Title: Literary Terms with Beebot

Grade: 7th Grade English

Overall Goal: The students will enter this lesson with an understanding of the story The Great Gatsby.
They will demonstrate their knowledge of literary terms such as ..., and understand how these work
together to create the overall story of The Great Gatsby.

Students will begin this lesson by reviewing basic understanding of what type of indicators and
analyzations we are looking for. This review of plot, setting, characters key events to the story will allow
them to refresh their brain with details of beginning middle and end. The teacher will stress the
importance of overall theme and other literary terms that make the story what it is.

Throughout the lesson, the students will practice/enhance their computational thinking skills by working
with a robot to allow for an engaging and hands on thought process to the mindful analyzations they are
directing there robots toward. Literary terms will be posted on the board along with analyzations.
Students will move the Beebot to the spaces indicated, then analyzing the story based on the space the
land on, requiring them to think the answer through more thoroughly.

Students will keep track of the points they get from correctly programming the Beebot and correctly
analyzing the literary aspects of the novel. This adds an exciting and competitive edge.

The students will then take a short quiz to check for understanding of the material.

Standards

Learning Objective

Assessment

7.RL.2.2 Analyze the development of a theme or central idea over the course of a work of literature;
provide a detailed summary that supports the analysis.

6-8.PA.2 Implement problem solutions using a programming language that includes looping behavior,
conditional statements, logic, expressions, variables, and functions.

6-8.NC.2 Exhibit dispositions necessary for collaboration: providing useful feedback, integrating
feedback, understanding and accepting multiple perspectives, socialization.
Students will be able to identify main ideas and terms throughout the story

Students will be able to assess their peers’ understanding of the story’s main ideas and themes, and give
them feedback

Students will be able to program utilize athe Beebot robot to display their knowledge of
programmingthe novel.

Students will be assessed by the short quiz they complete following the lesson. This quiz contains eight
multiple choice questions, and will be graded through a trade and grade.

Key Terms & Definitions:

Computational thinking: thought process involving problem solving in a way similar to a computer.

Beebot: A robot with four directional keys that can be used as a unique and versatile classroom resource

Theme: the overarching meaning of the story

Analyzation : deeper meaning of the authors words.

Lesson Introduction (Hook, Grabber) (7 minutes):

Prior to the main lesson, the teacher will want to go over important terminology that will be needed
during the main lesson. The teacher will present these important terms, and ask the students to
describe their current understanding of the terms. After this, the teacher will present a slideshow
reviewing different analyzation terms (thesis, plot, tone, etc) using relatable examples in pop culture.
These slides will include the term, definition, examples, and a brief lesson on how to identify the term
within a story. The student can take notes during this slideshow that will help them later on with the
main lesson, and can follow along on their personal device. An example story will be used to highlight
the different terms, and help students better understand how each of these terms can be identified
within the larger story.

The teacher will also go over the basics of the Beebot, and demonstrate how to navigate the Beebot on
the grid. The last few slides of the slideshow will be dedicated to describing how to program the Beebot
using the direction arrows, and how the Beebot will move along the grid. The teacher will then do an
example programming of the Beebot as a demonstration. After the students have seen the slideshow
and Beebot demonstration, the teacher will answer any questions that remain regarding the content.
After this, the teacher will announce that the students will be using the Beebot and grid to navigate The
Great Gatsby (which they will have already read), and break apart the content of the novel for better
understanding.

Lesson Main (14 minutes):

The students will be broken up into small, equal groups (ideally 3-4). Each group will be given a beebot,
a grid, a pen and paper, and a copy of the Great Gatsby should they need it. They will also be given a
small stack of cards, which will each list a term from the slideshow and its definition. The students in the
group will each take turns drawing a card from the stack. When a student draws on his turn, he will read
the term and its definition aloud. He will then look for the matching term on the grid. It is his job to then
program the Beebot to move to that matching spot.

The student gets two attempts to successfully program the Beebot. If after these two attempts the
programming still isn’t correct, the next student will try. When the Beebot has been successfully
programmed to move to the correct space, the student who has correctly programmed the Beebot will
get the chance to relate the selected term to The Great Gatsby. For example, if the card and space say
“thesis”, the student would want to say what they believe to be the overall thesis of the novel. After the
response is given, the other students in the group will discuss whether or not this response is accurate
based on their knowledge of the novel and the terms. If they agree that the student is correct, the
student will be rewarded 2 points (one for correctly navigating the Beebot, one for a correct response).
If this student does not answer correctly, they receive 1 point for correctly navigating the Beebot, but
the next student in the group gets a chance to identify the thesis. If they get it correct as determined by
their peers, they receive 1 point for a correct response. Each student’s points can be tracked using the
pen and paper. This continues until the Beebot has been correctly programmed and the question has
been correctly answered. Once this has happened, a new card can be drawn, and the process repeats.
This continues until time is up or until all the terms on the cards have been covered. At the end of the
lesson, whoever has the most points is declared the winner and receives a prize (extra credit point,
candy, etc)!

Lesson Ending (4 minutes):

After completing the Beebot activity, the students will be given a short paper quiz to assess their
understanding of the learning objectives. The quiz will be multiple choice, and contain questions
regarding the new terms learned and about the Beebot. The students will complete the quiz, and will
then trade and grade their responses if time allows. Any students who receive an 87% or higher will
receive an extra credit point!

Quiz Grading:

Great (87%-100%)

Average (62%-75%)

Poor (0%-50%)

The student’s score of an 87% or higher demonstrates a clear understanding of the lesson’s content.

The student’s score of a 62%-75% demonstrates only average understanding of the lesson’s content.
The student may need to review in order to better understand.

The student’s score of a 50% or below demonstrates very poor understanding of the lesson’s content.
The student may require a reteaching of the lesson in order to better understand.

Resources / Artifacts:

Short Stories for class use: http://www.english-for-students.com/Animal-Stories.html (adapted version)

Beebot Intro - https://youtu.be/wcAHpLO0BWA

Quiz -
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kw2PS93u4j2tmQgaGDTAFnMnbPBQjX5P6lkiGj_m_t0/edit?usp
=sharing

Nearpod: https://share.nearpod.com/jq3JffcNOL

Access to iPads/Beebot

Grid and Cards -

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LbuVZZYtzDvAEN8wWUhFFmC6QFvL93_4NlGSafc4RfU/edit?usp
=sharing

iPad notes from Powerpoint

Differentiation:

Differentiation for ability levels

High ability learners can work with low ability learners in groups, but the teacher will make sure that
each student in the group takes an equal amount of turns and participates actively.

2. Differentiation for demographics

Differing demographics should not play a role in this lesson plan.

3. Differentiation for languages

Students who may not speak English proficiently can work with proficient English speakers, requiring
these students to help each other in their responses. This will encourage teamwork and allow the non-
Native speakers to gain confidence in vocalizing their responses.

4. Differentiation for access & resources

Students will require iPads to take notes during the lesson intro, and Beebots to perform the lesson
plan. Should they not have Beebots, toy cars could be used instead, requiring the students to write out
their directional choices ahead of time.

Anticipated Difficulties:

Students may have trouble with correctly programming the Beebot, in which case they will be referred
back to the Beebot intro video. If students are having issues correctly responding to the content, they
can use their notes from the lesson intro as an aid.

Timeline for Microteaching:

Lesson Intro: 7 minutes

Lesson Main: 14 minutes

Assessment: 4 minutes