Charlotte Teachers Institute

Ashlee Campbell, Elementary Teacher, John M. Morehead STEM Academy

Abstract (PDF)
Unit (PDF)

Introduction

Writing for me is therapeutic and it allows me to express the things that I sometimes can’t verbally. That is why when my students grunt and moan about having “to write”, it breaks my heart. When I was younger, I always enjoyed writing about things that I wanted to write about. It was interesting to create my own story using bits and pieces of things that the teacher required us to do. I found enjoyment out of this and began to love writing. I hope this unit will provide this enjoyment for my students. I want them to find writing interesting and to relate their lives to a content area.

I teach in a school system that is one of the nation’s twenty-five largest. In our state, we are the largest district. Within this school system, I am a fifth grade teacher in my fourth year of teaching. This is my first year in fifth grade. For the first three years of my career I taught first grade. My teaching philosophy varies according to the subject at hand and the learners in my class. I am not a “by the textbook” teacher. I firmly believe that students need to explore different concepts. There are other times, which are very rare, that my students need direct instruction. My students usually find their own meanings in lessons and I confirm their discoveries. Through this I find that they are able to explain themselves better and can help one another more. This philosophy underpins the unit. Students will have options that go beyond the normal writing standards that have been put on them in the past. Students will be able to see that writing can occur in the curriculum and that writing doesn’t have to be contained in the writing block.

I teach at a magnet school that focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics. As a school, we integrate our magnet focus within other content areas. This is beneficial because we can take the knowledge that the students have gained from content areas and in return write about them. The only downfall that we face is that writing can get overlooked within our daily schedule. We are only allotted thirty minutes for it in our schedule; some grade levels only have twenty minutes. This time is allotted because we are required to have a set time in Literacy. Most teachers at the school feel as though this is not long enough so what they end up doing is assigning writing assignments for homework and having students return them the next day. When this happens I feel as though the voice of the student is lost. Once at home, we have little control over who writes the paper; the students, their parents or other family members. Often teachers resort to placing writing in other content areas and not only looking at the content of the writing but also writing as a process, even though it hasn’t been taught. I feel as though when writing about certain things that don’t pertain to writing as a process, a grade shouldn’t be assigned for grammar, misspelled words, punctuation, etc when including writing in other content areas. When we are not teaching writing as a process, I feel that we should just look for the content that they are writing about.

During our writing block, we have learned to teach mini-lessons that will help the students with their writing. This unit will give my students a chance to focus on content and writing as a process. That way they are still incorporating a science component and getting what they need to be good writers. While conducting this unit it is going to be very important to use rubrics for the writing that the students are going to complete. This is something else that my school continues to work towards across all grade levels.

In my classroom I have 22 students from various backgrounds. I have five Hispanic students, fourteen African American students, one Caucasian student, and two Indian students. I have one student that is on an IEP (Individualized Education Plan). This student has a learning disability and has accommodations for his learning. Two students within our class have 504 plans. This allows for accommodations for their learning. Nine of my students have PEPs (Personalized Education Plan) due to them performing below grade level.

Objectives

The topic of choice for this unit is fifth grade science writing. The objective of this unit is for students to learn writing as a process and to show their understanding of science concepts. The students will write based upon a concept taught in science. They will be able to use their knowledge of a given concept and respond to it through writing. The unit is broken up into four parts that match the science competency goals for fifth grade: weather and climate, ecology, geography, and forces and motion.

I’m doing this unit for several reasons. One is for students to be able to be given a bit more freedom with writing. There are many things that have been implanted in some of their heads about writing. One is that they have to follow a certain standard, and two is that writing is boring. My hope for this unit is that students will be able to make their own standard and for them to find enjoyment in writing. Many times students have a narrative in them that they are not allowed to express. “Identity and Agency in Cultural Worlds”, shows that not just students, but people in general, need to be sure to express their identities through the stories they tell. We can also relate this need to writing. Students need to be able to write in a form that suits them, allowing them to create their own narrative. When they are allowed to explore, they may find more of an enjoyment in writing.

Another reason I’m doing this unit is to be sure that students find clarity in science concepts. I also believe that writing shows how much one understands something. I think that it is important for students to verbally express their understanding. I also believe that they should be able to write about their understanding of a concept. It is very unfortunate that I don’t get a chance to hear every students understanding of a concept in class. However, I can read their understanding through their writing.

