UMF Unit-Wide Lesson Plan Template

Name: Taylor Burke Program: ELE Course: EDU 450

Lesson Topic / Title: TWS Lesson #1-Introducing Main Idea

Lesson Date: 3/29 Lesson Length: 40 minutes Grade/Age: Grade 3/Ages 8 & 9

Learning Objectives & Content Standard Alignment - Selects, creates, and sequences learning
experiences and performance tasks that support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals
based on content standards.
Learning Objective(s) Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

Teacher Objectives  This is the first lesson on a unit

Students will be able to sort words and title them by about finding the main idea
finding the main idea of each group of words. Students will and supporting details in an
also be able to determine what a main idea is and be able informational text.
to name the 3 most common clues that will help them find  My mentor and I noticed that
it. our students were having
trouble finding the main idea
Student Objectives of informational texts during
their morning work and
1. I can explain what a main idea is in an reading class. These objectives
informational text. break down what a main idea
is and how to find it in a text.
2. I can identify the main topic of a group of words.  These objectives were chosen
to introduce the concept of
3. I can name the three most common clues that will what a main idea is.
help me find the main idea of a text.  These skills are important
because they help students
with overall comprehension of
informational texts.
Content Standard(s) Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.2 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.2
Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details  Only part of the first content
and explain how they support the main idea. standard will be addressed in
this lesson. The learning
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.5 objectives help students
Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, determine the main idea of a
sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a text which is the first part of
given topic efficiently. the first standard.
 Only addressing this part of the
standard helps make learning
objective less overwhelming
and makes meeting the content
standard more manageable.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.5
 Students have already learned

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 about specific text features and
what information they provide.
Students will now use text
features to specifically find the
main idea. Students will not be
looking at all text features but
will focus on three to find the
main idea. The three text
features they will mostly
analyze are the title, captions,
and pictures.
 This lesson builds students’
ability to use these specific text
features for comprehension of
an informational text. This is
an important skill for students
to master before they begin
reading more complex
informational texts in the
future.

Assessment - Uses assessment flexibly to expand and deepen understanding of learner performance
and determines best supports for continued learner growth.
Assessment Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

IEPs/504s: IEPs/504s:
No modifications need to be made to the assessments due Student 7 has an IEP for speech, but
to IEPs/504s. there are no assessment modifications
that need to be made in this lesson for
Embedded him.
Group Discussion/Observation
Students will be formatively assessed during discussions Embedded:
and through observation throughout the lesson. Students  Group discussion and
will be assessed on their ability to explain what a main observation will allow the
idea is, find the main idea of a group of words, and recall 3 teacher to assess students
common places to find the main idea. while they are actively
During the whole-group instruction, the teacher will be learning. It will also assess
asking relevant questions and formatively assessing student comprehension before
students. The teacher will also use the learning targets as a independent practice. This will
preassessment (during the introduction) and a formative be beneficial because it will
assessment (during the lesson and at the end of the allow the teacher to help
lesson). This will also serve as a self-assessment because students prepare to
students will be assessing how they think they have independently identify the
reached the learning targets. The teacher will ask how main idea of a group of words
students are feeling about the learning targets. If they feel and 3 common places to find
like they can meet them independently they will put their the main idea.
thumb up. If they feel they can meet them with teacher  These discussions will make
support, they put their thumb sideways. And if they feel the independent work easier
that they haven’t meet the learning yet and need more because the teacher can adjust
practice, they will put their thumb down. instruction to fit students’
Students who are struggling will get support during the needs.
whole-group instruction and guided practice which will  Using the learning targets as a
consist of prompting. The teacher will ask questions to aid self-assessment allows
with assessing comprehension during discussions. If students to take ownership of

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students are still struggling, they will receive one on one their learning and it gives the
support during small group and independent work time. teacher some idea of how
students are feeling. Using
Formative thumbs allows for students to
Cut and Paste Words Sort Activity quickly assess themselves and
The cut and paste words activity will assess if students can for the teacher to quickly
identify the topic of a group of words. Students will be observe.
asked to sort words into three groups of related words  Students already know the
and paste them on the paper. Then students will be asked thumbs-up procedure, and
to title these groups with a word that represents the topic they are usually very honest.
of the group of words.  If at any point in time students
seem to be confused or are
Main Idea Seesaw Video Activity showing signs of increased
The main idea seesaw video activity will assess if students struggle, the teacher will have
can recall three common places to find the main idea and to slow the pace of the lesson
can explain what a main idea of a text is. Students will down. Prompting and
watch a video about identifying main ideas and circle questioning students during
three common places that will help them identify the main whole group instruction and
idea of an informational text. They will also be asked to small group instruction will
explain what a main idea is by typing, writing, or using text help with this because the
to speech on a response template. teacher can assess students’
comprehension throughout the
End of Lesson Check-in lesson.
Students will be asked to assess themselves concerning  The teacher will also need to
each learning target based on whether they have met it. make sure students are getting
They will put a thumb up if they can meet the learning the same amount of
target independently. They will put their thumb to the side opportunities to answer
if they can meet the learning target with teacher help. questions and share thoughts
They will put their thumb down if they aren’t able to meet because this conversation is a
the learning targets yet and need more practice. part of learning. Student 1 and
student 2 will always be ready
Grading scale for Cut and Paste Words Activity: with answers but other
✔︎- Beginning: Student can sort most of the words students will need a little more
correctly and can identify the main topic of one group of time to answer or be prompted
words with the correct title. to answer. The teacher needs
✔︎Developing: Student can sort most of the words to make sure that student 1
correctly and can identify three groups of words with the and student 2 are not the only
correct titles. ones getting called on and will
✔︎+ Proficient: The student can sort all of the words have to use the cold call
correctly and can identify the main topic of three groups of strategy when students are
words with the correct titles. responding to discussion
questions.
Grading scale for Main Idea Seesaw Video Activity:  Throughout the whole group
There will be 2 questions. lesson, guided practice, and
Each question will be worth 4 points. independent practice the
teacher will be observing
First Question students. The teacher will be
1 point = circled “look at the title” walking around the room and
1 point = circled “look for repeated words” will observe students and their
1 point = circled “look at pictures and captions” ability to meet the learning
1 point = question attempted objectives. As the teacher
walks around the room, they
will repeat directions, help
Second Question students read, provide aid to
1 point = correctly explained what a main idea is

