Name: Matthew McCluskey Program: Elementary Education Course: EDU450

Lesson Topic/Title: Building Background Knowledge of Colonial America: Examining Mystery

Documents

Lesson Date: 4/4/17 Lesson Length: 60 minutes Grade/Age: 4th-5th Grade

Learning Objectives (Targets):

Learning Objective: Students will make inferences based on information from, pictures, charts,
timelines, maps, and text.

Learning Target: I can make inferences based on information from pictures, charts, timelines, maps,
and text.

Content Standards: Content Standards Alignment & Justification:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.7
Interpret information presented visually, orally, or
quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams,
time lines, animations, or interactive elements on
Web pages) and explain how the information
contributes to an understanding of the text in
which it appears.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.7
Students will show that they have partially met
this standard when they examine information
presented visually and quantitatively and record
their inferences on their I Notice/I Wonder
graphic organizers, as well as on their Quick
Check Exit Ticket. During this lesson, students
will not be required to explain how the
information helps us understand text, as the
lessons are scaffolded to work towards this skill.

Assessment: Assessment (Data & Student Feedback):

Formative: Formative: Students will be scored on a rubric

I Notice/I Wonder graphic organizer (1
per student)
I Notice/I Wonder group chart (1 per
group)
Quick Check Exit Ticket
scale of 1-4. To receive a 4, students must have
recorded something that could actually be seen
(explicit detail) in the picture for I Notice for all
four Mystery Documents, and their correlating I
Wonder questions must be a reasonable
inferences. Written feedback will be provided on
individual graphic organizers. Students will also
show their ability to infer based the information
they have learned through examining pictures,
charts, timelines, graphs, and text during the
lesson on the Quick Check Exit Ticket, where
they will also support their inference about the
topic with details they recorded from the Mystery
Documents.
Integration of Other Content Areas:

Social Studies/Language Arts:

This Social Studies-based content will be taught during Reading Workshop due to the
following four lessons in the unit having a focus on the building of background knowledge
through the reading strategies of locating explicit details and making inferences.

Instructional Strategies to Differentiate Whole Class Instruction:

Grouping: Students will be placed in groups of four to five based on teachers prior knowledge
of their ability to work effectively with specific individuals, as well as students individual
academic and interpersonal strengths. Students who have been having a difficult time with
focus (RS, KH, DD, IA) and tend to be easily distracted with certain peers (KP, GO) will be
separated accordingly, in order to provide the best learning environment for all students.
Students who have exhibited strong leadership skills (RD, AT, KL, BY) have been placed in
each of these groups to help keep the group organized and on task.
Assessment: Students will be able to demonstrate their learning through multiple types of
formative assessment (graphic organizer and exit ticket).
Modeling: The teacher will model how to use the graphic organizer. Many of the students in
this classroom are visual learners and this strategy will help create clarity of expectations and
possibly reduce time spent correcting misunderstanding regarding directions. This will
especially benefit my ELL student (MA).

Modifications: ELL students (MA, BS) will be supplied with a modified version of the learning target
that includes graphics that will assist their comprehension of the academic vocabulary (inference).

Accommodations: Groups will be heterogeneous so that all students will benefit in different ways.
Lower performing students will and students who struggle with off-task behavior will be group with
higher performing students and students with strong academic work ethic so that deeper thinking and
positive behaviors will be modeled. High level students will benefit as they verbalize their thinking
with students who are struggling with lesson concepts. All students will benefit from the use of graphic
organizers as it will help organize and guide their thoughts, providing them with a visual of the process.
There will be an Ed Tech available to help with student questions and help the teacher monitor all
groups for on-task behavior.

Extensions: Due to the nature of the lesson, there will not be a need for extensions for students who
finish early, as all students will be working collaboratively on a timed schedule. An extension for the
whole group for this lesson would be to have each group collaborate in creating a fictional narrative on
a Google Doc to accompany Mystery Document #1, based on what their group had noticed and inferred
during the lesson.
Technology Integration:

ISTE Teaching Standard:

2. Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments

Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating
contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the
knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the Standards.

a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote
student learning and creativity

Rationale: I created the lesson extension which promotes creativity and directly relates to their
learning. By allowing students to work collaboratively on a Google Doc, they will have a chance to
show deeper understanding as they use the explicit details from the Mystery Document, as well as the
inferences they made, to build a fictional narrative.

Materials and Resources for Lesson Plan Development:

Document camera
I Notice/I Wonder charts (one per group; see content notes)
I Notice/I Wonder graphic organizers (one per student; one teacher copy for modeling)
Markers (one per group)
Quick Check Exit Ticket (one per student)
Mystery Documents 1-4 (one set of all four documents for each group)
Typed Directions for Group Work (one per group)

Teaching & Learning Sequence:

Before the lesson:

Create an enlarged version of I Notice/I Wonder graphic organizer on chart paper for each
group.

