FINAL PROJECT 2

Final Project

Part one: Lesson plan
Lesson Plan 1
Grade Level
My lesson is designed for the 8 th grade because learners at this level study should be
aware of how to engage in purposeful reading. This lesson is aimed at tapping on the
learner’s ability to read texts and make correct interpretations while providing the
necessary evidence to support their interpretation.
Instructional Model
The direct instruction model will be employed during the lesson. Learners will engage
in small, prescribed learning tasks, which will be well-developed and carefully
planned.
Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.1.
Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Objectives
Students will KNOW
 How to read a text with the aim of understanding the author’s main message in the
literary piece.
 How to provide textual evidence to support the personal interpretation of a text.
Students will UNDERSTAND
 The process of making a correct analysis of a text, and the process of citing strong
textual evidence to support the analysis of a text.
Students will be able to DO

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 Provide an analysis of Whitman, Walt’s poem, “O Captain! My Captain!” Leaves of
Grass (1865)
 The learners will provide a written report of their analysis of the poem while citing
textual evidence to support the analysis.
Assessment Plan
Formative:
Formative assessment will include the use of strategic questioning. Students will be
asked higher-order questions, such as those containing ‘why’ and ‘how’ so that they
can explain their thinking during the presentation. The use of such questions will be
instrumental in ascertaining the learner’s level and extent of understanding. Further, I
will use the think-pair-share strategy in conducting formative assessments. This will
involve asking a question and instructing the students to write down their responses.
Students will then sit in pairs and exchange as they discuss their responses. I will move
around the classroom and check on different responses by different students. I will
provide assistance and guidance where necessary. This technique will help students
gain deeper and valuable insight on the content being covered during the lesson.
Lastly, I will use round-robin charts where students will sit in groups and record
answers to open-ended questions contained in each chart. The responses provided by
different groups will be discussed in class.

Summative:
Students will complete a test at the end of the lesson that will contain questions
relating to the content covered and relating to the poem, Whitman, Walt. “O Captain!
My Captain!” Leaves of Grass. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. (1865). The
completed test will be marked and graded. At the end of the lesson, students will
answer questions in a written format, which will be marked and graded.
Procedure

1. Review previously learned material

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I will introduce the lesson by reminding learners previous instances when they have
entered the library and read literary pieces, just for fun. I will ask them to name a few
and inquire if they can remember what the books were about. I will then explain what
purposeful reading is as I get to step two and in traduce the lesson’s objectives.

2. State objectives of the lesson
   I will introduce the objectives to be achieved by the end of the lesson, and then project
   them on the whiteboard so that the learners can read them.
3. Present new material
   I will present new materials for the learners. First, I will provide them with copies of
   the poem. I will also guide them on how to use their tablets to access additional
   reference materials from the library. I will provide links of sites that could have
   information that will be instrumental in helping achieve the lesson’s objectives. As
   learners engage in discussions within their small groups, I will go around the
   classroom and provide assistance when needed.
4. Guided practice
   I will guide students in reading the poem and discuss it to ensure the message is well
   understood. Students will then be given an opportunity to explain briefly and, in their
   own words the central message of the poem. After the learners give their interpretation,
   I will guide them into discussing the poet’s central idea. Students will also be
   explained how to cite textual evidence from the poem so that to support their
   interpretation of the poem’s main theme. They will then be guided to answer oral
   questions relating to the poem. This will further foster their understanding and help in
   the accomplishment of the lesson’s objectives.
5. Independent practice
   Learners will complete the test and respond to questions given to them. Also, they will
   take part in group discussions and make personal reports from their discussions.

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Lesson Plan 2
Grade Level
My lesson is designed for the 8 th grade because, at this stage, students are becoming
purposeful readers of literary pieces. They have the ability to read texts and analyze
them clearly explaining themes developed by the author and styles adopted by the
author in the development of the themes. They are also becoming aware of their
studying style.
Instructional Model
An interactive instruction model will be used during the lesson. Cooperative learning
groups will be used in reading the text. Students will be divided into small groups and
they will be given instructions accordingly on the activities to be carried out within the
groups.
Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.2
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the
text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective
summary of the text.
Objectives
Students will KNOW
 How to read a text while identifying the author’s central message.
 How to determine a central idea or theme of a strong and explain how it is developed
throughout a text.

