Name

of Teacher Candidate: Hunterpaige McDaniel Date: November 9, 2018

Central Focus: Thanksgiving Grade Level: Kindergarten

Lesson Title:
Lesson 7: The First Thanksgiving
Curriculum Areas Addressed:
Social Studies; ELA
Time Required: Instructional Groupings: Are you using whole group, small
40 minutes group, partners, quads, homogeneous, heterogeneous?
• Introduction & read aloud: whole group
(heterogeneous: different abilities and
comprehension levels)
• Activities & class discussions:(heterogeneous:
different abilities and comprehension levels)
Standards: List the GPS/CCGPS that are the target of student learning and are key to this lesson. Include the number and the text of each
of the GPS/CCGPS that is being addressed. If only a portion of a standard is addressed, include only the part or parts that are relevant.
• SSKH1 Identify the national holidays and describe the people and/or events celebrated.
i. Thanksgiving Day

• ELAGSEKRL6 With prompting and support, name the author and illustrator of a story and define the
role of each in telling the story.

As a result of this lesson/unit students will…
Be: (State the BE Bridge for the unit.)
• Be thankful for the people, things, and experiences in life.
• Be aware of other people’s feelings, cultures, and traditions.
• Be caring towards others.
• Be accepting of differences.
Relevant Goal(s): (The relevant goal states the overall purpose of the lesson. The purpose of the lesson is to …..)
• The purpose of this lesson is to retell the events of the First Thanksgiving.

Essential Question(s): (Essential questions should be used to guide instruction.)
• How do I identify the national holidays and describe the people and/or events celebrated?
Learning Objectives: (Objectives are stated in measurable/observable terms. These should reflect the thinking skills, skills of the
discipline. These represent the skills that will be assessed.)

1. Students will be able to identify the length of the first Thanksgiving.

2. Students will be able to describe the events of the first Thanksgiving.

Support for Academic Language
Vocabulary: (What Academic Language will be taught or developed? Identify the key vocabulary and/or symbols specific to the content
area. These may be derived from the standards.)

• Special
• Friends
• Give thanks
• Holiday
• Plymouth
• traditions

Elementary/Middle Childhood edTPA Lesson Plan Template John H. Lounsbury College of Education, Georgia College

Language Demands: (Language demands is defined as the specific ways that academic language (vocabulary, functions, discourse,
syntax) is used by students to participate in learning tasks through reading, writing, listening, and/or speaking to demonstrate their
disciplinary understanding. Identify the following way/ways that students will participate in learning tasks to demonstrate disciplinary
understanding: reading, writing, listening, or oral language.)

1.Students will use this academic language through listening to a read a loud of …If You Sailed on The
Mayflower in 1620 by: Ann McGovern.

2. Students will use this language through discussion while participating in think-pair-share.

3.Students will use this language for a whole class discussion for lesson wrap up.
Language Function: (The language function is represented by the active verbs within the learning objectives. Common language
functions in the include identifying main ideas and details; analyzing and interpreting characters and plots; arguing a position or point of
view; predicting; evaluating or interpreting an author’s purpose, message, and use of setting, mood, or tone; comparing ideas within and
between texts; and so on.
• Identify details of the first Thanksgiving
• Discuss the groups that celebrated the First Thanksgiving
• Retell the events of the First Thanksgiving
Syntax: (Syntax is defined as the set of conventions for organizing symbols, words, and phrases together into structures, such as sentences,
tables, or graphs. Identify the supports that will be provided for students to organize the information – charts, graphs, diagrams. These must
relate to the Language Function.)
• Thanksgiving story bracelet

Discourse: (Describe how the students will demonstrate/express their understanding of the Academic Language.)
• Students will express their understanding of the Academic Language when answering discussion questions during a read aloud of
…If You Sailed on The Mayflower in 1620 by: Ann McGovern.
• Students will demonstrate their understanding of the Academic Language when completing a Thanksgiving story bracelet.
• Students will express their understanding of the Academic Language while retelling the story of the First Thanksgiving.
Assessment (Each learning objective must be assessed. Questions to consider: How will the KNOW, DO, and BE be evaluated? How will
students demonstrate their understanding or the lesson’s objectives? How will you provide feedback for the students? What type of
assessment will be used? Is the assessment formal or informal? What evidence will be collected to demonstrate students’
understanding/mastery of the lesson’s objective? What constitutes success for the students?)
Assessment Strategy: (Identify the assessment strategy/strategies to be used for assessment of the learning objectives listed above.
Each learning objective should be assessed. DO NOT restate the learning objective.)
• 1. Check off rows of students accurately telling you what each color bead represents
Evaluation Criteria: (Indicate the qualities by which levels of performance can be differentiated and that anchor judgments about the
learner’s degree of success on an assessment.)
• 1. 1. 15-21 students accurately telling what each color bead represents= mastering; 8-14 students
accurately telling what each color bead represents = progressing; 1-7 students accurately telling what
each color bead represents = lacking (mastering= ready to move on; progressing =will need to review
again; lacking=will need to completely teach again)
•
Differentiation for IEP and Focus Students:
• IEP: if noticing that speech student says something incorrectly, repeat it back to him in the correct way
• JH: Pair with other two focus students to retell what each bead represents
Elementary/Middle Childhood edTPA Lesson Plan Template John H. Lounsbury College of Education, Georgia College

