Learning Experience Plan

Subject: English

Grade level: 9th grade

Unit: Writing: Text types and purposes

days

Length of LEP ( days/periods/minutes): 3

Topic: Argumentative Writing

Content Standards: W.9-10.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of
substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient
evidence. Explore and inquire into areas of interest to formulate an argument.
Learning Experience Outcomes
(knowledge/skills)

Students will: have a mini debate and

annotate their research in order to
prepare for creating a thesis
statement.
Differentiation
Approaching

Learning Experience Assessments

- debate
- quiz
- annotating research
- group discussion
- creating a thesis statement

(What will you do to meet the needs of students at these different levels?)

On-level
Students on-level should
be able to fully
participate in their
debates and the group
discussion. They should
be able to create a thesis
statement that is either
efficient or somewhat
efficient.

Beyond
Students at this level will
most likely go through the
annotation process quicker
than others and can begin
writing their thesis
statement as well as their
introduction paragraph
when finished doing so.

Curriculum Integration (Does this lesson correlate with any other content area? Describe.)
The research students have done could fall into a wide range of topics/subjects.
Their thesis statements will coincide with their choices.
Material Procedures/Strategies
s

SMA Jacobs

Page 1

Day 2

(add additional days as needed)

Sponge Activity (activity that will be done as students enter the room to get them into the
mindset of the concept to be learned)
Students will have a debate for the first 10 minutes of the class, using their
essay topics and research from the night before. With a partner, they will
argue their claims on their specific topic with their three supporting reasons.
The partners will switch then switch.

Anticipatory Set (focus question/s that will be used to get students thinking about the days
lesson)
Do Now: Take out your homework, the topics youve chosen and the two
sources that go along with it.
Focus Question: How can we create a thesis statement?
Activating Prior Knowledge (what information will be shared with/among students to
connect to prior knowledge/experience )
-What did we learn were the four main parts of argumentative essay?
Briefly Describe
-Okay now we know all the components of an argumentative essay
and for homework you guys chose a topic to write about and found two
articles that support and go against your topic. So, now we can get
ready to start writing.
Direct Instruction (input, modeling, check for understanding)
Although we have everything we need to begin writing, we must first
create our thesis statement to grab the readers attention. Our thesis
statement may change as we go along, but for now we are going to go
over the ways which we create one..
Writing a Good Thesis Statement
It is important to demonstrate the difference between good and bad
thesis statements. These instructions will help you teach the former:
A good thesis statement is short and simple: it should be no longer than
one sentence, regardless of essay length.
Good Example: Success is a result of doing the right things consistently.
Bad Example: In a world full of success gurus and books about success,
it becomes ever so more important to delineate the one trait that

SMA Jacobs

Page 2

ultimately determines success: doing the right things consistently.

A good thesis statement is limited to one main idea.
Good example: The key to successful dieting is focusing on a specific
goal.
Bad example: The key to successful dieting is focusing on a specific
goal, which is also the key to successfully running a business and
coaching a football team.
A good thesis statement is a declarative sentence with no qualifiers
(might, maybe, perhaps, etc.):
Good example: Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound make
him the league's most valuable player.
Bad example: Does Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound
make him the league's most valuable player?
Bad Example: Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound just
might make him the league's most valuable player.

SMA Jacobs

Page 3

A good thesis statement is a declarative sentence with no qualifiers (might, maybe,

perhaps, etc.):
Good example: Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound make him the
league's most valuable player.
Bad example: Does Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound make him the
league's most valuable player?
Bad Example: Lebron James' ability to score, pass, and rebound just might make
him the league's most valuable player.
Guided Practice (how students will demonstrate their grasp of new learning)
-Okay enough lecturing. Does anyone have any questions? Okay, now that you
guys understand what you need to do in order to create a thesis statement and
begin your papers, lets do an activity and you can finish creating those for
homework.
-I will hand out an Annotation Chart (worksheet#8)
Students will annotate the articles they printed using my annotation chart in order
to pick out phrases or paragraphs that they find appealing, interesting, confusing,
contradictory, or unlikeable that could potentially benefit their essays
Independent Practice (what students will do to reinforce learning of the lesson)
Students will work in groups of 3-4 people and share their ideas and thoughts found
in their annotations.
Closure (action/statement by teacher designed to bring lesson presentation to an appropriate close )
-We will go over what we learned about thesis statements
-For homework, students are to finish annotating their essays and searching for
more if they wish.

References:

(e.g. Book, course packet, pg #, complete web address URL)

http://www.brighthubeducation.com/high-school-english-lessons/20762-thesisstatement-lesson-plan/

SMA Jacobs

Page 4