Lesson Plan Template

Name: Alexandra Alfred Date: 10/25/10 Cohort: A

Topic/Grade Level: 5th Grade Read Aloud of Social Studies picture book “Encounter” by Jane Yolen
(Genre: Historical Fiction)

Big Ideas/Learning Goals/Driving/Questions: Europeans (ex. Christopher Columbus) comes to the new
world (San Salvador) and meet Native Americans (Taino people). The story is told from the perspective of
the Native people. What is the perspective or motivation of each group (Africans, Europeans, American
Indians) that converges in America during this time period?

Context: Builds on the unit “The Three Worlds Collide”, introduces how Europeans converged with Natives
in America.

Content Objectives/Assessment
Standards or
GLCEs (state or
district)
U1.2.2 – Use case studies Students will be able to: Student will:
of individual explorers
and stories of life in
Europe to compare the -Explain the perspective that Taino natives, and -Actively listen to the reading of Encounter and
goals, obstacles, European explorers had in their North American engage with the text by viewing the incredible
motivations, and encounter. imagery in this picture book.
consequences for
European exploration and -Relate the European and American Indians -Verbally participate in a text-based discussion
colonization of the encounter to the experience of Africans during about the central ideas and perspectives
Americas this time period. presented in Encounter.
U1.4.1 – Describe the
convergence of -Compare the goals, motivations, obstacles, and
Europeans, American consequences for the colonization of America in a
Indians, and Africans way that demonstrates a developing Teacher will:
in North America…and understanding of these ideas.
the perspective of these
three groups -Informally assess understanding within the format
of a rich text-based discussion following the read
aloud.
Duration: 25 minutes Materials: Encounter book by Jane Yolen
Time/Task Instructional Moves Considerations
Opening -Activate background knowledge by -Gather students on the rug with no
mentioning “Recently our class has been materials.
Introduce studying how Africans made their way to
Encounter, America, now we will look at another journey
and give to America that many of you are familiar with.
focus point Any guesses?” Answer: Christopher Columbus
-Focus point: “While I read I’d like you to pay
2 minutes attention to clues in the story that reveal the
perspective (or ideas) that the Europeans and
Natives have about the New World in America
– because we will discuss their experiences in
the New World in relation to the experiences
that the Africans had when coming to the New
World.”
-pg. 2 – Ask “From who’s perspective is this  Looking for Native Americans, or the
Read story told?” Native American boy. Can explain here
Encounter -pg. 5 – Point out the great imagery! that this culture is called Taino.
with -pg. 7 – Text says “Our chief gave…” Ask kids,
stopping “Do you think this story is fiction or non-
points fiction? Are parts of this story true?” (We will
find out at the end!)
-pg. 12 – Text says “When I returned to the
feast…” Ask kids, “What do you think the  Author’s note provides significant
native people could be feeling at this point in background and solidifies that the story is
the story?” historical fiction.
-Read the Author’s Note!!!

Closing -Mention that this book is in the historical -Ask these open ended queries, continue
fiction genre. the discussion by saying things like:
5-7 minutes -“How did life change for the Taino people? The • “Can anybody add on to that?”
European settlers?”  “In this story, why it • “Why do you think that happened like
 Rich Text- easier to understand the perspective of, or that?”
Based assume how the Tainos are feeling?” • “How do you think that made the
Discussion -“In what ways can we connect the Europeans/Natives/Africans feel?”
experiences of the Europeans, Africans, and
American Indians convergence (or encounter)
in America?”
-“What are the consequences of the
encounters between the European settlers in
this story, and the Taino people?
-What were the goals of the Europeans and
Tainos?

Reflecting on students’ learning

Did your students accomplish the goals and objectives you determined for them? How do you know?
Based on the discussion we had throughout the text and after reading the Author’s note, I believe that the students had
a firm grasp on the perspectives of the Taino people, and the European explorers. The kids seemed to identify with the Taino
boy in the story which showed a deep understanding of the Taino people’s goals, motivations, and consequences. Finding out
from the Author’s Note that there are no longer any full-blooded Tainos was very powerful for them! Despite achieving a strong
foundation for understanding the Native’s struggles, connecting this event to what the Africans are experiencing at this time
proved to be difficult. I think that this connection will be made later in the unit, as this read aloud was an introduction to the
Europeans and Natives coming together in the New World. So much learning and processing about the native’s experience was
happening, it was almost okay at the kids did not focus as much on relating the Taino’s experience to that of the Africans.
Many kids participated by responding to the stopping point queries, and also in the text-based discussion following the
read aloud. Having kids participate (especially the ones that don’t usually volunteer) in these conversations was an important
part of my assessment of the effectiveness of this read aloud. The results of these discussions demonstrates that the students
built a strong framework for knowing what the three worlds are (Africa, Europe, and America), and be able to explain their
motivations with a developing understanding.

How did your instructional moves help students make progress toward the lesson goals and objectives?
What instructional and/or management moves would you repeat? What would you change? Why?
To elicit the responses from students who don’t usually volunteer, I decided to implement a reasonable amount of “wait
time” and using eye contact to show that I am really making an effort to “search” for somebody that hasn’t had “the
opportunity” to contribute yet. These strategies were effective in putting pressure on some kids to verbally sharing their great
ideas! Another instructional/teaching move that I made was to simply be honest. We came to a metaphor that I could not figure
out, and a student asked me what the metaphor was supposed to be describing – I paused and admitted that I struggled with
that passage when I was preparing this lesson. Then I repeated the passage, and asked for the kids help deciphering the
meaning of that metaphor. The first hand I called on told me what the metaphor was describing – a mirror! It was such a
descriptive metaphor, it was almost like a riddle. Making this discovery in front of the kids was important because this moment
helped show that I’m human, and that it’s okay to not know and try to figure it out!
One aspect that I wouldn’t necessarily change, but would want to be mindful of – is of pacing throughout the lesson! This
was a 34 minute read aloud, which is slightly long. Being even more concise and focused with my goals and objectives will help
save some time without compromising purpose or instruction.

How will you use what you learned to inform your teaching? What next steps will you take?
I will continue to use wait time and eye contact to allow more students to be heard in discussions, or when answering
queries in stopping points (wait time is especially hard to remember in the middle of a book). To aid in my pacing, I will try
consistently looking back to my teaching point throughout the lesson to make sure I am on track. Another strategy I will employ
will be to glance at the clock throughout the lesson. I am afraid to do this because if I look somewhere else, I’m afraid the
students will look there too. So finding discreet times to look at the clock throughout the time I am presenting lessons will also
be a goal for me!