This unit is to last the whole year. The main objective is for students to connect their writing with science concepts. Within each area of study, I want the students to use their imagination and find enjoyment in the science concept and the writing. With each concept there is, the student will have a prompt to respond to. Students will be able to use their prior knowledge of the science concept and portray that in their writing. The unit will have four parts.

Part one will be focused on the competency goal of weather and climate. By the end of the unit on weather and climate, the students will have to respond to two prompts:

1. A day in the life of a raindrop. Taking a trip through the water cycle.

2. You are the wind. You need to write a letter to the meteorologist at the local weather station explaining what is going to happen to the weather the next day as your breezes come through Charlotte.

The first prompt will be in the form of a letter. The letter will be written to something that plays a part in the water cycle. Example: the sun, body of water, etc. Through mini-lessons we will discuss the format of a letter, explore how to be descriptive about the water cycle and show that they understand the processes within the water cycle. The second prompt will be a business letter. Through mini-lessons we will discuss the format of a business letter and how it is different from a friendly letter. There are activities that are done before this prompt is completed by students. They are listed in the activities section.

Part two will be focused on the competency goal of ecology. We will focus on the interdependence of animals, plants and us. During the unit on ecology, the students will have to respond to the prompt:

1. Imagine that you woke up and there were no animals on earth. Write a drama about our first couple of days on earth without animals.

2. Choose a predator from a biome that we’ve studied. Write a poem about why you are a predator.

There will be activities prior to these pieces of writing and they are listed in the activities section.

Part three will be focused on the competency goal of geography. We will focus on landforms. By the end of the unit on geography, the students will have to respond to the prompt:

What is your mood today? Choose a landform that fits your mood based on the landforms characteristics.

Example: Are you feeling big and strong like a mountain or as low as the lowest point of a canyon. This will be in the form of a free write. There does not have to be a specified structure for this prompt. The activities for this prompt are listed in the activities section.

Part four will be focused on the competency goal of forces and motion. We will focus on the way things work in our world. By the end of the unit on forces and motion, the students will have to respond to the following prompt:

1. Explain how physics is involved in a piece of playground equipment.

2. We experience forces and motion every day. Explain how forces and motion have played a part in your life today.

These prompts will be written in paragraph form. Students will be able to structure the paragraphs to their liking. The activities to go along with these prompts are in the activities section.

Background Knowledge

In order for this unit to work teachers will need to build their students background knowledge of the concepts that the prompts are based off of. This is the reason that I complete the prompts when I am teaching the particular competency goal. I know that the students have knowledge, and I don’t have to spend so much time on background knowledge. I just need to review the material it with them.

Strategies

Below is a list of strategies that teachers can use to teach this unit. These strategies have helped me to engage the students in writing.

Think-pair-share: the students enjoy this strategy because they are allowed to think about a concept, pair up with someone to further their understanding, explain the idea to another student or just verbalize what they are thinking. They also enjoy sharing what they have discussed with their partner. Throughout the unit, the students will use this strategy to share ideas of how they can respond to the given prompt.

This strategy can be used when the prompt is introduced to the student. The teacher can pose the prompt and then follow it up with how questions. Such as: how would you respond to this prompt in writing? How would you organize your paper for this writing?

Video Clips: This strategy really works with my students. I pull clips off of Discovery Education for the students to watch in order to engage and review the content that pertains to the prompt. They enjoy the video clips because it gives them a chance to pull information out and it gives them a sense of responsibility.

Read aloud: Many people think that older students would not enjoy a read aloud. WRONG!!! Many of them love to be read to. Throughout the unit there are opportunities for a read aloud. There are many books that can be found that correlate with the prompts that are given.

Graffiti: The students will be given a variety of vocabulary words. They will have the chance to write and draw pictures to show their understanding of the word. Teachers can use this strategy to reinforce their understanding of the science vocabulary words when responding to the prompts. Some students are able to understand vocabulary more when they have a free choice of how to understand the word at hand. This is a great opportunity for that.

This strategy can be used in order to refresh the use of the vocabulary as it pertains to the writing prompts.

Gallery Walk: This strategy can go along with the graffiti one used. Once the students have created something, which can later be from an activity, they will walk around and choose one piece of work to leave a comment on based on what the others created. I have the students go back to their seats and we discuss what we saw and what we could add or change to our own work.

This strategy will be used when students are completing and using the strategy of graffiti within an activity. This will allow the students to see the science concepts at hand in different ways.