Open (10 minutes) (at rug)

Briefly discuss learning targets for the lesson.

Yesterday, at the beginning of class, we looked at several pictures and made guesses about
what we thought was happening in them. Then, at the end of class, students confirmed their
guesses with specific information they had learned from the videos you watched about Colonial
American children and the games they played.
 Capture students interest by telling them that they will be looking at mysterious documents
during class and that they will be acting like detectives.
Use the document camera to model an example of how to use the I Notice/I Wonder graphic
organizer.
For example, when I look out the window, I see it is cloudy, so I might write I notice that
there are clouds in the sky in the box under I Notice.
Then, in the column label I Wonder, I am going to write what that makes me wonder. For
example, I might write, Since it is cloudy, I wonder if it will rain today.
Reveal that students will be working as detective agencies in groups whose job is to try and
figure out as much as they can about each mystery document.

Students have been organized in these groups of four:

1. SS, KH, KP, KL

2. IA, DD, BY, GO
3. MA, RD, DMD, ZB
4. RS, MH, JM, AT

Active Engagement (Part I) (30 minutes) (tables)

Remind students to record only what they see in the I Notice column on the graphic
organizer and to only record questions that directly relate to what they see on the documents in
the I Wonder column. Have students repeat the directions to you as a group to check for
understanding.
Each group will be given one of four mystery documents to examine. Let students know that
they have five minutes with each mystery document before the document rotates to the next
group.
Each student will record at least one I Notice statement on their I Notice/I Wonder graphic
organizer and a corresponding I Wonder statement.
After 20 minutes, each group should have had a chance to examine all four of the mystery
documents.
Ask students to take out the directions for the group I Notice/I Wonder chart and ask for one
student to read the directions aloud with their group.
Circulate through the room to check for understanding and on-task behavior. As students
discuss and record their thinking, you may want to ask questions to push students towards
deeper thinking or to notice more about the document. Be sure that students are recording only
what they see in the I Notice section (this will be used as t heir evidence later in the lesson) and
that their questions in the I Wonder section are directly related to what they noticed (these
questions may be used for inferring later in the lesson).

Active Engagement (Part II) (rug) (15 minutes)

Have students join you at the rug and sit with their group members.
Post the completed I Notice/I Wonder group charts on the whiteboard in a cluster.
 Have students briefly (2 minutes) look at the charts from other groups, asking them to try and
look for differences in what other groups noticed and wondered.
Allow members from Group 1 to orally share what they noticed about Mystery Document #1.
Ask groups 2, 3 and 4 to turn to each other and briefly discuss what was different between what
they noticed and what Group 1 shared, and call on groups to share.
Circle or underline different or new information that is shared from groups 2, 3, and 4 on the
charts.

Wrap-Up (rug) (5 minutes)

Review learning targets.

Have student complete the sentence frame on their Quick Check Exit Ticket. Tell students
that their evidence should come from the I Notice section of their graphic organizers and charts
from the lesson.
Collect Exit Tickets.

Content Knowledge Notes:

This inquiry-based lesson is designed to pique students curiosity. Do not tell students that they will be
looking at documents about Colonial America. Students discover the topic as they infer about the
documents and build background knowledge through reading informational text.

Common Core Teacher Standards (CCTS) Alignment & Justification:

Standard #3 Learning Environments

The teacher works with learners to create environments that support individual and collaborative
learning, encouraging positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self motivation.

Essential Knowledge:
3 (j) Knows how to help learners work productively and cooperatively with each other to achieve
learning goals.

Justification: Evidence of meeting this standard is shown by my attention to student groups based on
observations I have made regarding individual students abilities to work productively and
cooperatively with others. Knowledge of student relationship dynamics and the impact of those
dynamics on student learning helped me to make informed decisions on how to group students so that
the learning environment would support all students. Students who tend to be easily distracted or
off-task were grouped with students who are usually on task, in order to minimize distractions.

Standard #8 Instructional Strategies

The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage learners to develop
deep understanding of content areas and their connections, and to build skills to access and
appropriately apply information.

Performance:
8 (a) Uses appropriate strategies and resources to adapt instruction to the needs of individuals and
groups of learners.

Justification: Modeling, heterogeneous groups, use of graphic organizers, and collaborative work are
instructional strategies that I used during this lesson. Modeling and use of graphic organizers are
important strategies for visual learners, which includes most students. Heterogeneous groupings and
collaborative work offer a chance for all student to hear and see perspectives and other than their own.
Students will be able to see what other groups noticed about the mystery documents that they did not,
creating opportunities for new inferences.

