Olivia Markoski

School of Education
The College of New Jersey

Topic and Grade Level: Writing Lesson: What is an adjective? Grade 2- Day 1

Lesson Essential Questions: Will students understand what an adjective is and where it belongs
in a sentence?
Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.1.E: Use adjectives to describe

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.6: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations,

reading, and being read to, including using adjectives and adverbs to describe.
Objectives and Assessments:
Objectives
Students will be able to define what an
adjective is.
Students will be able to apply their
knowledge of adjectives.
Assessments
Students will verbally repeat back to the
teacher what is adjective is and what it can
describe.
Students will be constantly assessed on
their thoughts based on the thumbs down,
thumbs up checking strategy.
As a whole class, the teacher and the
students will generate a list of adjectives,
as well as, edit sentences using adjectives.
As individuals, students will re-edit an
already made sentence to add adjectives.

Materials:
- Scenery picture
- Student writing paper that goes along with picture
- Hairy, Scary, Ordinary Book by Brian P. Cleary
- Print out of scenery picture
- Chart paper
Pre-lesson Assessment and/or Prior Knowledge: Students should have some background
knowledge on what an adjective is from first grade. However, they have had a hard time
applying it in second grade. For some students, they do not remember what an adjective is at all.
Therefore, this lesson is needed. For other students, that are having a hard time remembering
what exactly an adjective is. Therefore, this lesson will help spark up some of their memories on
the use of adjectives. I have noticed this in my students because as a class, we have also been
writing personal narratives and the majority of the class does not include adjectives in their work
at all. Many of their stories are extremely brief and do not describe any of their experiences in
their story. This is what I used as a pre-assessment and a rationale for creating this lesson and
learning segment.
Lesson Beginning: The lesson will begin with the students at their desk with a piece of lined
writing paper and a pencil to write with. Projected on the whiteboard will be the picture featured
below. I will ask the students to write 2-3 sentences on what they see in the picture. I wont give
students any instruction other than this in order to see what they would write on their own. I will
make sure to reiterate that they are not writing a story about the picture, but that they are writing
a sentence or two on what they see in the picture. After the students are finished writing, I will
ask them to go to the back carpet.
At the carpet, I will tell the students what they are going to be learning today (adjectives).
I will ask students to share anything they know about adjectives. This will also help me
judge their prior knowledge. Before I define what adjectives are, I will read a book to the
class called Hairy, Scary, Ordinary: What is an Adjective?

Instructional Plan: At the end of the book, the last page reads, So, what is an adjective? Do
you know? I will then close the book and ask the students the same questions. I will collect
student responses and build off of their answers. I will then define what an adjective is, as well
as, define what the word description and describing means. I will then apply the thumbs-up,
thumbs- down strategy to assess their understanding at this point.
After this discussion, I will bring out an anchor chart that says: What is an
Adjective? On the chart paper will be a saying about adjectives and a word web
that shows all the qualities of an adjective (categories that are adjectives). I will
have the students repeat back the words to me. Here is a picture of the chart
paper:
 On the next piece of chart paper is an organizer broken down into each category
of all the qualities of an adjective. As a class, the students and I will generate
adjectives that fit under each category. This will be left out for the rest of writing,
so that students can reference back to it anytime they need to describe a noun.
Here is a picture of the finished, edited chart paper from class:

Next, on a chart paper will be two sentences. Each sentence comes from the
scenery picture from the beginning of the lesson. As the teacher, I will model how
I would edit the sentence to include more description by using adjectives. I first
underline the noun in the sentences so I know where my adjectives should go.
Once I have modeled, as a class, we will fix the second sentence together. I will
encourage the students to look at the anchor chart we had created and use the
words from that list to help edit that sentence. Here is a picture of the finished,
edited product:
 After this, I will give students the directions on the activity they will be doing.
The students will be told that they will be headed back to their seats to edit the
sentences they had created at the beginning of the class.
Questions:
1. After giving definition of description: Why is description important in
writing? How are adjectives and description related then?
2. What adjective do you think I should add here? Why do you think that?
3. Remind me, what is an adjective? Remind me, what is a noun?
Differentiation:
1. For my students who have a hard time paying attention, I will call their name
during the lesson to make sure they are paying attention, such as saying to
them Right so and so? This way, they start to focus back to the lesson. I will
also keep a close eye out for them and continuously check up on them during
independent time.
o Additionally, after instruction time, I will tell the students to
take two, quiet laps around the room to get their legs moving
and to allow students to take a mental break while they are
doing this. Once they are back at their seats, they will then get
refocused and start the assignment.
2. For my struggling readers and writers, I will go to their desk and help them
spell or right anything if they need it. I will also pull them over to my desk to
work one on one with them. They will be given more time to write if needed.
Classroom Management:
1. Students will be called to the carpet by rows to make sure there is not any
traffic heading to the carpet.
2. I will remind students to make sure they are sitting next to someone they
believe will help them be a good listener. I will give students time to move.
3. Students will only get five minutes to write their initial sentences and their
new sentences in order to prevent them from writing a story.
Closure: The lesson will end with the students going back to their seats to edit their sentences.
Again, I would reiterate that they arent writing a story, but complete sentences about what they
see. I will walk around the room to monitor students and aid any of them that need it. Lastly, I
will randomly call students up to the class to present their work by reading their first attempt at
the sentences before the lesson and then reading their new sentences.
Additional Work: During Intervention time, which is held at the end of the day, I will pull
students over who seemed to have had trouble during the lesson today. We will review all the
material and work on adding details to their sentences together.
Student 1 Example:
Student 2 Example: Student 3 Example: