LBS 310: Early Literacy Mini-Lesson

Mini-Lesson Plan Template

Name: Elide Grande

Early Literacy Topic: Emergent writing

Appendix D Lesson (Title & Number): #7: Verbal Path

Connection to Pre-K Continuum of Literacy Learning: Hold pencil or marker efficiently to begin to approximate
writing or write a few letters.

Lesson Objective: Students will be able to follow the verbal path when writing or approximate writing the letters,
o, a, b, d, and p.

Materials: chart paper (with lines), cards with the letter on them, individual line paper, markers, pencils, sheets
with the letter students will be writing.

Introduction: Describe in detail how you will begin your lesson. How will you get students’ attention and make
them excited about learning? Ensure that everything you do connects with the lesson objective, Pre-K Continuum
objectives, and students’ interests/background. Be cognizant of the ages of your students (3 – 5 years old) and
ensure that instruction is DAP.
Expected Duration = ____2____ minutes

What is the teacher saying and doing? (Be specific!)
The educator will stand in front of two or three students
and will greet them “Good afternoon writers”
What are the children saying and doing? (Be
specific!)
The students should be sitting in a desk right in front of
the educator. They will likely great the teacher back with
a, “Good afternoon.”

Educator holds up a small stack of papers with a Students will likely say they know or like the alphabet.
different letter in each, “Today we will be learning how
to write some of the letters of the alphabet.”

She takes one of the letters from the stack and says Students should respond that the names of the letters
“Writes do we know what letter this is?” After each are o, a, b, d, and p.
letter the educator asks students to repeat it as a group,
“Writers can we all repeat the name together” and
repeats this process until the names of the five letters, in
the stack, are said.

Educator will take all five the letters and put them up Students will likely respond that “some have sticks” and
side by side. Then she will ask, “Writers do we see that “they all have a circle”.
anything alike between these five letters?”
Accommodations: How might you meet the needs of emergent bilinguals (ELs)? Consult ch. 9 for DAP approaches for
emergent bilinguals. What about students with diverse abilities (below or above) during the introduction?

For students who have learned the alphabet, the educator will allow them to say the name of the letter instead of
telling them the name by saying, “what letter is this?” For student who are still learning the alphabet, the educator will
allow them a chance to say the name as she holds the letter by saying, “Now let’s all say the name together”.

For emergent bilingual students, educator will point to the letter as she says the name in English, so they can connect
the name to the image of the letter.

Lesson Development: Describe in detail how your lesson will unfold. This section should articulate the middle of
the lesson. It should read like a movie script and stay connected to the learning objective. Ensure that everything
you do connects with the lesson objective, Pre-K Continuum objectives, and students’ interests/needs. Be cognizant
of the ages of your students (3 – 5 years old) and ensure that instruction is DAP.
Expected Duration = ____11____ minutes

What is the teacher saying and doing? (Be specific!)
Educator will then tell the students that these letters in
fact all contain a circle and that they will be learning
how to write them. “Yes, all these letters have a circle.
Today we will be learning how to write these letters.”
What are the children saying and doing? (Be
specific!)
Students will likely say that they already know or do not
know how to write the letters.

Educator will hold up the letter o and say, “Okay, writers Students will like say “yes I did see” and “yes I heard.”
when writing the letter o you’re going to begin on the
dotted line, pull back, and around, until the circle is
closed” as she writes the letter. Educator will then ask
students if they saw and heard what she said, as she
wrote the letter o. “Writers did we see how I wrote the
letter?” “And did you hear what I said as I wrote the
letter.” Then she will write the letter a second time,
“Let’s listen and look while I write the letter o again.”
“pull back, and around, until the circle is closed”

The educator will then ask students to join her in Students will say together “pull back, and around, until
sayings the verbal path for the letter o, “Let’s all say it the circle is closed.”
together as I write it a third time, pull back, and around,
until the circle is closed.”

She will then inform them that she will be calling each Students will likely raise their hand, so they can come up
student up to practice writing the letter, meanwhile the first.
others say the verbal path. “Good job writers, I heard
everyone. Now I will be calling you to come up, one at a
time, to come practice writing the letter o on the chart,
while the rest of us help by saying pull back, and around,
until the circle is closed.”

Once the child is ready to begin writing the educator will The child with the marker will write the letter as best
join the other students in saying the verbal path. “Are we they can and the other students will say, “pull back, and
ready? Okay writers let’s begin: pull back, and around, around, until the circle is closed.”
until the circle is closed.”

