Lesson Plan

Name: Paige Christianson

Lesson Title: Main Idea Tree and Black History Month (Cunningham and Cunningham,
2015, pp. 52-61)

Grade Level: Third

Concept: Comprehension (Main Idea and Supporting Details; Celebrating Black

History Month Figures)

Subject Area: Literacy and Social Justice

Backward Design Approach:

Lesson Purposes (Outcomes):
I will be able to read a text, find the main idea, and list key details.
I will be able to use the main idea and details to write a summary of the text.
I will be able to recognize and describe the importance of different black historical
figures.

Ensuring Lesson Supports District and State Goals

Standard(s) addressed:
Reading
RI.1.2 Identify the main idea and retell key details of a text
R.3.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details, and explain how they
support the main idea
Writing
CCRA.W.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas
and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection organization and
analysis of content
Speaking and Listening
CCRA.SL.1: Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and
collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their own
clearly and persuasively

Assessment Plan:
 We will pick 2-3 students to conduct in-depth interviews with. While students either
complete read to self station during Daily 5, we will each pick a student to assess their
comprehension relating to main idea and key details. Starter questions about main idea
and details are as follows:
What is the main idea of this section (indicate part of text you are referring to)?
How can you tell? What facts written in the text let you know about the main idea?
What are supporting details for the main idea you named?
How did you identify these?
What is the purpose of identifying key details?
Is there only one main idea?
Exit Ticket: Students will create a short summary based on the main idea tree and key
details from their groups article. Only one sticky note needs to be turned in per group.
This will tell us how well they can turn the main idea tree facts into a complete,
summarizing sentence.

Meeting Students Where They Are:

How this Lesson Contributes to the Research Focus:
The students in Ms. Harmons class need extra support in comprehending the
text while reading it. They do not translate the text into meaning while they read it. The
main idea tree will help them organize the important information and details in the text
so that they can develop meaning from it.

Prior Knowledge/Connections:
Students will most likely have heard of black historical figures like Martin Luther
King, Jr. and Rosa Parks, however they may not have heard of Malcolm X or Frederick
Douglas. This lesson will help students recognize that while their prior knowledge is
valuable, they can always learn more about these incredibly important people. They
can bring their knowledge of current black figures, as well, such as Barack Obama, to
understand that even if someone looks different from us, they can be our role models
and we can look up to them.

Lesson Introduction/Hook:
Begin the lesson with a challenge for students to stand up on the carpet and stay
standing when they hear a persons name they have heard of before and sit when they
hear a name they have not heard of.
Barack Obama
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Rosa Parks
Oprah Winfrey
Jackie Robinson
Harriet Tubman
Malcolm X
 Frederick Douglas
Booker T. Washington
George Washington Carver
W.E.B DuBois
Joe Louis
Wilma Rudolph
Highlight the fact that we do not know about many important Black or African American
historical and contemporary figures.
Ask the questions, What is Black History Month and why do we celebrate it? Allow
students to turn and talk to a partner and then choose some students to share their
thoughts with the class.
Then, discuss Why do we only celebrate Black History one month out of the year?
What do you think about this? Should it be changed?
Heart of the Lesson/Learning Plans
Differentiation/Same-ation:
Students will be placed into pre-decided groups that our mentor teacher helped
us create. These groups are comprised of three students who can each use his or her
strengths to help benefit the group. Some students may be stronger readers, while
others are better at coming up with main ideas. They will use these strengths to
overcome each of their individual weaknesses and collaborate well as a team.

Lesson Development:
I do: (Paige)
We will begin by referring back to our introduction Since no one (or few of you)
has heard of Wilma Rudolph we are going to learn about her in this book by finding
main ideas and key details. We will ask students What is a main idea? We will explain
that a main idea is the most important ideas in a text. We will ask the students How are
key details related to main idea? We will explain supporting details help the reader to
understand the main idea better. We will tell the students To help us organize our
thoughts we are going to use a graphic organizer called the main idea tree to write
down the main ideas and key details we find when we read. If this is our tree and we
have the trunk, branches, and the leaves, where do you think we will write the topic,
main idea, and key details?

We will look at the title of the book to decide what our topic will be and ask the
students If the book is called Wilma Unlimited, what do you think the topic of our main
idea tree is going to be? We will read Wilma Unlimited by Kathleen Krull. We will tell the
students I am going to model how to find the main ideas using key details, but I also
want you to notice the strategies I am using. We will stop at the first main idea, Wilma
was sick a lot as a child, and write it on the first branch. We will write on the leaves key
details such as she was born very small, got much sicker than her brother and sister,
her leg twisted inward and the doctor said she would never walk again and how it all
 supports our main idea that she was sick as a child. Our next stop is She never gave
up even when times got tough. We will write that on our second branch then fill out our
leaves (details) by using she hopped on one foot, went to the doctor to do exercise, and
eventually walked without a brace.

