Indiana Wesleyan University

Guided Reading Lesson Plan

Emily Gerycz
UNIT BIG IDEA
Life is a team sport: the individual matters to the group.

LESSON RATIONALE
When students read fiction books, they draw from their own experience and knowledge to understand. In every fictional
story, the author subtly incorporates thoughts and opinions through small seeds of truth. This truth is not only applicable
to the story, but it also is applicable to the students’ lives. Finding the truth in the story, theme, helps students connect
what they learn to a universal truth about the world around them.

READINESS
I. Goals/Objectives/Standard(s)
A. Goal(s)—Students will understand the concept of theme within a story.
B. Objective(s)—
 Guided Reading- After reading The Three Pigs by David Wiesner and discussing in a small group, students
will correctly identify the theme of the book.
 Station One- Given a theme and a list of folktales, students will match each folktale with the correct theme.
 Station Two- Given a Study Island assessment, students will complete the assignment with at least 70%
accuracy (as requested by cooperating teacher).
C. Standard(s): 5.RL.2.2- Determine a theme of a story or play, or poem from details in the text, including how
characters respond to challenges or how the speaker in the poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.
II. Management Plan-
A. Time
 Anticipatory Set- 5 minutes
 Mini-Lesson and Directions- 7 minutes
 Centers- 45 minutes (15 minutes per center)
 Closure- 5 minutes
B. Space
 During the guided reading group, students will be at sit at the back table with me. When students are
working on Study Island, they will be working at their desks. For the station with the theme game, students
will be working on the purple reading carpet.
C. Materials
 Picture for anticipatory set
 The Three Pigs by David Wiesner (5 copies)
 Copies of other common folktales for team station
 Keys with themes on them
 Answer key for team station
 Student Chromebooks for Study Island
D. Behavior- Students are expected to be engaged participants in the lesson. They are expected to remain at their
station and work diligently until the timer goes off for them to transition. Students who work well at their
stations will be able to earn ClassDojo points. I will give students one verbal warning before taking away Dojo
points for off-task behavior.
E. Grouping
 Group 1- Shamar, Jenna, Lainey, Jackson, Ivan
 Group 2- Eli, Zach, Amri, Arianna, Sabrina
 Group 3- Brody, Mason, Kalissa, Landin, Wilson

III. Anticipatory Set

• Show students a series of pictures (myself, my mom, my grandmother, my great-grandmother) and explain who
each of these people are. After showing the pictures, I will say “Both my grandmother and my great-grandmother
passed away before I was born, so I never got to meet them. However, I know a lot about both of these women and
what great people they were. How do you think I found out about them?” Call on one student at a time to respond.
When someone says “stories” respond with “That’s right! I learned about my grandma and great-grandma
through stories that have been passed down in my family.”

IV. Purpose: “Today, we’re going to continue talking folktales, a story passed down through generations, so that you know
how to read them in a way that uncovers the truth that relates to your own life.”

1
PLAN FOR INSTRUCTION
V. Adaptation to Individual Differences and Diverse Learners— The guided reading groups are each focusing on a
different strategy. One group will focus on finding theme through determining importance, the second group will
focus on finding theme through synthesizing, and the third group will focus on finding theme through inferring. The
three groups are separated by level of support needed (as requested by teacher). The strategies, guidance, and
questions planned are according to each specific group and the level of support that they need. One of the
workstations is Study Island (as requested by teacher) and the other is a collaborative game on theme. Because
students are working independently on one station, I wanted them to be able to collaborate with one another when
diving into the newer concept.
 I will read the book to Kalissa and Brody as they follow along with their finger. Both students have learning
disabilities that make it very difficult for them to read on their own.