After each student has had the opportunity to practice

writing the letter o on the chart paper, the educator will
say “Very good job writers! Now we will move to this Students will respond by saying “a”.
letter.” As she holds up the letter a she will ask them the
name of the letter once more, “What letter is this again?”

Once they establish the name of the letter she will say, Students will join in saying, “pull back, around, and
“Alright writers, when writing the letter a you’re going straight down.”
to begin on the dotted line pull back, around, and
straight down.” She will remind them to listen and look
to what she is writing and saying, “Okay writers let’s
make sure to listen and look at how we write the letter
a.” She will then write the letter a, a second time, as she
says, “pull back, around, and straight down.” She will
then ask students to join her as she writes the letter a
third time by saying, “Writers let’s say it together, pull
back, around, and straight down.”

She will then call a different student to come up first to
write the letter a on the chart, “okay let’s have ____ come
up first this time to write the letter a on the chart, while
the rest of us help by saying, “pull back, around, and
straight down.”
The child with the marker will write the letter as best
they can and the other students will say, “pull back,
around, and straight down.”

After each student has had the opportunity to practice The students will join the teacher as she points to o and
writing the letter a on the chart paper, the educator will a by saying, “pull back, and around, until the circle is
say, “Great job writers!” Then she will trace the letters closed” for o and “pull back, around, and straight down”
with her finger as she and the students say the verbal for a.
path for both letters. “Writers, lets practice these letters
once more,” Tracing her finger over the letters, the
educator and students say, “pull back, and around, until
the circle is closed” for o and “pull back, around, and
straight down” for a.

Educator will then hold up the letter b and ask, “what is Students will respond saying, “b”.
the name of this letter?”

Educator will then say the verbal path to the letter b as Students will join in saying, “pull down, up, around, until
she writes it, “For letter b we start at the top pull down, the circle is closed.”
up, around, until the circle is closed.” Educator will then
remind them to look and listen, as she shows them how
to write letter b, while she repeats it a second time
“writers look and listen, pull down, up, around, until the
circle is closed.” Educator will then ask student to join
her in saying the verbal path as she writes it a third time
“Okay writers join me, let’s say it together as I write the
letter b once more, pull down, up, around, until the circle
is closed.”

Then educator will ask the students to come up one at a
time to practice writing the letter b on the chart paper,
as the rest of the students say the verbal path, “Okay
writers can I have _____ come up to write the letter b.
Ready, pull down, up, around, until the circle is closed.”
The child with the marker will write the letter as best
they can and the other students will say, “pull down, up,
around, until the circle is closed.”

Once each student has had the chance to practice the Students will respond saying, “d”.
letter b, the educator will hold up the next letter, d,
asking students to name the letter. “On my gosh writers
we are almost done! Can you tell me the name for this
letter?”

The Educator will then demonstrate how to write the Students will join in saying, pull back, around, up, and
letter d by saying “starting at the dotted line pull back, down.”
around, up, and down.” She will then repeat it a second
time reminding students to look a listen, “Okay writers
look and listen, pull back, around, up, and down.” Then
she will ask students to join in while she writes d a third
time, “Ready writers together, pull back, around, up, and
down.”

Next, she will ask the students to come up one at a time The child with the marker will write the letter as best
to practice writing the letter d on the chart paper, as the they can and the other students will say, “pull back,
rest of the students say the verbal path, “pull back, around, up, and down.”
around, up, and down.”

Once each student has had the opportunity to practice The students will join the teacher as she points to b and
writing the letter d on the chart paper, the educator will d by saying, “pull down, up, around, until the circle is
say, “Amazing job writers!” Then she will trace the letter closed” for b and “pull back, around, up, and down” for d.
with her finger as she and the students say the verbal
path for both letters, “Writers, let’s practice b and d once
more.” Tracing over the letters with a pointer, the
educator and students will say, “pull down, up, around,
until the circle is closed” for b and “pull back, around, up,
and down” for d.

Educator will then continue to the last letter, p, of the Students will respond by saying, “p.”
day, “How are we doing writers! Are we ready for our
final letter?” As she holds up the last letter, she will ask
the students to name the letter, “Can you tell me the
name of this letter?”

The educator will then begin to write the letter p by Students will join in saying, “pull down, up, and around,
saying, “starting at the dotted line pull down, up, and until the circle is closed.”
around, until the circle is closed.” She will then repeat it
a second time reminding students to look a listen,
“Writers remember to look and listen. Pull down, up,
and around, until the circle is closed.” Then she will ask
students to join in, while she writes p a third time,
“Ready writers together, pull down, up, and around,
until the circle is closed.”

