Mini/Focus Lesson Plan

Here is my first go at a Focus Lesson Plan for Writing:

Mini / Focus Lesson Plan- Details/ Descriptive Words

Name: Marissa Croft, 2/9/11

Rationale: The students in my first grade class are learning “Big Dog Words” from different books they read like “amusing”, “adorable” and “delicious”. Most of them are adjectives and they are learning how to use them in everyday language which is great. I think it would be a good activity to have them learn to incorporate not only “Big Dog Words” but even small, short, but very important and descriptive words, into their writing.

Standard:
ELA1W2 The student writes in a variety of genres, including narrative, informational, persuasive and response to literature. The student will write a narrative that:

c. Adds details to expand a story.

Mentor Text:

An Extraordinary Egg by Leo Lionni

Excerpt: “’I wonder what Marilyn and August will say when they see this!’ she thought as she rolled the beautiful stone to the small inlet where the three of them lived.”

Lesson Description: (5-10 minutes)

-First review the big dog words they have learned and why they are important.

- Talk about adjectives and what they are: descriptive words that add detail and enrich our writing!

- Read the excerpt and talk about what it would sound like without the adjectives.  (…as she rolled the stone to the inlet where they lived = boring!)

-Have students look at other excerpts and cross off all the adjectives and see what it sounds like. Look at other excerpts and add in adjectives to make it more interesting. (Great with a haunted house)



Independent writing:

As they work on their independent writing, no matter what genre, but especially narratives, they are encouraged to include adjectives wherever possible AND comfortable. You don’t want to string a laundry list of adjectives before every noun. They need to make sense and be selective.