VI. Lesson Presentation (Input/Output)

 Write the word “folktale” on the board. “A folktale is a fictional story that has been passed down over many
generations. These stories were once only told from word of mouth, but eventually, people wrote them down to
make the stories we know today. I bet you know some common folktales. I’ll write down a few. Raise your hand if
you have heard of this one?” Write “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” sprouting out from the word “folktale”.
“Raise your hand if you have heard of this one.” Write “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” on the board. “Raise your hand if
you have heard of this one.” Write “Little Red Riding Hood” on the board, continuing the graphic organizer. “There
are a lot more folktales, some you heard of and some you haven’t, that we are going to explore today!”
 “Even though folktales are made up stories they always have truth within them—and the author wants us to think
about this truth, and relate it to our own lives. The authors of the stories do not tell us these truths; we must use
clues in the story to find them out.”
 “This is what you guys have been practicing.” Write the word theme on the other side of the board. “Theme is what
the author is trying to tell you in the story. It’s the truth that they want us to carry into our lives.”
 “Today we’re going to split into three groups and work at different stations for fifteen minutes each. Before you
move, let me explain the stations. One station will be working on your Study Island Assignments (requirement of
teacher), one station will be exploring theme in a story with me at the back table, and one station will be playing a
game with theme on the carpet. Listen closely as I explain this game. Each person needs to take one key that looks
like this (hold up example key). The key has a theme on it. You will look at the folktales and determine which story
your theme represents. When you choose, you are going to tell your group why you matched it with that story. If you
haven’t heard of the folktale, you can read it or ask a friend in your group what it is about. When each person
matches their theme correctly with their book, you can get the key that is on the chair on the carpet and check your
answers. If you got some wrong, talk about them with your group!”
 “If your group finishes checking your work, you have unlocked your next challenge! You’ll get the folder that is on
the chair and each take a paper. You’ll read the story silently. When you’re finished, talk with your group about
what the author is trying to tell you. Write down a theme that your group came up with.”
 Students will work at their assigned stations for fifteen minutes each. My stations will be as follows:
 Group One (determining importance)
 Pre-reading- “We talked a little about folktales—can someone remind me what those are?” Call on one student to
answer. “That’s right! Now, there is also something called a ‘twisted folktale,’ does anyone have a guess as to what
this is?” Call one two students to share a response. “A twisted folktale is when an author takes a common folktale
and changes it a little bit. We’re going to read a twisted folktale today—this is a twisted folktale of the Three Little
Pigs. Now I want to ask you a question. When you hear a story and you really want to tell it to someone else, what
do you have to do? Do you have to remember every single little detail?” Wait for students to respond. “Right, we
have to determine what details are the most important and which ones are not as important. Today, we’re going to
practice determining key details in the story to help us figure out the theme, or what the author is trying to tell us.”
 Reading- Tell the students to read to the first blue sticky note. Ask “What is an important detail in the part you
just read?” Write the important detail on the board. Tell students to read to the next blue sticky note. “What
should we remember on these pages?” Call on one student to share their response and write it on the board with
the other important details. Tell the students to read until the next blue sticky note and ask “Is there anything on
these pages that we need to remember?” Facilitate a discussion that none of the details on these pages are
essential to the story. “What was important to remember in this section?” Call on a few students to share
responses.
 Responding- “Using all of our important details, let’s think about what the author could be telling us from this
story. There are a few different themes—but let me give you an example from the real story of The Three Little Pigs.
One of the themes is the original version is ‘you have to work hard to build something successful.’ Do you think that
theme could still be true, even though this is a twisted folktale?

