Interdisciplinary Unit Plan Format

Unit Plan Overview

Teacher: (Group 5) Time Frame (Days, Periods, etc.)

Jessica Cota Approx 3 weeks
Jessica Tse
Alex Avalos
Noah Crouch

Unit Title: Grade Level: 4th Grade

Hall of Poets

Subject/Topic Areas: English (Poetry- breaking down poems and their various forms)

Core Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.5: Explain major differences between poems, drama, and prose, and
refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama (e.g., casts of
characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.4.5
Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word
meanings.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, in the
grades 4-5 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.5
With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by
planning, revising, and editing. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language
standards 1-3 up to and including grade 4 here.)

Subject Area Main Topics Rationale

Involved

English Intro to Poetry Students will be introduced to poetry through

the use of multiple exemplars from famous
poets modeled through analysis and guided
writing

English Structural Students will learn about the structure of

Elements of poems, including verse, rhyme, meter.
Poetry
English Figurative Students will identify and analyze figurative
Language language (simile, metaphor, hyperbole and
personification) in poems and incorporate
figurative language in their own poems.

English Peer Sharing and Students will share their work with others and
Review learn how to give and receive constructive
feedback to improve their writing.

Unit Rationale:
It is important to learn about poetry because it helps students to analyze and interpret any
form of text. Furthermore, styles of poetry are in various different aspects of the world.
Songwriters use types of poetry to help write their songs. Poetry is also shown in the way
people converse with each other. Therefore, it is very essential students start to know poetry
at this age so they can be prepared for other levels of education and life.

Unit Standards: (CCSS & Professional Standards)

CCSS:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.5: Explain major differences between poems, drama, and
prose, and refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama
(e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or
speaking about a text
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.4.5
Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word
meanings.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and
poetry, in the grades 4-5 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the
high end of the range
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.5
With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed
by planning, revising, and editing. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of
Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 4 here.)
Professional Standards:
TPE 2: Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments for Student Learning
TPE 4: Planning Instruction and Designing Learning Experiences for All Students
TPE 5: Assessing Student Learning
Unit Goals: (Unit goals vs. Lesson objectives)

For this lesson we want students to be able to write a clear and sound poem using all the
different structural elements. Students will be able to look at various forms of poetry and
relate to others how each differ from another.

The unit goal is that students will become familiarized with various authors of poetry and
the different elements that make a poem. They will be able to effectively edit and give
feedback to peers. Finally, students will be able to share their own poems and why they
wrote it and what makes it a poem.

Enhance Essential (Critical) Questions:

How many different genres of poetry are there?

How do structural elements determine different genres of poems?

What are the different types of figurative language used in poetry?

How does revision help us to become better writers?

Map the Critical Content (Scope and Sequence)

Day 1 Introduction to poetry (genres and authors)

Day 2-6 Structural elements of poems (verse,

rhyme, meter)

Day 7-14 Figurative language (simile, metaphor,

hyperbole, personification)

Day 15 Self-revision (w/ checklist)

Day 16 Peer-revision (w/ checklist)

Day 17 Poetry Slam (pt.1)

Day 18 Poetry Slam (pt.2)

Lesson Summary
Lesson 1: Introduction to poetry
Students will be introduced to poetry through the analysis of different genres and poets. To
participate in the analysis, students will rotate through different centers focused on a specific
genre or poet by reading or listening to a poem, while responding to questions in their
writing journals. After reading the literature at each station, students will be asked questions
such as, “who wrote this poem?” “does this poem seem joyful or somber?” “does this poem
have a pattern?” “Does this poem have a setting?” “what kind of descriptive words were
used?” Students will also be tasked to do things such as drawing a picture that goes along
with the poem or drawing a picture of the poet.

Lesson 2: Structural elements of poems

This lesson will be broken into 5 days (Day 2-6). Students will begin each class day by
listening and interacting in a short presentation on a given topic such as verse, rhyme, or
meter. The lesson will follow an I Do, We do, You do model so students will be given
opportunities to work in groups for “We do” filling out a fill in the blank poem and then
independently for the “I do”. Students will be able to pick from different genres researched
on the first day to follow when working on different structural elements.