Guess the Word: Here is yet another vocabulary strategy. The students will have a word taped on their back and the rest of the students will see it. The students who see the word will have to give the student who does not know the word clues as to what the word is.

Vocabulary is really heavy in this unit because it focuses on the science content. The students must understand the words that they are using within their writing. So this strategy will be used within the activities that are completed by the students.

Peer conferencing: At times the students want to hear what their peers think instead of the teacher. Go figure. That is when peer conferencing really helps. Students are allowed to partner up with someone and have their story read by their partner or read their story to them. They then respond to their peer by identifying two positives and one thing that they need to work on. They will also use the conventions posters in order to help their partner edit their work.

This strategy will occur after the students have had a chance to create a rough draft of their writing. Once their rough draft is complete they will find their writing partner and exchange rough drafts. The students will use their editor pens in order to help their partner either make their paper clearer or note mechanical corrections that need to be made.

Conferencing Circle: This is a good time for teachers to get to know their students as writers. During this time I have the students sign up on a sheet of paper labeled “I’m ready to join the Conference Circle”. Students can sign up on this sheet after they have a peer conference with their writing buddy. This way the students will become confident in reading their writing before coming to the teacher.

Pass the Pen: At times students get discouraged with writing. This is a great time to do this strategy as a class. This strategy is used for the whole class to create a piece of writing together.

Towards the end of the year your students will get tired of writing. Not all, but unfortunately most will get tired. This is when this strategy can be very effective. Within this unit, a teacher can use this strategy before their students are responding to one of the prompts about forces and motion. As a group, the teacher can write about how forces and motion are used in a sport or an interesting activity to the students.

Class revising and editing can also go along with pass the pen. The teacher can post a piece of writing that has something to do with the prompt or nothing to do with the prompt. As a class the teacher can revise and edit that piece. While revising and editing, the teacher will use a rubric to show how they will evaluating that piece of writing.

Graphic Organizers: These really help the students focus on the writing. The main graphic organizers that the students will use in this unit are flow chart and bubble map. They are able to plan out what they want to write. This strategy will be used when the students are brainstorming about their writing. You have to be sure that you model how to use these graphic organizers. Be sure that students fully understand how to use them and the purpose of them. If not, they will just fill it out just to fill it out.

Free write into the day: This is a strategy that is used during the seminar that this unit is based on. The teacher can give the students a chance to write about anything they want to write about before they start their work on their prompt. The students may have a hard time at first with it but if the teacher continues to enforce the concept of free write and that it won’t be graded, they might just start to get the hang of it. J

I will use this in the unit to give my students a chance to express their thoughts of the day or just about whatever they want to. I would use this strategy to engage students and get them in the mood for writing.

Mentor texts: The students like when they see an example of what they are expected to write. Though this is not something that will be done all the time in the unit, it is good to show them one every once in a while. Throughout the unit poetry can be used for the different types of landforms.

Activities

The activities listed below are suggested ones that will help the teacher lead up to having the students write. You will also find activities that allow the teacher to teach writing as a process. Once you reach Day 4 of these activities, Days 5-10 can be repeated that are listed for the first prompt. All you will need to do is change the engage section, which I note how to at the end of Day 4.

Part One-Prompt One: Imagine that you are a rain drop for one day. As a raindrop, take a trip through the water cycle.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW gain information about a topic by watching a video and taking notes.
	TTW ask the students thinks it would be like to be a rain drop TSW share out as the teacher writes their ideas on chart paper
During	TTW have the students create a graphic organizer that looks similar to the water cycle (refer to Appendix B) As the students are watching the video listed below, they will have to fill the graphic organizer in with notes from the video (The video does a really good job of going through the water cycle) TTW allow the students to watch “The Magic School Bus: Wet all Over” on Discovery Education (The link is in the annotated bibliography) As the students watch the video, walk around and make sure that they are adding to their graphic organizer. You can even stop the video and talk about a view things from time to time as the video is going
After	Have some of the students share out what they learned from the video and their prior knowledge about how water travels through the water cycle Once an adequate amount has shared out, one from each process of the water cycle, TTW explain that this was a part of brainstorming and reviewing information TTW explain the prompt to the students: Imagine that you are a rain drop for one day. As a raindrop, take a trip through the water cycle. TTW also explain that this will be in the form of a letter and that they will need to choose one thing that has to deal with the water cycle (sun, body of water, landform that can cause run-off, a cloud) TTW show the students the rubric that goes with the writing
Evaluate	Each student should have taken adequate notes on each of the processes, you should have noticed this as you were going around and monitoring