Students will UNDERSTAND
 The process of determining a text’s central idea and how the theme relates to the
setting of the text, plot, and characters used by the author in the development of the
central idea.

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Students will be able to DO
 Discuss the main themes that they will be able to identify in Whitman, Walt. “O,
Captain! My Captain!” Leaves of Grass. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990.
(1865)
 They will write down the themes and cite specific evidence from the poem to support
their analysis and interpretation.
Assessment Plan
Formative:
Formative assessment will include presentations during the lesson. Students will be
divided into small groups each group comprising a minimum of three students. Each
group will be tasked with reading the poem, analyzing it and determining the central
idea developed throughout the poem. After the discussions within the small groups,
each group will make a presentation. Each member of the small groups will present a
part of the final report, and this will ensure that the teacher can gauge individual
learner’s understanding of the theme of the poem. Each student will be tasked with
explaining how they arrived at the answer and identify the part of the poem that
supports the interpretation made by the group. This assessment will take place during
the lesson. Each learner will be allocated one minute to make his or her presentation
and clarity, and the ability to cite strong textual evidence to support the interpretation
will be checked.
Summative:
Students will be complete worksheets containing questions relating to the poem,
Whitman, Walt. “O, Captain! My Captain!” Leaves of Grass. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1990. (1865). Summative assessment will include answering
questions relating to the poem. The worksheets will be marked and graded. At the end
of the unit, students will be instructed to provide written answers for questions given
and this too will be marked and graded.

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Procedure

2. Review previously learned material
   I will review content covered in the previous lesson and help the learners recall how
   they learned how to cite textual evidence from a text. In the previous lesson, learners
   read a text and learned how to make detailed interpretation of texts, while citing textual
   evidence to support the individual interpretation. I will explain that this lesson is a
   build-up and they will be using tips from the previous lesson to interpret literary texts
   further.
3. State objectives of the lesson
   I will project the objectives of the lesson on the whiteboard and guide the students in
   reading them as I explain their role in achieving the objectives.
4. Present new material
   I will provide instructions to the learners and guide them on how to use their tablets to
   access online materials that will be instrumental in helping achieve the objectives of
   the lesson. Students will also have access to reference books from the library, which
   they will use to deepen their understanding of the content.
   I will provide necessary guidance during the interactive session, even as learners
   engage in discussions within their small groups.
5. Guided practice
   First, learners will be divided into small learning groups, within which they will be
   engaged in guided discussions of the poem. Students will receive instructional
   guidance that will be tailored to meet individual needs. I will then guide each group on
   how it will go about reading the poem and analyzing it to identify the central idea.
   First, students will take some time to read the poem individually to ensure that they
   understand the contents of the poem, before embarking on analyzing the poem by
   taking part in the groups. They will then explain in their own words, each at a time,
   their understanding of the poem. Learners will then take turns in the discussions while
   ensuring that they cite textual evidence to support their interpretation.

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5. Independent practice
   Learners will complete the worksheets and answer questions given to them. Also, they
   will take part in oral presentations in class and present their findings from their
   discussions.

Lesson Plan 3
Grade Level
My lesson is designed for the 8 th grade because of continuity. The first two lessons
have covered two standards, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.1 and CCSS.ELA-
LITERACY.RL.8.2, thus making it easier to cover CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.3 so
that I am able to fully cover key ideas and details concerning the poem that I
introduced in the first lesson. Also, at 8 th grade, learners have started to gain advanced
comprehension skills, and they are able to understand other aspects of a literary piece
such as the relationship between theme and characters.

Instructional Model
I will use the problem-Based learning (PBL) model to deliver the lesson content.
Cooperative learning groups will be used in reading the text. This model will be the
best fit for this lesson because learners will be involved in a small project where they
will compose short poems in groups, and then analyze the poems to get the relationship
between its particular lines of dialogue, the characters as well as the poem’s central
idea.
Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.3
Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action,
reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.
Objectives
Students will KNOW

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 How to read and analyze lines of dialogue in a literary piece and explain how it propels
action and helps in identifying the main theme in a literary piece such as a poem.
 How to compose a poem and ensure that the lines of dialogue propel its central action
and leads to the identification of the central idea in a poem.