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1 point = mentioned that it’s the “point of” or “is about” those who are struggling, and
1 point = mentioned text, reading, or passage prompt students to keep
1 point = question attempted working hard.
 Observations will allow the
The points will be averaged by adding them up for each teacher to observe if they need
problem and then dividing them by 4, which is the number to provide support to a specific
of problems on the exit ticket. student or to the whole class.
Student 1 and student 2 will
1.9 or below: Does not meet: Student is not meeting the most likely need the least
learning targets. The student either didn’t answer the amount of support. Student 3
questions or did so incorrectly. The student didn’t show may need additional support
that they could recall the common ways to identify the concerning motivation and
main idea of a text. The student isn’t able to correctly reading directions. Student 7
explain what a main idea is yet. may need additional
prompting and reassurance
2-2.9: Partially Meets: Student is showing beginning work due to his low confidence.
and is attempting to achieve the learning objectives. Student 6, student 8, and
Student has answered at least some of the questions and is student 9 may need help
somewhat accurate. The student has made attempts to staying on task and prompting
recall the common ways to identify the main idea of a text, to complete quality work.
but only circled one correctly. The student can somewhat Student 10 will likely need
explain what a main idea is but is unclear or somewhat help reading directions and
inaccurate. words.

3-3.4: Meets: Student is meeting learning targets. Student Questions to ask students:
has answered every question and is mostly accurate in  “Does anyone know what a
answers. The student is able recall most of the common main idea is?”
ways to identify the main idea of a text. The student can  “Where are some places you
mostly correctly explain what a main idea is. can look to find the main idea?”
 “What might be the main idea
3.5-4: Exceeds: Student is meeting the learning targets. of these words? How would
The student answered every question and is almost you title this group of words?”
always accurate. The student is able to recall 3 of the most  “What do you notice about the
common ways to identify the main idea of a text. The words?”
student can also correctly or mostly correctly explain what  “How is the main idea like a
a main idea is. topic sentence in a paragraph?”
 “What are the words
Ex. 7 ÷ 2 questions = 3.5 (Exceeds) describing?”
 “Where should you look in an
Extensions: informational text to find the
-For those who finish their cut and paste words and main idea?”
Seesaw activity early, they will be asked to come up with  “What text features will help
their own set of words and their own main idea for the set you when looking for the main
on the back of the page. idea of an informational text?”
 “Could you come up with a
main idea and identify the
group of words that go with
it?”
 “Why do you need to know the
main idea of an informational
text?”
 “How are you feeling about the
learning targets?”

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Formative
Cut and Paste Words Activity
 Students will complete this
activity independently but will
be able to talk and work with
others around them if they
choose to.
 Doing this assessment prior to
the video activity allows for the
teacher to see if students can
recognize what the topic of a
group of words could be. This
helps the teacher determine
whether to continue at the
same pace or to slow the
lesson down and reteach.
 Prior to this assessment, the
teacher will complete an
example to make sure students
are prepared for independent
exploration.
 I will be observing students to
see if they are able to correctly
identify the topic of a group of
words.
 This activity will be graded by
proficiency to help me keep
track of my students’ progress.
However, it will not be graded
with an “exceeds” – “not met”
scale or digitally recorded.
 The choice to not grade using
an “exceeds” – “not met” scale
allows students to practice in a
low stakes environment where
mistakes can be made and
learned from.

Main Idea Seesaw Video Activity

 Students will complete the
Seesaw video activity
completely independently. This
allows students show what
they know without the
influence of their peers.
 This exit ticket will assess if
students can recall 3 of the
most common places to look
for the main idea. It will also
assess if students can explain
what a main idea is.
 This assessment will give the
teacher the opportunity to
assess whether students need

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 additional help or review in the
later lesson.
 Students have been given 9
minutes to complete this exit
ticket because they need to
watch the video and then
complete the activity. This
gives students an appropriate
amount of time to watch and
process information.
 This will be graded with a
“exceeds” – “not met” scale to
give me an idea of who
understood the learning
targets and how they met
them.
 The questions are graded a
little differently because one
has the students circling the
answer and the other is a
written response.
 I chose to use an “exceeds” –
“not met” scale because the
concepts in this lesson are a
large part of the learning
objectives and the background
knowledge for future lessons.
 If 5/8 or more of the class are
partially meeting or below, I
will need provide more
scaffolding in the next lesson
when it comes to students
understanding what a main
idea is and how to find it.

