lesson plan_anne frank and how-to essay_03.04.13_with sandi's comments

7/28/2019 Lesson Plan_Anne Frank and How-To Essay_03.04.13_with Sandi's Comments

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Lesson Plans for Week of March 3, 2013

Overview/Rationale

Well divide this week between continuing to read The Diary of Anne Frankas a class, and

beginning and completing a how-to essay.

Anne Frank

Students will begin reading Act Two ofThe Diary of Anne Frank.

Students will read as a class, within their literature circles.

Students will read in readers theater style and in small groups.

Students will be responsible for tracking assigned themes/topics/characters in the play,

both as they listen to the readers theater and as they read silently in their groups.

Students will continue to track their own personal theme of interest, and mark the places in

the text where that shows up (in preparation for their analytical essay at the end of the

unit).

Writing WorkshopStudents will work in stages to produce an expository, how-to essay. These stages will

include brainstorming, choosing a topic, listing steps, writing, peer-review and whole-class

editing.

Understandings

Students will understand the character development, growing conflict between the

characters and between the characters and their situation, and dramatic irony in the play.

Students will articulate themselves in a linear, detailed essay, with their audiences

(readers) in mind.

Day 1:Objectives

Read Act Two, Scene One in Readers Theater. Outer circle tracks assigned themes.

Introduce How-To Essay.

Brainstorm ideas for essay.

Opener

Students literature circles and their roles are posted on the board. Students move into the

theater inner circle and the listeners outer circle.

Ill ask students to sit in their groups. Ill let students know that as the listeners take notes,

theyll be keeping these notes and turning in a group set of notes for a group grade. Ill

remind students to pay attention to the dialogue and to the stage directions. Before givinginstructions, I encourage you to frame the value of the entire activity in terms of the study

of the genre of drama, perhaps noting how different genres require different skills.

How can I make this assignment real-world? That is, how can I make it seem like a

meaningful activity for them? How can I make this something that they could only do as a

group, not individually?Maybe you could have a brief practice round, where you give one of

the middle folks a sample piece to read (maybe a poem on the Holocaust or a related theme or

even something lighthearted as a hookI love Billy Collins poems for things like that), ask a


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few on the outer circle to focus on a particular aspect of the poem, and then debrief as a class.

You could show how the few who were listening for certain elements in the poem allowed the

analysis to go deeper and be richer than just one persons response. Hence, the group working

together matters!

Should I type up each groups question at the topof a page and hand them out? Im not sure I

want to do this, since it might take away the responsibility and independence of the groups. Iwant them to learn how to work together, how to be responsible individually for their work in

the group. To simplify, could you put on the screen a comprehensive set of instructions (such

as what you have below, but maybe a little more concise) so each group knows its task as well

as the tasks/focal points of the other groups?

Whatabout the group thats reading today, but wont be tomorrow? Should I come up with a

different question for them, and theyll just pick up from Scene Two with their notes for that?

Im not sure could you see how it goes tomorrow?

[Groups and Topics:

8A

Group 3 (Ethan, Jia-Jia, Terence, Jason, Montana) reads Act Two, Scene One in ReadersTheater.

Group 1 (Zion, Sunday, Simon, Tina, Jiawen):Track and compare Mr. and Mrs. Franks marriage with Mr. and Mrs. Van Daans marriage. Are they similar? Are

they different? How? Be specific. Think about how each person treats their spouse, their children, and the people

outside of their family. What do the other characters think of them as a couple? What is most difficult about

living in the Annex for each couple?

Group 2 (Ramzy, Yasmeen, Tamir, Christian, Nazir)Track the relationship between Anne and Margot. Compare their characters. What does each girl want? What is

each girl afraid of? How do the other characters think of each girl?

Group 4 (Alexandria, Nahaadja, Crystal, Mark)Track the character of Mr. Dussell. What does he want? What is most difficult for him about living in the Annex?

How does he act with the other characters? What do the other characters think of him?Group 5 (Shirly, Devin, Jany, Yolanda, Michelle)Dramatic Irony. Track and compare instances where the expectations of the characters is opposed to the reality

of their situation, which the audience understands. What effect do those moments of dramatic irony have on the

audience? Make sure you include a definition of dramatic irony (from your Elements of Drama notes) on the top

of your notes.

8B

Group 1 (Imani, Raymond, Adrian, Ming): Reads Act Two, Scene One

Group 2 (Simran, Aminah, Liam):Dramatic Irony. Track and compare instances where the expectations of the characters is opposed to the reality

of their situation, which the audience understands. What effect do those moments of dramatic irony have on theaudience? Make sure you include a definition of dramatic irony (from your Elements of Drama notes) on the top

of your notes.

Group 3 (Celine, Tracy, Frankie, Makeisha, Collin):Track and compare the young people with the older people. What do the young people want or care about? Is it

different from or similar to what the older people want or care about? What are they afraid of? Are their fears

the same as those of the older people?

