Elementary Education

Task 1: Planning Commentary

TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY

Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the
brackets. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.

1. Central Focus
a. Describe the central focus and purpose for the content you will teach in the learning
segment.
[ Students struggle with writing informational pieces. This units purpose is to help them with this
by showing them how to research using multiple sources, take notes, and organize those notes
in a paper. ]
b. Given the central focus, describe how the standards and learning objectives within your
learning segment address

an essential literacy strategy

requisite skills that support use of the strategy
reading/writing connections
[ The standards and learning objectives address an essential literacy strategy in that they are
targeting the students writing. Students have had some practice writing and researching
informational topics, so they have the basic requisite skills. They will use these skills to
effectively read a variety of informational texts in order to support their writing. ]
c. Explain how your plans build on each other to help students make connections
between skills and the essential strategy to comprehend OR compose text in meaningful
contexts.
[ My lessons build on each other by first teaching students how to research and pick out the
things they want to talk about. The second lesson will be about comparing and contrasting that
information. The third lesson will model how to organize those details into a paper that flows.
The last lesson will have them use all of their previous knowledge to write the paper. ]
2. Knowledge of Students to Inform Teaching
For each of the prompts below (2ab), describe what you know about your students with
respect to the central focus of the learning segment.
Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g.,
students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming
students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students).

a. Prior academic learning and prerequisite skills related to the central focusCite
evidence of what students know, what they can do, and what they are still learning
to do.
[ Just from seeing their other writing, I can see that the students really struggle with writing
informative papers. They have no idea how to research information. During their research on a
famous African American, they did not know what they wanted to write. When they found the
information online, they just copy and paste random facts. Because of this, their paragraphs are
very choppy and lack a smooth flow. Because of this, I wanted to focus on using supporting
details to write an informational paper. When completing the pre-assessment, many of them had
trouble making connections and using supporting details. ]

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Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

b. Personal/cultural/community assets related to the central focusWhat do you know

about your students everyday experiences, cultural backgrounds and practices,
and interests?
[ We are on a departmentalized schedule, so students have the opportunity of sitting in five very
different classrooms. Some of them are a part of chorus and others were in the school play. This
group of students is also very into sports. Many of them play a variety of them after school. I
have soccer, softball, basketball, and now baseball players. Several students have a fondness
for horses. They are very interested in technology. Many of them talk about their game stations.
And many more are talking about games on their devices (phones, iPods, and iPads).
I have two Hispanic students, one who has lived here their whole life and one who is actually an
ELL student. Their speaking is wonderful, while their reading and writing needs work. I also
have one student who has a 504. This is for anxiety and only requires that the student is given
advance notice of assessments and extra time to complete assignments. Four students are in
the gifted program. However, they are all on level in reading and writing.
I have completed sociograms and have learned that they are not very cliquey, but the girls and
boys are definitely separate. I have also completed a true colors personality test and learned
that the majority of these students are green, very logical and mathematical thinkers. Only a
handful were blues, or very sensitive. And I had even fewer oranges, who are action oriented,
and golds, who are very thoughtful and thorough. ]
3. Supporting Students Literacy Learning
Respond to prompts 3ac below. To support your justifications, refer to the instructional materials
and lesson plans you have included as part of Task 1. In addition, use principles from research
and/or theory to support your explanations.

a. Justify how your understanding of your students prior academic learning and
personal/cultural/community assets (from prompts 2ab above) guided your choice or
adaptation of learning tasks and materials. Be explicit about the connections between
the learning tasks and students prior academic learning, assets, and research/theory.
[ Students have been working with informational writing, so they know how to begin. All students
struggle with organizing their writing and using research to answer a specific question. They
learn more easily when things are given to them piece by piece. That is why I have created
these lessons to continuously build onto the previous one. Each lesson allows the student to be
working on something, instead of just listening to a presentation on how to write a paper. I hope
that teaching the unit in this hands on way will allow for life-long learning. Getting to know their
backgrounds and personality types, I know that this will engage them. They are doers, and want
to be doing ]
b. Describe and justify why your instructional strategies and planned supports are
appropriate for the whole class, individuals, and/or groups of students with specific
learning needs.
Consider students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers,
underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students.