End of Lesson Check-in

 This check-in allows students
to self-assess themselves at the
end of the lesson.
 This method of self-assessment
is quick, and students are
mostly honest when they
participate.
 Students have done this type of
check-in several times before
which makes it an established
routine that they can easily
follow.
 This check-in is not formally
graded because there is no
learning objective about how
well students can assess
themselves.

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Extension
 Student 1 and student 2 grasp
concepts quickly and may need
something to help extend their
learning.
 This opportunity helps
students stay engaged with
material by providing
additional practice with the
concept of main idea.
 The extension also allows for
student choice because
students get to choose what
words and titles the use.
 This extension begins
preparing student for the next
lesson about supporting detail
and the relationship between
supporting details and main
idea.
 The extension will not be
graded because it is extending
the learning of my student and
assesses their understandings
beyond the learning targets.
However, it will be observed
and will be assessed by this
observation of the teacher.
 Choosing not to grade the
activity allows the student to
experiment further and
discover in a low-stakes
environment.

Verbal Feedback:
 Verbal feedback will be used
during whole group and
individual work time.
 The teacher will use a mixture
of praise, questions, and
prompts to push students
toward the learning objectives.
 Praise will be used to promote
desired skills and working
behaviors. Questioning will be
used to help clarify questions
on the worksheets and
concepts during the whole
group lesson. Prompts will be
used to aid students with
comprehension and allow
them opportunities to fix
mistakes.

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Possible Verbal Feedback:
 “How are you going to start to
sort your words?”
 “What do all of these things
have in common?”
 “What are some titles that you
can think of for this group of
words?”
 “Why don’t you try sorting
them and then ask a partner
how they sorted them?”
 “How did we title the example
that we did together?”
 “Do you remember any of the
things that might help you find
the main idea of a text?”
 “Would it be easier for you to
use paper and a pencil?”
 “Could you give more detail in
your explanation?”
 “It might be helpful to re-watch
the end of the video.”
 “Thank you for working hard
on this skill.”
 “I appreciate that you are using
the iPad as a tool.”
 “I like that you used words to
explain your thinking.”
 “Make sure to be honest about
how you feel about your
learning.”

Written Feedback:
 Written feedback will be
provided on the exit ticket. The
written feedback will give
praise of strengths and will
provide suggestions for
improvement.

Possible Written Feedback:

 “Working with peers may be
helpful next time.”
 “Remember to answer each
question and follow each
direction.”
 “Can you give me more detail
in your explanation?”
 “You’re missing one of the
clues that might help you with
the main idea. Can you re-
watch the video and tell me
what it is?”
 “How would this help you find

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 the main idea? What might be a
more useful place to look for
the main idea?”
 “It might be helpful to think
about what all of the words
have in common.”
 “Does this title tell me to main
idea of this group of words?”
 “I appreciate that you
collaborated with your peers
on this activity. Great
strategy!”
 “Thank you for working hard. I
know this was challenging to
do by yourself, but you stuck
with it!”

Instructional Materials and Resources - Stays current in content knowledge and expands expertise in
reviewing instructional materials from the perspectives of both the discipline and individual learner
needs.
Materials, Resources, and / or Technology Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

Teacher Materials: Teacher Materials:

Main Idea Intro Jamboard  The Main Idea Intro Jamboard
Projector will be used to provide
iPad students with examples of
Stylus what a main idea is. The
teacher will also use it to show
Student Materials: students how to sort and title
Cut and Paste Word Sort Worksheet (pre-cut words) words with a main idea which
Pencil is an activity they will do
Glue following the Jamboard mini
Main Idea Video lesson.
Seesaw Main Idea Video Activity  Using the Jamboard app allows
iPad the teacher to display the mini
Stylus lesson for everyone to see
while also still having the
ability to use proximity in the
Technology: classroom.
Main Idea Intro Jamboard  The projector, iPad, and stylus
Projector will be used to display and use
iPad the Jamboard.
Seesaw Main Idea Video Activity
Student Materials:
 The Cut and Paste Word Sort
worksheet will be used to have
students practice finding the
topic of a group of words.
 This worksheet activity was
chosen because it engages my
bodily-kinesthetic learners.
 The words will be pre-cut to
save time during the lesson
and to aid those who struggle

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 with fine motor skills.
 The pencil will be used to title
the sorted words with a title
that represents the main idea
of the words. The glue will be
used to glue the sorted words
into three groups.
 The Seesaw Main Idea activity
will be used for students to
reinforce their learning, find
places to look for the main
idea, and to assess their
learning. The activity will
consist of a video and a
question that asks students to
circle the common places to
find the main idea. Students
will also be expected to explain
what a main idea is in words.
Seesaw was chosen for this
activity because students who
struggle with writing can use
text-to-speech.
 The iPad and stylus will be
used by students to physically
access the Seesaw activity.
These tools were chosen
because all students have
access to them and they are
engaging for students.

