Lesson Plan

CLASS: WIDA Level 1&2 ELD, Science Leadership Academy at Beeber TOPIC: Conjunctions DATE: 11/01/2023

Lesson Objectives:
● SWBAT identify conjunction words by highlighting the words in a passage in small groups
● SWBAT explain verbally their choice of conjunctions of combining the two sentence cards in pairs using the sentence frame: I
choose [conjunction word] because …
● SWBAT modify the use of conjunctions (which one to choose, where and how to use it in sentences) in their written personal
narratives by peer reviewing each other’s narratives and providing comments orally in pairs.

Activity Activity Stages Key Language Resources/Materials Time

Focus forms/ functions

Strand
(Nation,
2007)

Check-in Warm up activity – Fall decorations (10 mins) Conjunction: or 10 small pumpkins & 9:25am-9:35am
& warm- 1. T gives each S a small pumpkin and say: markers:
up “Let’s do some fall decorations for our The use of “or” in
class! You can draw anything you want on choosing from two
the pumpkin to make it beautiful!” options:
2. When Ss finish drawing, T asks several Ss A or B
to share and describe what they drew to
the class. Then, T picks two pumpkins and
says: “If I want to ask people to choose
 one of them, what should I say?” and
guides Ss to come up with the sentence
“Which one is better, A’s pumpkin or B’s
pumpkin?”
3. T emphasizes the use of or and transits to
today’s topic: “A lot of you used words
like ‘or’ ‘and’ ‘but’ in your personal
narratives, but some of them were used in
an incorrect way. Today we’re going to
learn to use them correctly and improve
your essays.”
Activity 1-Vocabulary (10 mins) Meaning of Canvas class site 9:35am-9:45am
Step 1: Connection to L1 (4 mins) Conjunction:
1. T gives Ss a worksheet that includes the To join two words, White board and markers
vocabulary for conjunctions and tells Ss phrases or clauses
that these are the five words they are together to make Screen and interactive
going to learn today (Ss can download the one long sentence. pencil
worksheet on Canvas, T will also show the
worksheet on the screen) Common Conjunction worksheet:
2. T asks Ss to use translators or other online conjunctions:
resources to find the matching vocabulary and, but, or, so,
Language- in their L1 because
focused 3. Ss come up to the board and write their L1
learning of each of the conjunctions on the screen Uses of
PPT slide 1-4:
and teach other Ss how to say the common
conjunctions in their L1 conjunctions (in
phrases):
Step 2: Mini Lecture on Conjunction (6 mins) and – connect
1. T provides Ss with one example sentence similar ideas
 for each conjunction word, asks Ss to read but – contrast
out loud the sentences together and asks: different ideas
“These 5 highlighted words are called or – connect two
conjunctions. What do you think the word possibilities
‘conjunction’ might mean? Look at the so – show the result
role of each conjunction in the sentence. because – show the
What’s before them and what’s after cause
them” T also reminds Ss to think about
when they’ve seen these words elsewhere
or used these words.
2. Ss think for a minute individually and then
share their thoughts in the whole class
3. T summarizes Ss’ responses orally and
write down key points on the white board.
Then, T explains what “conjunction”
means (refer to the visual in slide 2 and
texts in slide 3)
4. T quickly goes over the meaning of “and,
but, or, so, because” with Ss as shown on
the slide with an emphasis on the phrases
like “connect similar ideas” “show the
result”