2
 Exploring- “What did the pigs say that helped you know it was important that they wanted to leave the story? In
your opinion, what was one of the most important details in the story? Why do you think this?” Call on a few
students to respond. Students should take a minute to revisit the text and come up with support.
 Applying- “Let’s think about the strategy that we used—determining what is important. This strategy can help you
as you read books on your own, like your AR books. When you think about the most important details in a story, it
can help you determine what the author is trying to tell you!”
 Group Two (Synthesizing):
 Pre-reading- “We talked a little about folktales—can someone remind me what those are?” Call on one student to
answer. “That’s right! Now, there is also something called a ‘twisted folktale,’ does anyone have a guess as to what
this is?” Call one two students to share a response. “A twisted folktale is when an author takes a common story and
changes it a little bit. We’re going to read a twisted folktale today—this is a twisted folktale of the Three Little Pigs.
After we read the story, we’re going to piece together information in our head and details in the book to come to a
conclusion. There is a word for this—synthesize!”
 Reading- “You guys are going to read silently—stop at the page with the sticky note!” Give students time to read,
when everyone is finished ask, “The first pig made his house out of what?” Call on student to say ‘straw.’ “What
happened to the pig?” Call on student to say that the pig was blown out of the story. “Okay, why was the pig
building his house out of straw a good or bad choice? Why do you think so?” Call on a few students to share
responses. “Now read to the next pink sticky note.” When all students are done silently reading, say “This pig built
his house out of sticks, and what happened? Why did this happen?” Call on a few students to respond. Have the
students read to the next pink sticky note. “What did what you just read tell you about the pigs?” Have two
students share their thoughts. The students will then silently read until the end of the book.
 Responding- “Let’s think about the pattern we saw in the story.” Draw a circle and triangle pattern on a piece of
paper. “What was the first event in the story?” The students will revisit the text and share that the first event was
the pig building his house out of straw. I will write that next to the first shape in the pattern. “Then, what
happened next?” The teacher will keep facilitating this pattern activity, emphasizing that the pattern breaks
when the pigs exit their own story and go on an adventure. “Now, what could the author be trying to tell us
through this story? What could our theme be? Let’s think about it like this—from all we know about the pigs, what
advice would you now give them?” Possible sentence starters for the students would be: If you know the story is
not going to end well, _______________ or If the same thing keeps happening over and over you don’t like the
outcome, _____________ or If you want something to last, you should ____________________.
 Exploring- “Can you find a place in the story that supports the theme you just came up with?” Allow time for
students to revisit the text and find a quote that supports their theme.
 Applying- “When you use the information you know with the details the author gives you, like we did today, we are
synthesizing to figure out the theme of a piece. We can do this with other books we read, such as the AR books.”
 Group Three: (Inferring)
 Pre-reading- “We talked a little about folktales—can someone remind me what those are?” Call on one student to
answer. “That’s right! Now, there is also something called a ‘twisted folktale,’ does anyone have a guess as to what
this is?” Call one two students to share a response. “A twisted folktale is when an author takes a common story and
changes it a little bit. We’re going to read a twisted folktale today—this is a twisted folktale of the Three Little Pigs.
You guys have been talking about plot, which is what the story is about. Today, we’re talking about theme, which is
what the author is trying to tell us.” Write the words “theme” and “plot” on a piece of paper, in chart form. “While
you read, you are going to ask yourself questions like, ‘What is the big idea of this story?’ and ‘What could the
author be trying to tell me?’ Asking yourself questions where the book doesn’t tell you means that you are doing
something called inferring.”
 Reading- Students will read silently until the purple sticky note. When all students in the group are done
reading: “What was the first big event in the story?” Ask a student to share their response (pig built his house our
of straw and the wolf blew it over). “Great, now is this part of the plot? Or is it something the author is trying to tell
us?” When a student says it is part of the plot, write it on the “plot” section of the chart. Students continue
reading silently to next purple sticky note. “What was the next event? Where should I put that on our chart?” After
the student responds, write this on the plot section of the chart. Students will read to the next sticky note. “What
is the next part of the plot?” When students respond with “the pigs left the story,” write it on the plot chart. Read
to the next purple sticky note. “What is your idea about what is happening?” Allow time for a few students to
share their responses. The students will silently read until the end of the book.
 Responding- “Now, let’s keep inferring. We have the plot—what happens in the story, but we need to find out
the theme—what the author is trying to tell us. Looking at the plot, what might be the big idea about it?” I will
facilitate a discussion on theme and come up with possible themes for the book and write them on the chart.
 Exploring- “Can you find a line in the book that supports the theme that you just came up with? ”Allow time for
students to revisit the text and find support for their theme.

3
  Applying- “We didn’t have all of the information from the author, right? We had to guess what he was thinking
based on the details of what he gave us. This strategy you practiced today, inferring, can help us find theme in
the other books that you read.”

