Teacher - Mr. de Beer
School - D.T.S.
Grade - Eight
Day - WEDNESDAY
Curriculum
Cycle Three Week One
Subject - LANGUAGE ARTS
Week of - 2nd Feb. to 6th
Feb. 2014
Period(s) - BLOCK 1,2,3
BIG QUESTION
Approaching Adulthood
STANDARD(S)
The student will be able to...
...identify the motivations of characters in a story and determine the factors that help him or her understand
the theme of the story.
...make inferences and determine the theme of a poem.
Common Core Standards for the week:
RL1 Cite textual evidence.
RL2 Determine a theme.
RL3 Analyze how incidents in a story reveal a character.
RL4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text.
W2 Write explanatory text to examine a topic.
W4 Produce clear and coherent writing.
W9a Apply grade 8 Reading standards to literature.
W10 Write routinely over extended and shorter time frames.
L1a Explain the function of infinitives.
L4b Use Latin affixes as clues to meaning.
L4d Verify preliminary determination of meaning.
L6 Acquire and use grade-appropriate academic and domain-specific words and phrases.
Common Core Standards for today’s lesson:
RL1 Cite textual evidence.
RL2 Determine a theme.
RL3 Analyze how incidents in a story reveal a character.
RL4 Analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
W4 Produce clear and coherent writing.
W9a Apply grade 8 Reading standards to literature.
W10 Write routinely over extended and shorter time frames.
MATERIALS
* Collections Textbook @ my.hrw.com
* Laptop computers and internet connections.
* Vocabulary Notebooks
* Teacher Created Videos
* Anne Frank: The diary of a young girl
PROCEDURES
1. Entrance Activity
Students enter the room, get their laptop up and running, and answer a reading test.
When students finish this activity they may decide what activity to complete next from the selection menu.
While students progress, the teacher checks on the homework from the previous night.
If students have successfully completed the test taking procedure they may collect one cone as a reward.
Block 1,2, & 3: Students input answers for PSSA homework.
2. Student Selection Menu
Option a. Vocabulary: retribution, impotent, stoicism
Option b. PSSA PACKET: Pages 57-62 The Argumentative Essay.
Option c. Writing: The Argumentative Essay
Students work on these activities until all the students have completed their test for the day and the teacher is
ready to teach the lesson.
3. Teacher Lesson(s)
Collections: Approaching Adulthood
Marigolds pg. 219-220
Focus is on:
Analyzing language
Making inferences
PROCEDURES (Continued)
3. Teacher Lesson(s) (continued)
Poetry: Teenagers by Pat Mora
Anaylze the structure of the poem
Determine the theme.
Compare and contrast Point of View of Hanging Fire and Teenagers, then theme.
4. Small Group Activity
Discussion of Anne Frank reading homework from the weekend.
This is a whole group activity
5. Guided and Individual Practice
Review PSSA Packet: The Argumentative Essay
Review paragraph structure: Main Idea in a topic sentence, followed by specific details (facts, statistics, anecdotes, or examples), and a conclusion with transition.
6. Closing Activity or Summary
Students must return to their selection menu to complete all the items.
Formative Assessment/Check for Understanding
The entrance activity test of a novel chapter checks whether the student has completed the assigned reading,
but also checks a key literary concept. I.E. Chapter one always checks the student’s understanding of setting.
Chapter two always analyzes character.
While students complete the entrance activity, the teacher checks that the vocabulary sentences are complete
from the night before and that the student is using the word correctly in context. The teacher may also check
the PSSA preparation homework to ensure that the student is applying knowledge correctly.
The literature is checked and graded typically through the use of graphic organizers, written samples, small
group discussions, and tests. This week students will be graded based on the quality of the small group discussions and writing samples.
HOMEWORK
Block 1,2,&3
* PSSA Packet pg. 55-63 The Argumentative Essay
* Complete any classwork that was not completed.
DIFFERENTIATION
All students select tutorials and training programs on my.hrw.com based on need.
TECHNOLOGY * my.hrw.com
* Laptop computers and internet connections.
* Teacher website (www.sedelco.org/Domain/189)
* Projector