Group 4 (Daniel, Norna, Linda, Wenlong):


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Track and compare Mr. and Mrs. Franks marriage with Mr. and Mrs. Van Daans marriage. Are they similar? Are

they different? How? Be specific. Think about how each person treats their spouse, their children, and the people

outside of their family. What do the other characters think of them as a couple? What is most difficult about

living in the Annex for each couple?

Group 5 (Jamiyah, Tammalin, Rachel, Katrina):Track the relationship between Anne and Margot. Compare their characters. What does each girl want? What is

each girl afraid of? How do the other characters think of each girl?Group 6: Shaojie, Samir, Andy, ConnorTrack the character of Mr. Dussell. What does he want? What is most difficult for him about living in the Annex?

How does he act with the other characters? What do the other characters think of him?

Group 7: Wei, Sallie, Sara, Baowei (*Note: switch Sallie and Imani?)]Track Miep and Mr. Kraler. What are their roles in the community in the Annex? Think deeper here. What are the

emotional effects of their visits? What are their personalities like? What are the risks theyre taking? How are

these risks discussed or ignored by the people in the Annex?

Body of the Lesson

Students read Act Two, Scene One in Readers Theater.

Outer circle takes notes.

Will they be able to take notes as theyre listening? Will that inhibit their listening?Encouragethem to do jottings, words and phrases are fine. If there are a few minutes after the activity,

they could revisit and add words for clarity.

Should I check in with students about what they noticed/their written notes? Or save that for

a time after theyve had a chance to get together with their groups? Id like the whole class to

benefit from these notes, but how can I ensure that that happens in a productive discussion?

You might just ask for a sampling something to share that really stood out. Could you put

together a document later that captures all groups notes? If the kids used laptops, you could

do an electronic version.

~Transition into Writing Workshop~Ill ask students to move out of Readers Theater seating.

Introducing the How-To Essay

Ill show a clip from Man vs. Wild or from Julia Child (How to Make an Omelet) as a

hook/introduction. Ill ask students to take notes on the steps of the process. (Ill do this

with them). Would you consider starting with this activity instead of the Anne Frank one? I

think the clip could be a fresh hook to pull them in.

Ill ask students to share what were the steps of the process.

Ill ask students to take a few minutes and brainstorm some ideas of what things theycan

teach someone to do.

Ill show a slide with some examples, then ask students to share some of their examples.

Ill explain to students that theyll be working writing a Teaching Essay or How-To

Essay on a topic they choose. Be sure to share with them a topic you could totally get

excited about using for this assignment!


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Ill post some criteria for their topics, and advise students to take notes on the criteria:

Check Your Topic: Is this something that I know well and can teach others to do? Can I

break the process down into clear steps? Can I explain the activity in only three or four

paragraphs? Will this process or activity interest my audience? (p. 331)

Closure

Homework: Ill ask students to take their lists home and add some more things to them. Ill

ask them to decide on a topic theyd like to write about. Ill emphasize that the person who

reads their essays should be able to complete those activities based on their instructions.

Assessment

Whole-class sharing of listing steps in the video clip.

Dr. Marshall and I will walk around as students brainstorm ideas and check that theyre

listing some.

Eventually, Ill collect the listeners Readers Theater notes.

Concerns:

Making Meaningof the note-taking activity.

Enough time to cover all of this? Im never sure how quickly the whole-class reading will go.

Should I plan to do the essay first and then transition into Anne Frank?I think so! See above

brilliant minds think alike ha ha)

That YouTube wont work! Need to make sure this will be available maybe get it on DVD if I

can

Day 2:

ObjectivesRead Act Two, Scene Two in Literature Circles, silently. Individual members of literature

circles split roles to track the same topic/theme/character from yesterday.

In class, students announce their topics for How-To essays. Students write steps of their

process in chronological order. Students list materials theyll need.

Opener

Ill ask students to announce their topics for their essays. In 8A, well go around the room.

In 8B, Ill ask for volunteers and/or call on students.

Body of the Lesson

~Writing Workshop~

Steps and Materials

Ill ask students to write their topic at the top of their page with the words How-To. How

to Pack a Survival Kit.


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Students draw a line down the middle of the page.

On the left side, students make a numbered list of the steps in the process.

On the right side, students list the materials theyll need for each step.

Transitional Words

Ill ask students what words they can use to describe moving from one step to the next.Ill ask them to take a moment and write down a few words that show moving from one

step to the next. Then Ill ask for students to share, and Ill write them on the PowerPoint on

the board.first, next, then, after, later, finally, in the meantime, as soon as, at this point

(Transitional words and phrases, p. 332).

Ill point out that these words/phrases will guide their readers through the process.

Homework:

Write supporting details for each of your steps.

