Dakota State University

College of Education
Teacher Work Sample: Lesson #1
Name: Josie Parry
Grade Level: 4th grade
School: Sioux Valley Elementary School
Date: Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Time: 12:15-1:00

Reflection from prior lesson:

This lesson serves as the first for my teacher work sample. This unit will focus on
narrative writing. The students completed a pretest last week that assessed their
understanding in regards to each objective I have outlined for this unit. I have analyzed
the data and am using it to inform my instruction for each lesson throughout this unit.

Forty two percent of students correctly identified the purpose of narrative writing on the
pre-assessment, and by the end of the lesson, I hope to ensure that one hundred percent of
students correctly identify the purpose of a narrative writing.

Lesson Goal(s) / Standards:

Overarching goal: Students will develop an understanding of the purpose of a narrative
writing, and they will brainstorm topics to choose from when it comes to writing their
own personal narrative.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or

events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.5 With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop
and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.

Lesson Objectives:

Given a prompt, students will generate and share two minute stories with three different
peers.

Students will brainstorm and record topics for their personal narrative writing by writing
an idea in at least four of the boxes on their Personal Narrative Ideas sheet.

Students will identify the purpose of a narrative writing by answering a multiple-choice

question correctly.

Materials Needed:
Lesson PPT
Personal Narrative anchor chart
Personal Narrative Ideas sheet (27/1 per student) & pencil
Classroom space for Concentric Circles activity
Narrative Writing YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxInWagSaA0)
Number the Stars text
Kahoot! Quiz
Personal student notebooks
Student computers
SmartBoard

Contextual Factors/ Learner Characteristics:

Mrs. Bezdichek’s homeroom consists of 27 students, and they are seated in six rows of
desks. Six students are on an IEP, but they receive full instruction in the classroom with
additional support outside of the classroom. Two students are diagnosed with dyslexia,
and three students are diagnosed with ADHD and one student with ADD. Furthermore,
one student has been identified as having emotional disturbance (ED), as noted on his
IEP. I will need to be aware of all of these behaviors and identifications as I instruct and
guide students through the lesson.

Mrs. Bezdichek’s homeroom has ELA instruction every day of the week for about 90
minutes in the afternoon (right after lunch). The writing lesson I will be conducting will
take up half of the ELA time for the day, as the other half will focus on reading
instruction. The students have recently wrapped up writing units on both opinion writing
and RACE writing (a strategy used when writing answers for constructed responses). I
will be able to tie in a lot of the strategies the students recently learned from these two
units to the strategies and concepts used when engaging in personal narrative writing.

This lesson will involve both direct instruction and student collaboration. There are some
strong personalities in the classroom that I will need to keep in mind when grouping the
students to ensure both academic and social success with the activity.

This personal narrative writing lesson will occur right after our read aloud of a chapter
from Number the Stars. This book is an example of a personal narrative, which will help
us segway into the lesson. Before the lesson officially begins, however, I will have the
students take a bathroom and drink break so they can refocus for the lesson.

A. The Lesson-- 45 minutes

1. Introduction-- 6 minutes
Getting attention & relating to past experience and/or knowledge (3 minutes):
We are going to start our ELA focus with writing. We have just wrapped up two really
big writing units: opinion writing and RACE writing. Let’s focus on what we learned
from opinion writing first. What strategies and concepts do good writers use that we
learned during our opinion writing unit? How about during our RACE writing unit? I will
call on students who are raising their hand. The following are some responses I am
looking for: explaining our answers in our writing, using descriptive details to help the
reader understand our writing, giving evidence to support our writing, etc.

Those are some great answers-- it is obvious that you guys learned SO much during those
two writing units, and you all have become better writers! I am excited to tell you that we
will be starting a new writing unit today, and a lot of the strategies and concepts you
learned during those units will be helpful for you in our new one.

Creating a need to know & sharing objective in general terms (3 minutes):

Today is the start of a new writing unit for us-- personal narrative writing! Before we get
started with the unit, let’s talk about what a personal narrative is. Does anyone have any
ideas or thoughts on what a personal narrative includes? I will take answers from students
who are raising their hand. Some of you had some great ideas about what a personal
narrative is. I have an anchor chart that will help us remember what a personal narrative
is throughout the entirety of our unit. A personal narrative tells about an event that has
happened to the writer, or in this case, an event that has happened to you. A personal
narrative is a STORY that comes from real life, and it includes vivid details and lots of
descriptions. In a personal narrative, the writer includes their thoughts, feelings, and
reactions they experience during the event. It’s important to know HOW to write a
personal narrative, as through this type of writing, we are able to share about our lives in
an effective way.

