Major Events in a Story- First Grade Reading

Description:
Differentiated instruction will allow students to identify the major events of a familiar story
either individually or in a small group. The purposes are to enhance comprehension skills, and to
complete the requirements of the Common Core anchor standards for grade one reading (R.2 and
R.3). This lesson will be taught to an inclusive first grade classroom of ten students. Within the
classroom population, there is one English language learner who is fluent in Spanish but has
limited English proficiency, one student who exhibits primary gifts and talents, one student who
has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, and one student who is identified as having a learning
disability.
Prerequisites:
Prior to this lesson, students will know how to identify the characters and settings of a story by
using key details and by making logical inferences. Students will know how to read and/or
comprehend text that is read aloud to them. In the previous lessons, students identified the
characters and settings in "Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly."
Estimated Time:
1 hour
Purpose:
Classroom Instruction; Small Group
Grades:
1-3
Content Areas:
English/Language Arts
Common Core Standards:
Reading

Key Ideas and Details

o
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2 Determine central ideas or themes of a text and
analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
o
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas
develop and interact over the course of a text.

Instructional Goals:
Students will identify major events in a story.

Objectives:

Students will identify what an "event" is.

Students will identify what makes an event "major."

Variability:
Multiple Means of Representation:
1.1- I will provide definitions, directions, and assessments in multiple ways. Information will be shared
visually and orally, and students will have the choice of how to complete their summative assessment.
1.3- Students who require AT will be able to listen to an audio book instead of trying to read the hard
copy. A copy of the book that is written in both English and Spanish will be provided for the ELL
student.
2.1- Vocabulary will be provided in both English and Spanish. Students will receive flashcards with
definitions. For the students who benefit from auditory comprehension, definitions will be repeated, and
students can take notes with their AT software.
2.4- Bi-lingual instruction will benefit my ELL student.
2.5- Students will be able to illustrate/demonstrate their content knowledge through their choice of media.
3.1- In the introduction, I will remind my students that we have already covered the terms "characters"
and "setting" in previous lessons. I will ask questions to gain an understanding of their background
knowledge on "major events." We will then go over the definitions of "event" and "major event."
3.3- Guided practice during the lesson.
Multiple Means for Action and Expression:
4.1- Each student will complete the lesson using materials and devices that best suit their needs. Students
will choose how to complete the summative assessment.
4.2- The classroom will be filled with multiple means of technology; students with an IEP will have
access to assistive technology. Web 2.0 tools will be available for the assignment.
5.1- Communication will be offered in many formats: verbal/auditory, visual, bi-lingual instruction, and
via AT for two of my students.
6.2- Guided practice during lesson.
Multiple Means for Engagement:
7.1- Students will use a choice board to complete the assignment in their preferred way.

7.3- Accommodations, enrichment, and AT will be provided to reduce frustration and distractions.
8.2- Students will choose devices, software, and resources to use to complete their assignment.
Assignment is varied.
8.3- During the lesson, students will have the chance to work together in small groups. This will foster
peer collaboration.
Assessments:

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS
Anticipatory Set- I will start the lesson by asking questions to gain a grasp on my student's prior
knowledge.
Throughout the lesson, I will walk around the classroom with my co-teacher to observe, answer any
questions, and provide feedback on both their independent and group work.
I will offer students to chance to take turns reading aloud if they so choose. This will be a tool for
assessing my PTD student, as well as those who are comfortable with reading. If my ELL wanted to, he
could read aloud in Spanish, or practice his English pronounciation. My student with CP could use his
Dynavox Eyemax which allows him to communicate without actually speaking. I would not use this
assessment strategy for my student with a SLD due to his verbal aggression when asked to read aloud.
Overall, questioning and observation serve as my formative assessment strategies throughout the lesson.

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTS
I will use a choice board as my summative assessment. Students will have the option to choose one out of
six options to show their understanding of what a "major event" is. The choices vary, offering students
many options for completing the assignment. The options are to write an entry in a reading journal, create
a personal drawing, complete a provided graphic organizer, create a comic strip using ComicLife, create a
video using Animoto, or to create art out of text using Wordle. I will collect the assignments to assess my
instruction and student learning. From the student responses, I will be able to see how well they
understood the lesson and whether or not they met the objectives. I will also gain perspective on what I
did well and on what I can improve for the next lesson.
Instructional Methods:

OPENING
Introduction/Anticipatory Set
To being the lesson, I will ask my students if they know what the word "event" means. I will ask this
question in both English and Spanish to accommodate for my ELL student. After I receive answers from
at least five out of the ten students, I will ask if they can guess what a "major event" is. Again, the
questions will be asked in both English and Spanish. After I receive at least five answers, I will inform
the students about the lesson's objectives. These objectives will be written on the SmartBoard in both

languages. I will also repeat them verbally for the students who can comprehend what they hear, but who
struggle with reading. To segue into the lesson, I will inform my students that we will be working with
"Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly", which is the book that they have previously used to learn
about characters and settings.