Technology:
 The Jamboard app allows the
teacher to keep the lesson
moving while also using
proximity with students.
Student 3, student 6, student 8,
and student 9 can get off task
and the Jamboard app allows
the teacher to use proximity as
a tool to keep students focused.
The app also allows for the
lesson to be prewritten and
allows the teacher to focus
more on students than on
lesson flow.
 The projector, iPad, and stylus
allow the teacher to
continuously move around the
classroom which improves
classroom management.
 The Seesaw Main Idea Video
Activity allows students to
learn the same concept from a

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 different source. It also
provides an assessment tool
with the activity that follows
the video. Doing this on Seesaw
gives students the opportunity
to re-watch the video and gain
a better understanding of what
a main idea is.
Instructional Methods: Selects, creates, and sequences learning experiences and performance tasks
by using a variety of instructional approaches, strategies, and technologies that make learning
accessible to all learners and support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals.
Teaching and Learning Sequence Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

Prior to Lesson Prior to Lesson

The teacher will have created the Main Idea Intro  Being prepared prior to the
Jamboard and the Seesaw Main Idea Video activity. The lesson helps the lesson run
teacher will assign the Seesaw activity to each student. The more smoothly and prevents
teacher will have printed the Cut and Paste Word Sort unnecessary interruptions
worksheet and cut the words out. The teacher will have during instructional time. The
the Main Idea Intro Jamboard up on the iPad and will have students will get some of their
the iPad connected to the projector. own materials when instructed
which will give them some
Introduction (5 minutes) responsibility for their
Learning Targets learning.
The teacher will begin by asking students to go to their
seats and wait patiently until everyone returns from lunch. Introduction
Once everyone is seated, the teacher will read each Learning Targets
learning target all of the way through. The teacher will  Waiting for each student to
then ask students to raise their hands if they heard any return before starting allows
words that they don’t understand. The teacher will call on the lesson to have a clear
students and discuss and explain specific vocabulary in starting point with clear
each target so that students understand what they are expectations.
working towards in the lesson.  Asking students to share the
words they don’t understand
Whole Group Instruction (10 minutes) creates a culture of growth and
Mini Lesson acceptance because students
The teacher will go to the next slide on the Jamboard. The understand that it is ok to not
teacher will ask for a volunteer to read the definition of know everything.
“main” and the definition of “idea” on the board. Once that  Asking students which words
is done, the teacher will ask students what are some other they don’t understand allows
words that mean the same as main and idea (synonyms) the teacher to pre-assess what
that they could use. vocabulary the lesson may
Main: big, important, major, etc. have to focus on and where
Idea: point, thought, meaning, focus, etc. students are at with the
The teacher will write these down under each word. Then lesson’s content.
the teacher will ask students what they think the  Going over learning targets at
definition of a main idea is. The teacher will guide students the beginning of the lesson
to come up with their own definition to see how it gives students a goal and sets a
compares with an actual definition. The teacher will purpose for the lesson.
explain that this is not the same as a theme. The teacher  This process is familiar to
will explain that a theme is the moral lesson that an author students and opens the lesson
wants to teach students. The teacher will show these with a familiar routine that
definitions side by side and explain that main idea is more allows students to get
for nonfiction and them is more for fiction. acquainted with the content

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After showing students the definition, the teacher will before beginning the lesson.
show students an example of a passage with elements of
the main idea highlighted in red. The teacher will Whole Group Instruction
highlight, through discussion, the connection between a Mini Lesson
topic sentence in opinion writing and the main idea in this  Breaking down the words
passage. On the next slide, the teacher will guide students “main” and “idea” helps
to come up with a sentence that explains what the main students get a deeper
idea of the passage is. This will be done as a class and the understanding for what the
teacher will write the sentence on the Jamboard. If the phase “main idea” means.
teacher isn’t getting any responses when asking about  Allowing students to come up
what they think the definition is, she will have students with their own definition of
turn and talk to try and generate responses. The teacher what the main idea is allows
will then ask if there are any questions about what the them to think critically about
main idea of a text is. The teacher will answer any the phrase and use their own
questions that students have. background information to
reach a definition.
Learning Target Check-in  Using the turn and talk
The teacher will read each learning target all of the way strategy may help students
through. The teacher will then ask students which learning gain confidence or process
targets they think they have met and which learning their understandings because
targets they still need to work on. Students will put their they are only talking to one
thumbs up if they have met the learning target, to the side other person which is more
if they have met it with teacher help, and to the side if they low stakes.
haven’ met the learning target yet. The teacher will praise  Comparing the student
students their honesty. definition with the actual
definition allows students to
see another way of explaining
Guided Practice (15 minutes) what a main idea is. It also
Cut and Paste Words Activity gives them a confidence boost
The teacher will show a group of words on the Jamboard. when they realize that their
The teacher will read the words out loud and ask students definition is so similar to the
what the topic of the group of words are. actual definition.
What are these words mostly about?  Comparing the main idea of the
What are they all describing? passage to a topic sentence
The teacher will use the turn and talk strategy and have from their opinion writing
students pair up and talk about what the main idea of the allows students make critical
words are if needed. connections to a concept that is
The teacher will then title the words with “School similar to the main idea. This
Supplies.” The teacher will ask if this makes sense to connection may help students
students or if students have any questions. The teacher better understand what a main
will answer any questions that they do have. idea is.
The teacher will then hold up the cut and paste words  Coming up with a sentence that
activity sheets. The teacher will explain that students will expresses the main idea of a
be sorting words into three groups based on their passage together as a class
commonalities. Once they have sorted them, they should gives students guided practice.
check with the teacher before they glue them down. Once This guided practice allows
they have glued them down, they need to figure out the them to have an example in the
topic of the words and title each group with its topic. The back of their mind when they
teacher will explain that they can work with people next to go to find the main idea of a
them if they would like, but that they will need to stay passage in future lessons.
seated due to COVID-19 safety procedures. The teacher  Answering questions allows
will ask if there are any questions. The teacher will ask the teacher to clear up any
students to take out their glue sticks and a pencil. The misconceptions that students
teacher will then pass out the activity sheets and pre-cut might have.
words and allow students to work independently while