Today, we are first going to share with our peers some stories about events that have
happened in our own lives. We will then work on brainstorming and recording some
ideas of things we can write about in our own personal narratives. At the end of the
lesson, we will take a Kahoot! Quiz to assess our understanding about personal narratives
to see if we are ready to move forward with our unit.

2. Content Delivery (34 minutes):

Where can we find personal narratives? (5 minutes):

If you don’t think you know what a personal narrative is, I promise that you do, because
personal narratives are EVERYWHERE! We just finished reading a chapter from our
read aloud book, Number the Stars. Since we already reviewed what a personal narrative
is and what it includes, raise your hand if you think our read aloud book is a form of a
personal narrative. This will give me a grasp of where students are at in terms of
understanding what a personal narrative is. Great job-- our read aloud book definitely is
a form of narrative writing! Let’s talk about HOW Number the Stars is a piece of
personal narrative writing. I will lead a discussion of the different components of the text
that make it a personal narrative, such as the character writing about her thoughts,
feelings, and actions throughout the book based on the events happening in her life. Is
anyone in the class reading a different book that they might consider to be a personal
narrative? If so, what is it? If a student shows the class a book he or she is reading, we
will discuss HOW it would (or would not) be considered a personal narrative.

Like we discussed earlier, personal narratives are STORIES, which means personal
narratives aren’t just found in books. They are found in our everyday lives, such as at our
lockers and in the lunchroom. Where else do we hear stories or personal narratives in our
everyday lives? Possible answers: at home, on the playground, at the park, etc.

Let’s tell some of our own stories with Concentric Circles (15 minutes):
Sometimes we are given a piece of paper and are told to write down a story. This can be
really hard for some of us, as we can’t think of anything to write about. However, you
would be amazed to find out that you all tell stories EVERY SINGLE DAY! Let’s
practice telling some of those stories, and eventually we will be able to write some of
those stories down on paper.

We are going to place a game called Concentric Circles. Listen very closely to the
directions before you leave your desk. I will count off half of you to stand in a large
circle around the classroom. Then, the students who are left will choose a student in the
large circle to stand in front of, which means you all should have a partner at the
beginning of the activity. I will also stand in front of someone to make the numbers even.
Once you are standing in front of your partner in the circle, you will be given a prompt
that you will take and tell a two minute story with. The person on the outside of the circle
will tell their story first, and then the person on the inside of the circle will tell their story
for two minutes. I will set a timer so you know how long you should be sharing your
story before your partner tells theirs. Include lots of detail in your story when you are
sharing it with your partner! Also, be aware that those around you are sharing stories as
well, so keep your voices low so that everyone can hear their partner. Does anyone have
any questions before we get started? I will also have students move their desks closer to
the center of the classroom if needed.

Once students are situated, they will start telling their stories. Once each student has
shared their two minute story with their first partner, the inside circle of students will
rotate counter-clockwise to the next student on the outside circle. This rotation will
happen two times, with students sharing their stories to three different classmates. The
following prompts will be used: tell a story about your favorite day, tell a story about an
interesting place you have visited, tell a story about a time you learned something new. I
will also participate in this activity to engage in the process right alongside the students.

Great job telling your stories to each other, everyone! I loved listening to all of the details
you included in your stories, and I was impressed with some of the things you have
experienced in your lives. After this activity, do you see how often you tell stories to your
friends and your family? It happens all the time, and this unit will help us WRITE those
stories!

YouTube Brainstorming Video (4 minutes):

Today, we are going to take the very first step in writing our own personal narratives: we
are going to brainstorm topics we can use to write about. Here is a short video about
brainstorming ideas for our personal narratives.

What did you notice the writer in the video did to brainstorm ideas for her personal
narrative? Possible answers: wrote down ideas, drew pictures of ideas, discussed ideas
with peers. We are going to do the exact same thing the writer in the video did, as we are
going to write and draw pictures of possible topics we can write about!

