SAMPLE COMPREHENSIONFOCUSED LESSON PLAN PROGRESSION

GRADE LEVEL: 7th Grade

TEXT CITATION: SaintExupry, Antoine De, Antoine De SaintExupry, and
Katherine Woods. The Little Prince. New York: Harcourt, Brace World, 1943.
Print.
SUMMARY OF THE TEXT: Story of a man who encounters a strange little traveler
after crashing his airplane in the desert. The little boy teaches the man a valuable
lesson about life and what it means to be a friend. This text carries multiple
meanings throughout its pages and with each reading, comes a new possible
interpretation. I chose this text because of its strong symbolism and openness to
interpretation. I feel that when students are asked to speak to what a book
symbolizes to them, it should be a free and open discussion. By using this book, that
open discussion is easily facilitated.
DISCIPLINE CONTENT OBJECTIVES: Students will be able to find and
interpret instances of direct symbolism found in the text and back up their findings
with textual evidence.
READING PROCESS OBJECTIVES: Annotation, organization, interpretation
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE:
KNOW
metaphor, simile, annotation skills

DONT KNOW
symbolism

MATERIALS: Novel, composition books, pencil, visualizer

LESSON SEQUENCE
PREREADING:
EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION : I will review the terms metaphor and simile by
having students volunteer to provide a definition and an example of each term. I will
then define "symbolism" and ask the students to record the definitions into their
composition books.
I will then explain how the concepts of metaphor, simile, and symbolism are all
related, with a focus on symbolism, and how they differ from one another using a
graphic organizer.
A symbol is a specific thing that represents another thing or concept and does not
have to be directly stated within the text. Whereas a metaphor, as we know, is an

object or thing that has traits attributed to something else and is directly explained
by the text. Can someone give me an example of a metaphor?
Student: The chair was like an old man, thin and frail.
Good. Now does someone want to try and give an example of a metaphor?
Student: When, like, a cat symbolizes someone who is cunning and not very
truthful.
Yes! Thats perfect. Now lets fill out our term organizer in our composition books
so that we can keep these definitions straight when reading the text.
MODELING: I will talk my way through the graphic organizer as I explain how
metaphor, simile, and symbolism are related, and how they differ.
GUIDED PRACTICE : Allow students to fill out graphic organizer and ensure they
stay on task. Check for understanding by asking a few students to explain their
organizers.
Example of completed cognitive strategy: Recalling past knowledge, graphic
organizer, synthesizing information
DURING READING: (10 pts.)
EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION: I will lead the students in reading the chapter in which
the Little Prince tells the man of the baobab trees and the devastating effects that
they have on the plants they infest. During the selection, I will ask the students to
underline passages that they may think are symbolic. While they are reading along
and annotating, I will pause and allow them time to write in the margins of the text
to annotate.
Teacher: Okay, we are going to read through this text and annotate when we see
instances of symbolism, or where we think evidence of symbolism can be found. I
want you all to underline passages that you think contain bits of symbolism and
write in the margins what the section may be symbolizing. I will model the first
example I see and then, while I keep reading, you all will continue to annotate as
you read along.
MODELING: I will have the book on the visualizer and underline the sections that
they should look at along with them. I will model my own annotation and an
interpretation that I see in the text.

GUIDED PRACTICE : I will have the students continue to underline the rest of the
symbolism as I read
Remember, as you annotate think about what is symbolic about the passage you
choose. Why do you think it is symbolic? Is it something that you can understand
because of a past experience? How so?
Example of completed cognitive strategy: Annotation
POSTREADING:
EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION: After reading, I will pass out the graphic organizer on
symbolism. Each student will record the symbolism they saw, cite textual evidence
from their annotations, and provide their interpretation of the symbol. After this
personal reflection and organization, the students will pair up with a partner and
Think Pair Share what they have found in the text.
After the students have shared, I will ask the students to choose one of their
examples of symbolism and draw a visual interpretation of their interpretation of
the symbol.
This will be a personal activity and students will be asked to share their drawings in
their Think Pair Share groups again.
MODELING: I will model my thinking about the baobab trees and write out my
thinking process so that the students can sense the mental track they will be on. I
will create my own picture to share and discuss the thinking that led to the
formation of my picture.
GUIDED PRACTICE: As the students are working on their pictures, I will walk
around the room and provide feedback. At the end of the hour, I will ask a few
students to share their photos on the visualizer and discuss their thinking process
that led to the formation of their photographic representation.
Example of completed cognitive strategy: jigsaw, visual representation, synthesizing
information
*Adapted from materials prepared by Dr. Tamara Jetton
EXAMPLES OF GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS:

SYMBOLISM ORGANIZER
Example of Symbolism

Textual Evidence (pg. #)

Interpretation of the Symbol