Teacher: Katie Royal School: Los Cerritos Middle School

Grade/Content: English 8H Date: 3/11/21

Lesson Topic: Word Choice + Bias Content Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.9, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.4
Lesson Plan: Lesson #10
Learning Outcomes (What will students know or be able to do by the end of this lesson?):
Students will be able to explain how word choice reveals an author’s bias.
Students will be able to analyze two texts that provide conflicting information on a subject and determine where the texts agree and disagree on matters
of fact or interpretations.

How will you know what your students have learned? Students will read two “newspaper articles” written about the Battle of Cowshed in Chapter 4 of
Animal Farm and complete a graphic organizer in which they identify charged language and differences in fact and interpretation between the two
articles. Students will explain their understanding of each author’s bias in a paragraph response.
What are the Essential Questions?
How does word choice implicitly communicate bias?
Why is it important to read articles from a variety of sources?
Introduction Body of Lesson
Anticipatory Set Instruction Guided Practice Check for Understanding Closure Connections to
Students will Review the two essential Students work in (formative/summative Students review Students’
read two reviews questions for the day- ask pairs to read two assessment) the essential Knowledge, Skills,
on the book students “what is bias? articles about the Formative: List of 10 negatively questions from Experience
Animal Farm- what does implicit Battle of Cowshed. or positively connoted words on the beginning of Students have access
one 5 star and mean?”. Articles have two screen; students have 1 minute to class. Discuss in to information on the
one 1 star. Vocabulary: charge, tone, different determine as many synonyms table groups the internet more so than
Students will connotation, implicit, bias “perspectives” on the with opposite connotations. answers to both any previous
discuss the (students take notes) Battle of Cowshed. Students must explain difference questions, generation. Students
difference Flocabulary: Students identify in connotation. making must consider
between the Connotation/Denotation charged language, connections to charged language
reviews, which differences in fact, Formative: Students work in their own lives. and biased
they agree with differences in opinion, pairs. Each group gets 2 articles Teacher calls on interpretations when
(so far), and what and similarities within (one for each student). One is two students to reading the news,
language the the two articles. from animal perspective, one is share their hearing gossip, and
authors use to from human perspective. group’s ideas speaking with friends
express their Students complete graphic with the class. and family.
opinions. organizer identifying differences
in word choice, facts, and
opinions.
Extension Activities or Independent Practice:
Independent practice: Student homework will be to write a one paragraph response synthesizing the information they have gathered in their graphic
organizers. How does each author communicate their bias through their choice in words? Students must use text evidence to support their claims.

