Creating a Standard-Based Grammar and Writing Lesson in ELA Classroom

Section 1: Lesson Preparation
Teacher Candidate Name:


Grade Level:


Date:


Unit/Subject:


Instructional Plan Title:


Lesson Summary and Focus:

The text selected is Margret Atwood's short story "Bad News," in which the writer reveals the dilemma of the world's moral order using the metaphor of a bird. The story informs the reader how a person (bird) needs and enjoys bad news as long as it happens to someone else. This complex sentence structure and extensive literary devices will impart a deeper understanding of grammar and written text to the learner.

Classroom and Student Factors/Grouping:

This class is multiethnic, comprising Hispanic, African American, and White students. Most of the students are not English language learners, and they have an average reading performance level on the whole. Additionally, some of them do not have Internet access at home, and parental involvement is below average. These factors demand the formulation of a comprehensive, detailed, and focused planning of teaching the English lesson to address the needs of both below-average and gifted students alike.

National/State Learning Standards:

The American National Standards for teaching grammar and writing make reading a wide range of English text develop an in-depth understanding of different aspects of English grammar and vocabulary and forms of writing. Additionally, these standards stress the importance of establishing a connection between reading and writing by making it mandatory for a learner to write an informed account of the text taught in the classroom. The standards require students to understand the difference between different forms of writing. The teachers must develop an in-depth understanding of grammar, punctuation, spelling, and sentence structure in students to help them write an impressive written text. These standards recommend using various strategies, including reading comprehension, explanation of the syntax, development of understanding of contextual meaning, and understanding of common literary devices to develop better writing capabilities in learners (Corestandards, 2010).
The selected text provides an intermediate level of reading comprehension, which is suitable for native and non-native learners to understand sentence structures, literary devices, and basic grammar rules as per the national standards. The teaching of this text will be used to assess students' writing and grammar skills based on the following performance indicators:
* Ability to write a text to support a claim based on coherent evidence and effective use of vocabulary and syntax
* Ability to use a variety of words, figurative language, and sentence structure to decorate the text
* Ability to understand various syntactical formations and grammatical units to write an error-free sentence

Specific Learning Target(s)/Objectives:

The aim of teaching this literary text to an ethnically and socially diverse group of students is to nurture the following language learning skills in them:
* To be able to understand the structure of complex sentences based on their understanding of grammar rules
* To be able to understand the text in terms of context, diction, and literary devices used in the text
* To identify various literary devices used in the text and explain their meaning
* To use the vocabulary and understanding of the use of literary devices to create a piece of the written text.
* To develop an understanding of the dilemma of moral worlds related to seeking pleasure in others' distress discussed in the text concerning their specific social and cultural contexts.
* To develop a personal point of view about the perception of bad news discussed in the text and present it in written form.
* To relate human craving and indulgence for bad news to the general human psychology and social and moral standards of society using examples from their societies.

Academic Language

Since the text contains intermediate-level vocabulary that non-native students may find difficult to interpret, following academic and content-specific vocabulary will be taught to develop their writing skills, with a particular focus on non-native students.
Geraniums fluorescing: Geranium is the name of a species of brightly coloured flowers, and the verb fluorescing is the inflexion of the verb "fluoresce," which means "to shine brightly." Students will be made aware of how metaphors are used to add meaning to commonplace things using the example of this phrase where the word "fluorescing" is used metaphorically to create an extraordinary image of the flowers.
Coiffure of literate serpents: this metaphor is used to describe the head of the bird, which is sleeping on a perch. Students will be informed that "coiffure is a word used to descry hairstyle, and "literate serpent" is the metaphor that denotes the neatly arranged feathers of the bird's head. Thus this explanation will help students understand the literary use of metaphor to impart new meanings to familiar things.
Ooze: this word's literal meaning is "to move out slowly from somewhere." After explaining this literal meaning, students will be made aware of the metaphorical use of this word to denote the falling of sunlight out of the clouds.
Undulate: students will be made aware of the literal meaning of this word by showing the up and down movement of the hand. Afterward, the meaning of the phrase "undulate over her skin" will be explained to help them understand how different words are used in the literary text.
Systole and diastole: these words represent contraction and expansion of the heart during the heartbeat. After explaining the literal meaning of these words, students will be made aware of their literal use in the text to create an image of the movement of waves to further reinforce their understanding of the literary text.
Snarled Ophelia's hair: the word "snarled" means "tangled," and Ophelia is a mythical creature that commits suicide, and her hair floats on water. So, by explaining the mythological context behind this phrase, students will be abl...