UMF Secondary Education Lesson Plan/Learning Event Template

Name: Haley Knowlton Program: Secondary Course: Practicum (EDU 222,

Education EDU 223, SED 220)

Lesson Topic / Title: Civil War Letters/Diaries

Lesson Date: 2 of 3 Lesson Length: 2, 80 minute Grade/Grade Range: 8/9

class periods

Learning Objectives & Content Standard Alignment - Selects, creates, and sequences learning
experiences and performance tasks that support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals based
on content standards​ and desired understandings​.

Learning Objective(s) Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

● Students are able to determine whether or not a
source is primary.
● Students are able to determine the central ideas
or information of a primary or secondary source​.
● Having students find their own
primary resource gives them
practice in identifying what is and
is not a primary resource- that
includes-underlying themes of the
economy, societal standing
(society’s opinion on the war),
societal status in relation to the
economy (was it a wealthy
family?), living conditions and/or
relationships between people- as it
relates to the person they were
assigned.
● Having them find a resource that
incorporates all that information
will make it easier for them to write
their own primary resource and
make it that much more realistic.
● Assigning the students the role of
a specific person narrows their
research enabling to find what they
need to complete the assignment
that much faster.
● Students are able to incorporate
the information into a series of
diary entries or letters from the

Content Standard(s)
E, E1. 9-Diploma
S1. Analyze and critique varying interpretations of ​historic
people, issues, or events, and explain how evidence is
used to support different interpretations.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.2
S3. Determine the central ideas or information of a
primary or secondary source; provide an accurate
summary of how key events or ideas develop over the
course of the text.
Assessment - Uses assessment flexibly to expand and deepen understanding of learner performance
and determines best supports for continued learner growth.
Assessments
● First assessment is verifying that what the
student has is actually a primary source. This will
be done simply by having the students, once they
find their source, bring it up to me for approval.
● Exit ticket: before leaving students will write down
two things that they learned while researching
about their assigned person and/or information
from their primary source about the person and
one thing that they still wish to learn about their
person.
● Summative assessment for this learning event is
the letters/diary entries themselves, how they
incorporated the information that they found into
their own primary source document(s).
Instructional Materials and Resources - Stays current in content knowledge and expands expertise in
reviewing instructional materials from the perspectives of both the discipline and individual learner
needs.
point of the person they were
assigned. To show how they are
able to use primary source
information.
Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
Standard one and standard three both
measure how well students can pull
information from a source and then how
they can reinterpret that information into
their final product- the letters or diary
entries.
Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
● The first assessment is just a
check-in and approval so I can
make sure that they are on the
right track with finding their
source(s). (Teacher Formative)
● The second assessment is a type
of formative assessment that just
lets me know that they are using
their time in class wisely and
making progress towards the final
product. (Teacher/Student
Formative)
● The summative assessment gives
the students something to be
working towards. It allows them a
creative writing outlet where the
can use their research to base it
off of. (Teacher Summative)
Multilevel and/or Multisensory Materials, Resources, Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
and / or Technology
● Laptops ● Students will use their laptops for
their research and if they would
● Notebooks like can type their letter/diary
entries.
● If students would like to take notes
● Writing Webs on their primary source as well as
having the option to handwrite
their letter/diary.
● Students will have the option of
using a writing web in assisting
them while writing their letter. It is
useful for students such as
Michael to organize their thoughts
for the writing process.

Instructional Methods: Selects, creates, and sequences learning experiences and performance tasks
by using a variety of instructional approaches, strategies, and technologies that make learning
accessible to all learners and support learners in reaching rigorous curriculum goals.
(Include any documents associated with the plan: graphic organizers, sets of questions, sample
problems, activity directions, content knowledge reference notes, etc.)

Teaching and Learning Sequence Instructional Decisions / Reasoning

1st Day:
● 20 Mins: Go over agenda and introduce the new ● Going over the agenda allows the
assignment Assign each student the person that students to see where they are
they have to research. (Everyone is related to the headed through the class period.
Civil War in someway). “Today you will be
traveling back in time to become someone that
lived during the Civil War.”.

● 40 Mins: Students will research their person and
find a good primary source(s), bring the source(s)
to the teacher to have it approved. Identify the
following characteristics/information from your
source: economy, societal standing (society’s
opinion on the war), societal status in relation to
the economy (was it a wealthy family?), living
conditions and/or relationships between people
as they relate to their assigned person.
● 15 Mins: Start writing the letters or diary entries
from the point of view of their person. Students
can also use this time to finish up research if
needed.
● Students will be given a chart to fill
in the desired information about
their person and their lives. This
chart gives students structure so
that they know what information
they should be looking for when
doing their research.
● This time is set aside for students
to start writing their letters/diary
entries. Students can receive help
with their writing maps if needed. If
students need to finish up their
research this time would best be
 ● 5 Mins: Fill out the following exit ticket: students
will write down two things that they learned while
researching about their assigned person and/or
information from their primary source about the
person and one thing that they still wish to learn
about their person. Assign for homework to finish
research, so every can be writing next class
2nd Day:
● 20 Mins: Go over the new agenda and answer
students questions.
● 50 Mins: Students will have this time to write their
letters/diary entries and receive any help they
need from the instructor. Use check-in meetings
to see where everyone is.
● 10 Mins: Final check in with students to see how
much they accomplished and assign the
remainder of the assignment for homework,
unless the majority of the class isn’t close to
completion then another class period can be
added.
used for that as well.
● I chose to use an exit ticket as a
form of formative assessment
because it is easy for the students
to complete and it gives me
information about where they are
in terms of completing their
research. It also allows me time to
go over the information and see
who may need help before the
next class so that I can arrange to
meet with them during the first 20
or so minutes of the following
class.
● Going over the agenda allows the
students to see where they are
headed through the class period.
The students may have question
regarding parts of the assignment
so this would be blocked out as
time to answer those questions
before they start on their writing.
● Check-in meetings are used to
make sure that everyone is on
track for writing their letters/diary
entries. Also allows for students to
ask questions about their project
one-on-one in case they were too
nervous to ask in front of the entire
class.
● Final check in allows me to see
how far everyone is and if they
really understand the assignment.
If the majority of the class isn’t
close to completion or don’t
completely understand the
assignment another class period
can be added.
Meeting students’ needs (differentiation, extensions, Instructional Decisions / Reasoning
modifications, accommodations) ● UDL is supported through this
● Students have already completed a background lesson in the following ways:
information activity prior. However they are ○ Writing web provided for
researching a specific person so the knowledge students to organize their
they need to complete the activity should come thoughts prior to starting
from that research.
the writing portion of the
● Michael amongst other students is receiving a
writing map to help structure their writing and activity.
organize their thoughts before they start writing. ○ Students are able to use
● Students are able to use their technology or the text-to-speech feature
notebooks to write the assignment. when looking for sources,
● Students that need extensions on the the assists those students
assignment, as per their IEP or 504 plans will be that struggle with reading
granted this time. comprehension.
● Michael would also be able to use the
○ Students have the option
text-to-speech ability on his laptop to have the
research read to him, since he struggles with to use technology or to
reading. hand write their final
products.
○ Numerous forms of
check-ins to assist
students one-on-one when
necessary. This prevents
singling out students when
they have questions they
are to afraid to ask.
○ At the end of the second
class we will assess where
they are as a class and
have the potential to add
another class period for
teacher to student
assistance if necessary.
○ Students don’t have to
present anything to the
class for this learning
event, eliminates anxiety
that some students may
have.
○ Students should work
individually, however I am
not against talking as long
as the work is still getting
done.
Field Courses Only – Post lesson

Reflection

Teaching Standards and Rationale