By the end of this lesson students will be able to identify how words and phrases in a poem evoke a feeling or help the reader imagine how something looks, feels, smells, sounds, or tastes.
“I can independently identify how words and phrases in a poem evoke a feeling or help the reader imagine how something looks, feels, smells, sounds, or tastes.”
LESSON OVERVIEW
| Steps |
Pacing: 45-60 Minutes |
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10-15 Minutes |
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35 Minutes |
Standards Alignment
Reading Standards (Literature)
RL 3.1: Ask And Answer Questions To Demonstrate Understanding Of A Text, Referring Explicitly To The Text As The Basis For The Answers.
RL 3.4: Determine The Meaning Of Words And Phrases As They Are Used In A Text, Distinguishing Literal From Nonliteral Language.
RL 4.1: Refer To Details And Examples In A Text When Explaining What The Text Says Explicitly And When Drawing Inferences From The Text.
RL 4.4: By The End Of The Year, Read And Comprehend Literature, Including Stories, Dramas, And Poetry, In The Grades 4–5 Text Complexity Band Proficiently, With Scaffolding As Needed At The High End Of The Range.
RL 5.4: Determine The Meaning Of Words And Phrases As They Are Used In A Text, Including Figurative Language Such As Metaphors And Similes.
Speaking & Listening
SL 3.1a: Come To Discussions Prepared, Having Read Or Studied Required Material; Explicitly Draw On That Preparation And Other Information Known About The Topic To Explore Ideas Under Discussion.
SL 3.1b: Follow Agreed-Upon Rules For Discussions (E.G., Gaining The Floor In Respectful Ways, Listening To Others With Care, Speaking One At A Time About The Topics And Texts Under Discussion).
SL 3.1c: Ask Questions To Check Understanding Of Information Presented, Stay On Topic, And Link Their Comments To The Remarks Of Others.
SL 3.1d: Explain Their Own Ideas And Understanding In Light Of The Discussion.
SL 3.6: Speak In Complete Sentences When Appropriate To Task And Situation In Order To Provide Requested Detail Or Clarification.
SL 4.1a: Come To Discussions Prepared, Having Read Or Studied Required Material; Explicitly Draw On That Preparation And Other Information Known About The Topic To Explore Ideas Under Discussion.
SL 4.1b: Follow Agreed-Upon Rules For Discussions And Carry Out Assigned Roles.
SL 4.1c: Pose And Respond To Specific Questions To Clarify Or Follow Up On Information, And Make Comments That Contribute To The Discussion And Link To The Remarks Of Others.
SL 4.1d: Review The Key Ideas Expressed And Explain Their Own Ideas And Understanding In Light Of The Discussion.
SL 4.6: Differentiate Between Contexts That Call For Formal English (E.G., Presenting Ideas) And Situations Where Informal Discourse Is Appropriate (E.G., Small-Group Discussion); Use Formal English When Appropriate To Task And Situation.
SL 5.1a: Come To Discussions Prepared, Having Read Or Studied Required Material; Explicitly Draw On That Preparation And Other Information Known About The Topic To Explore Ideas Under Discussion.
SL 5.1b: Follow Agreed-Upon Rules For Discussions And Carry Out Assigned Roles.
SL 5.1c: Pose And Respond To Specific Questions By Making Comments That Contribute To The Discussion And Elaborate On The Remarks Of Others.
SL 5.1d: Review The Key Ideas Expressed And Draw Conclusions In Light Of Information And Knowledge Gained From The Discussions.
SL 5.6: Adapt Speech To A Variety Of Contexts And Tasks, Using Formal English When Appropriate To Task And Situation.
Reading Standards (Literature)
RL 5.1: Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
RL 5.6: Describe how a narrator’s or speaker’s point of view influences how events are described.
Teaching Resources
-Laptop or Tablet
-Speakers (Optional)
Audio Recordings of Poetry
Unit 5 includes the following Life & Learning Skills:
-Reflective thinking
-Creative problem-solving
-Critical and analytic thinking
-Collaboration Communication
Differentiation Options
Differentiation Options will appear throughout the unit to suggest ways to scaffold or challenge student learning. Use the number of helping hands to select the level of differentiation that best supports student learning.
Highest level of scaffolding. Select this option if students are learning strategies for the first time, if the text is challenging for them, or if students require more guidance during activities. Part 1 lessons are written for the highest level of scaffolding.
Moderate scaffolding. Select this option if students require some support comprehending the text or navigating the activity.
Least amount of scaffolding/Extending the instruction. Select this option if students are ready to work more independently, move more quickly through the material, or are ready for additional challenge.
Leveraging Moments
Key instructional steps where the arts are used to leverage literacy-learning (and vice versa) are marked with . Smaller leveraging moments also occur throughout the lessons.
