Lesson Plan Examples

Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.3 (know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills).

Learning objectives

Students will be able to read and write at least six -at words by blending the onset and the rime.

Materials and resources

Word family slider, letter cards, pocket chart, -at word picture cards, whiteboards

Key vocabulary

word family, rhyme, blend

Warm-up / hook (4 min)

Rhyme game: "cat, hat, bat… what else rhymes?" Students clap when they hear a rhyme.

Lesson procedure

Differentiation and accommodations

Support: picture clues and a three-letter slider. Extension: build words with blends (flat, chat).

Assessment

Each student reads four -at words aloud to the teacher during pair work.

Closure (4 min)

Silly sentence: students help write "The fat cat sat on a hat" and read it together.

Homework / extension

Find -at words in a favorite book at home.

Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.2 (determine the main idea of an informational text and explain how key details support it).

Learning objectives

Students will be able to identify the main idea of a short nonfiction passage and name three details that support it.

Materials and resources

Article "Why Bees Matter" (one page, two reading levels)

Main idea "table" graphic organizer (tabletop + 3 legs)

Chart paper and markers

Exit ticket slips

Key vocabulary

main idea, key detail, topic, support

Warm-up / hook (5 min)

Show a photo of a messy desk. Ask: "If you had to describe this picture in one sentence, what would you say?" Link the one-sentence summary to the idea of a main idea.

Lesson procedure

Differentiation and accommodations

Support: easier version of the article with key sentences highlighted; sentence starter "This text is mostly about…".

Extension: write a second main idea for one paragraph and compare it to the whole-text main idea.

English learners: picture glossary for bee vocabulary; partner talk before writing.

Assessment

Exit ticket: a new short paragraph. Students write its main idea and one supporting detail. Sort into "got it / almost / not yet" for tomorrow's groups.

Closure (5 min)

Turn and talk: "How is a main idea different from a topic?" Two pairs share.

Homework / extension

Read a page of any nonfiction book at home and tell a family member its main idea in one sentence.

Standards

State science standard on forces, matter and properties of materials.

Learning objectives

Students will be able to predict whether an object will float or sink and explain their prediction using the words "heavy for its size" and "displace".

Materials and resources

Clear tub of water per table, two oranges (one peeled), set of test objects (cork, coin, crayon, foil ball, flat foil boat, apple slice, paper clip), prediction chart, towels

Engage (7 min)

Show two oranges. Ask the class to predict what will happen when each goes in the water. Drop in the unpeeled orange (floats), then the peeled one (sinks). Collect ideas: "Why?"

Explore (15 min)

Groups predict, then test each object, recording float/sink on the chart. Challenge: can you make the foil ball float without adding anything to it?

Explain (12 min)

Groups share patterns. Introduce "heavy for its size" (density in kid-friendly words) and how the peel holds air. Students revise their explanations.

Elaborate (14 min)

Design challenge: build a foil boat that holds the most paper clips. Students explain how the shape helps it float.

Evaluate (7 min)

Quick write: "A friend says big things always sink. Do you agree? Use evidence from today." Check against the objective.

Differentiation and accommodations

Word bank with pictures; sentence frame "I think it will ___ because ___". Extension: test the same object in salt water and explain the difference.

Standards

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.5.NF.A.1 (add and subtract fractions with unlike denominators by replacing them with equivalent fractions).

Objective

Students will be able to add two fractions with unlike denominators by finding a common denominator, with 4 of 5 problems correct.

Purpose

Recipes, measurements and sports stats often mix halves, thirds and quarters. Today you'll learn how to add them.

Materials and resources

Fraction strips, mini whiteboards, practice sheet (10 problems), slide with recipe problem

Anticipatory set (5 min)

Recipe problem: "A smoothie needs 1/2 cup of yogurt and 1/3 cup of milk. How much liquid is that?" Students estimate: more or less than 1 cup?

Input (8 min)

Review equivalent fractions. Show why 1/2 + 1/3 is not 2/5 using fraction strips. Introduce the steps: find a common denominator, rename, add numerators, simplify.

Modeling (7 min)

Think aloud through 1/2 + 1/3 and 3/4 + 1/6 using strips, then the number line, then numbers only.

Check for understanding

Whiteboards: "What common denominator would you use for 2/3 + 1/4?" Hold up on the count of three. Re-teach with strips if fewer than 80% are correct.

Guided practice (12 min)

Pairs solve three problems; one partner explains each step out loud. Teacher circulates and gives feedback.

Closure (5 min)

Students write the steps in their own words on a sticky note and add one example.

Independent practice (13 min)

Practice sheet problems 1–10 (in class; finish for homework).

Differentiation and accommodations

Support: fraction strips available throughout; problems where one denominator is a multiple of the other. Extension: add three fractions; write a word problem for a partner.

Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.2 (determine a theme of a text and analyze its development).

Setting instructional outcomes (1c)

Students will state a theme of the story in a complete sentence and trace how two key moments develop it.

Applying knowledge of content and pedagogy (1a)

Theme is a message about life, not a single word. Common misconception: confusing topic ("friendship") with theme ("true friends tell hard truths"). A topic-to-theme ladder helps bridge the gap.

Knowing and valuing students (1b)

The class enjoys debate; reading levels vary widely; several students are English learners who benefit from oral rehearsal before writing.

Using resources effectively (1d)

Short story (with audio version), topic-to-theme ladder organizer, sticky notes, projector

Planning coherent instruction (1e)

Designing and analyzing assessments (1f)

Circulate with a checklist during group work; exit ticket: one theme statement plus one quoted piece of evidence.

Differentiation and accommodations

Audio version; theme starter bank; extension: compare the theme with another story read this unit.

National Curriculum links

Year 4 Fractions: "recognise and show, using diagrams, families of common equivalent fractions".

Learning objective (WALT)

WALT: recognise and show equivalent fractions using diagrams.

Success criteria (WILF)

I can fold or shade a shape to show a fraction.

I can find a fraction that is equal to another using a diagram.

I can explain why two fractions are equivalent.

Key vocabulary

equivalent, numerator, denominator, whole, equal parts

Prior learning

Pupils can find unit and non-unit fractions of shapes. Watch for the misconception that a bigger denominator means a bigger fraction.

Resources

Paper strips for folding, fraction walls, mini whiteboards, differentiated worksheet

Starter (5 min)

Odd one out: three shaded diagrams (1/2, 2/4, 1/3). Which is the odd one out, and why?

Main activities

Plenary (10 min)

Pupils show on whiteboards a fraction equivalent to 3/4 and explain using the success criteria.

Differentiation (support / stretch / EAL / SEND)

Support: pre-folded strips and a fraction wall to hand. Stretch: find all fractions equivalent to 1/2 with a denominator up to 20 and spot the pattern. EAL: vocabulary cards with diagrams. SEND: follow individual support plans.

Adult deployment (TA / support staff)

TA works with the support group during independent work, using folding strips.

Assessment for learning

Hinge question after input; marking against the success criteria; note pupils for a pre-teach before the next lesson.

Homework / extension

Find two equivalent fractions in a recipe or on a pizza at home.