Curriculum Unit Plan Fifth Grade Grade: ELA Writing Unit 2: Personal Essay

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1 Curriculum Unit Plan Fifth Grade Grade: ELA Writing Unit 2: Personal Essay Overarching Question: How can a thesis statement be generated and supported in a personal essay/opinion piece? Previous Unit: This Unit: Next Unit: TBD Personal Essay TBD Questions to Focus Assessment and Instruction: Intellectual Processes: 1. How can thesis statements be generated and supported? 2. How are essays organized? 3. How can introductions, transitions, and conclusions bring cohesion to an essay/opinion piece? Students who are College and Career Ready in Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, and Language demonstrate independence. build strong content knowledge. respond to the varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and discipline. comprehend as well as critique. value evidence. use technology and digital media strategically and capably. come to understand other perspectives and cultures. This document is the property of MAISA. Page 1 of 5

2 Key Concepts: Opinion piece Persuasive Essay Mentor texts Thesis statement/claim Point of view Argument Supporting ideas/reasons Organizational structure Introductions Supporting paragraphs Linking/transition words and phrases Conclusions Unit Abstract Fifth grade writers create a personal essay/opinion piece on a substantive topic in which they support a point of view by first stating a thesis/claim and then arguing their position. After generating possible ideas that can be developed into essays, they select one topic and revise it until they ve made a clear and compelling thesis statement. They use an organizational structure in which relevant supporting ideas are logically grouped to support the writer's purpose. Students introduce the topic, state their opinion, and elaborate by providing logically ordered reasons that are supported by facts and details. They develop body paragraphs that may include mini-stories, lists, facts, observations, and quotations from various sources to support their thesis. They refine their use of introductions, linking/transition words and phrases, and conclusions to add cohesion to their writing. Students learn how introductions; linking words, phrases, and clauses; and conclusions add cohesion to their writing. Revision involves checking for clarity and ensuring that their reasons justify their point of view. Editing involves checking for effective use of words, phrases, and clauses; spelling of grade-appropriate words; capitalization; use of commas with conjunctions; and inappropriate use of fragments and run-on sentences. Writers share their essays with an audience beyond the teacher and celebrate their growing accomplishments as writers. Common Core State Standards CCSS: ELA & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, & Technical Subjects K-5, CCSS: Grade 5, Writing Text Types and Purposes 1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. W.5.1. Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information. W.5.1a. Introduce a topic or text clearly, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure in which ideas are logically grouped to support the writer s purpose. W.5.1b. Provide logically ordered reasons that are supported by facts and details. W.5.1c. Link opinion and reasons using words, phrases, and clauses (e.g., consequently, specifically). This document is the property of MAISA. Page 2 of 5

3 W.5.1d. Provide a concluding statement or section related to the opinion presented. Production and Distribution of Writing 4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. W.5.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1 3 above.) 5. Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. W.5.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. 6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others. W.5.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting. Range of Writing 10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences. W Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of disciplinespecific tasks, purposes, and audiences. CCSS: ELA & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, & Technical Subjects K-5, CCSS: Grade 5, Language Conventions of Standard English 1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking. L.5.1a. Explain the function of conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections in general and their function in particular sentences. 2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. L.5.2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. L.5.2b. Use a comma to separate an introductory element from the rest of the sentence. L.5.2e. Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed. This document is the property of MAISA. Page 3 of 5

4 Assessment Tasks Conferring Checklist Revision/Editing Checklist Assessment Rubric Lesson Sequence 1. Analyzing essays/opinion pieces. Students study mentor texts to analyze the content and structure of essays that are written to change the reader's opinion or attitude. 2. Collecting essay ideas. Students brainstorm ideas that can be developed into essays and then select seed ideas for their own essays. 3. Investigating topics. Students research a substantive topic, gather evidence, and formulate opinions. 4. Creating thesis statements/claims. Students state their points of view and develop them into thesis statements. 5. Using valid reasoning to support a point of view. Students provide logically ordered reasons that are supported by facts and details to support the writer's purpose. 6. Writing introductions. Students learn ways that writers commonly open their topics, and they draft their own introductions. 7. Building a cohesive draft. Students learn strategies to create cohesion in their drafts by logically sequencing their argument and using linking/transition words, phrases, and clauses to connect their reasons and point of view. 8. Writing conclusions. Students learn ways that writers commonly close their topics, and they draft their own conclusions that sum up their argument and restate their position. 9. Revising essays. Students reread their essays to ensure that their arguments are clearly stated, and the reasons justify their point of view. 10. Editing essays. Students reread their essays for effective use of words and phrases, spelling of grade-appropriate words, capitalization, use of commas with conjunctions, and inappropriate use of fragments and run-on sentences. 11. Publishing essays. Students create titles and then write final drafts from their revised and edited essays. Resources Anderson, Carl, Assessing Writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Buckner, Aimee, Notebook Know-How: Strategies for the Writer's Notebook. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, 2005 This document is the property of MAISA. Page 4 of 5

5 Calkins, Lucy McCormick, The Art of Teaching Writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Calkins, Lucy, Lucy Calkins Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5, Book 3: Breathing Life Into Essays. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Calkins, Lucy, et al., One to One: The Art of Conferring with Young Writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Common Core State Standards for Grade 5 (Common Core State Standards Initiative), Dorfman, Lynne R. and Rose Cappelli, Mentor Texts: Teaching Writing Through Children's Literature, K-6. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, Fletcher, Ralph, Breathing In, Breathing Out: Keeping a Writer's Notebook. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Fletcher, Ralph and JoAnn Portalupi, Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Freeman, Marcia S., Building a Writing Community: A Practical Guide. Gainesville, FL: Maupin House, Lattimer, Heather, Thinking Through Genre: Units of Sudy in Reading and Writing Workshops Portland, ME: Stenhouse, Ray, Katie Wood, The Writing Workshop: Working through the Hard Parts (And They're All Hard Parts). Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, Simon, Liz, Write as an Expert: Explicit Teaching of Genres. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, This document is the property of MAISA. Page 5 of 5