Unit Orientation Students are motivated from their excursion to
Australia Zoo the previous week where they learnt about different animals and their adaptions. In lesson one of this new unit the teacher activates students prior knowledge by asking them questions about their excursion and the different animals. The teacher asks the students if they can figure out the link between their new science unit and this new English unit.
Lesson 1 - Activate
Building knowledge of the field This unit introduces students to many different multimodal texts. These texts are then used to develop students knowledge, assist them to comprehend and analyse information, learn new scientific vocabulary and build their understanding of the structure and features of informative texts. Lesson 1 Activate Lesson 2 Build Lesson 3 Comprehend Lesson 5 Vocabulary Lesson 6 Text structures Lesson 7 Language features Lesson 10 Build meaning
Utilising the non- fiction focus text Kalman, B. (2002). How do animals adapt? St Catharines, ON: Crabtree. This text is used many times within the unit to discuss the purpose of informative texts, the structure and language features, new scientific vocabulary and how to search for their meaning. Lesson 1 Activate Lesson 2 Build Lesson 3 Comprehend Lesson 5 Vocabulary Lesson 6 Text structures Lesson 7 Language features Lesson 10 Build meaning
Responding to texts It is anticipated that students respond to all the texts used in each lesson. This is done through grand conversations, group work, worksheets, activities and reflective journal writing. This is achieved through the Literature strand (Responding to literature) and the Literacy strand (Interactions with others and Interpreting, analysing and evaluating).
Lesson 1 Activate Lesson 3 Comprehend Lesson 6 Text structures Lesson 7 Language features
Exploring texts Students explore different texts in many lessons to provide greater understanding and content knowledge. The features explored through texts include genres, structure and language features, vocabulary and grammar. This is achieved through all three stands and can be viewed in detail in the specified learning experiences. Lesson 1 Activate Lesson 2 Build Lesson 5 Vocabulary Lesson 6 Text structures Lesson 7 Language features Lesson 10 Build meaning
Examining texts including:
Text structure and organisation Text structure is explicitly taught to students to construct a deeper understanding and assist in the writing of an informative report. This is achieved through the Literacy strand (Interpreting, analysing and evaluating).
Lesson 6 Text structure COMPONENTS EXPLANATION/DETAILS LEARNING EXPERIENCES Expressing and developing ideas Students were also explicitly taught how to express and develop their ideas to assist in writing an informative report. This is achieved through knowledge of language features and the writing process. These lessons link with the Literacy strand (Interpreting, analysing and evaluating and creating texts)
Lesson 7 Language features Lesson 8 Plan & Draft Lesson 9 Revise & Edit Lesson 10 Build meaning Visual and multimodal features of texts Comprehension strategies to analyse digital sources were explicitly taught to assist students navigate through different multimodal texts and their features. The visual features of informative texts were also taught to students in the text structures lesson. This is achieved through the Literacy strand (Interpreting, analysing and evaluating).
Lesson 4 Analyse Lesson 6 Text structures
Extending beyond the focus text including:
Creating texts utilising print and multimodal texts Students were explicitly taught the different stages of the writing process to assist in their writing of an informative report. Students were then given a topic and three facts to write about. Over two lessons students planned and drafted their text and then revised and editing their work to understand how the writing process is achieved. This is achieved through the Literacy strand (Creating texts).
Lesson 8 Plan & Draft Lesson 9 Revise & Edit
Assessment Formative (one strategy and instrument) Formative assessment is assessment that allows the teacher to monitor students learning to make sure what they are teaching is being understood by the students. Within this lesson plan formative assessment is achieved everyday through observations of group work, grand conversations, worksheets and journal entries. A more comprehensive formative assessment was conducted just past the half way mark to evaluate students understanding of the structure and language features of informative reports. This allows the teacher to see if further explicit teaching is needed in this area.
Lesson 7 Language features (Appendix P) Summative (one strategy and instrument) Summative assessment is assessment that sums up and evaluates students learning and is often assessed with a marking criteria or rubric at the end of a unit. The summative assessment for this unit was an informative report on a created animal and its adaptions in a particular habitat. The task sheet, planning sheet and rubric were handed out to the students at the start of the unit so they knew what they were working towards and each lesson always emphasised why it
Lesson 1 Activate Appendix B,C & D COMPONENTS EXPLANATION/DETAILS LEARNING EXPERIENCES would help them write their report. In the final lesson a checklist was also created with the students so they could determine if their report was complete. Students had to hand in their reports on Monday the following week however could hand them in early if they wished to do so.
Significant demonstration of learning. The expectations for achieving the productive modes of writing and creating were explained to the students in the first lesson. By giving the students the rubric this allowed them to see exactly what was being assessed and how they needed to demonstrate their learning.