Using a Biography for Sequencing, Central Idea and Details

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  General Lesson Plan

• Learning Objectives: What should students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?

  
  

  Students will be able to:

  • Determine the central idea and details in a passage or selection.
  • Explain how details support the central idea.
  • Recognize how text structure contributes to comprehension of texts.
  • Put events in sequential order.
  • Complete a biographical outline explaining important information about Amelia Earhart.

• Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?

  
  

  Students should be able to:

  • Distinguish between the central idea and relevant details.
  • Find relevant details that support a central idea.
  • Sequence events.
  • Classify biographies as informational texts.
  • Demonstrate understanding of the text features of biographies.
  • Distinguish between primary and secondary sources.

• Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?

  
  
  • How can a central idea and relevant details be found in a text?
  • How is the text organized in a biography, and what are the text features of biographies?

• Teaching Phase: How will the teacher present the concept or skill to students?

  
  

  Part 1

  The teacher will begin the lesson by activating students' prior knowledge and reviewing central idea, relevant details, biographies, and sequencing using the PowerPoint attachment. After each slide in the presentation, the teacher can check students’ understanding. The teacher can do this by asking questions, asking students to turn to a partner and share what they learned, or asking students to write a sentence that summarizes what they learned.

  The teacher will continue with having students complete a KWL of Amelia Earhart (individually or on chart paper in a whole group). Students will tell/write what they already know about Amelia Earhart based on their own knowledge and the cover of the text they will be reading later in the lesson. They will ask/write at least two questions they have about Amelia Earhart before reading.

  After reviewing what a biography is, the teacher will read a biography of Mae Jemison to the class (Mae Jemison by Nancy Polette).

  The teacher will use the biography to model and provide guided practice on:

  • Finding the central idea and relevant details,
  • Using text features to support comprehension, and
  • Making connections between the text structure, chronology, key words for chronology/sequencing, and the development of the biography in conveying the events of a person’s life.

• Guided Practice: What activities or exercises will the students complete with teacher guidance?

  
  

  Part 2

  The teacher will lead students in small groups to read a biography of Amelia Earhart. (Amelia Earhart by Jonatha Brown or Amelia Earhart by Marilyn Rosenthal and Danile Freeman). There are questions provided (see Amelia Earhart questions attachment) to use with the students as they are reading in a small group so the teacher can give feedback as they're reading. Students could also answer these questions on paper or in a log as they read.

• Independent Practice: What activities or exercises will students complete to reinforce the concepts and skills developed in the lesson?

  
  

  Part 3

  Students will independently complete a biographical outline for Amelia Earhart. See attached form for directions.

  Next, students will work in a small group of 4-6 to develop a timeline about Amelia Earhart’s life. The teacher will provide small sheets of paper (e.g., copy paper divided into fourths or eighths) for each student in the group that corresponds to a specific section in the biography they read. Students will record the date at the top of the page and write a description of the important event that goes with the date. Students will also illustrate a picture to represent the event and/or locate an image using available digital tools. After students have created their part of the timeline, they will put the events and order and paste them onto a larger piece of paper or sentence strip (long construction paper). The teacher may use the attached Timeline Checklist for scoring.

• Closure: How will the teacher assist students in organizing the knowledge gained in the lesson?

  
  

  Part 3 Continued

  After completing the Amelia Earhart activities, the teacher will return to the KWL chart and what students have learned about Amelia Earhart.

  The teacher will have a whole group discussion, returning to the guiding questions:

  • How can a central idea and relevant details be found in a text?
  • How is the text organized in a biography, and what are the text features of biographies?

  Finally, the students will complete the Exit Slip attachment and share their responses with a partner.

• Summative Assessment

  
  

  Biographical outline of Amelia Earhart: This outline should be complete and should include important events in her life (famous firsts/jobs/accomplishments/marriages and kids/things she is famous for). On the back students must have at least 3 reasons why they do or do not admire the person.

  Group Timeline: Students work in a small group to create a timeline about Amelia Earhart's life. The Timeline Checklist attachment can help with scoring this assessment.

• Formative Assessment

  
  
  • The teacher can use the KWL (Know/Want to Learn/Learned) Chart on Amelia Earhart to see students' ability to recall details about Amelia Earhart.
  • The teacher can use the exit slip (see attachments) to assess students' understanding of the concepts in the lesson such as biography, central idea, details, etc.

• Feedback to Students

  
  

  Students will get feedback throughout the lesson through class discussions, small group discussions, and cooperative partners. The teacher can provide feedback to students as they work on the Amelia Earhart comprehension questions (see attachments).

• Florida’s B.E.S.T. Benchmark Alignment Notes

  
  
  • For multi-day/part lessons, the focus and supporting benchmarks may change for each part depending on the task students are engaged in and the content covered.