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW use the knowledge of the water cycle to brainstorm ideas for their writing.
Before	Have the students Think Pair Share with their partner about which part of the water cycle is their favorite Share out as a class
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming what they want to write about on chart paper TTW walk through which part of the water cycle she wants to start at first and then go completely through the water cycle (you can start off in a cloud as a water molecule then to precipitation, etc., it’s up to you) TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine where they will start in the water cycle and where they will end Walk around and monitor as the students are working and take note of where they are starting
After	Have the students share out where they will start and where they will end in their writing
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Read half of “Plantzilla” to the students. Be sure that you show the students the picture so they can take a look at the format of the letters written in the story
	Conduct a mini lesson on the format of a friendly letter Use chart paper to do this and have the students guide you through it if they are familiar with the format Be sure to mention the names for the parts of a letter (date, greeting, body, closing and signature) Leave up the chart paper so the students can reference it while creating their rough draft. Inform the students that it is up to them how they want to format their body (one paragraph or multiple paragraphs) however, they must mention all of the processes of the water cycle Walk around as the students are writing their rough draft and make sure that they are following the format of a friendly letter
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

Day 4	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. 5.04 Determine the impact of word choice on written and spoken language. TSW use their knowledge of the water cycle to complete a fictional letter. TSW revise their writing by adding detail and water cycle vocabulary.
Before	Read the second half of “Plantzilla” to the students Have them pull out their writing so that they can compare it to the letters that are in the story
During	Conduct a mini-lesson on revision Show the students a sample of your writing (this is something that you can create ahead of time during the class or before this lesson) Go through the piece of writing and have the students notate where you can add detail or add water cycle vocabulary Have the students continue to work on their rough drafts and those that are done before the end of this session can begin revision based on the mini lesson All students should be done with their rough draft by the end of this session
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observation & students’ writing

Day 5	NC SCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. 5.04 Determine the impact of word choice on written and spoken language. 5.07 Edit final product for grammar, language conventions, and format. TSW revise their writing by adding detail and water cycle vocabulary. TSW edit their writing and a peer’s writing by using editing symbols.
Before	Give the students a set amount of time to revise their writing ( I would say give them 7-10 minutes)
During	After revising your work do a mini lesson on editing (I have the editing symbols on poster board in my classroom and I just go over them with the students, I also have an editing sheet that I give to them that they can paste in their writing notebook. There is a website with an editing sheet that is referenced in the appendix) When I conduct the mini lesson on editing I use the paper that I use for revision and make common mistakes that most students make (forgetting to capitalize certain letters or capitalizing, forgetting punctuation, using the wrong type of word like no instead of know) Complete the editing as a class and have the students come up and use the symbols to edit your paper (Pass the Pen strategy J) Explain to the students that they need to edit their own paper first and then have their writing partner edit their paper (I have them choose a partner at their group, that way they aren’t getting up and disturbing other students) Once they have done both of these processes I have a sheet that is titled: “I am ready to join the conference circle” Once you have about five students sign up, you can start the conference circle It is up to you on how to conduct the conference circle. You can have them share their writing with one another or have them share out one at a time. Always have them mention one good thing, something that they may be able to change and another good thing. You can also check for letter format and have a copy of a friendly letter on hand. You can conduct conference circle for two more days after Day 5
Evaluate	Teacher observation and students editing their own work and a peers

Day 6	NC SCOS Objective: 5.07 Edit final product for grammar, language conventions, and format. TSW edit their writing and a peer’s writing by using editing symbols.
Before	Ask the students if they like parties (most of them will say yes) Explain to them that they are going to have an editing party
During	Explain to the students that this is the last day of editing and that they will get a chance to choose another partner to edit with if they have already edited with their editing partner (allow the students to go anywhere in the classroom) Those students that have edited with their original editing partner need to sign up on the “I am ready to join the conference circle” sheet Conference with them the same way you did in Day 5 Continue to encourage students to sign up until you have conference with everyone in the circle way
After	Have the students reflect in their journal about the writing process thus far Have 2-4 (depending on time) share their reflection

