Exploring Identity and Diving Deep into the Complex Meaning of Poetry
This lesson is designed to teach students to make complex inferences, choose specific text evidence that strongly supports the inference, and develop a coherent explanation of how the evidence strongly supports the validity of the idea within the genre of poetry.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) Related to the Unit
Click below to learn about the TEKS related to this unit.
A Lesson in Kindness and Thematic Complexity
Students explore their internal definition of kindness, using visual and textual evidence to collaboratively expand that definition and perform a close reading of a poem. Students then use internal text to express the author’s complex and subtle thematic message.
Inferring Through Imagery and Figurative Language
Students rotate to four posters which contain a single stanza from a common poem (“Digging” by Seamus Heaney), marking key literary elements (imagery, diction, figurative language) before rotating to explain the connotation of the words and phrases selected by the previous group. After text marking, students regroup to discuss the inferential connections between literary terms and their connotative meaning to theorize thematic meaning within the poem.
Making an Inference
The class will review previous learning about how authors describe characters using speech, thoughts, effects on others, actions, and looks (STEAL). Students will make annotations on an excerpt using the STEAL strategy. We will talk them through making a guided inference. Students will complete a short-answer response on chart paper with evidence and inference for the focus question
Super Sleuths SIP on Vocabulary: Using Sentences, Illustrations, and Prefixes/Suffixes to Make Meaning
Students will learn strategies to find the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words using the acronym SIP (sentence, illustration, prefixes/suffixes).
Denotation and Connotation (English I Reading)
You will be able to distinguish between the denotative (dictionary) meaning of a word and its connotative (emotions or associations that are implied rather than literal) meaning.
Linguistic Roots and Affixes (English 8 Reading)
You will be able to recognize linguistic roots and affixes to use in determining the meanings of academic English words and in other content areas.
Author’s Purpose, Text Features, Informational Text, and Daily Three
Students will follow the Daily Three structure to engage in mini-lessons regarding author’s purpose, text features, guided reading, work on writing, read to self, and word work. The students will also infer the author’s purpose for writing a book using a book order form.
Tone is in the Fear of the Beholder: Reading and Writing Using Multimodal Mentor Texts
This resource is a demonstration lesson presented at the 2014 Write for Texas Summer Institute. It provides a snapshot of a four to five week unit that engages students in the reading and writing workshop model.
Be an Editing Star with Checklists and TPR!
Students review editing marks using TPR (Total Physical Response), while listening to a reading of a mentor text. Next, students use a brief procedural composition to edit for punctuation, capitalization, commas, and complete sentences. Students also use a checklist to edit a peer’s writing.
Teaching Text Features of Elephant Proportions
Using a graphic organizer, students will collaboratively use text features to analyze an expository text. Students will locate information from the text to extract meaning and understanding about a topic.
TSLP—0–SE—Leadership—L2—Matching Instruction to Needs
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
Too Hot for Main Idea
Students will collaborate and examine a reading passage to determine the topic and main idea of the passage.
Teacher Introducing Lesson
TSLP—6–12—Assessment—A1—Literacy Assessment Plan
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Assessment—A2—Identifying Students At Risk
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Assessment—A3—Determining Instructional Needs
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Assessment—A4—Monitoring Student Progress
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Standards-based Instruction—SBI 3.A—Reading Instruction
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Effective Instructional Framework—E1—Data to Inform Instruction
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.
TSLP—6–12—Effective Instructional Framework—E2—Tier I Literacy Instruction
The goal of the Texas State Literacy Plan (TSLP) is to ensure that every Texas child is strategically prepared for the literacy demands of college or career by high school graduation.