Student: Tessa VanderStel School: Frances Slocum Elementary School

IWU Supervisor: Dr. Leffler Co-op Teacher: Mrs. Sloan

Lesson Title: Let your voice be heard! Grade Level: 1st Grade

Indiana Wesleyan University

Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template
CAEP 2018 K-6 Elementary Teacher Preparation Standards

LESSON RATIONALE
Because my first graders are moving from the letter-name stage to the transitional stage of writing, I have decided to focus on the
pre-writing aspect of the writing workshop. In order to help my students think clearly about voice, I will ask them to create words
that help them convey a particular voice. Rather than having them write full sentences, I will have students write words or
phrases so that our time can be spent efficiently.

READINESS
I. Goals/Objectives/Standard(s)
A. Goal(s): Students will be able to convey voice through their writing.
B. Objective(s): After examining texts that display different types of voice, students will create their own word web about
a topic of their choosing with words that convey a particular voice.
C. Standard(s): 1.W.1 Write routinely over brief time frames and for a variety of purposes and audiences.
D. Management Plan
 Time – 50 minutes
 Use of space – students begin at tables, move to carpet for mini-lesson, move back to tables for writing workshop, and
move back to carpet for closure.
 List of materials – short reading excerpts (attached at end), The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt,
blank sheets of paper for each student, document camera, notebook for conference notetaking.
 Expectations and procedures
o Students that are sitting at individual desks (there are four of these in my classroom), will move to tables
during the beginning of the lesson, so that they will be able to collaborate with their peers.
o Students who are following directions, and doing their work will receive dojos (the classroom management
system). If students are not obeying or are being disruptive, they will be reprimanded twice (depending on the
offense). On the third time, they will come back to the kidney table to sit with me and whoever I am
conferencing.
PLAN FOR INSTRUCTION
II. Adaptation to Individual Differences and Diverse Learners
 The students that I have selected for individual conferencing might struggle producing effective words to convey
their voice. I will confer with these students to help them turn their thoughts into effective words.
 Some other students might struggle coming up with an idea or words that convey voice. I have allowed them to
confer with one another in order to brainstorm ideas together.
III. Lesson Presentation (Input/Output)
Minilesson (Whole Group)
 Anticipatory Set (5 minutes)
o Students sitting at tables.
o I have two different sections from two different books that I want to read to you. These are both stories about
girls who are in school and do not like it very much. I want you to think about what makes these girls
different.
o Read excerpts from Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus and Fish in a Tree. (Attached at end of lesson
plan). Intentionally use very different voices for the two characters. Junie B. has a humorous and light tone,
while Ally is angry and bitter.
o Both of these girls did not like school, but they still seem pretty different from each other. Turn to the people
sitting at your table and talk about what you think was different about them.
o Allow students time to discuss. Call on tables to share. If students haven’t made comments about how the two
girls sound different (i.e. one is funny and one seems sad), guide them to that conclusion with prompting such
as How did the two girls sound? How did I read them differently?
 Purpose Statement
o Today we are going to learn about how to write with voice because this will help your writing become more
interesting to read!
 Introduce Trait (5 minutes)
o We have been talking about voice a lot this semester – who can tell me what we have learned about voice so
far?
o Allow students to respond – prompt them toward the following:
 Our voice matters when we vote, like in our math lesson
 we have to pay attention to the voice of the characters that we read so we know how they are
feeling
 we have been listening to voices through sound waves in science
o Our voices should be heard in our writing too! When you write something, people should be able to tell if you
are feeling sad, happy, angry, silly, scared, or excited.
 Junie B says words like: screechy, marched, “guess what?”, good hider, squeezed, all bended – she
seems kind of silly
 Ally says words like: embarrassed, too messy, painful, freak, dumb, loser – she seems like she is
angry and sad
o If you put a certain type of voice in your writing, then people will be able to tell how you were feeling even if
you aren’t there to tell them.
 Share Examples (Short Text/Read Aloud) (7 minutes)
 o I am going to read the book The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt.

o Come to the carpet so that I can read this book to you.