DURING
Model New Skills and Knowledge/Guided Practice
I will provide all students with flashcards that display the definitions of both an "event" and a "major
event". These flashcards will also be written in Spanish for my ELL student, so he can see the Spanish
words next to the English words. This should assist in his second language acquisition. I will also write
the definitions on the SmartBoard. For my student with a SLD, I or my co-teacher will go over the
definitions with him verbally, and have him repeat what he hears. Next, I will provide each student with a
copy of "Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly." For my student with a SLD, I will set him up on one
of the computers with an audio book version of the story. This will benefit him because he reads three
levels below his peers, but has great comprehension skills. For my student with CP, I will set him up with
the Touch Turner so he can follow along without having to hold the book or turn the pages. My ELL will
be provided with a copy of the book that is wirtten in both English and Spanish. As I read aloud to the
class, I will show the pages on the document camera so every student can follow along. I will offer
students the option to read aloud if they choose to; this would be beneficial for my student exhibiting gifts
and talents because she is an advanced reader. My ELL student could read aloud in Spanish, or try
pronouncing the English words. Additionally, my student with CP would be able to use his Dynavox
Eyemax to read aloud if he so chooses. After going through the book once, I will ask my students to come
up with three events in the story; these events could be major or not. Students will be able to work in a
small group for ten minutes. I foresee this as a positive activity for students such as my girl with PTD
because she will be able to take a leadership position and help other students. This will also benefit
students such as my ELL because he will be able to practice his communication and language skills. I
will pass around pencils and paper to those who can use these tools. My student with a SLD will use
either the Gus! Access Keyboard or the Dragon Natually Speaking to record his responses; the Dragon
Naturally Speaking allows him to practice speech to text, whereas the Gus! allows him to type using word
prediction, word completion, and abbreviation expansion which would assist with his writing skills.
Furthermore, he would not have to respond verbally which will help to keep him happy and calm. My
student with CP would be able to use either the Panther Writer App. or the Penfriend-XL; either serve as
excellent tools for onscreen keyboards and word prediction, which benefit this student because he has
exceptional computer skills. To assess their answers, the co-teacher and I will walk around the classroom
and give feedback to each student and/or group of students. We will carry a checklist so we can keep
track of who is understanding the material and who needs additional support.

Independent Practice
After the practice activity is completed, I will display a choice board on the document camera, and will
also give each student a copy. This choice board will contain six choices for completing the summative
assessment of individually identifying the major events in the story. I will explain each choice in detail,
and will encourage students to try more than one if they have extra time. My ELL student will be able to
complete the assignment in Spanish. After reviewing the choice board, I will have each student
independently reread the story, keeping in mind to pay attention to the main events. For my student with
CP, he can either use the Touch Turner or listen to the audio book. My student with a SLD will use
Bookshare so that he can listen to the text while words are highlighted. This will help with his reading
comprehension and fluency skills.
The six choices on the choice board will be 1. a reading journal entry, 2. a personal drawing (by hand or
on the computer), 3. complete a provided graphic organizer, 4. make a comic strip using Comic Life,
5. use Animoto to make a video, and 6. use Wordle to turn text into art
Each student will have twenty minutes to complete the assignment to the best of his/her ability. They will
be able to use the computers or iPads available in the classroom if they choose to do a digital activity. I
will encourage my gifted and talented student to either create a video with Animoto or to create artwork
with her words on Wordle. She shows high interest in art, so I think that she could have fun with this
activity while also learning how to use new media. My student with CP would be able to use his
Dynavox to communicate with me, and can use the onscreen keyboard technologies to help him complete
the assignment. Since he loves military vessels, I would suggest that he try to tie these in with his
assignment choice. For example, each event that he picks from the story could be illustrated with a
different army tank, truck, or submarine. For my student with a SLD, he would be able to use either word
prediction software. I would suggest that he use the Dragon Naturally Speaking software because this
allows his expressive oral langauge to be translated into written language.
Closing:
Review
After each student has completed the assignment, or the twenty minutes are over, I will provide each
student with the option of sharing what they did with the class. Students could come to the front of the
classroom, stand by their seats, or have their work displayed on the document camera or SmartBoard.
This would allow students to compare the events that they chose from the book. I believe that this would
work for my student with SLD even though he becomes verbally aggressive when asked to read aloud. In
this case, he would just be sharing what he did as opposed to reading actual text. If students do not want
to share, they do not have to. I will collect the assignments to assess my instruction as well as student
learning.
Closing
In closing, I will review the vocabulary of "characters", "setting", and "major events". I will do so by
verbally saying the definitions while also writing them on the SmartBoard in both English and Spanish. I
will have my students either write, draw, verbally tell me, or type (onscreen keyboards and speech to text
software for my students who require AT) the definitions as their exit ticket.
Materials:

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

Pencils and paper

Six computers- multiple Web 2.0 tools

Six iPads- multiple Web 2.0 tools

Smartboard

Ten copies of "Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly"- one is written in both English and
Spanish, two are in the form of an audio book

Document camera

Flashcards

10 copies of the choice board

AT- Dynavox Eyemax, Penfriend-XL, Touch Turner, audio books, Panther Writer App.,
Bookshare, Gus! Access Keyboard, and Dragon Natually Speaking