On the back of this handout, describe how you will assess your students’ learning.
Student learning will be assessed at several points throughout this lesson:
1. Diagnostic assessment: During the anticipatory set and when reviewing the essential questions, I will assess my students’ current thinking and
understanding about charged language and bias. Students will be asked “How does this reviewer feel about Animal Farm?” and “How do you
know?”, in which they should identify words from the reviews such as “timeless truths”, “undeniably one of the best short novels ever
written”, “crude and simplistic”, and “stereotypes are so thick you couldn’t cut them with a chainsaw”.
2. Formative: Throughout the lesson, students will be encouraged to and prompted to use the vocabulary when discussing word choice. Students
will be assessed on their ability to use “connotation”, “tone”, “bias”, and “implicit” in the correct context when discussing the words they
have identified in the Battle of Cowshed articles.
3. Formative: After watching the Flocabulary video on connotation, students will be asked to identify word pairs mentioned in the video (e.g.
nosy/curious) and explain the differences in connotation, using the lesson vocabulary.
4. Formative: Students will have to come up with their own word pairs with differing connotations and discuss these differences in groups and
as a class- I will listen for correct use of vocabulary and ability to explain connotation differences.
5. Formative: Graphic organizer: I have written two “newspaper articles” on the “Battle of Cowshed” from Chapter 4 of Animal Farm, one
which tells the story from the humans’ perspective and one which tells the story from the animals’ perspective. Students will work in pairs to
read each article and fill out a graphic organizer. I will assess student learning by determining that students are able to identify at least six
instances of charged language and determine how the animals and humans tell the story differently, identifying differences and similarities in
facts and interpretation.
6. Summative: For homework, students will write a one paragraph response synthesizing what they have learned about word choice. Students
will use direct text evidence from the articles to support their claims about how an author’s word choice reveals their biases. They should
select charged language from each article and discuss how the use of this language reveals the author’s beliefs. Students will follow our
paragraph structure, ending with a closing sentence which should make a connection between this concept and the real world.
 Teacher: Katie Royal School: Los Cerritos Middle School
Grade/Content: English 8H Date: 4/19/21
Lesson Topic: Persuasive Speeches Content Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.8, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.5
Lesson Plan: Lesson #15
Learning Outcomes (What will students know or be able to do by the end of this lesson?):
Students will be able to identify the purpose of a persuasive speech and explain how rhetoric is used to effectively achieve this purpose.
Students will be able to analyze the structure of a persuasive speech.
How will you know what your students have learned?
Students will annotate a persuasive speech of their choice, highlighting structures that follow the persuasive speech outline they will use to write their
own speeches. Students will answer four questions to demonstrate their understandings of purpose, rhetoric, citations, and counter arguments.
What are the Essential Questions?
How do persuasive speakers achieve their purposes?
Introduction Body of Lesson
Anticipatory Set Instruction Guided Practice Check for Understanding Closure Connections to
Students will Explanation of the basic Students watch (formative/summative Students share in Students’
watch a short elements of a persuasive Leonardo DiCaprio assessment) groups the most Knowledge, Skills,
persuasive speech speech: speaker, purpose, Climate Summit Formative: During guided persuasive Experience
by a nine year old audience, rhetorical Speech practice, I am able to assess element of the Students have
titled “Why Kids devices, claim, Students in four table student understanding of the persuasive speech already studied
Need Recess”. counterargument, etc. groups- each group sections of the persuasive speech that they chose to argumentative
Students will Students have already looks for 1 of the by assessing their abilities to read for the writing in Trimester
discuss this studied argumentative outline sections identify them within the independent 1 and have studied
speaker’s writing so this is review. (describing situation example. If students have major assignment. persuasion in Animal
purpose and Go over persuasive speech and proving change is misconceptions or miss key Students get to Farm, propaganda,
what he does to outline structure- four required/ examples, I can identify them for hear about the advertisements, and
make his speech major sections students opportunities for the class. other speeches speeches over this
persuasive. will use to write their own success/call to Summative: Students complete that they did not past unit. This lesson
speeches. Students take action/rhetorical an individual persuasive speech read and leads us to the
notes on the graphic devices) analysis activity. I will assess different types of culminating
organizer. Students discuss what their ability to identify and persuasion are assignment of writing
they identified in explain the elements of a highlighted, their own persuasive
groups. persuasive speech. giving students speeches. For this
Each group shares to ideas of what lesson, students have
the class. they might do to 8 diverse persuasive
be persuasive in speeches to choose
their own from, maximizing
speeches. individual choice.
 Extension Activities or Independent Practice:
Students will complete a Persuasive Speech Analysis, selecting a speech from a menu of 8 speeches by diverse speakers. Students will annotate the speeches,
identifying how the author describes the situation, proves change is required, creates opportunities for success, calls the audience to action, negotiates with a
counter argument and refutation and uses rhetorical devices. Then, students will answer four questions in which they explain the author’s purpose, the most
persuasive element of the speech, how the author negotiates, and how to properly cite a quote.

On the back of this handout, describe how you will assess your students’ learning.

