Bentley SPE 275 SPRING 2017

Universally Designed Lesson Plan

Teacher: Ms. Sunu Mathew Date: 04/07/2017

Academic Subject and Grade Level: English 9th Grade Regents

Standards addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.4

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text,
including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of
specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense
of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.2
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development
over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by
specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.

S.M.A.R.T. Objective(s): Given __a short story___ the students

will_____analyze_______ with 95% accuracy (or other measure) by the
end of the week__. (S.M.A.R.T.: SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE,
RELEVANT, TIME LIMITED.) Break the activities down into the smallest
possible step, and write a S.M.A.R.T. objective for each step. Make sure
your Objectives are specifically related to the standards youve
chosen.

Materials Needed: Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, each

students writing journal, videos, and blackboard.

Essential Question: How do effective authors create mood and tone

in their writing?

WHY do students need to learn this lesson? Students need to

learn this lesson because it will help them analyze the pace and
movement of elements and issues within a story. Students will see how
mood and tone are created and set by the author, as well as the effect
that both of these literary elements have on the reader.

Anticipatory Set: I will start the lesson by asking students to pick a

Bentley SPE 275 SPRING 2017

folded index card out of a hat. Each of the index cards will have an
emotion written on them, for example, excitement or nervous, and
students will be asked to act out the emotion on the card. Afterwards,
we will watch a short portion of a video representation of Edgar Allen
Poes, A Tell Tale Heart, and students will discuss their observations
about tone/mood from the video. Then, as a class, we will read A Tell
Tale Heart and stop to discuss and note important parts of the text
that are essential to the students learning. At the end of the lesson,
students will respond to an exit ticket writing prompt, which asks, How
do effective writers create mood/tone in their writing? How well do you
think Edgar Allen Poe did this?

Multiple Means of Engagement:

Group Work: students will work in groups to decide what the effect of
the reading/video of the short story was. Students will be able to share
their opinions with their small group so there is less pressure for each
student to be accountable to the class.
Class discussion: Students will discuss what they think is important
from the text while supporting it with textual evidence. Students are
building key skills in the ELA classroom while they are not all expected
to participate. Students who feel confident in their ability to participate
will be able to, while other students who do not feel the same are not
expected to perform in front of the class.
Individual written response: Students will be asked to write about the
essential question for this lesson. Students who are more able to get
their ideas across through writing will benefit from this, while all
students are taking part in formal assessment.
Interactive Physical Activity: Students will be acting out the specific
emotion they have picked out of the hat and all students are
interacting with each other and getting their energy out. All students
are encouraged to have fun during this activity while inquiring about
what the emotion they chose is. Students will also be up and moving.
Video representation: Students who are visual learners will benefit from
this because they are able to see the short story they are reading
being shown and acted out on the screen. The video will help students
who are having a hard time with reading understand the text.
Class note taking: Students will work as a class to take notes. We will
discuss as a class what is important in the text and students will take
notes as we go through it.
Walking around the classroom: I will walk around the classroom and
attend to all students throughout the lesson to see how students are
performing and meet with students who are struggling.

Multiple Means of Presentation:

Visual: I will be showing the video of A Tell Tale Heart being acted out
so that students who are visual learners are represented in the lesson.
Bentley SPE 275 SPRING 2017

Reader/Writing: Students will be given a physical copy of A Tell Tale

Heart so that they can take notes and annotate directly on the sheet.
Students are reading from the physical copy and writing on it, as well.
Students will be writing a response about mood/tone in the short story
and handing it in at the end of class.
Kinesthetic: Students who learn this way will learn about different
emotions by participating in the acting out of these emotions in the
interactive opening activity.
Auditory: Students who are auditory learners will hear A Tell Tale
Heart being read out loud to them in the video of the short story.

Multiple Means of Assessment:

In class discussion: students will be informally assessed on their ability
to analyze and interpret A Tell Tale Heart and share their thoughts
with the class. There is less pressure on all students to perform but
students are encouraged to share their interpretations; I will know what
students know through this discussion.
Exit-ticket: students will write in response to the essential question at
the end of the lesson. Although students are not being graded on the
accuracy of their responses, I am assessing what they have learned in
the lesson.

Sequence:
1. Start the lesson by taking the hat labeled 9R and having each
student pick out a folded index card when they come into class. (1)
2. Have students act out the emotion they have picked out from the
hat. (5 min)
3. Hand students A Tell Tale Heart and read it out loud with the class.
Use my copy of the handout to help you stop at certain points to
discuss. Stop wherever there are questions and ask students to make
interpretations based on my notes. DO NOT READ THE QUESTION
OUTLOUD. Ask students about underlined words and circled phrases
and have them respond to what this could mean. Participate in class
discussion. Circulate around the room. (25 minutes)
4. Show students the video of people acting out A Tell Tale Heart
5. Have students work in small groups to discuss the effect of watching
the video versus reading the text out loud. Have students pick out key
differences between the two.
6. Have students answer the exit ticket (located in the file cabinet
labeled 9r) using the last five minutes of class. Have students hand
in their responses. Leave responses where you took the exit sheets
from.

Connection to the text: Strategy: Note Taking from Oral

Presentations
What is it? Students participate in discussion with the teacher while the
Bentley SPE 275 SPRING 2017

teacher points out important parts within the text that students should
take notes about. I will stop at certain points within the text that are
useful and important, students will write about information about the
information I am giving them while they participate in the discussion.
Students will create the notes from their interpretation as well as the
class/students. (Page 196)