• DD: Pair with other two focus students to retell what each bead represents
• LW: Pair with other two focus students to retell what each bead represents
Steps in the Lesson (Include the attention getter or the hook for the lesson; the introduction; the lesson procedures including
strategies/planned supports for whole-class, small group, and individual instructions; and differentiated activities.)
Attention Getter or Hook: (State how the attention of the students will be piqued at the start of the lesson.)
• Read aloud: The First Thanksgiving section from: …If You Sailed on The Mayflower in 1620 by: Ann
McGovern
Introduction: (State how the lesson will be introduced. This should communicate the purpose of the lesson, be directly related to the
goals and objectives of the lesson, tap into prior knowledge/experiences, and develop student interest.)
• Ask students if they learned anything new about the First Thanksgiving
• Tell students that we are going to create a Thanksgiving story bracelet in order to help us retell the
events
Instructional Strategies and Planned Supports: (Use a bulleted or numbered format to communicate the procedures for the
lesson. Describe the strategies which will be used to support students’ learning. Knowledge of students’ cognitive, social, emotional, and
physical development along with their cultural backgrounds should be evident.)
• Show students the materials: beads, worksheet, and string
• Call students by color rows to return to their seats.
• Pass out the worksheet to each student (project it on the board as well)
• Pass out the beads and string to students
• Tell students that we are only going to do one bead at a time, and they have to listen closely to make sure they are putting the
right color bead on
• 1 brown bead: Pilgrims leaving England
• 1 white bead: sails on the Mayflower
• 3 blue beads: long trip over the ocean
• 1 green bead: they spy land
• 3 white beads: long winter
• 1 green bead: arrival of spring
• 1 tan bead: Native Americans that helped the Pilgrims
• 4 beads for food at the first feast:
-1 red bead: cranberries, 1 yellow bead: corn, 1 brown bead: turkey, 1 orange bead: pumpkins
• Allow students to stand up by seating areas to retell the events
• After every area has had a chance to retell, tell students that the rest of the time will be used as a work day to finish illustrations
for their culminating project books.
• Remind students of expectations while using materials
• Lay out various materials for students to use: felt, construction paper, tissue paper, crayons, etc.
• Walk around to help students, repeat directions, or redirect attention
• Allow students 20 minutes to work on their illustrations
• When the timer goes off, ask specific areas to clean up their trash and return to the carpet
Closure/Wrap up: (Describe how the content of the lesson will be summarized. There may be a review of the core concepts, relevant
goals, or essential questions.)
• When all students have returned to the carpet, retell the story of Thanksgiving using the story bracelets
• Ask students if they learned anything interesting
Modifications/Differentiation to Support Student Learning
What will be differentiated? Choose one: Content/Process/Product
process
How will differentiation be accomplished?
• Asking frequent comprehension questions
What strategies will be used to differentiate for focus student 1?
• J.H.: allow him to summarize the information already learned about the First Thanksgiving to the whole
class
What strategies will be used to differentiate for focus student 2?
• D.D.: pause frequently to ask comprehension questions
What strategies will be used to differentiate for focus student 3?
• L.W.: ask her to tell the class again what it means to be thankful
Instructional Supports

Elementary/Middle Childhood edTPA Lesson Plan Template John H. Lounsbury College of Education, Georgia College

Resources and Materials Used to Engage Students in Learning (Provide citations for all resources that you did not create.
Attach key instructional material needed to understand what you and the students will be doing. Examples: class handouts, assignments,
slides, and interactive white board images.)
• Thanksgiving story bracelet: www.AtoZteacherstuff.com

Additional Resources and Materials Used to Increase Teacher’s Background Knowledge of the Content: (List any
websites and sources of materials and background information that you will need or use as the teacher to engage the students.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym4izq-rrow

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/first-thanksgiving-meal

http://historyofmassachusetts.org/the-first-thanksgiving/

http://time.com/4577425/thanksgiving-2016-true-story/

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving

https://holidappy.com/holidays/Thanksgiving-Traditions-in-America

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0bofuWCngY

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/american-celebrate-thanksgiving/2529775.html

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-was-on-the-menu-at-the-first-thanksgiving-511554/

Other Relevant Information
Clear Links to Learning Theories, Educational Research, and Principles of Development:
• Piaget: Children organize what they learn from their experiences. My students will talk about their
experiences learned throughout the unit.
• Vygotsky: Scaffolding. I will build upon prior knowledge of Thanksgiving celebrations, events, and
traditions.
• Utilizing developmentally appropriate assessments and tasks based on typical development for
kindergarten students
• Developmentally appropriate to sit still through tasks that are around 15 minutes: breaking up
instruction time and tasks to allow students to have a break from sitting still
• Stringing beads to work on fine motor skills development

Elementary/Middle Childhood edTPA Lesson Plan Template John H. Lounsbury College of Education, Georgia College

• “Compared with younger children, kindergartners show more flexibility in their thinking, greater ability
to conceptualize categories, advances in reasoning and problem solving, and gains in knowledge of the
world, ability to pay attention, and use of memory.” -DAP, p. 200
Connections to Technology and/or the Arts:
• story bracelets
• creating illustrations for paper bag book
Description of Collaboration with Others: (These might include the inclusion teacher, media specialist, counselor, guest speaker,
grade level coordinator, community experts, families, etc.)
• Collaboration with partner teacher over required standards, and IEP differentiation strategies
• Feedback from cohort members during class discussions

Elementary/Middle Childhood edTPA Lesson Plan Template John H. Lounsbury College of Education, Georgia College