Write two or more sentences about why this is a useful thing to know how to do (i.e., whyshould your reader want to go out and try this?)

~Transition into Literature Circles~

Students move into their literature circles to read Scene Two silently.

Ill post different roles for each person in the literature circles. Students will assign these

roles themselves. Ill announce that they have about two minutes to decide who has which

role. Students write their roles down at the top of their page.

Literature Circle Roles:

-Illustrator: draw an important moment in the scene that illustrates your topic. Write a fewsentences explaining what you drew and why its important.

-Note-Taker: Take notes on what your group is learning about your topic. These may be

informal notes (not complete sentences), but they should be thorough.

-Passage-Picker: Choose one quote or brief conversation that gives especially important

information about your topic. Write a few sentences explaining why that passage stood out.

-Connection-Maker: Look at some of the notes the Note-Taker took. Choose one of the

things your group has learned about your topic. Make a connection to a text/movie/real-

world event other thanAnne Frankwhere you see something similar happening.

Students, in their individual roles, will continue tracking their groups

topic/theme/character from yesterday. More than one student may have the same role.

How will I hold them accountable for these notes? Add them to the notes from yesterday?

Should I let them know this will be a group grade? Are these roles okay? Are these meaningful

activities for them?A group grade is appropriate you could always ask them to include the

role they played / contributions they made in the group.

Closure


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Ill remind students oftheir homework for the how-to essay. Ill let them know that if they

didnt have time to finish their work in their literature circles, they can continue that on

Thursday.

Ill let them know I wont be here Wednesday, but that theyll be working on their essays in

class. Ill point them to p. 333 of their textbook for Framework for a How-To Essay toguide their writing.

Ill let them know their rough drafts are due in class Thursday, and well peer-review

them then. Their final drafts will be due Friday.

Assessment

As students work in literature circles, Ill go around and check that they have their steps

and materials listed.

Is that okay, or should I just do it informally while theyre working on them? Should I give

them credit for that work, even without collecting it?

Concerns:Enough time?

Holding students accountable for their literature circle work?

Will their role assignments need more scaffolding?

Day 3:

*I wont be here today (Delaware Valley Job Fair)

Objectives

Students work on their How-To essays in class. They refer to the textbooks Framework

for a How-To Essay on p. 333, which outlines what they should include in their intro, body

and conclusion.

Homework: BRING ROUGH DRAFTS TO CLASS.

Day 4:

*Half day for professional development. Im not sure yet how Mr. Orlowski will schedule

the classes. They may be 50 minutes or only 25 minutes.

Objectives

Students peer-review each others essays.

Should I let students choose their own partners, or assign? Maybe just have them choose a

partner from within their circle. Ask Dr. Marshall?Id do it randomly counting off by 16 or

whatever half the class is and then match up same-numbered people.

Body of the Lesson

Ill provide students with a checklist for each others essay.

Students will partner up, and read through each others essay, checking to make sure

everything is there.

Theyll fill the check lists out as they read, and hand in at the end of class.


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Closure

Ill remind students that their final drafts are due tomorrow, printed out, at the beginning

of class.

Assessment

Ill collect peer review sheets from students, and give them credit.

Day 5:

Objectives

Whole class edits excerpts from essays.

*Dr. Marshall asked that I do a lesson on editing before the PSSAs next week.

Opener

Ill collect students essays.

Body of the LessonMeta-cognitive activity: Check in with students about how theyre working in their

literature circles. Prompt: Think about the work youve been doing in your literature

circles. Has anything been frustrating? Have you wanted to say something to your group-

mates to fix the situation? If you didnt say anything, why not? If you did, what was the

result? Do you want to solicit positive feedback, too?

As students are writing, Ill quickly go through their essays and excerpt some passages for

editing.

Ill type up these passages on different slides.

Students hand in their metacognition.

Ill post the excerpts on the board, and well edit them together.

Closure

Ill ask students if they saw any concerns that kept appearing in the excerpts. Do they see

those concerns in their own writing? Well discuss.

Assessment

Grading essays this weekend!

Make a special rubric for this, or use Dr. Marshalls?

Concerns: Is this editing exercise too risky, in terms of time? What if I dont have enough time?

What if I cant find a passage with a lot to edit? I wanted to do it from their essays so it could

be meaningful for themDont waste time being too creative or meaningful just find a pre-

fab passage on a semi-interesting topic.

Next week 3/11-3/15

-PSSAs Dr. Marshall says this wont affect schedule, but I need to double check that.


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-finish reading Anne Frank in circles

-Cynthia Ozicks Prologue excerpts and bystander/rescuer activity

-begin watching the mini-series of Anne Frank (2009)

-structured class discussion on the themes/topics/characters their groups have been

tracking-introduce research essay and topics

lesson plan_anne frank and how-to essay_03.04.13_with sandi's comments

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