Personal Narrative Ideas sheet (10 minutes):

I am now passing out a chart where we can all record our own ideas for our personal
narratives, much like the writer in the video did. There are some ideas for topics written
out for you on the chart: a new pet, your best day or worst day, a time you learned
something new, a scary moment, etc. If there is a topic you want to write about but don’t
see it on the chart, flip your sheet over and write these ideas on the back. I would love to
see some unique topics and ideas! You will have about ten minutes to write these ideas
down. By the end of these ten minutes, I want you to have ideas written down in at least
four of the different boxes. Now, I know it can be easy to assume you don’t have any
ideas when you are given a sheet of paper and are told to write ideas down, but
remember, you tell stories ALL THE TIME, just like we did in our Concentric Circles
activity!

I will walk around the room and monitor student participation during this component of
the lesson to ensure that all students have ideas for four different topics by the end of the
ten minutes. Our ten minutes is up, friends! I saw some great ideas for your narrative
writing. We will look at these more tomorrow, as we will finalize the topics for our
personal narratives.

3. Closure-- 5 minutes

Look for inspiration at home (1 minute):

You all wrote down ideas for your personal narratives today, but when you go home
tonight, look for some more inspiration and jot those ideas down. Look at some pictures
of your favorite memories; take a look at some of your favorite objects at home; walk
around your home and neighborhood to gain some ideas; even listen to music! Find
something that sparks your curiosity. This will also be added in the students’ planners so
it will serve as a reminder when they get home.

Kahoot! Quiz (4 minutes):

Today, we learned about what a personal narrative is and how it is much like a story. We
also talked about how we ourselves hear AND tell stories ALL THE TIME. Finally, we
started the brainstorming process for our own personal narratives. We are going to take a
quick Kahoot! Quiz to assess what we know about personal narratives and the
brainstorming process.

The students will jump start their computers before this lesson even begins so the
computers are ready to go for the Kahoot! Quiz. The following multiple choice questions
will be on the quiz:
1. What is the purpose of writing a personal narrative?
2. Where can stories be heard around us?
3. What can you do at home to find inspiration for your personal narrative?
4. From 1-3, rank how you are feeling about understanding what a personal
narrative is:

Great job with the quiz, students! It looks like we have a really good grasp of what the
purpose of writing a personal narrative is, and how we can find ideas to plan for our own
personal narrative. Tomorrow, we will start the process of finalizing the topic for our
personal narratives.

B. Assessments Used
Pre-assessment:
I utilized the pre-assessment given last week to help drive my instruction for this lesson.
Only forty two percent of students correctly identified the purpose of writing a personal
narrative, which indicated to me that we needed to cover this topic to ensure one hundred
percent student understanding.

I will gauge what students already know about personal narratives by engaging them in a
guided discussion. Also, I will see how well students can tie in what they learned during
their previous writing units to the one they are now being introduced to.

Formative assessments:
Through observation, I will assess how well students are grasping the concept of personal
narratives and how it relates to writing and telling a story. I will observe student
engagement during the Concentric Circles game.

The Personal Narrative Ideas sheet will serve as an assessment in regards to student
ability to brainstorm and record topics for their own personal narratives.

Post-assessment:
I will assess student understanding in regards to the lesson with a Kahoot! Quiz. This
quiz will assess student understanding in regards to the purpose of writing a personal
narrative, as well as how they can brainstorm ideas for their own personal narratives. The
last question will have students ranking their understanding of personal narratives on a
scale of 1-3, which will help direct my instruction for tomorrow’s lesson. This quiz will
be multiple choice.

C. Differentiated Instruction
This lesson meets the needs of a number of different learning styles that are identified in
Gardner’s multiple intelligences:
1. Linguistic: students will write out ideas for their personal narratives on their
Personal Narrative Ideas sheet. They will also be engaging in a number of
discussions.
2. Kinesthetic: students will be moving around the classroom to collaborate and tell
stories to their peers.
3. Interpersonal: students will be collaborating with one another and using each
other’s stories to help build their own.
4. Visual & Auditory: there will be a YouTube video that will help students
visualize what their brainstorming task is. Furthermore, I will engage in the
brainstorming task and will model the steps to provide the students a visual.

As I stated in the Contextual Factors portion of the lesson plan, there are three students
who are diagnosed with ADHD and one student with ADD as noted on their IEPs. The
Concentric Circles game will give these students a chance to move during the lesson.
Some students in this class LOVE to write, while other students dislike it. I have included
a number of different activities and instructional strategies in this lesson to ensure that all
students will be engaged and have a chance to play to their strengths. In other words, I
did not just include activities that forced students to write, but rather they have the chance
to learn and express themselves through drawing, speaking, and exploring things at
home.