o The Day the Crayons Came Home is written in the form of letters. Each crayon writes how they are feeling.
Listen to how each of the crayons has a different voice. They use different types of words to talk about their
experiences.
o Read book
o Turn to the person next to you and tell them which color crayon was your favorite. Why? What kind of voice
did he or she seem to have?
o Call on students to share.
 Provide Information (Model) (3 minutes)
o Put a sheet of blank paper under the document camera.
o I am going to create a word web (which the students are already familiar with doing) with what I want to
write about – I want to write about going to the beach because that makes me happy.
o Write “a beach day” in the middle of the page with a circle around it.
o I am going to use some words or phrases to show how happy I feel when I am at the beach.
o Write words coming off of “a beach day” such as: happy, bright sun, relax, calm, laugh
 Supervise Practice (Shared Writing) (7 minutes)
o Let’s try doing this together. Let’s write about something that makes us mad. What if you got in trouble for
something you didn’t do? Let’s call it “unfair.”
o Put another blank sheet under the document camera and write “unfair” in the middle of the page with a circle
around it.
o Raise your hand if you have a word or phrase that you think could help our voice.
o Listen to students suggestions, and if they are appropriate, hand them a marker to write their answer on the
white board to help create the word web. If students give a suggestion that does not seem appropriate in the
context, ask them to explain their thinking. Guide them toward a more appropriate word if necessary.
o Remember that it is more than okay to spell your words wrong – I know that you might want to write some
words that you don’t know how to spell. That is good! I want you to come up with really creative words. We
can fix the spelling later.
o Now it is time for you to come up with something that you want to write about – your topic (we have
previously talked about topics)! Choose something like a pet, something that you like to do (or don’t like to
do), a room at your house, a place you have been before. Write that in the center of your paper.
 o Then around that middle word, write what words you will use when you talk about that thing. Do you want
your writing to sound angry? Happy? Sad? Excited? Scared? Write words that will help you show what you
are feeling.
 Check for Understanding (2 minutes)
o Who can tell me what you should write at the middle of your paper?
o Call on students. Right, let’s say “topic” together.
o Who can tell me what you should write around your paper?
o Call on students. Right, let’s say “voice words” together.
o Come and get a blank sheet of paper to write your word web on, and then go back to your tables. You may
talk at a level 1 to ask those around you for advice or suggestions, but try to spend most of your time writing.
 Writing (16 minutes)
o Students will sit at their tables for 16 minutes to work on the pre-writing stage of writing. They will create
word webs like the one we created together on the board.
 Conferencing
o I will conference for 4 minutes with 4 different students: Remyia, Jazmin, Kallie, and Ti’Sean
o I will conduct these conferences at the kidney table at the back of the room.
 Although each of these students will most likely not struggle to pick a topic, they may struggle to
go beyond the words “happy, sad, or angry” – I will use this conferencing time to help them
discover other words that help them explore their voice.
 I will ask them to tell me about their topic (free, unstructured talking), and then I will write down
words that I hear them saying. After a few sentences, I will stop them, and will go back to what
they have said. I will ask them which words they like of the ones I have written down. They will
then write those on their own paper. I will continue this process until our time is up.
 I will keep the list of words that I have written down to reference later – were these words that
seem to reach their first grade vocabulary level? How could I help them in the future to further
develop their vocabulary?
 Sharing (2 minutes)
o Now, stand up and find your classroom partner (already established in this classroom). Spend one minute
reading your topic and your voice words to your partner. At the one minute mark I will tell you to switch and
then the other partner will talk.
IV. Check for understanding.
 Walk around the classroom while students discuss with their partners. Both listen to what students are saying, and
glance at their papers. During this time select a student’s word web to use during the closure (pull the student aside and
ask the student if they would be open to their paper being shared in front of the whole class).
VIII. Review learning outcomes / Closure (3 minutes)
 Call students to the carpet at the front of the room. Set the preselected student’s paper under the document camera.
 (Preselected student), can you read these words to me as I point to them?
 After student reads the words: What can the rest of you tell me about the type of voice that this student is writing with?
 Call on students. Ask them to explain their reasoning.
 Just like you were able to tell what type of voice this was, other people will be able to tell what your voice is!
PLAN FOR ASSESSMENT
 Informal assessment during conferences (through notes) and listening during student sharing time
 Collect student’s word webs and determine whether the words they chose were an effective way to communicate their
voice.
REFLECTION AND POST-LESSON ANALYSIS
1. Were students engaged during the direct instruction time? If not, what could I have done to make the presentation more
interactive?
2. What (if any) misconceptions did students seem to have about voice? How could I reteach this next time to help these
students?
3. When examining my students’ word webs, were there any that stood out as needing conferencing for next time?
4. When examining my students’ word webs, which students need to continue with the pre-writing stage, and which
would I encourage to move on to the drafting stage?
Excerpt from Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus by Barbara Park

Pretty soon Mrs. clapped her loud hands together. “Okay, everyone. Gather up your things. It’s almost time for the bell.” Then I
heard a noise in the parking lot. It was screechy brakes. And so I looked out the window. And I saw the school bus. It was
coming to get me! “Oh no!” I said kind of loud. “Now I’m going to get chocolate milk poured on my head!” Then I chewed on
my fingers. “Get in line! Get in line!” said Mrs. “When we get outside, I want all of my bus students to come with me. The rest of
you must go to the crossing guard.” Everyone was lining up. I was the very last one. Just then the bell rang and Mrs. marched out
the door. Then everybody else marched out, too. Except guess what? I didn’t.

When you’re the very last one in line, nobody watches you. That’s how come nobody saw me when I ducked behind the teacher’s
desk and hid. I’m a good hider. One time at Grandma Miller’s house, I hid under the kitchen sink. Then I made a growly sound
and sprung out at her. I’m not allowed to do that anymore. Anyway, I stayed scrunched behind the teacher’s desk for a while.
And then I saw a better place to hide. It was the big supply closet in the back of the room. And so I ran back there very fast. And
I squeezed onto the bottom shelf. I squeezed right on top of the construction paper. Most of me was comfortable. Except my head
was sort of very tight. And my knees were all bended. Like when I do a somersault.

Excerpt from Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

“All that doodling of yours, Ally. If you weren’t drawing all the time, your work might be done. Please put it away.”

Embarrassed, I slide my drawings underneath my blank writing assignment. I’ve been drawing pictures of myself being shot out
of a cannon. It would be easier than school. Less painful.

“C’mon,” she says, moving my lined paper toward me. “Just do your best.”
Seven schools in seven years and they’re all the same. Whenever I do my best, they tell me I don’t try hard enough. Too messy.
Careless spelling. Annoyed that the same word is spelled different ways on the same page. And the headaches. I always get
headaches from looking at the brightness of dark letters on white pages for too long.

Mrs. Hall clears her throat.

The rest of the class is getting tired of me again. Chairs slide. Loud sighs. Maybe they think I can’t hear their words: Freak.
Dumb. Loser.