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observing.
Learning Target Check-in
Independent Practice (9 minutes)  This check-in will help
Main Idea Video and Seesaw Identification Activity students and the teacher
As students finish, the teacher will ask them to get out assess student progress.
their iPads and go to Seesaw. The teacher will direct  Doing a check-in after the mini
students to complete the main idea video and lesson makes sure students are
identification activity. Students will watch the video on the still focusing on their learning
assignment and then circle clues that will help them find objectives. It also helps
the main idea. They will also fill in a sentence to explain students understand what
what a main idea is. Then they will circle how they feel objectives they still need to
about the learning targets. work toward in the second half
of the lesson.
Closing (1 minute)
Praise and Final Questions Guided Practice
The teacher will thank everyone for their hard work. The Cut and Paste Words Activity
teacher will also reiterate what a main idea is.  Showing students an example
Remember, the main idea is what the text is mostly about. of how to find the topic of a
The teacher will ask if students are feeling more group of words allows them to
comfortable with the main idea and ask if there are any explore the concept with the
concerns or questions so far. The teacher will address whole group. This allows for
these concerns and ask them to put away their materials more teacher guidance prior to
and prepare for guidance class. independent practice.
 Using the turn and talk
strategy may help students
gain confidence or process
their understandings because
they are only talking to one
other person which is more
low stakes.
 School Supplies are used for
this activity because they are a
common thing that each
student in the class can
recognize.
 Asking students if they have
any questions helps the
teacher clear up any
misconceptions or confusion.
 Having students check with the
teacher before gluing allows
the teacher to guide students if
there are any errors in sorting
before the words are glued
down. This is also a good
opportunity for observations
of individual student progress.
 Having students find the topic
of a group of words allows
students to gain skills
necessary for finding the main
idea of an informational text.
This activity is a smaller step
that is part of the scaffolding of

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 the lesson. Once students have
mastered this skill, they can
move on to finding the main
idea of an informational text in
later lessons in the unit.
 Allowing students to work
with those around them gives
students the opportunity to
collaborate with peers. This
brings different perspectives to
the activity and allows
students help each other. This
could also be beneficial if the
teacher is working with other
students.
 Students will need to stay at
their seats if they are working
together due to COVID-19
procedures. Students need to
be at least 3 feet apart and
their desks account for this
spacing requirement.
 Observing while students
practice independently allows
the teacher to provide more
individualized prompting and
scaffolding. It also allows the
teacher to assess what
individual students can do and
how they are interpreting
information.

Independent Practice
Main Idea Video and Seesaw
Identification Activity
 Allowing students to continue
on to he Seesaw activity
directly after the copy and
paste activity keeps the flow of
the lesson and allows
individuals who are ready to
move on to new material. This
allows students to move at
their individual pace.
 Watching the video provides
another mini lesson for
students to reinforce the
understandings and gain a
different perspective.
 Asking students to recall the 3
clues after watching the video
assesses if they know what
those three clues are.
 Asking students to fill in the

Revised 07/19/2018
 sentence assesses if they can
explain what a main idea is.
This is a higher order thinking
skill and will help them in later
lessons when they actually try
to identify the main idea in
actual informational texts.
 Allowing students to circle
how they feel about the
learning targets provides
students with a self-
assessment tool at the end of
the lesson. This allows
students to independently
reflect on the lesson and its
goals.
 This last activity is done on
Seesaw to because it has the
activity and video all in one
place.
 Students are familiar with
Seesaw and activities on it
which makes it an easy-to-use
tool for students.
 Seesaw also provides
opportunities to listen to
directions and to use text-to-
speech which is beneficial for
my students.

Closing (1 minute)
Praise and Final Questions
 Praising students for their hard
work provides a positive
classroom culture and
encourages future student
participation.
 Reiterating what a main idea is
helps students summarize
what they have learned.
 Asking if students have any
questions or concerns at the
end of the lesson provides
opportunities for students to
clear up any misconceptions
that they have.
 Providing a closing to the
lesson wraps up the lesson and
gives students the opportunity
to give a final organization to
their thoughts on the topic
learned.