Lesson 3: Figurative language

Students will learn the elements of figurative language. Including metaphor, simile,
hyperbole and personification. To understand the basic concepts about Figurative language
(simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification). This lesson will be broken down into 7 days.
(Day 7-14) The first day we will go over figurative language = simile. The next two day we
will go over metaphors. The fourth and fifth day we will go over hyperbole. The sixth and
seventh day we will go over personification.

Lesson 4: Self-revision
After students write their poems, they will self-revise them. Each student will be given a
checklist with different things to look for, such as punctuation; word choice; grammar;
meaning; proper use of figurative language, verse, rhyme, meter; and overall flow. After
understanding each area as a large group, students will be given time to individually read
their poems silently and aloud, then revise their poems following the checklist. Students will
make edits to their poems before participating in peer-revision.

Lesson 5: Peer-revision
Students will be divided into elbow partners (if there is an odd number then a group of three
will be created). After the students have been split they will get a rubric for revising each
other's poems. The students will go over this checklist and let each other know what is good,
what needs improvement, and what is unclear. Once students have completed this checklist
they will go back and fix any parts of their poems that need work. When everything has
been revised and fixed students will prepare and get ready for Poetry Slam.

Analyze for Learning Difficulties

The teacher will give students a pre-diagnostic assessment before we teach them anything
about poetry. This assessment will check their knowledge and understanding of key terms
and elements of what poetry is. After the unit has been completed the teacher will give the
students a summative assessment that is the same test as the pre-diagnostic assessment and
check their progress. This will allow the teacher to track students’ individual growth on the
subject and check for students who need more instruction.

Diagnostic Assessment Document: Vocabulary Test: Poetry (Will be attached with

submission)

Reach Enhancement Decisions

UDL: students will have the option of using manipulatives to recognize and visualize
patterns and rhyme schemes. They will have auditory recordings of poems being read aloud,
and visual representation throughout different lessons through the use of powerpoint.
Modification: Effort-based grading. Students will be graded on their effort and adherence to
the requirements of a certain genre of type of poem, not the quality of poem.
Adaptation: Sentence starters
Accommodation: word banks for descriptive words, transition words, and rhyming words.
ELL: graphic organizers, extra time on assignments, sentence frames, sentence starters,
word bank, bilingual handouts, mind maps.
SPED: font for dyslexic students, larger text, graphic organizers, extra time, access to
computers, informal assessments.
GATE: Peer groups, extending their length of poems based on concepts and depth of
knowledge, citations in writing, and peer editing and tutoring.

Teach Strategically (Instructional Strategies)

Teaching Strategies: Indirect instruction through learning centers and questioning models.
Direct instruction using scaffolding (“I do,” “We do,” “You do”).
Evaluation: Self and peer revision, poetry slam, check for understanding throughout lessons
and activities.
Outcome Revisitation: Have students been able to effectively make poems and use
information about poets to enhance their writing. Were they able to combine key structural
elements of poetry to articulate their work to others and understand it themselves (both will
be assessed through the peer revision and poetry slam).
Resources, Materials & Technology used by students in this unit plan:

Resources: (understanding material) printed materials and audio recordings of different

genres of poetry.
Materials: (For Poetry Slam) Microphone, French Berets, table cloths, and battery powered
candles. (Learning) pencil, paper, marker, highlighters, and manipulatives for patterns.
Technology: Microphone, projector, and screen.

Unit Assessment Plan

Goals Performance Criteria Types of Assessments Subject Specific
Pedagogical Methods

1.Students will 1.Meets objectives Formative: 1.Discovery

be able to for different skills 1.Production of (Introduction to
construct such structural use poems at each Poetry)
structural sound and figurative lesson 2.Direct Instruction
and expressive language. 2.Checklist at (Structural Element
poems. self-revision and lessons
2.Uses checklist to peer revision 3.Indirect
2.Students will complete self Instruction (revision
be able to revision and peer Summative: process)
complete a self revision Collection of
revision of their poetry
poems by
following a
checklist

3.Students will
be able to
participate in a
peer revision
process, advising
their peers on
structural
element changes
as well as use of
 figurative
language.

Reflections

Was each student fully grasping the material. Was I, as the teacher, engaging and energetic
or was I mundane and saw students uninterested in the topic. Did students have the proper
tools and resources to be able to complete the objectives and assignments? Were students,
with differentiating learning styles, able to connect and understand the materials presented?
Are the activities and differentiation methods used effective? How can I improve for the
next time I teach this unit?