VII. Check for understanding.

 During my guided reading groups, I will be taking anecdotal notes of the students—what they understand and
what they could specifically use more practice on.
 Whether or not the students achieve the objective for the guided reading group will depend on whether they can
identify a theme within The Three Pigs.
 In workstation with the game on theme, students will self-assess using a key to determine which theme goes
with which common folktale.

VIII. Review learning outcomes / Closure

 “What was your favorite part of today’s lesson?” Ask for a few students to share a response. “Now that we have
explored theme, you have a task this week—try to find the theme in your AR book or another book that you’re
reading right now. When you think you’ve figured it out, share it with a friend or a teacher!”

PLAN FOR ASSESSMENT

Formative
 During the whole group instruction time, I will ask the students to hold up a number 1-5 (5= feeling great) on
how they feel about theme.
 I will ask the students a variety of higher-level thinking questions. Students will be asked to identify all four
types of QAR questions throughout the lesson.
 I will take anecdotal notes of student progress at my guided reading table.
 When students are finished working together to match the theme with the correct common folktale, they will
self-assess using the answer key provided.

REFLECTION AND POST-LESSON ANALYSIS

Include unique self-answer questions that specifically address unique lesson content, methodology, and assessment.
1. How many students achieved the lesson objective(s)? For those who did not, why not?
All fourteen students who were present for the lesson achieved the learning objective. They each identified
multiple themes independently and in small groups throughout the lesson.
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
I believe that my enthusiasm helped the students remain engaged throughout the lesson. Each student was very
motivated in all activities, and I only had to remind someone to focus one time. Because I had high energy, the
students seemed to have motivation in the guided reading group. The book choice also help the students
engaged. I also think I asked a variety of different questions well. The questions guided the discussion, but did
not limit the students. There was a variety of all types of QAR questions. One aspect of the lesson I could have
improved upon was paying more attention to the groups that were not at my station. Because I had additional
adults in the room and my groups were having rich discussion, I stayed focused on them and did not pay much
attention to the other groups. Although the groups did fine on their own, this is something I could have
improved on.
3. How should I alter this lesson?
If I did this lesson again, I think I would add more time to each group. My groups were each fifteen minutes long,
but I had extra time at the end. I would probably add a few minutes to each group so I did not have to cut off the
students’ discussion. They could have talked about the book for hours!
4. How would I pace it differently?
The lesson was well paced, without any groups rushing. However, like I said in the question above, I think a few
extra minutes would have been beneficial for students to continue discussing theme in the book. They had so
many thoughts—and I think the discussion could have continued to deepen if the students had a few more
minutes. This would be a minor change.
5. Were all students actively participating? If not, why not?
All students were active participants in the lesson—probably the most active I have seen them this year. The
book choice played a large role in student engagement. I was nervous to teach fifth graders from a book that
seemed like a younger child picture book, but the students were laughing, gasping, quoting, and talking about
the book for longer than the lesson itself. Whenever I looked around, students at each station were doing exactly
what they were supposed to be doing and collaborating with their peers when asked to.
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?

4
 The teacher asked me to group my guided reading groups by ability level. Therefore, I differentiated my reading
strategy used and questioning based on the group I was working with. All students seemed to respond well to
the material and questioning—there was not a significant difference between ability level groups.
7. How did students work when they were not in the guided reading group station?
Students seemed to work very well when they were not in the guided reading station. The teacher and the other
practicum student in the school were both in the classroom facilitating, so I am not sure if anything would have
changed if I was the only one in the classroom. The Study Island was something the students have a routine with,
so they did very well independently.
8. Did the book chosen appropriately challenge all learners?
The book was a much better choice than I had originally anticipated. Choosing a twisted folktale peaked the
students’ interest because it was a different version of something they already knew. I was nervous teaching
from a picture book that was easy for students to read but they absolutely loved it. The questions I used
challenged the students so the entire lesson seemed appropriately challenging for all groups.
9. What station were students most engaged in and why?
Although students impressed me with their engagement in all stations, their discussion in the guided reading
group impressed me the most. I think this is because of my enthusiasm in addition to the book choice. This
reminds me that I need to choose high quality literature that will grab students’ attention—this affected the
entire lesson and impacted it for the better.