding questions are just that - guiding. A lesson should
have several guiding questions.

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 LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges
Lesson Guiding Questions
1. What kinds of character traits did Mr. Bean have?
2. What kinds of character traits are present in a well written character?

Learning Objectives
Students will…
- Identify different kinds of character traits.
- Be able to create a character by writing specific character traits.

Annotated Learning Resources List

These must be relevant and age appropriate and from a reliable source. If it is on online resource provide an active link.. If it a book, cite the book
and author. Provide 2 -3 sentences (annotated) to indicate what the resource is and why you have chosen it. How does it support your lesson and
student learning?

Resource #1: Mr. Bean video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wk2oRMHOyjE

Resource #2: Character worksheet

you may have more than three resources

Material and Equipment

List: Art supplies, manipulatives, smartboard, online white board etc…

- Whiteboard
- Pencil
- Eraser

Lesson Procedures

Introduction (3 min.):
Description of Hook/Attention Grabber; Expectations for Learning and Behavior; Transition to Body. Indicate the timing for each section

Prior to Students Arrival to Class 5-10 Minutes:

 Write on the whiteboard an activity that students can do if they arrive early before class. This is what should be written on the
whiteboard:
1. Discuss with an elbow partner you thought about the characters in the short story Amigo Brothers by Piri Thomas.
2. What do you think defines a well written character?
 Get the class projector set up so that it is ready to play the Mr. Bean’s video

This allows for time efficiency so that students know the expectations. It also provides students who arrive early a chance to interact with
the text and their classmates

Hook/Attention Grabber 3 mins

 Play the Mr. Bean video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wk2oRMHOyjE

I chose this video as an attention grabber because it is engaging and accommodates for more visual learners.

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 LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges
Body ( 35 min.): This is the largest part of your lesson. Write clearly and concisely. Image a substitute teacher picks up this
lesson; will they be able to carry it out based on your descriptions and instruction?

Writing must be descriptive and clearly organized. Specify activities/steps/scaffolding and transitions in lesson. Indicate timing of
each section. Identify teaching strategies, organization of class etc. How and when are you using formative assessment in your
lesson? Indicate differentiation and accommodation in the provided tables

Steps and Procedures Identify Teaching Strategies: ex. Direct

instructions, pair/share, jigsaw, whole group
Discussion on Mr. Bean video 10 Minutes discussion etc. When will you use these and why?
 Ask students to recall how different the two characters were in the
short story Amigo Brothers and how they were described by the
author.
 Ask students how would you describe Mr. Bean?
Assessments
Indicate what these will be and when you would
 Start writing what the students say on the board and ask the
students why they would describe him like that – For example, if the
use them.
students say he is silly then ask them why? Was it because he was
forgetful? Formative: Example: Observation/Anecdotal,
Student/Teacher conferencing, check list etc..
This is an indirect instructional strategy because students are engaging in a When will you administer these and why?
reflective discussion and sharing their thoughts. The teacher is still delegating
the conversation although it is more up to the students to discover character Summative Assessment: Example Rubrics,
traits. quizzes test etc, projects
 Tell students that these are examples of what makes a character.
 Write on the whiteboard examples of character traits: hobbies, body
mannerisms (do they stand up tall, do they slouch, are they
clumsy?), what kind of voice do they have (deep, high pitch, do they
talk slow), what kinds of clothes do they wear, what kinds of movies
do they like etc.

This is a direct instructional strategy because the teacher is expected to

provide a lecture style instruction to the students after they have provided
their own thoughts and ideas.
 Ask if students have anything to add to the list and write these
answers on the white board.

I chose to add this into the lesson because it gives students the opportunity
to think about the material learned and consider if they would add
information which creates a more active learning environment.

Activity 25 minutes
 The teacher tells the students it is their turn to create their own
character.
 The teacher tells the students that the teacher will hand out a
character worksheet for students to fill out to create their own
character.
 The teacher asks students to find a partner to complete the
worksheet together (provide 1 minute for the students to find a
partner)
 Hand out the worksheet and give students 20 minutes to create
their own character by filling out the worksheet.

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 LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE Curriculum and Instruction Fall 2019 St. Georges
This is an example of interactive instruction because the students interact
with other students in the class and are given the chance to engage with the
material by creating their own character. This is also a form of formative
assessment. I will use their work sheets to get an idea of where they are at
with understanding how to build characters.

Differentiation
Provide at least one.

Provide an example of an alternative way to deliver information to students. Imagine that you have some students that struggle with writing, what ways can you
differentiate your instruction to support students learning?
- I will pair the ESL student in the class with a student who is
a strong reader so that the ESL student will feel less stress
on reading the assignment and still be able to engage in
character building.
- I will also circle around the classroom and ask the pair with
the ESL student to make sure they are on task and
engaged.
- I will also allow students to sit anywhere in the classroom
to do their work so that the students in the class who do
not like working at a desk are given a chance to move
around the room.

Consolidating and Closure: In this part of your planning you are providing time for ensuring that students learned
and understood what was intended in the lesson. If they haven't you will need to revisit your lesson plan or re-teach
(if necessary) Here you could provide an exit slip or walk through a guided whole group and/or small group
discussion. This part of the lesson can act also as a transition from lesson body into closure...cleanup and getting
ready for the next class. Don't forget to time this too and to indicate very clearly how you will facilitate consolidation
and closure. Provide Clear steps and indicate process. Often 5 mins is allotted for this section but that is not enough
time. To consolidate, clean up and get students ready for transition can take up to 10 - 15 mins depending on the
lesson

Closing statements 1 minute

- Tell students: Similar to last class when we each had different answers for the three big questions we talked about, we
are all going to have created different characters. We all have different experiences and understandings of what a well
written character entails. Next class we will have a chance to share our different characters with the class and reflect
more on character building.

Students hand in character sheet and pack up anything they need to pack up 1 minute

Reflective Notes: You will only fill out this section after your deliver your lesson.

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