The educator will then have each student to come up, The child with the marker will write the letter as best
one at a time to the chart, and write the letter p as the they can and the other students will say, “pull down, up,
rest of the students join in saying “pull down, up, and and around, until the circle is closed.”
around until the circle is closed.”
Accommodations: How might you meet the needs of emergent bilinguals (ELs)? Consult ch. 9 for DAP approaches for
emergent bilinguals. What about students with diverse abilities (below or above) throughout the lesson?

For students who are advanced, the educator can have them write the letter(s) a second time without the rest of the
students saying the verbal path.

For students who need more support and or who are emergent bilinguals (ELs, the educator can write the letter with
them, so they are listening and seeing a step by step visual of up, down, pull back, etc. as they are writing.

Assessment: Describe in detail how you will determine whether or not the students have met the learning
objectives. Ensure that everything you do connects with the lesson objective, Pre-K Continuum objectives, and
students’ interests/needs. Be cognizant of the ages of your students (3 – 5 years old) and ensure that instruction is
DAP. Assessment should be in line with appropriate early literacy practices and DAP. (Odds are, a worksheet
will not be appropriate!) Consult chapters 22-25 for support in this area.

To determine if each student has met the learning objective, I will keep track of students’ participation as they say
the verbal path out loud for each letter. Also, I will be observing to see if they are matching the movement of the
marker with the words. Plus, I will be looking to see if the end result looks like the letter they were trying to write.
I will keep track of all of this on a chart and will provide each student with a different color marker, so it is clear
which student wrote what letter.

Closure: Describe in detail how you will bring your lesson to a close. How will you summarize what has been
learned? How will you connect what has been learned in this lesson to the bigger world? In other words, what
meaning do you want students to take away from this lesson? Ensure that everything you do connects with the
lesson objective, Pre-K Continuum objectives, and students’ interests/needs. Be cognizant of the ages of your
students (3 – 5 years old) and ensure that instruction is DAP.
Expected Duration = ____2____ minutes

What is the teacher saying and doing? (Be specific!)
The educator will end the lesson by handing out a lined
sheet of paper and a pencil to each student. She will
then have them write each letter one time as they all
join in saying the verbal path to each letter. “Yay,
writers we got through our five letters! Now you will
write each letter one time on the paper I just gave you.
We will help each other by saying how to write each
letter out loud.”
What are the children saying and doing? (Be
specific!)
Students will write and say each letter’s verbal path
alongside the teacher on their own paper. “Pull back,
and around, until the circle is closed” for o and “pull
back, around, and straight down” for a. Then “pull
down, up, around, until the circle is closed” for b and
“pull back, around, up, and down” for d. Finally, “pull
down, up, and around, until the circle is closed” for p.

Finally, the educator will say, “Wow writers, you all Students will probably respond with a smile and or a
worked hard, so here is a brand new pencil, so you can “thank you teacher.”
continue to be writers at home or at other centers!”
Accommodations: How might you meet the needs of emergent bilinguals (ELs)? Consult ch. 9 for DAP approaches
for emergent bilinguals. What about students with diverse abilities (below or above) during the closure?

For emergent bilinguals, the educator will provide them with a work sheet that shows how the letters should look.

If students are advanced and finish fast, the educator will have them support the other students by saying the verbal
path for the letter they are having trouble writing. If students are having trouble controlling the pencil or writing the
letter, the educator will go around and assist them individually.
Student #1: ____________
Color: _________________
Did their motion of the pencil Was the final result look like
Letter Saying the verbal path match what they were the letter they were trying to Notes
saying? write
(ex: when the said down they
went down)
Yes -Definitely
o Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
a Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
b Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
d Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
p Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter

Student #2: _________

Color: ___________
Did their motion of the pencil Was the final result look like
Letter Saying the verbal path match what they were the letter they were trying to Notes
saying? write
(ex: when the said down they
went down)
Yes -Definitely
o Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
a Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
b Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
d Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
p Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter

Student #3: _________

Color: ___________
Did their motion of the pencil Was the final result look like
Letter Saying the verbal path match what they were the letter they were trying to Notes
saying? write
(ex: when the said down they
went down)
Yes -Definitely
o Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
a Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
b Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
d Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter
Yes -Definitely
p Yes/ no Sometimes -Some what
Did not follow -Does not look like the letter