Meeting students’ needs (differentiation, extensions, Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

Revised 07/19/2018
modifications, accommodations)
Extensions:
Extensions:  Students 1 and 2 often grasp
-Allowing students to come up with their own words that concepts and skills quickly and
represent a main idea. need an opportunity to expand
-Allowing students to come up with a title and provide their learning. The ability to
words that support that title. choose their own words and
titles allows them to think
Differentiation: about how the words support
-Reading directions and words out loud the main idea and how the
-Familiar Seesaw tool main idea is supported by the
-Partner work/collaboration words.
-Whole group and independent work  This extension provides
-Allowing students to use text-to-speech students 1 and 2, along with
-Option of rewatching the video any other student who finishes
early, the opportunity to
Accommodations: deepen their understandings of
-Using wait time to allow students to form a main idea.
response
-Check in with student 3, student 7, and student 10 to see Differentiation:
if directions need to be reread to them during independent  Reading directions and words
work. out loud will help student 10
-Prompting to stay focused who has reading difficulties.
-Cutting out words prior to the cut and paste activity  The familiarity of the Seesaw
tool allows for students,
Modifications: especially student 3 to stay
There are no modifications that need to be made for composed and focused during
students. the last part of the lesson. She
doesn’t deal well with change
Absent Student and this familiar tool helps her
-If a student were absent during this lesson, I would use know what to expect.
the time during the next morning to get the student caught  Partner work and
up. collaboration allows for those
-I would ask the student what they know about topics and who process information
main ideas to pre-assess their understandings. I would through conversation to have
then go over the learning targets and the activities, that we those conversations with
did in class, with the student. This would give the student classmates. Providing this
a one-on-one mini lesson where the students would have option is beneficial for student
the opportunity to ask questions and practice under the 7 specifically because his
supervision of the teacher. If time allows, I would also help confidence in his academics is
the student complete one of the activities. fairly low. Working with others
helps him process information
No Technology and be reassured by the work
-If there was a no technology due to the power being out, I of this classmates.
would write what is on the Jamboard on the whiteboards.  Doing whole group instruction
-I would print the texts that are used as an example in the prior to independent work
Jamboard. There would be a copy for the students and the allows the lesson to be
teacher would model on a copy and go around and show scaffolded so that students
students how the activities should be done. (especially students 3, 7, and
-The teacher would go over the content in the video and 10) aren’t overwhelmed by
the Seesaw activity would be done on paper. being thrown into independent
work.
 Allowing students to use text-
Technology: to-speech is beneficial for all
- iPads

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- Projector students due to slower typing
skills. It also allows students
Student Choice and Interest: like student 3 and student 10
-Hands on activities, like the cut and paste words activity, to explain their thinking
is a tool that is used due to the high interest they create for without writing. Writing can be
students. hard for these students and
-iPads are incorporated into the lesson and students have this differentiation method
high interest in doing work on them. allows for them to still access
-The paragraph used in the mini lesson has a topic of the lesson content.
horses which is an interest of student 9 and student 1.  For those students who need
-Choice of which colors to circle with on the Seesaw more time to process, the use
activity. of the video allows them to
-Students can choose whether they work independently or rewatch what they need to in
with a partner around them. order to get a better
understanding of the material.
This is specifically beneficial
for students 3, 7, and 8.
Misconceptions Sometimes it takes these
-Theme and main idea are the same thing. students longer to process
-Topic and main idea are the same thing. information and this allows
-The main idea can only be found in the text itself. them to hear the information
more than once.

Accommodations:
 Student 3 has tendencies that
mirror Asperger’s syndrome
and because of this she needs a
little more wait time to provide
answers to questions. Student
8 also needs a little more wait
time to provide meaningful
answers. By providing extra
wait time it allows students to
fully grasp the question and
process it to then create a
meaningful answer. This wait
time will also be beneficial to
other students who may need
more wait time depending on
the question.
 Rereading directions and
words to student 3 and student
7 allows them to have more
time to process information.
Rereading directions and
words to student 10 allows her
to hear the question multiple
times which will aid in
comprehension because she
has reading difficulties.
 Students 3, 6, 8, and 9 have
difficulty staying on task
sometimes. This requires
prompting to encourage them

Revised 07/19/2018
 to keep going. This type of
prompting will also be helpful
for any other student who
needs help staying on task.
 Cutting out words prior to the
cut and paste activity helps
those who have trouble using
scissors. This is really
beneficial for student 7
because his fine motor skills
still developing. He does
occupational therapy, and this
differentiation allows for the
lesson’s content to be more
accessible.

Modifications:
There are no modifications that need to
be made for students.

Absent Student
 The morning work time will be
used because students aren’t
learning content during this
time and are practicing skills.
This way the review of the
lesson doesn’t take away from
the student learning new
content.
 Pre-assessing student
background knowledge helps
the teacher see how much they
need to teach and go over from
the lesson.
 Going over the learning targets
and activities with the student
creates a guided mini lesson
where the teacher can observe,
monitor, and support the
student and their
comprehension of the content.
 The one-on-one opportunity
will allow the student to more
individualized instruction
which makes it more
comfortable for students to ask
questions.
 The one-on-one mini lesson
also allows the teacher to see
what the student needs
practice with and what they
can just talk about.
 Having the student do an
activity if time allows connects

Revised 07/19/2018
 their new knowledge to an
activity which can be
referenced in later lessons.