Reflection: 4 students met LG2, 9 students partially met, and 4 students did not meet on the graphic
organizer. On the exit ticket, 7 students met LG2 and 12 students partially met. This lesson did not go
as planned. I often find have a difficult time sticking to transition times within my lesson, especially
when I feel students have not fully grasped the important concepts during any one portion, which was
the case during the this lesson. When students moved to the tables to examine the mystery documents,
it was clear that students needed more specific direction to be able to be successful at the task I had
given them. Although I had just briefly modeled an example of noticing a detail Its cloudy outside.
and how a natural I wonder statement might be I wonder if its going to rain, it wasnt nearly
enough. I was trying to scaffold the learning, using more common vocabulary of notice and wonder
instead of explicit and infer as we developed the idea of connecting what we can see to ideas about
what we can see, but I could see that many students were not grasping it. Many of the students had
questions about what they were supposed to do. Some students just sat and stared at the mystery
documents, without writing and without even much talking amongst their group, which is the exact
opposite reaction I thought I would get from putting students in small groups, asking them to act like
detectives, and having the examine a mystery document.
Due to these unexpected circumstances, I knew I needed to be flexible in adjusting my plans on
the fly to try and salvage the activity if I wanted them to make real progress towards meeting LG2. I
decided to pause the activity and provide modeling that was more transferable to the expectations of the
task. I projected the chart mystery document - which students were mostly just staring at - with the
document camera, so that the whole class could see without having to leave their seats. I modeled
talking myself through the process and not stopping after noticing just one thing (I notice that on the
left side of the chart the numbers start at 1630 and end at 1770. I notice there is a pattern. The
numbers increase by twenty each time. I also notice that on the right side of the chart there doesnt
seem to be a pattern and the numbers get very large, very quickly.). Just then, I realized only noticing
one thing about this particular mystery document would not be very much to go on for my students.
They hadnt yet built - and hadnt come into the unit with - sufficient background knowledge to make
connections about the numbers on the mystery document, and although the task was meant to be
cognitively challenging, it might be too early to expect them to meet the learning goals without more
dynamic visuals. This was confirmed by students having the most success recording a variety of
relevant I Notice statements for the mystery document that was a picture, as compared to the map,
timeline, and chart.
After I finished modeling, I had the students return to the activity, but the overall pace in
producing statements was still tedious. Students were also recording inferences - instead of explicit
details - in the I Notice column; for the picture of a Native American, a student wrote, It takes place
in colonial times. While this is an inference I hope students to have, I want them to be able to
differentiate between explicit and inferred information when they are categorizing on their graphic
organizers, because the point of the graphic organizer is to be able to organize their information
appropriately so that they can visualize the relationship. Hopefully, the feedback I provide on their
work will help them make greater progress towards the LGs during the next lesson.

Mystery Document #1
Mystery Document #2

1630 4,600

1650 50,400

1670 111,900

1690 210,400

1710 331,700

1730 629,400

1750 1,170,800

1770 2,148,100
Mystery Document #3
Mystery Document #4

Name:_________________ Date:__________
Inferring Based on Evidence Questionnaire

IWonder... IInfer Detailsfromtexttosupportmy

(Whatdoyouinferisthe inference
answertoyourquestion?) (Whatevidencedidyoufindinthe
texttosupportthis?)

RecordoneIWonder
relatedtoMystery
Document#1:

Whosepopulationis
representedinthe
chartinMystery
Document#2?

Whatcouldbethetitle
ofthetimelinein
MysteryDocument#3?

RecordonemoreI
Wonderrelatedtoany
MysteryDocument,
notingonwhich
documentyourwonderis
based:

Fromwhatplaceand
timeisthemapin
MysteryDocument#4?

Name:_________________ Date:_______
I Notice/I Wonder Graphic Organizer

INotice... IWonder...

Mystery
Document#1

Mystery
Document#2

Mystery
Document#3

Mystery
Document#4


Name:_______________

Iinferthatourtopicis

Myevidenceis...

Name:__________________

Iinferthatourtopicis

Myevidenceis...

I Notice/I Wonder & Mystery Document Directions

1. Write names of group members on your chart and just your name on your
graphic organizer.

2. Be sure that everyone in your group can see the document.

3. Silently examine the document and record what you notice and what makes you
wonder.

4. Select a recorder: someone who will write on the chart what everybody in the
group will share. (Dont record the same notice or wonder more than once.) Have
each person in your group share what they noticed and wondered.

5. Draw a line under your notices and wonders before receiving a new Mystery
Document. This way, you will be able to separate your thinking about the different
documents.

6. Repeat for each Mystery Document, selecting a new recorder each time so that
everybody has a turn.
 Makinginferencesis
likebeingadetective!

Background knowledge + Evidence = Inference

(what I already know) (clues) (reasonable guess)

I think __________________ because __________________.