Concept Unit

Lesson Plan Template

Unit Working Title: The Power of Storytelling

Unit “Big Idea” (Concept/Theme): Storytelling

Unit Primary Skill focus: Expository Writing

Week __1___ of 3; Plan #___2____ of 9; [90 mins.]

Plan type: __x__Full-Detail ____Summary

Content Requirement Satisfied: Writing Instruction, Instruction that uses text as a model
(Note: Refer to the list in the document called “Concept Unit Lesson Plans”)

Unit Learning Objectives (numbered) [from my Backwards Design Unit Document],

followed by Specific lesson objectives (lettered) being taught in this lesson:

SWBAT:
Cognitive (know/understand):
Students will understand that they have stories that are important to them and others. (4, 6A)
Students will know that focusing on imagery improves expository writing. (1B)

Affective (feel/value) and/or Non-Cognitive:

Students will value their own stories as shareable and important. (4C)
Performance (do):
Students will brainstorm story ideas using self-reflection. (7D)
Students will orally share a story from their own life. (9E)
Students will draft a story using imagery. (9F)
SOL’s: [List with numbers portrayed in the SOL document]
12.1 The student will make an formal oral presentation in a group or individually.
b) Choose vocabulary, language, and tone appropriate to the audience, topic, and
purpose.
12.6 The student will develop expository and informational, analyses, and
persuasive/argumentative writings.
a) Generate, gather, and organize ideas for writing to address a specific audience and
purpose.

CCS’s: [List with numbers portrayed in the CCS document]

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1
Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in
groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues,
building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.WHST.11-12.2.B
Develop the topic thoroughly by selecting the most significant and relevant facts, extended
definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the
audience's knowledge of the topic.

Methods of Assessment:
[How will you know if the intended learning occurred?] List all methods of assessment used in
this lesson or which are related to this lesson and come in a future lesson. After each assessment,
indicate in brackets the number(s) and letter(s) of the unit objective and the related lesson
objectives that the assessment is evaluating.

Diagnostic Formative Summative

There will be no formal One on One Conferences Writing Drafts (1B,9F)
diagnostic assessment for this (4,6A, 1B, 9F)
lesson because it is
introductory in nature. Teacher Circulation
However, the teacher will (4C,7D,9E)
have one-on-one conferences
with students during
workshop time to inform
future instruction and provide
feedback.

Procedures/Instructional Strategies
[Note: Any words that represent what I would say directly to students appear in italics.]

Beginning Room Arrangement: The students will be arranged in pods during the entire class
period. The teacher will be at the front of the room, with a laptop and projector.
[Changes in this arrangement that become necessary later will be noted in the plan]

1. [_5__mins.] Bridge/Hook/Opening to lesson: Alright guys, today we are going to be

talking about some of our favorite moments in our lives and things that are important
to each of us. So, let’s watch a clip of the former FLOTUS doing just that. As you’re
watching, I want you to focus on her storytelling and be able to tell me a little bit about
her story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhMSfysVAog Now, I will give students
opportunities to show that they watched the clip and understood Michelle Obama’s
story. I want to push them toward knowing what the story was about and why it was
important to her. Okay, you guys have made it abundantly clear you know what MO’s
story was about and why she valued it. I showed you this clip because I want you guys
to take away that each of you have things, moments, and stories that you appreciate in
 your lives and are worth sharing with others. Today, we are going to be reflecting on
our lives and sharing our own stories with others. Don’t worry, I’ll be going first.

2. [_5__mins.] First part of mini-lesson: In order to get us thinking about things we

appreciate and value in our lives. We are going to do an activity called “Sentence
Starters.” These sentences help us reflect on our own lives and think about stories and
things that are important to us. For this class period, we will use “I appreciate _______
because _________.” This phrase has already been written on the board for easy
access. I will now begin to model my think-aloud using Word on my computer,
projected on the board. Okay, so I told you guys I would be doing all this stuff first so
let me kick us off here. I appreciate living on my own because it gives me
independence. I appreciate a home-cooked meal because of the people I enjoy it with. I
appreciate dogs because they always love me. So, these are rough because I just did
these on the fly but I can already start thinking of stories for them. For example, if I
wanted to talk about a home-cooked meal, I could talk about my mom’s homemade
potato soup and how it warms me up and the celery is always perfectly soft and there is
just enough salt and pepper in it. The potatoes are creamy and comforting, but nothing
beats being able to sit at the table with my mother and talk to her about her day at the
pharmacy. So, what I want you guys to do is 1) create seven I appreciate ____ because
_____ sentences. 2) pick one that you would be comfortable sharing with your small
group. 3) start thinking about the story associated with the sentence and important
images to tell your classmates. You may begin now, you all will have 15 minutes