Students will UNDERSTAND
 The process of creating a poem, which is an original, imaginative, and creative piece
whose lines of dialogue reveal key aspects of a character or characters and propels
action that helps in establishing the central idea in the poem.
Students will be able to DO
 Analyze Whitman Walt’s poem, “O Captain! My Captain!” Leaves of Grass. Oxford
(1865) and how the lines of the poem propel action within the piece as well as help in
the identification of the central idea.
 They will compose a poem and identify the main idea in the piece.
Assessment Plan
Formative:
In ensuring that learners understand, formative assessment will involve short quizzes
about the content, not aimed at evaluating what they have learned, but to check their
understanding. The short quiz will be aimed at helping me make an informed decision
on whether to lead the whole class in a detailed discussion on the content and skills
required to perform the task given or whether to allow students to continue composing
and analyzing their poems. The decision will be made based on the results of the quiz.
Summative:
Students will compose poems, which will be marked and graded. Also, they will
analyze poems composed to other students, and identify the central idea, provide
textual evidence from the poem. Students will and in written reports of their analysis
which will also be marked and graded.

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Procedure

3. Review previously learned material
   I will review content covered in the previous lesson and remind learners of the
   importance of citing strong textual evidence to support the analysis and interpretation
   of a literary piece.
4. State objectives of the lesson
   I will introduce the objectives to be attained during the lesson and put them up on the
   whiteboard for students to view and read them.
5. Present new material
   I will provide instructions to the learners and guide them on how to use their tablets to
   access online materials that will be instrumental in helping achieve the objectives of
   the lesson. Students will also have access to reference books from the library, which
   they will use to deepen their understanding of the content and help them in composing
   their poems.
   I will provide necessary guidance during the lesson, as learners compose their poems
   and provide assistance whenever necessary.
6. Guided practice
   First, learners will be guided on how to analyze a poem and explain how the lines of
   dialogue propel the central idea or revolve around the character or characters in the
   poem. They will then be guided on how to compose their poems, which will be having
   a central idea, lines of dialogue, and a character or characters that revolve around the
   central idea. After composing their poems, students will then exchange their poems
   with each other. Every student will then analyze a poem composed by a different
   student, and clearly indicate how lines of dialogue revolve around the characters and
   help propel the central idea. They will compile a written report based on their analysis
   of the poems.
7. Independent practice
   Learners will compose poems and provide analysis of poems written by other students

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based on the instructions given during the lesson.

Part Two: Rationale
Introduction
The focus of my unit of study is to teach students at 8 th -grade basic elements of analyzing
and interpreting literary pieces. Through three different lessons, my project seeks to provide a
plan of how to teach learners in eighth grade how to cite the textual evidence that most strongly
supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. It
also seeks to help learners be in a position to determine a theme or central idea of a text and
analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters,
setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text. Lastly, the project focuses on guiding
learners on how to analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama
propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.
The rationale for the selection of instructional models
The unit consists of three lessons, and a different model was selected for each of these
lessons. In the first lesson, the direct instruction model was selected because it allows the learner
to get more detailed and varied instruction. Since it is the first lesson, I needed to do a lot of
introduction, and this model allows for the teacher to provide more details and assess how the
students are responding to the new content being delivered as opposed to independent study
where I have to wait until students hand in their work so that I can tell whether they understand
or not. Also, this model allows for more interaction in the classroom (Rittle‐Johnson, 2006).
The interaction was necessary to achieve the lesson’s objectives. Further, the second lesson used

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the cooperative instruction model, where learners were guided into working in groups. After
introducing the unit in the previous lesson, this model was best fitted for the second lesson as it
allows for interaction and teamwork in the classroom. Also, the model ensures that students are
motivated to help one another learn as they work in well-organized groups (Stevens, 2003). As
students work in groups, they explain to one another and thus enhance their own learning. The
lesson entailed citing strong textual evidence from a literary piece (poem). Through interactive
learning, students have an opportunity to explain their reasoning and foster each other’s thoughts
as they work in groups. Also, it makes it easy for the teacher to provide customized feedback to
every student through the presentation and this fosters learning. The last lesson incorporated the
Problem-Based Learning (PBL) model. The model was instrumental in achieving the objectives
of the lesson as it helped learners locate appropriate resources that they needed for learning. It
also helped them assume responsibility for their own learning and enhance retention of
knowledge (Hansen et al., 2015). One of the objectives is to have learners compose a poem,
which was to be original, creative, and imaginative. This model helps ensure that learners engage
in independent learning, and they can apply content learned especially in the preceding two
lessons of the unit.
Meeting the needs of diverse learners
At the end of the three lessons, incorporating three different models helped meet the
needs of diverse learners. For instance, using the direct instruction model, students have the
chance to ask more questions, ask for clarification in areas they feel uncertain, and request for
assistance whenever needed. Thus, this model accommodates all students regardless of their
learning pace. The second model used in this unit is the cooperative learning model, which
fosters teamwork. Students who encounter challenges in communicating have their

