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Bree Dyer

10/15/15

Teaching Reading: Mini Lesson Format (Calkins, 2001)


Targeted Literacy Strategy or Skill: Inferring Meaning
Grade level: 3rd
Objective: The student will be able to infer the meaning of unfamiliar words by using context clues.
Common Core State Standard/ PASS Standard: PASS-Standard 2: Words in Context- Use context
clues to determine the meaning of grade-level appropriate words
Prior knowledge: (What students already know)
The students will all be given a four-column think sheet to use when they are reading. They will already
know how to use this sheet because I will model this lesson in front of the class. Students also know to
write words down that they do not understand to look them up later. Students have had previous
experience inferring from pictures, this will also come in handy in this lesson.
Observations/Rationale: (Before Lesson) What did you notice in your students work that let you
know this lesson was necessary? (This will be an approximation this semester.)
I noticed that my students were beginning to read books with higher-level words in them. I had many
students coming up to me and asking what certain words were in texts.

Materials Needed
Lesson from (Name your source including page number): Inferring the Meaning of Unfamiliar Words,
from STW; pages 139-140
Mentor Text: Fly High: The Story of Bessie Coleman by: Louise Borden & Mary Kay Kroeger
Materials: Pencil, and books
Student Groups (whole/small group/partners): Students will be working with their tables.
Mini Lesson Format:
Connect (AKA~ Anticipatory Set, Engagement/Pre-reading):
Students I realize that you often skim over readings and do not know many of the words
meanings that that you are skimming over. I have been watching you all closely and began to
notice that you are getting into books with bigger words, with harder meanings that you may not
quite understand. I want to show you all a way to help better understand the meaning of
unfamiliar words in a text. We are going to look at the context of the word and connect it to our
prior knowledge.

Teach (Model/Explain)
(Pass our 4 column think sheet). As you can see, the paper I just passed out has 4 columns:
Word, Inferred Meaning, Clues, and Sentence. I am going to read a book out loud and show you
how I would use this think sheet along with my reading. (As I read the story and saw hard
vocabulary words, I would go through my thinking process and explain it out loud as I did the
think sheet. After rereading the sentences that had harder vocabulary words, I looked at the
pictures and reread the sentences the words were used in. The pictures in the book eventually
helped me figure out what many of the words meant). Now class, I am going to hand out a page

from a book, and I want you all to do your own think sheet as a table.

Active Engagement (AKA~ Check for Understanding: students try it out, teacher observes):
(I will now pass out a sheet to every table group in my class). Now that you all have your
sheets and your books I want you to begin. After you have all finished, each of you will tell us one
word you learned the meaning of and how you learned it. If anyone needs help, feel free to raise
your hands and as I am walking around the room I will help you.

Link (AKA~ Closing the Lesson [with accountability for the skill/process])
Today we learned how to use the context of what we are reading and our prior knowledge to
figure out the meanings of new words. The think sheets will help you to start better understand
word meanings by using the context of the words around it. Eventually you all will not need the
think sheets anymore, and this will all be an easy process that you can do in your heads. For now, I
have a stack of them on my desk that you are free to use whenever needed.

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