3. [_60__mins.]
. [15 minutes] Self-reflection and Sentence starting
The students will now begin reflecting on their lives and begin to create their
sentences and brainstorming their stories. I will be circulating the classroom,
asking questions of students that seem behind, and helping any students that
may have writer’s block. Alright, you guys have about two minutes left to think
about the stories you will be sharing. Make sure you are thinking of some
imagery to put your listeners in the moment with you. Okay that’s time. If you
are the person sitting closest to the door, raise your hand. Alright, you all will
begin and then move clockwise.
 [10 minutes] Sharing of each other’s stories
During this part of the class, I will be circulating to listen in on students’
stories and their storytelling ability. I will be informally assessing students
based on their ability to create an image orally and make their story
understandable for the listeners. At about 2:30-2:45 intervals, I will tell them
that they should be moving along to the next person if they haven’t already.
 [10 minutes] Second part of mini-lesson: Thank you guys. I heard some
wonderful stories with a few very nice images. In our next part of the
lesson, we will begin writing down these stories. As you guys start
thinking about what you’d like to write down about these stories, I want
to make sure you are injecting them with enough images to truly put the
reader into the moment with you so they can really understand what it
was like to live and really experience that time. So, at this point in our
 English careers, we should have been at least exposed to imagery. Let
me refresh your memories by telling you that it is language that activates
the reader’s five senses. See, hear, smell, touch, and taste. I know that
can be hard to think about at first. A lot of us just want to put down the
facts of the story of the page but that ends up sounding really boring.
This happened. And then this thing happened. And after that thing,
another thing. And then it ended. We don’t want that; it will put a reader
to sleep. Let me go first and then you guys can try during workshop. I
will now model the process of drafting a story with imagery. Okay, so
let’s write about my mom’s potato soup. I want to include some
important images for me: our wooden dining table, the light coming in
from the kitchen window, the flowers my mom always gets from the
grocery store, the creamy texture of the soup, the warm comforting smell
of potatoes, and the loving smile on my mother’s face. This is something
you guys can do. When you’re thinking of your story, object, or moment,
you can create a list of the things you want your reader to take away
from it. This will help you actually create the story. Now, let me jot down
a few sentences. “Jay, dinner’s ready,” my mom called out from the
kitchen. I put my legs into the air and slammed them down on the edge
of the bed so that I would land on my feet all in one motion. I walked
down the hallway and into the kitchen to see my mom had made my
favorite dish, potato soup. It was great to be back from school. I quickly
ladled some soup into a paper bowl and made my way to the table.
Okay, so here is a paragraph of my story. It’s not perfect. I could include
way more images but I have a few and that is a good start. I want you
guys to make a good start on your stories and try to include as much
imagery as you can. Go ahead and get started.
. [25 minutes] Writing workshop
Students will now begin the drafting process. I will be circulating and having
one-on-one conferences with students. As I survey the room, I will be looking
for students to have some pre-writing by having a list of images they may
include in their story. If they seem to be struggling putting pen to paper, I
will suggest that they think of these images first before they start writing the
story. I will tell them that the images tend to drive their thinking forward as
their writing and the images make them remember things about the moment
that they may have forgotten. My one-on-one conferences will focus on
getting students started, asking students about their moment and their
images, and making sure students have motivation to write down their story.

4. [_20_mins] Closure: Alright guys, put your writing away and let’s get started on our
SSR for the day. We will be expanding on those stories more tomorrow so be sure to
keep those stories fresh in your mind and reflect on the images you want to include.

Differentiated Instruction to accommodate one or more of my profiled students:

(This is where you identify specific aspects of this lesson which have been differentiated in order
to address the needs of one or more of your profiled students—identify them by name)
For this lesson, I differentiated to fit the needs of Elsie and Hayden. Both students are extremely
strong but have little experience in personal narratives and memoir writing.
Elsie needs more scaffolding in getting her motivated to perform. But, when she does
perform, her work is always on point. In order to get her interested in this lesson, I included a
video of a strong female figure and made a personal anecdote of my mother cooking and serving
me potato soup. Because of her strong relationship with her mother and her identity as a feminist,
I decided to focus on hooking her into my lesson so that she would participate in drafting and
discussion.
Hayden may be above others’ readiness levels in the class but his ability to simply react
and connect to a text can be difficult, as he has little patience for new perspectives. In this lesson,
I decided to focus my attention on him during the drafting process and have a one-on-one
conference with him about brainstorming images. This should get him on the right track to
creating a powerful story.
Materials Needed (list): laptop computer, projector, and internet access