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communication skills enhanced as they take part in group discussions. Also, since each group has
a leader, students have a chance to enhance their leadership skills. Lastly, the problem-based
learning model was used in the third lesson, and this helped accommodate different student
needs. The model augments self-learning and this allows students to learn how to solve problems
on their own (Masek & Yamin, 2010). Self-initiative is fostered, and students whose
concentration span is low, and thus are disadvantaged by the direct instruction model, are
favored by this model.
Assessment and accountability
An assessment helps the educator make informed decisions on the progress and mastery
of content during a lesson and at the end of a unit or an instructional period (Johnston et al.,
2005). The use of short quizzes alongside the problem-based learning model will help check the
understanding level of the learners and their ability to complete their individual tasks. Instruction
will then be adjusted accordingly. Further, completing worksheets helps check whether
objectives have been achieved, and to what extent. In lesson plan two, students will make
presentations, and this will help assess their mastery of content and level of understanding
depending on their clarity as they present. Lastly, answering questions and completing tests is a
good form of summative assessment that helps indicate learner’s abilities after completing a unit.
Evaluation Plan
Overall, my unit of study is well prepared. It is detailed, comprehensive, and easy to
follow during actual implementation. It provides detailed that will be instrumental in content
delivery. The effectiveness of my unit of study will be based on the ease of implementing the
lesson plans. The lesson plans are only effective if the implementation of the plans is effective as

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well. During implementation, I will make small adjustments based on the feedback received
during the assessment. If during the formative assessment, I realize that students are
encountering difficulties compiling their own poems, then I can put them in pairs to ensure they
have a chance to share ideas and come up with an original piece. Also, if writing a test takes a lot
of time, then I can decide to have a few written questions as a form of assessment to ensure that
objectives are achieved within the stipulated time. Overall, there will be minimal adjustments as
the plans are well-thought-out.
Conclusion
Lesson planning is one of the most important methods through which a teacher is able to
plan his or her lesson. It helps identify lesson objectives and the procedure that will be followed
in ensuring that the objectives are achieved. I feel confident about my lesson planning abilities. I
specifically feel that I am good at completing the assessment segment. This is the part that allows
a teacher to understand the progress being made. I like planning well for this segment because I
am able to establish whether the objectives of the lesson are being achieved, and how to readjust
content delivery and instructional methods accordingly to enhance learning and foster learner’s
understanding level. I feel confident with my abilities in preparing both the summative
assessment segment and the formative assessment segment. However, I think that I will need
more support in planning for the part on how to introduce new material to the learners. It is not
that easy planning for this segment as I cannot ascertain all the materials that learners will come
across for reference especially where they have to use their tablets to search for additional
reference materials online. Overall, I learned a lot when preparing the final project.

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References

Hansen, C.B., Buczynski, S., & Puckett, K.S. (2015). Curriculum and instruction for the 21st
Century. Bridgepoint Education
Johnston, P., Guice, S., Baker, K., Malone, J., & Michelson, N. (2005). Assessment of teaching
and learning in “literature-based” classrooms. Teaching and Teacher Education, 11(4),
359-371.
Masek, A., & Yamin, S. (2010). Problem-based learning model: A collection from the
literature. Asian Social Science, 6(8), 148.
Rittle‐Johnson, B. (2006). Promoting transfer: Effects of self‐explanation and direct
instruction. Child Development, 77(1), 1-15.
Stevens, R. J. (2003). Student team reading and writing: A cooperative learning approach to
middle school literacy instruction. Educational Research and Evaluation, 9(2), 137-160.