Indiana Wesleyan University

Elementary Education (Children’s Literature) Lesson Plan Template

CAEP 2018 K-6 Elementary Teacher Preparation Standards

John, Paul, George, and Ben by Lane Smith

Julia Coston

Lesson Rationale
It is important for students to understand that our founding fathers were humans, children once,
and struggled with issues like humans nowadays struggle with as well. They had to deal with
establishing an element of courage to be who they were and become who they want to be. Most
of all this lesson teaches students that with courage and believing in yourself, students can
become or create powerful things.

Readiness
I. Goals/Objectives/Standards
a. Goals – The students will be able to describe the characters in the story
b. Objectives – The students will be able to describe the characters in John, Paul,
George & Ben by Lane Smith and their impacts in real life.
c. Standards – 4.RL.2.3 Describe a character, setting, or event in a story or play,
drawing on specific details in a text, and how that impacts the plot.
II. Materials
a. John, Paul, George & Ben by Lane Smith
b. Printed pages of facts from the book
c. Other websites about the historical figures from the book
d. Poster paper
e. Markers
III. Anticipatory Set
a. I will tell the students about a time in my life where I felt courageous. I remember
having to give a presentation in high school about something I loved or that had
significance for me. I chose to do my presentation on gymnastics because I used
to be a gymnast. Because I loved gymnastics and everything that came with the
sport, I felt an overwhelming feeling of courage while giving the presentation.
This courage led me to feel confident and powerful in what I knew and what I
loved. While telling them this I will have them pass around a ribbon that can be
easily found in a gym at the school. Then, I will have the students talk to a partner
about times in their life that they have felt courageous and what that led too. I will
tell the students to find something in the classroom that represents the courage
they had felt.
IV. Purpose Statement
a. Today, I am going to be reading John, Paul, George, & Ben by Lane Smith. I
want you to think about the part of your life that have helped give you courage to
be who you are. Then, while I read the book, I want you to think about the
circumstances that might have helped give the characters courage to be powerful
leaders they turned out to be, leading a soon to be powerful country.

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Plan for Instruction
I. Foundational Theory
a. Reader-response criticism is a school of literary theory that focuses on the reader
(or “audience”) and their experience of literary work, in contrast to other schools
and theories that focus attention primarily on the author or content and form of the
work.
II. Adaptation to Diverse Students
a. The students will be able to speak about what makes them courageous and how
that gives them the power to do anything in their lives. This is an opportunity for
students with all different backgrounds and personalities to speak on what makes
them who they are.
b. The students can create their mini presentations/posters anywhere in the room.
This is good for the students who need to be up and moving around because it
gives them the freedom to work where they want to.
c. For the students who aren’t struggle with comprehending reading, everyone will
be in groups working together on learning about one of the founding fathers in the
book.
III. Lesson Presentation
a. I will have the students sit on the floor in the back of the room while I’m on one
of the teacher chairs. They will be facing me as I read the story to them. I will
read the story, using inflections and different voices when needed for characters
and their stories. I will also make facial expressions to match the characters and
how they are feeling.
IV. Check for Understanding
a. After reading the book I will ask the students these questions:
i. Did you all like the story? What did you like about it?
ii. What were the characters the best at?
iii. What might have been a circumstance that made them good at that skill?
iv. How did they use that skill in the future?
v. What got them in trouble with others?
vi. How did they portray their courage even when others didn’t like it?
vii. How do you think their future would have turned out differently if they
had listened to people who told them to stop?
viii. What do you think was the point of the story?
V. Review Learning Outcomes/Closure
a. The five boys who turned into five of our founding fathers, had struggles they
went through as well, and people who didn’t like them. What made them stand out
and grow was the courage they had in themselves that started when they were
kids. It gave them the power to become the great people they became and gave
them the power to change a nation.

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Plan for Assessment
I. I will have the students go back to their seats. Okay class, we will now be doing mini
presentations on the five founding fathers we just read about. There are five group
stations around the room and their will be five students at each table. I will tell them
their groups but have them stay seated in their seats. You will be researching, using the
websites I give you, about the founding father you have. I want you to find out what they
were like and what they did for our country. You will put everything you learned on the
big poster for your group. Make sure that you put your information down on the smaller
papers first and get it approved by me before you start putting it on the big poster. You
will be presenting your big poster.
II. I will then have the students get up and move to their groups’ area. Each student will
have a job for the group, and some will have the same job. The students are to read the
directions sheet, before they start anything, and I will get the whole classes attention to
let them know this. I will also remind them that they are looking for ways that the
founding fathers were courageous in the decisions they made. The class will have thirty
minutes to finish the mini poster on their founding father.
III. When the thirty minutes are up, each group will present what they put on their poster
even if they didn’t finish. There will be ten minutes given for the whole presentation
time. Each group will roughly have two minutes to present.

Reflection and Post-Lesson Analysis

1. How many students achieved the lesson objective? For those who did not, why not?
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
3. How should I alter this lesson?
4. How would I pace it differently?
5. Were all the students actively participating? If not, why not?
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?
a. Blooms Taxonomy
b. Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
7. Was the book choice a nice lead into learning more about the founding fathers?
8. Did having them do posters on the founding fathers help them to realize who they are and
what they have done for the United States?
9. Was how courage and power fit in to the lesson, well established so the students would
understand it?