1. Diagnostic: I will assess what students remember about persuasive and argumentative writing, specifically rhetorical devices and propaganda,
by listening to their discussions of the “Why Kids Need Recess” video in the anticipatory set.
2. Formative: I will assess student understanding of the elements of a persuasive speech. Here are examples of moments in the speech each
group may identify:
a. Describe the situation: “Every week , we’re seeing new and undeniable climate events, evidence that accelerated climate change is
here right now. Droughts are intensifying, our oceans are acidifying, with methane plumes rising up from the ocean floor.”
b. Prove change is required: The Chief of the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel Locklear, recently said that climate
change is our single greatest security threat.
c. Opportunities for Success: We need to put a pricetag on carbon emissions, and eliminate government subsidies for oil, coal and gas
companies.
d. Call to Action: The people made their voices heard on Sunday around the world and the momentum will not stop. But now it is YOUR
turn, the time to answer humankind’s greatest challenge is now. We beg of you to face it with courage.
e. Rhetorical Devices: I’m honored to be here today, I stand before you not as an expert but as a concerned citizen, one of the 400,000
people who marched in the streets of New York on Sunday, and the billions of others around the world who want to solve our climate
crisis. (Plain Folks, Bandwagon)
f. Negotiation: None of this is rhetoric, and none of it is hysteria. It is fact. The scientific community knows it, industry knows it,
governments know it, even the United States military knows it.
3. Summative: Students will demonstrate their learning through annotations and short response questions on a Google Doc of the speech they
have selected from the menu. In order to meet standards, students must be able to identify at least once instance of each of the categories
shown above, and they must be able to explain in one detailed sentence each the purpose of the speech, the most persuasive element (and
why), and the negotiation, delineating both the counter argument and the refutation.
 Teacher: Katie Royal School: Los Cerritos Middle School
Grade/Content: English 8H Date: 5/7/21
Lesson Topic: Persuasive Speeches Content Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1, A, B, C, D
Lesson Plan: Lesson #20
Learning Outcomes (What will students know or be able to do by the end of this lesson?):
Students will be able to write a body paragraph of a persuasive speech in which they negotiate their claims by presenting a counterclaim and refuting it
with logical reasoning or credible evidence.
How will you know what your students have learned?
Students will demonstrate their learning in the body paragraph of their persuasive speeches. Students will include a relevant counterclaim and
refutation.
What are the Essential Questions?

Introduction Body of Lesson

Anticipatory Set Instruction Guided Practice Check for Understanding Closure Connections to
Students will Review Rubric Students write their (formative/summative Students discuss Students’
watch a clip from Review the persuasive “opportunities for assessment) the question: Knowledge, Skills,
friends in which speech outline success” paragraphs Formative: Students identify the Why is Experience
Ross and Phoebe Writing “Opportunities for 30 minutes. counterclaims and refutations in negotiating a Students practiced
argue about the for Success” section- Go Teacher circulates and anticipatory set and necessary negotiation in the
existence of over guiding questions checks in with each anti-smoking example element of a argumentative
evolution. **30 Mins writing time** student individually Formative: Student’s strong persuasive writing unit in Tri 1;
Students will Negotiation: Counter Students have 10 understanding of persuasive speech? this reviews and
identify each argument vs refutation minutes to begin writing and negotiation will be builds off of that
speaker’s claim Sentence starters negotiation writing- assessed by reading their knowledge. Students
and talk about Negotiation Sample: finish for homework persuasive speech paragraphs. are negotiating in
how they both Anti-Smoking Counter Students will receive feedback in persuasive speeches
provide Claim and Refutation the moment as I circulate and on topics of their own
counterclaims after class when I review each choosing
and refutations. paragraph and leave feedback as
comments in the Google Docs.
Extension Activities or Independent Practice:
Students will complete their paragraphs independently, adding in their negotiations, including a counterclaim and refutation.
On the back of this handout, describe how you will assess your students’ learning.

1. Formative: Based on what we learned in Tri 1 and what we have reviewed in previous lessons, students will be assessed on what they
remember about negotiating and counterclaims in the anticipatory set, identifying these elements in the Friends clip.
2. Formative: Students will identify the counterclaim and refutation within a sample paragraph, allowing me to assess their understanding of
these concepts.
3. Formative: Students will write the body paragraph of their persuasive speeches, including a negotiation. I will be able to assess what my
students have learned in this class by looking for the following elements:
a. In-depth and sophisticated answers to the two guiding questions for “creating opportunities for success”
b. A clear and relevant counterclaim
c. A detailed and plausible refutation, possibly including textual evidence
d. Edited and proofread writing
4. I will leave feedback on the paragraphs using highlights and comments in each students’ Google Docs. Students will not be given points yet
for this paragraph, so the feedback will allow them to improve their writing before submitting the rough draft for points.