No Technology
 The Jamboard is a tool for the
teacher to have material
already written out and in
order. Without the access to
this technology the teacher
would have to use the
whiteboard and write down
what is on it during recess and
lunch.
 Modelling would also look
different because the teacher
would have to do it on a
printed copy and go around
the room and show students.
Providing students with copies
as well is important so they can
follow along with the teacher
and see what they are talking
about. This may take longer
which speaks to the efficiency
of the technology.
 If there were no technology for
the Seesaw activity, the teacher
would teach the content in the
video similarly to the video.
This way students are still able
to access the ideas and lessons
in the video.
 The Seesaw activity would be
done on paper. The parts of the
Seesaw activity would be
printed instead. This can be
done because the exit ticket
part of the Seesaw activity is
mostly done on Seesaw for
engagement, convenience, and
text-to-speech features.

Technology:
 Using the iPads allows the
lesson to continuously flow
with less interruption. The
Jamboard allows the teacher to
use a virtual white board
which means the teacher is
taking less time to write out
things on the board. This
device also allows for the

Revised 07/19/2018
 teacher to walk around the
room and observe students
because it is portable.
 The iPads are also of high
interest to students and are
used as an engagement
strategy during the Seesaw
activity.
 The projector allows for the
modelling done on the
Jamboard to be seen on the
large screen. This makes it
easier for students to see the
modelling.

Student Choice and Interest:

 The cut and paste activity
creates high interest for those
who learn by doing. According
to my CFA 30% of my students
learn by doing.
 The iPads are of high interest
to students and are used as an
engagement strategy during
the Seesaw activity. Student 7
specifically has a high interest
in using iPads according to a
parent survey.
 Using horses as the topic in the
paragraph engages student 1
and student 9. This is a tool
that is also implemented to
keep student 9 focused.
 Allowing students to choose
which colors to circle with on
the Seesaw activity is a tool
that promotes engagement and
focus on the Seesaw activity.
 Allowing students to choose if
they work independently or
with others allows students to
take control of their own
learning and do what is best
for them. It also allows both
students who like to work with
others and individually to be
successful.

Misconceptions
 The teacher will explain that a
theme is the message that the
author is trying to teach a
reader in a fictional text during
the mini lesson.

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  The teacher will explain that
the main idea tells about the
topic and what the
informational text is saying
about the topic.
 The Seesaw video activity will
show students places outside
the text itself to find the main
idea of a text.

Field Courses Only – Post lesson

Student Cut and Paste Word Main Idea Seesaw

Sort Activity
1 ✓+ Proficient 4: Exceeds
2 Absent Absent
3 ✓+ Proficient 4: Exceeds
4 Special Services Special Services
5 Special Services Special Services
6 Absent Absent
7 ✓+ Proficient 4: Exceeds
8 ✓+ Proficient 3: Meets
9 ✓+ Proficient 2.5: Partially Meets
10 Absent Absent
Assessment Data
This data shows me that
4/8 of the class are partially meeting or below on the Main Idea Seesaw activity. Although this
doesn’t quite meet the criteria for whole-group reteaching, I will need to make modifications to
review the lesson with student 10, student 6, and student 2 because they were absent. These
modifications can be seen under the “Modifications” section in the assessment portion of my lesson.
This data also shows me that 5/8 are proficient with the cut and paste word sort. This means that
students can recognize what a topic is and have the ability to identify it just by seeing a group of
words.
According to this assessment data, 3/5 students who were assessed can explain what a main idea is
in an informational text and have met the first objective. Each student who was assessed can identify
the main topic of a group of words and have met the second learning objective. Lastly, each student
who was assessed can name the three most common clues that will help them find the main idea of a
text and have met the last learning objective. This reveals that some review may be needed to help
students meet the first learning target. However, the last two objectives will just need reinforcement
throughout the unit because students were successful with them.
Upon further analysis, I observed that student 8 and student 9 had trouble with coming up with a
definition for the main idea on the Seesaw activity. I am curious if this trouble was caused by the
sentence starter (The main idea is…) that I used for this portion of the Seesaw activity. I wonder this
because student 9 said that the main idea is “telling you about the clues.” She may have been trying to
use the clues that she learned about to describe the main idea. Another way I could format this

Revised 07/19/2018
assessment is by providing the sentence starter if they need it, but then just asking the question
“What is a main idea?”. This way students are just responding to a question and don’t have to fit their
definition to a sentence starter if they don’t want to. Regardless, I intend to go over the definition of
the main idea thoroughly during the review in the next lesson. This way all students strengthen their
understanding of the main idea and student 8 and student 9 can receive the support that they need.