Process: Give an overview of the lesson objectives: Read and discuss several poems. Students choose a poem and work in groups to explore the words and phrases in the poem through movement and prosody.
The following poems are in the students’ Unit 5 Texts:
-“kitten,” by Valerie Worth
-“hose,” by Valerie Worth
-“A Writing Kind of Day,” by Ralph Fletcher
Feel free to add or substitute other free-verse poems. See
Out of School Reading for suggestions. In addition, you can use poetry in students’ native language.
Differentiation Options: Students Work Independently to Explore Words & Phrases
Read & discuss poems as a class. Provide targeted support as groups explore words & phrases using movement and prosody.
Read & discuss poems as a class. Groups select poem. Groups work independently to explore words & phrases using movement and prosody.
Groups work independently to read and discuss poems, select poem to explore, and engage in word exploration using movement and prosody.
If time is limited, skip Lessons 7 & 8 in which students work independently to explore the words and phrases in poems. Move to Lesson 9 to begin writing poems.
Suggested Dialogue
"Today you are going get a chance to work more independently in exploring words and phrases in poems. We will read three poems, and then each of you will choose one poem that you want to work with. I will put you into groups. Together, you will explore words and phrases that stand out for you in your poem, through movement and prosody. In the next lesson, you’ll create dances to share with the class."
"By the end of today’s lesson, you will be able to say, 'I can independently identify how words and phrases in a poem evoke a feeling or help the reader imagine how something looks, feels, smells, sounds, or tastes'.”
Process: Introduce and read aloud each of the three poems. Have students follow along in their Unit 5 Texts and turn to pages
21,
25,
28. Read each poem aloud several times, stopping to discuss the words and phrases that stand out. Feel free to have students read the poems independently instead of guiding them through the initial exploration. Show images of topics and vocabulary as needed from this resource page. Ask the following questions:
-What word or phrase stood out for you?
-Did it give you an image, or a feeling, or did it make you think of an experience you’ve had? Tell us about it.
-Did anyone else have a response to this word or phrase?
-(Ask only when appropriate.) Why do you think the poet chose this word or phrase?
List words and phrases on the Words in Motion Wall either during or after discussion. Prompt students to decide which poem they wish to explore, and put students in groups. If desired, put into groups and assign a poem, or let them decide together which poem to explore.
ELL Support: Comprehensible Input
Support ELL language development and comprehension by starting with a short vocabulary lesson using Vocabulary Snapshots for the optional poems in Unit 5 Texts.
Suggested vocabulary to pre-teach using visual icons:
- Kitten - Nose level - Squeeze -
- Arched - Hind legs - Rainbow -
- Leaps - Cactus-clawed - Diamond -
- Pounces - Silver rod - Ripples -
- Hose - Drop in puddle -
- Mud Tiny circle -
Sample Visual Icons
See Unit 5 Texts,
pages 18-28 (students) and this
resource page (teachers) for Vocabulary Snapshot activities using these visual icons and more.
Suggested Dialogue
Reading “kitten” by Valerie Worth
"Open your Unit 5 Texts to pages 21. We will read each poem aloud and then you will decide which poem you want to explore. Let’s start with “kitten,” by Valerie Worth. What are kittens like? What feeling do you get from the title of the poem? (Students respond.) We’ll read the poem aloud several times."
"The first time, just listen to the poem." (Read poem.)
"The second time, close your eyes and see what kind of feelings or images come into your mind." (Read poem again.)
"The third time, follow along in your text as I read. Notice words and phrases that stand out because they evoke a visual image, a strong feeling, an idea, or make you think of an experience you’ve had." (Read poem again.)
"As word explorers, we’re paying attention to the words and phrases poets use. Let’s look at Valerie Worth’s choices. Pair-share with a partner a word or phrase that stood out for you. You will probably have different responses to the poem, and that’s okay." (Students pair-share.)
"Let’s share with the whole group. What word or phrase stood out for you?" (Students may respond “dances sideways,” “tears away with ears back, spins,” “pounces, cactus clawed.”)
"Did it give you an image, or a feeling, or did it make you think of an experience you’ve had? Tell us about it." (Student may respond “It made me think of my cat when she is chasing something.”)
Did anyone else have a response to this word or phrase? (1–2 students respond and give examples.)
"Why do you think the poet chose this word or phrase?" (1–2 students respond. Continue discussion with students’ responses to other words and phrases from the poem.)
Repeat the process for “hose,” by Valerie Worth (Unit 5 Texts, page 25) and “A Writing Kind of Day,” by Ralph Fletcher (Unit 5 Texts, page 28). Then guide students to select a poem to explore
"Now that we have read and discussed each poem, you get to choose which one you want to explore. After you make your selections, I will put you into groups." (Students choose poems. Put students into groups of 3-5.)