D. Resources
• Mrs. Bezdichek
• Teachers Pay Teachers
• Kahoot!
• PPT
• Cult of Pedagogy
• YouTube
• Number the Stars text
• Writing Strategies text by Jennifer Serravallo

Reflection of Today’s Lesson:

Summary of Student Progress

Overall, today’s lesson went really well. I took a look at the unit’s pre-assessment
that the students completed prior to conducting the lesson, and only 42% of students had
proficiently demonstrated an understanding as to what the purpose of writing a personal
narrative was. When the students took the Kahoot! Quiz at the end of the lesson, 92% of
students showed proficiency in understanding the purpose of writing a personal narrative.
This demonstrates to me that the students strengthened their understanding during the
lesson in regards to what a personal narrative is and the purpose of writing one.
During the Kahoot! Quiz, I also had the students self-assess their understanding in
regards to what a personal narrative is on a scale of 1-3, with a 3 being fully confident
with the concept. Twenty two students assessed themselves at a 2 or a 3, with three
students marking themselves at a 1 and one student choosing not to answer. The three
students who marked themselves at a 1 and the student who chose not to answer will be a
focus of mine during tomorrow’s lesson, as I will need to ensure that they have the basic
knowledge they need to build on their understanding.

Were lesson objectives met?

The following objectives were my focus for the first lesson of the personal
narrative writing unit:
1. Given a prompt, students will generate and share two minute stories with three
different peers.
Students met this objective during the concentric circles activity that was incorporated in
the lesson. Each student was paired with another student, and they each shared two
minute stories with a given prompt. I assessed that one hundred percent of students were
engaged with this activity through observation and discussion. Once the students returned
to their seats after the activity, I guided a whole group discussion that had the students
share the stories that they told and heard from their partners. It was apparent that the
students had started the brainstorming process, and they had started to think about what
they would want to focus on in their personal narratives.
2. Students will brainstorm and record topics for their personal narrative writing by
writing an idea in at least four of the boxes on their Personal Narrative Ideas sheet.
I have received 100% of students (who were present) Personal Narrative Ideas sheet, and
100% of them have at least four skeleton ideas of what they may choose to write about
within their own personal narratives.
3. Students will identify the purpose of a narrative writing by answering a multiple-
choice question correctly.
As I stated above, 92% of students answered a multiple choice question correctly in
regards to identifying the purpose of a narrative writing. This demonstrates to me that the
students are gaining understanding with this concept. I will, however, need to ensure that
the other 8% of students are where they need to be to continue building upon their
knowledge. This is something that I will focus on in the next lesson as well to ensure that
there are no confused students moving forward.
The students were engaged throughout the duration of the lesson. The concentric
circles was a great activity to get students moving and interested in the lesson. The
conversation the students were having was on track with the focus of the lesson.
Furthermore, through observation, I realized that the students were engaged and
interested in the lesson as they were having fun identifying experiences and events they
have had in their life and could possible write about in their personal narratives. Finally,
all of the students except for three finished with finding four ideas for their personal
narrative topic, which demonstrated to me that they were focused and engaged during the
work time of the lesson.

Instructional decisions:
Since 92% of students answered correctly the Kahoot! Question about the purpose
of a personal narrative, I know that it is not necessary to spend a whole lot of time
reteaching the concept tomorrow. I will, however, touch on it briefly at the beginning of
tomorrow’s lesson to reinforce what students already know and give them the opportunity
to build upon that knowledge.

Include in tomorrow’s lesson:

My timeline has changed somewhat due to the snow day that occured on Monday.
Rather than having day 3 focus on sequencing of events, we will be moving on to a focus
of writing an introduction for a personal narrative. I analyzed whether or not this would
be feasible, and after looking more at the pre-assessment and seeing almost 100% of
students were proficient with sequencing events and using transitional words, I made the
decision to rid of that day’s focus and to move forward with the next day. There will be a
day later on in the unit that will focus on sequencing of events, so I am not eliminating
that concept and instruction entirely.
The lesson I had planned for tomorrow, which focuses on the difference between
a seed story and a watermelon topic, will remain the same.

Students gone today:

 Student #6 is gone today for vacation. This student is one that can catch up
quickly, and I will spend some time working with this student to help with the process
when he or she returns.