Reflection
Overall, the lesson went well, and I was very impressed by how quickly students understood the
cut and paste activity. Students grasped the concept of what a topic is rather quickly which is good
because it will help them understand what a main idea is. Having all of the students back was
definitely a challenge, but I was able to manage it. I think students are still testing the waters now
that everyone is back, so behaviors were very mild during the lesson.
I’ve noticed that my mentor teacher often does very similar activities for reading each day. This
often includes reading a passage and answering comprehension questions. Although this is a skill
that students need to have, I recognized that students needed a little variety. The short interactive
tasks in this lesson were much more engaging for students and I noticed that I had less classroom
disruptions because students were engaged with the material.
As students were doing the cut and paste activity, I had asked them to sort the words, have the
teacher check the words, and then glue them. Many students didn’t do this or forgot to check with me
before gluing. I think it may have been helpful to at least put a checklist on the board for students to
see. This way, students could refer to this as they were doing the activity which would’ve allowed me
to get in more observations.
Student 3 had a couple outbursts during the lesson. During the cut and paste activity, she yelled out
that she was missing a piece of paper that went under fruit. I calmed her down by helping her look
for it and when we couldn’t find it, I offered her a solution to the problem. I was able to create
another piece for her that said “pear” and she pasted it on her paper. This type of problem-solving
skill is something we are working on with the student and I think she has definitely made progress
from the beginning of the year. I have discovered that talking through the steps of a solution with her
helps her think logically and calmly. I continue to model this for the student in hopes that she may
start practicing these same skills.
The second outburst from student 3 happened during the Seesaw activity. The student’s iPad said it
needed an update for the student to create a response. I acknowledged that this could be an issue
that would quickly elevate the student’s anxiety and frustration. Before she got to this point, I made
sure to offer another solution. I told her that she could do it with me on my laptop. I typed for the
student and she just told me what to type. This incident and the prior one were just a couple
examples of how I can think on my feet and problem solve to make students feel more comfortable in
the classroom.
I think one of my strengths in this lesson was how thorough I was during the guided practice and
whole group instruction. I knew how important it was to scaffold the lesson into smaller steps to
allow students to meet the learning targets. Talking about the topic as part of the main idea broke
down the concept of main idea into more manageable pieces. Modelling was another strong skill that
I showed because I modeled the activity that students were going to do before they did it. I think this
was a key factor to their success and their clear understanding about topics.
As far as lesson planning goes, I think I did well to make sure the objectives line up with the
assessments. I also made sure that the objectives drove the lesson. For the most part I think this
lesson plan showed that I am able to appropriately pace my lessons to promote student success. I
also think that
Teaching it showed and
Standards how Rationale
I can used lesson structure and interests to engage learners.

Standard#1: Learner Development

Standard #1 The teacher understands how students learn and develop, recognizing that patterns of
learning and development vary individually within and across the cognitive, linguistic, social,
emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements developmentally appropriate and
challenging learning experiences.

1(d) Understands how learning occurs – how learners construct knowledge, acquire skills, and
develop disciplined thinking processes – and knows how to use instructional strategies that
promote student learning. Revised 07/19/2018

The teacher understands the way students learn and develop key skills and processes while also
using effective instruction that encourages learning.
Teaching Standards and Rationale

The recorded directions and text throughout the activity also support learners in the assessment
because it reads the text to them. This takes more stress off the actual reading and decoding of
words which creates a better and more accurate assessment of students’ abilities to understand the
concepts about main idea. I also noted that the familiarity of the Seesaw tool allows students to stay
focused and know what to expect. This makes the assessment appropriate because students can
access the tool used for assessment. I also purposely used the technology because of the text-to-
speech feature. I noted that this feature is beneficial for students because writing can be hard for
some and this differentiation method allows for them to still access the lesson content. This is yet
another appropriate use of technology for an assessment.
In my assessment data, I show how I used this assessment to plan for future lessons. It also shows
what the assessments actually assessed and what they tell me about student progress. This shows
that the technology was used appropriately to assess student needs and student learning. This
example and the examples that I have provided previously show that I am proficient with standard 6
under indicator 6(i).

Standard #11 Technology Standards for Teachers – (ISTE Standards for Educators) Effective
teachers model and apply the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (ISTE) as
they design, implement, and assess learning experiences to engage students and improve learning;
enrich professional practice; and provide positive models for students, colleagues, and the
community.

ISTE Standard #5 Designer: Educators design authentic, learner-driven activities and environments
that recognize and accommodate learner variability. Educators:

5 (b) Design authentic learning activities that align with content area standards and use digital tools
and resources to maximize active, deep learning.

The teacher can create meaningful learning experiences with technology that correspond to content
standards to activate and expand student learning.

This lesson shows that I am proficient with standard 11 under ISTE standard 5 and indicator b. In
this lesson, I used Seesaw as a way to assess my students’ progress. The activity itself, includes a
video and interactive questions that allow students to show their understandings of material that
they learned throughout the lesson. The video that is provided in the activity allows students to see
a different perspective and learn the material from another person. I recognized that this would
expand my students understanding of main idea and designed the activity with the video. I also
provided opportunities for student practice which allowed students to actively apply their learning
and process their understandings through application.
In the assessment portion, I explain how this activity aligns with the learning objectives and how
this assessment assesses these learning objectives. In the objectives section and standards section, I
explain how these objectives align with reading content standards. This part of my lesson along with
the activity itself show that I meet standard 11 under ISTE standard 5 and indicator b.

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