Process: Lead the students in the BrainDance of Words #3. The audio track for BrainDance of Words #3 (Unit 5, Track 3) has verbal cues and musical accompaniment for the BrainDance. If desired, instead of using the audio track, use the verbal cues below to guide students through the BrainDance. This can be facilitated as a generic BrainDance without descriptive words, with descriptive words, with or without music.
Teaching Tip: Poetry Recordings
This unit contains audio recordings of a male and a female reading each poem in Unit 5 with and without prosody. In this lesson you may want to play the recordings of these poems instead of reading them each time yourself.
Tracks for “A Writing Kind of Day”:
Tracks for “kitten”:
Tracks for “hose”:
Suggested Dialogue
Warming Up with BrainDance
"We’ll start by warming up our bodies and brains with the BrainDance to prepare us to explore the poems through movement. This is a new BrainDance so listen carefully for the descriptive words. Stand at the side of your desk.
Breath: Breathe leisurely.
Tactile: Squeeze your head, your arms, your fronts, your backs, your legs, and your feet.
Core-distal: Inflate your body into a gigantic shape and shrivel into a tiny shape.
Head-tail: Daintily curl forwards and backwards and from side to side.
Upper half: Freeze the lower half of your body. With the top half of your body, move vigorously.
Lower half: Freeze the top half of your body. Tremble with the lower half of your body.
Body-half right: Freeze the left side of your body. With the right side, move with determination.
Body-half left: Freeze the right side of your body. With the left side, move awkwardly.
Eye-tracking: Follow your right thumb with your eyes. Move it lazily from side to side. Follow your left thumb with your eyes. Move it merrily from side to side.
Cross-lateral: Turbulently reach your arms across the front of your body on different levels.
Vestibular: Sharply spin and then freeze in a limp shape.
Breath: Breathe leisurely."
Process: Groups work together to target and explore 3–4 words and phrases from their poem. See the menu below,
Differentiation Options – Students Work Independently to Explore Words & Phrases (top of lesson) for ways to scaffold the activity. Students record words and phrases on their “(name of poem)” Word Exploration graphic organizer on
page 14 in their A4L Student Notebooks. If necessary, support groups by providing student-friendly definitions of words, directing them to the Vocabulary Snapshot image banks on
pages 18-27 in the Unit 5 Texts, and by helping students identify alternate words and phrases. As groups explore words and phrases, they engage in movement and prosody.
ELL Support: Group Management
Group work benefits ELL by allowing them to practice speaking with peers and provides a more balanced approach to instructional scaffolding. However, groups need to be carefully monitored by the teacher.
Suggested management strategies
-Clearly explain allocation of lesson group time to students.
-Vary the size of groups between 3 and 5 students.
-Carefully consider the student’s language proficiency level when assigning group roles to ELL.
-Seating location for ELL is very important. Side-by-side works best.
-Rotate to sit with groups every 6 to 10 minutes; teacher rotation will increase student on-task behavior, decrease class noise level, and support ELL participation.
Suggested Dialogue
"Your task is to work together to explore words and phrases in your poem.
-Begin by agreeing on three or four words or phrases you want to explore. Record those words and phrases on pages 14-15 in your A4L Student Notebook. (Groups selected words and phrases.)
-Next, talk together about each of the words or phrases and come up with similar and different words and phrases. Record those on your graphic organizer.
-As you come up with other words and phrases, try them out in movement and with your voice. This may give you ideas for even more words and phrases."
Demonstrating Movement and Speaking with Prosody
"I’ll show you what I mean. If we’re working with the poem “kitten” and one of the phrases my group targets is 'arched stiff,' I might do a movement and say the phrase like this." (Demonstrate.)
'My replacement phrase might be “stretched out.” I might do a movement and say 'stretched out” like this." (Demonstrate movement and speaking with prosody.)
"This gives me an idea: the opposite of a 'stretched out' movement might be a 'curling up' movement." (Demonstrate movement and speaking with prosody.) So I might try “curled up” as a phrase that evokes another different image.
"Now you try. You have 20 minutes to work in your group."
Process: Close the lesson with a look forward describing the next lesson.
Suggested Dialogue
"In our next lesson, you will create dances for words and phrases in the poem you just explored."
Performing The Closing Ritual (Optional)
"To close our theater lessons, we'll appreciate our work and each other with a unified clap.
On three we'll all clap once and say, 'Huh!' 1-2-3 (clap) Huh!"
CONGRATULATIONS ON COMPLETING LESSON 7! YOU ARE NOW READY TO MOVE ONTO LESSON 8 OF UNIT 5.