Activity 2-Reading (20 mins) Use of common Screen and interactive 9:45am-
Step 1: Identifying conjunctions (10 mins) conjunctions: pencil 10:05am
1. T says “Now we know the meaning and and, but, or, so
role of each conjunction, let’s see how because Reading passage:
 they are used in actual texts.”
2. T sorts Ss into groups of 3-4 Uses of
3. T provides Ss with a short passage and common
asks Ss to highlight all the conjunctions in conjunctions (in
the passage in groups phrases): PPT slide 5-6:
4. T asks Ss to think and discuss in groups and – connect
about why the author uses these similar ideas
Meaning- conjunctions but – contrast
focused 5. T reminds Ss that each group choose one different ideas
input person to report after the discussion or – connect two
possibilities
Step 2: Whole Class Debrief (10 mins) so – show the result
1. T invites one S from each group to read because – show the
out loud one sentence that contains a cause
conjunction. As S is reading, he/she need
to point out:
- What is the conjunction
- The purpose of the conjunction in the
sentence (e.g., connect two similar ideas,
contrast ideas, etc.) [these phrases will be
introduced in Activity 1]
2. T ends the discussion until all 5
conjunctions are covered
- If errors occur, T asks Ss from other
groups to comment on whether it is right
or wrong and why. Then, T summarizes
the correct use of conjunction by referring
to slide 6
Meaning- Activity 3-Conjunction Application (23 mins) Use of common White board and markers 10:05am-
focused Transition (1 min): conjunctions: 10:28am
output T reminds Ss the purpose of learning these and, but, or, so Sentence cards for 5
conjunctions: to improve their personal narratives. because groups
T then says: “We have learned the use of these
conjunctions and see how they are used in the Uses of Conjunction cards for 5
reading so far. Now, let’s use them by ourselves.” common groups
conjunctions (in
Step 1: pair work, choosing the right phrases): Written personal
conjunction (10 mins) and – connect narratives on canvas
1. T lets each S randomly picks a sentence similar ideas
card. On the card, there will be a group but – contrast PPT slide 6:
number (G1-G4) different ideas
2. Ss find their partner with the same group or – connect two
number and seat with their partner (9 possibilities
students in total, so there will be a group so – show the result
of 3) because – show the
- Each S will get 1 card that includes 1 cause
sentence. For each pairs, the 2 sentence
cards are relevant to each other Sentence frame:
3. T distributes a set of 5 conjunction cards I choose … because
to each group (and, or, but, so, because) …
4. T models the activity by showing the
modeling cards in the correct order and
reading out the complete modeling
sentences with the right conjunction and
say: “I choose [conjunction] because …”
and then asks the pairs to do the same
thing
[Differentiation]
Groups that have lower English proficiency: give
them longer preparation time – 5 minutes.
- The groups are also allowed to use
translators to check any unfamiliar words
in the sentences
Groups that have higher English proficiency: give
them shorter preparation time – 3 minutes.
- T checks with each group on their answers
for the rest 2 minutes (read aloud the
answer to T and explain using the
sentence frame, T won’t provide any
corrections)
- The groups are not allowed to use
translators to check the meaning of words
in the sentences, they can infer based on
the contexts or discuss with T in English

5. Each pair share their answer by reading

out loud their combined sentence and
provide their reasoning for choosing the
conjunction (start with pairs of higher
proficiency)
- T looks for the use of the sentence frame
(I choose … because …) and the phrases
Ss choose to describe the use of the
conjunction while listening
- When Ss cannot express ideas in full
sentences, prompting them by saying
 “why do you choose …? Try to say it in a
complete sentence. You are telling us your
reasons, so what conjunction will you
use?”
- T can also write down the sentence frame
on the white board if needed
- T can also refer to slide 6 if needed
6. Other pairs will decide if the pair who is
sharing has the right answer by giving a
thumbs up or thumbs down and provide
reasons for their decision
- T looks for the use of the sentence frame
(I choose … because …) and the phrases
Ss choose to describe the use of the
conjunction while listening
- T provides the same prompting as the
previous step

Step 2: personal narrative peer revisions (12

mins)
1. T praises Ss’ good work on choosing the
right conjunction to form sentences. T
then says: “now we’ve reached the final
stage ---- let’s improve our own writing
with what we learned!”
2. T asks Ss to continue working in pairs or
groups of 3
3. T asks Ss to review each other’s personal
narratives and revise their use of
 conjunctions. Specifically, Ss will:
- Read over their partner’s personal
narrative.
- Identify sentences that contain
conjunctions.
- Evaluate whether the sentences have
errors on the use of conjunctions.
- Exchange their evaluation in pairs and
discuss with each other to come to an
agreement.
4. T walks around to facilitate the revision
process
N/A Wrap-up (2 mins) 10:28am-
T quickly wraps up by asking if Ss have any 10:30am
questions and announces the homework for
today’s lesson.

Homework: Revise the conjunction use in your personal narrative and resubmit the personal narrative on Canvas by the end of the
day (23:59pm)

Anticipated Problems & Suggested Solutions:

- Problem: students with limited oral language proficiency might be reluctant to present their ideas in front of the whole class.
- Solution: check in with the students during small group work to scaffold the students in preparing for their answers.
Contingency Plans:
- If students find it difficult to provide feedback during the peer review session, T will model how to evaluate the use of
conjunctions and provide feedback first.
Link to PPT slides: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/13j6ae7y3aaRPT4CEbP9Xnrf6n8FCNOWPy5cr86mwBXA/
edit#slide=id.g295bfc3ec70_0_466
 Worksheet

Common Conjunctions

English Your first language

and

but

or

so

because

Reading

Decision Making
I was at a crossroads. I had always been athletic and enjoyed the thrill of football matches, but there was another

side to me that loved the world of drama and theater. I knew I couldn't pursue both because of time constraints, so I

had a tough decision to make. Would I chase after the roaring crowds and the adrenaline rush of a game, or would I

dive into the world of characters and stories? Each had its allure, but I knew I had to choose one.