Min Kang, Wenting Liang & Patricia Appel

July 2016

LESSON PLAN
Mr. Con and his Animal Friends
1. Abstract: This lesson is an end of unit lesson based on the topic of animals. The lesson will
last for two periods. Students will work in groups to create a story of an animal in the form of
an e-book as their final product and get it published. During the unit, students have already
learned vocabularies about animals, their characteristics and their habits, and the teacher
have already introduced them the idea of e-book and familiarized them with how it works. At
the beginning of the lesson, the teacher will read an e-book about an animal called Con the
Cockroach for the students, then students will work in groups to choose a different kind of
animal, discuss their ideas and create a story about the animal together. Finally, they will
present their story to the class in the modality they like, such as tell the story, act out the story
or even sing it!
2. Intended Grade Level: 2nd Grade. English as a Second Language Class.

3. Length: 2 periods of 1 hour each. 2 hours in total

4. Resources and Materials:

Computer Lab

Websites:

To read the opening story:

http://www.myonlinereading.com/con-the-cockroach.php

To create an e-book:

https://www.mystorybook.com/

Flashcards with animals vocabulary

Overhead projector

5. Theoretical Foundation:
-

Multimodality: According to Kenner (2004), reading and writing are and always have been
multimodal. They require the interpretation and design of visual marks, space, color, font
or style, and, increasingly image, and other modes of representation and communication.
A multimodal approach enables these semiotic resources to be attended to and moves
beyond seeing them as decoration (Krashen, 2004). In general, this author proposes the

idea of integrating different teaching and learning modes into the classrooms. As well,
Jewitt (2005) emphasizes the importance of keeping these techniques up-to-date, but
using screen-based texts rather than print-based texts (Jewitt, 2005). I her article, she
promotes the use of technology for students to read and to write texts, argumenting that
screen-based texts are complex multimodal ensembles of image, sound, animated
movement, and other modes of representation and communication (Jewitt, 2005).

Total Physical Response (TPR): TPR is a language teaching method developed by James
Asher. According to Asher, TPR is a method of teaching language using physical
movement to react to verbal input in order to reduce student inhibitions and lower their
affective filter. It allows students to react to language without thinking too much, facilitates
long term retention, and reduces student anxiety and stress. In the other words, TPR is
based on how to coordination the language and physical movement together to gain
students language skills, such as teachers gives students a verbal describe, and students
respond that verbal by body movement.

Depth of Knowledge (DOK): It is a model developed by Webb (1997). The model is based
upon the assumption that curricular elements may all be categorized based upon the
cognitive demands required to produce an acceptable response. There are four levels of
Depth of Knowledge: Level one tasks require students to recall and reproduce knowledge
and/or skills. Level two tasks require students to work with concepts and skills such as to
make comparisons or sort items. Level three tasks require students to get involved into a
higher thinking process, such as analysis and evaluation and to solve real-world problems.
Level four tasks require students to engage in a more complicated higher order thinking
process such as synthesis, reflection, assessment and adjustment of plans.

6. Standards (Common Core):

1) Writing Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.6 (2nd Grade)
With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish
writing, including in collaboration with peers.
2) Reading Standard:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1 (2nd Grade)

Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate
understanding of key details in a text.
7. Instructional Plan:
1) Objectives
By the end of this class:
1. Students will be able to understand a story and answer questions about it.
2. Students will be able to write descriptions of animals.
3. Students will be able to use technology to create an e-book.
4. Students will be able to tell a story using different modalities.
2) Introduction
This lesson is the final class of the unit about animals. They have already learned different
vocabulary related to animals, their abilities, and their characteristics. Students already know
how to use the grammar aspects present simple and the verb to have. In the previous lessons,
they have practiced both written and orally the description of different animals.
Students have been taught in previous classes how to create an e-book using
MYStoryBook.com, but this is the first time they will actually use it by themselves to create a
story of their own.
3) Activities
a. Opening Activity (20 minutes)

Using the overhead projector, teacher shows students the cover of the e-book
they are going to read. Con the Cockroach

Teacher asks students what they think the story is about so as to elicit
prediction of the contents.

Second, teacher reads the story to the students, who listen carefully.

Third, teacher shows a PowerPoint Presentation with questions about the story
in order to check comprehension. Students will perform a physical activity to
according to the answer they choose. See PPT Presentation in Attachments.
-

What is the name of the cockroach?

Where does Con live?

What is the color of his body?

What does he eat?

How many leg does he have?

What does he like doing?

b. Procedure (Small Group Activity) (last 40 minutes of first period, first 30 minutes of
second period.)

Students will be divided in groups of 4 and they will pick a leader.

Each group will choose an animal of the vocabulary seen during the unit, they
can choose from the group of a group of flashcards. Each group must have
different animals.

Each group will discuss their ideas about the animal they choose. Students will
share ideas about the animals characteristics, features, abilities, etc.

After the discussion, each student will write 3 sentences related to the animal.

After all the students in the group have finished writing their sentences, the
teacher will check them and correct them if necessary.

Each group will access the website MyStoryBook.com and will create a digital
e-book of their stories. They will include the sentences they have written and
they will also draw a picture for each page.

c. Differentiated Instruction

Each group will present their story to the rest of the class. They can choose
the modality of the presentation. They can either read the story, act it, sing it,
or come up with a different modality.

4) Closure (30 minutes)

After each group has finished their story, they will tell their story in front of the
class using an overhead projector and the modality chosen.

Teacher will check the understanding of each story with questions and answers
with the rest of the class.

Follow-up

After the lesson, teacher will print several copies of the student work and place
them in the school library, so other students, teachers, and parents can see
them.

5) Student Assessment

Individual Assessment: Teacher will assess each students individually when

checking their sentences written.

Group Assessment: Students will be evaluated in their story presentation

according to an evaluation rubric.

Class Assessment: Teacher will assess the class understanding of each story
by asking questions at the end of them.

References
- Jewitt, C. (2005). Multimodality,Reading, andWriting for the 21st Century. Discourse:
Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education. Vol. 26, No. 3, September 2005, pp. 315/33.
- Kenner, C. (2004). Becoming biliterate: Young children learning different writing systems.
Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books.
- Total Physical Response. (n.d.). Retrieved July 22, 2016, from the website
http://www2.vobs.at/ludescher/total_physical_response.htm
- Webbs Depth of Knowledge Guide (2009). Retrieved July 22, 2016, from the website
http://www.aps.edu/re/documents/resources/Webbs_DOK_Guide.pdf

ATTACHMENTS
1. Story. Con the Cockroach digital story. Retrieved from the website MyOnlineReading.com

2. Power Point Presentation: Presentation with comprehension questions about the story.

3. Evaluation Rubric: Students will be assessed as a group in the closure staged of the
lesson based on the following evaluation rubrics.

Presentation Rubric

Excellent
The student can
PERFORM a
presentation
IDEAS appropriate
for Grade 2. The story
they create is clear
ORGANIZATION
The presentation is
organized
VOCIE
The student voice
should be loud.
SENTENCE
FLUENCY
The student can speak
fluently in his/her
presentation
The student can
TAKE TURNS
speaking about a
topic.
The student can
LISTEN to others.
The student can ASK
questions about a
speakers topic
Team work

Very Good

Good

The student spoke loud enough for everyone to hear.

The student looked at the audience during the whole presentation.

The student kept his/her body in control during the whole presentation.

The student was a good audience member for the other groups.