[ My strategies are appropriate for everyone because they will choose what they want their
audience to know. They will work at their own pace, choosing the resources they wish to use.
This is important for this group of fifth graders because they are very independent. They are all
very bright and think outside of the box. I am allowing them to choose because I know that it will
be more meaningful to them, and allow those who wish to move on to do so. ]

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Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

c. Describe common developmental approximations or common misconceptions within

your literacy central focus and how you will address them.
[ Students believe that they can just copy and paste research. This is absolutely not the case. I
will inform them that it is important to write research in their own words, as well as citing any
work they do use. ]
4. Supporting Literacy Development Through Language
a. Language Function. Identify one language function essential for students to develop
and practice the literacy strategy within your central focus. Listed below are some
sample language functions. You may choose one of these or another more appropriate
for your learning segment.
Analyze

Argue

Categorize

Compare/contrast

Describe

Interpret

Predict

Question

Retell

Summarize

Explain

[ Students will explain the similarities and differences between hurricanes and tornadoes, using
research to support their writing. ]
b. Identify a key learning task from your plans that provides students with opportunities to
practice using the language function in ways that support the essential strategy. Identify
the lesson in which the learning task occurs. (Give lesson day/number.)
[ Students will compare and contrast hurricanes and tornadoes, explaining the similarities and
differences by using all of the research they have collected. They will be completing this task
during lesson 4 when they are writing their papers. ]
c. Additional Language Demands. Given the language function and learning task
identified above, describe the following associated language demands (written or oral)
students need to understand and/or use:

Vocabulary or key phrases

Plus at least one of the following:

Syntax

Discourse
Consider the range of students understandings of the language function and other language
demandswhat do students already know, what are they struggling with, and/or what is new
to them?

[ Students will be introduced to several writing terms: introduction, conclusion, body paragraph,
and supporting detail. Students will also encounter vocabulary in their research that may be new
to them. They know how to use a dictionary, but may need further assistance on what to do
when that word is not in the dictionary. Students also need to understand that, when writing,
sentences come in a variety of lengths. Not every sentence should be five words long. ]
d. Language Supports. Refer to your lesson plans and instructional materials as needed
in your response to the prompt.

Describe the instructional supports (during and/or prior to the learning task) that help students
understand and successfully use the language function and additional language demands identified in
prompts 4ac.

[ Students know that they must use supporting details to make their paper stronger. I will explain
to them that they are not just telling their reader what the similarities and differences are
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Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

between hurricanes and tornadoes, but that they are explaining these things to us. We have
never heard of either of these events. Inform us. Show us what damage they do, do not just tell
us that they damage. I will help them by giving them examples. If we say a monster is scary,
are you scared? No. But if we say the slimy creature slowly crept down the dark hall, we are
more likely to be worried. ]
5. Monitoring Student Learning
In response to the prompts below, refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the
materials for Task 1.

a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments will provide direct
evidence that students can use the essential literacy strategy and requisite skills to
comprehend or compose text throughout the learning segment.
[ Students will complete bell ringers, tickets out the door, letter to an absent student, and answer
questions throughout the lessons as informal assessments. Students will be completing a formal
assessment when they write their paper. I will be assessing these for progress monitoring. ]
b. Explain how the design or adaptation of your planned assessments allows students with
specific needs to demonstrate their learning.
Consider all students, including students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners,
struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge,
and/or gifted students.

[ These assessments are quick and will give me an idea of what students will still need help
with. Based on the pre-assessment, and what I have gotten to know about their personalities
from the sociograms and the true colors personality test, I know that several students will be
able to thrive through this learning segment, without any extra help. However, I do have
students who will need guidance. I have created these summative and formative assessments
to focus on a variety of their needs and skills. I have students who are very social and will do
well when having open discussions. For my three students with anxiety, writing will help
demonstrate their learning. The continuous checks made by me will allow my two struggling
students to demonstrate their learning throughout the lessons.]

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