We do: (Paige)
Now students will help us identify the main idea and key details for the next
section of the text. We will stop at the part of the story where Wilma goes to the
Olympics, and ask students to turn and talk about what they think the main idea of this
section of the text is. Ask for volunteers, and allow students to share their input on the
suggested main ideas with thumbs up if you agree, thumbs down if you disagree.
Once the main idea of Wilma surprised everyone and became an athlete (or
something similar) has been decided on, write it on the branch and ask for key details
that support this idea. Write the details of playing basketball and leading the team to the
championship, she received a full athletic scholarship, and she went to the Olympics on
the leaves.

Middle: Student work (independent or in pairs/groups)

You all do: (Whitney)
*On the day prior to instruction, students will be given the opportunity to rank 1st,
2nd, and 3rd choice for the three book options for You All Do: I am Jackie Robinson, I
am Martin Luther king, Jr., and I am Rosa Parks by Brad Meltzer.* The students will
be given their own text and a worksheet with a premade main idea tree on it for
students to fill out. Group the students (2-3 per group). One student per group will be
designated as the reader and the other students in the group will write the main ideas
and key details they find in the text. We will have stopping points on sticky notes
throughout the books to guide the students where to look for the main ideas and key
details. At this stopping points, they will fill out a branch and leaves on the main idea
tree.

Specific Questioning:
What is Black History Month and why do we celebrate it?
Why do we only celebrate Black History one month out of the year? What do you think
about this? Should it be changed?
What is a main idea?
How are key details related to main idea?
If this is our tree and we have the trunk, branches, and the leaves, where do you think
we will write the topic, main idea, and key details?
If the book is called Wilma Unlimited, what do you think the topic of our main idea tree is
going to be?
 What is the main idea of this section (indicate part of text you are referring to)?
How can you tell? What facts written in the text let you know about the main idea?
What are supporting details for the main idea you named?
How did you identify these?
What is the purpose of identifying key details?
Is there only one main idea?
Why should we celebrate different cultures every month of the year instead of devoting
just one month?
New Vocabulary:
Topic
Main Idea
Key Detail
Black History Month

Concluding the Lesson/Close/Debriefing:

Wrap up with modeling how to write a summary using the main idea and key details
from the book we read as a class.
The next morning during morning work, students will reflect on the importance of Black
History Month and contemplate the question Why should we celebrate different
cultures every month of the year instead of devoting just one month?

Materials/Resources:
Main Idea Tree Worksheet
Wilma Unlimited by Kathleen Krull
I am Rosa Parks; I am Martin Luther King, Jr.; I am Jackie Robinson by Brad Meltzer
Index cards (for exit tickets)

Teaching Behavior Focus:

My Teaching Behavior Focus is provides clear directions. I chose this because
this this lesson is more loosely-structured than any lesson I taught last semester. I want
to be sure to be clear in my expectations for students so that they know what they are
doing at all times, even when they are working independently or in small groups.

Follow-Up Activities/Parent Involvement:

After this lesson, students could each choose a black historical figure that they
had not heard of before to do a Wax Museum project. In this project, they will have to
research and learn about an important person. Then on the day of the museum, the
students will dress up as their person and teach the rest of the class about him or her.
This will help students identify main ideas and details in informational resources online
and in text form, as well as allow them to expand their horizons when it comes to
learning about important black historical figures.
How will the lesson plan demonstrate high expectations for all learners, cultural
competence, and critical consciousness?
High Expectations:
All students will be expected to come up with ample details and main ideas to
contribute to their group. I am doing mixed ability groups, so each student has the
same expectations as the rest of the class. This way, there is not a group that is for
easy work and one that is for hard work. All students are expected to participate,
read the same texts, and work together as a team.
Cultural Competence:
Most of the students in my class are Asian, so by introducing black historical
figures in this lesson, they will learn to celebrate those who are different from them.
While it is so important to include the students own cultures in the classroom, it is also
important to acknowledge other cultures so students can be open-minded individuals.
Critical Consciousness:
Students will be asked questions that make them consider why we only celebrate
Black History Month in February. Why do we not celebrate it all year? This will cause
the students to question an institution that is put in place and is commonly accepted by
the whole country. They will begin to realize that they should question things, even if it
difficult, because sometimes they can make a huge difference.