Day 7 & 8	NCSCOS Objective: 4.09 Produce work that follows the conventions of particular genres. TSW become familiar with how to publish their writing by making a final copy.
Before	Show the students your published version of your friendly letter Have them make comments on it and observe what they may notice (no spelling errors, neatly written, details added and format of a letter correct) *Try to create something that is appealing to the eye, be creative and show students that it doesn’t just have to be on a plain piece of paper
During	Explain to students that they are at the end of the writing process and they are going to begin publishing their work today Show them various materials like: construction paper pipe cleaners, hand made envelopes, colored pencils, things that allow them to be creative with their final product Have students select the materials that they want for their final product (this is their time to be creativeJ) As students are working, go around and ask them why they chose certain materials (This usually takes my students two writing sessions since they are limited to 20 minutes)
After	Inform the students at the end of Day 8 that they will be sharing during two writing sessions
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Days 9 & 10	NC SCOS Objective: 4.01 Read aloud grade-appropriate text with fluency, comprehension, expression, and personal style demonstrating an awareness of volume, pace, audience, and purpose. TSW become familiar with reading aloud with expression by presenting their writing.
Before	Share your writing with the students (be sure to add expression as you read) Have the students give you three comments (something you did good, something you could have worked on and something else that you did good within your writing and presentation. I call this hamburger feedback)
During	Day 9 Explain to students that they will do the same thing and remind them of the rubric that you showed them on Day 1 Have half of the students share their writing (if your class is as large as mine, this is how I would do it) After the students share their writing, have the other students give hamburger feedback Day 10 Repeat the same thing that you did for Day 9 with the sharing
After	Day 10 Inform the students how proud you are of them during this process Have them complete a reflection about how they felt about the whole process (give them 7 minutes to do this Have 2-4 students share out

Part One-Prompt Two: You are the wind. You need to write a letter to the meteorologist at the local weather station explaining what is going to happen to the weather the next day as your breezes come through Charlotte.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW gain information about a topic by discussing its affects on weather.
Before	Have the students create graffiti for wind (Time them: 4 minutes) Have the students take a gallery walk to look at other students work and leave one comment for one of their classmates (reference the strategies section for further explanation) Share out what they saw on the gallery walk
During	Have a round discussion about wind and how it can effect weather Use the following questions to help you guide the discussion: How are winds formed? (When high and low pressure meets) How are winds a factor in the change in temperature? (When the winds blow there is likely a change in temperature due to the fact that there will obviously be a change in air pressure) How can the wind make you feel colder than what it actually is outside? (wind chill) How can wind effect temperature when it moves clouds? (it can cause the weather to change from cloudy, to partly cloudy, even to rainy) *This is where the students will use their knowledge from science to discuss these things with you. This should be a review. If you need a refresher please reference this awesome website http://www.rcn27.dial.pipex.com/cloudsrus/wind.html#Wind facts
After	After your discussion with the students, post these three questions and have them respond to them in their writing journal. This will be a part of building their background knowledge TTW explain the prompt to the students: You are the wind. You need to write a letter to the meteorologist at the local weather station explaining what is going to happen to the weather the next day as your breezes come through Charlotte. TTW also explain that this will be in the form of a business letter and they are writing to Steve Udelson from Channel 9 News TTW show the students the rubric that goes with the writing
Evaluate	Each student should have taken adequate notes after the round discussion, you should have noticed this as you were going around and monitoring

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW use the knowledge of wind and how it affects weather to brainstorm ideas for their writing.
Before	Have the students Think Pair Share with their partner about what would happen to the weather if they were wind Share out as a class
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming what they want to write about on chart paper TTW walk through what she wants to cause as she is “blowing” through Charlotte (you can brainstorm about how you will bring wind chills, how you will move clouds to cause rain in different areas or force clouds to move to create an overcast, how you can bring powerful winds that can move things and people TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine what their winds will do in the area and how it will affect the people there Walk around and monitor as the students are working and take note of where they are starting
After	Have the students share out where they will start and where they will end in their writing
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Share with the students a sample of a business letter (In the annotated bibliography you will find a sample that I like to show to my students when writing business letters, it is kid friendly) Point out the differences or have the students point out the differences a friendly letter and a business letter have
	Give the students the address for Steve Udelson or a local meteorologist in your area Leave up a sample of the business letter so the students can reference it while creating their rough draft. (You can also make small versions of it and have them paste it in the writing notebook to reference) Inform the students that it is up to them how they want to format their body (one paragraph or multiple paragraphs) however, they must mention how they will affect the weather and the people in the area Walk around as the students are writing their rough draft and make sure that they are following the format of a business letter
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

Day 4	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. 5.04 Determine the impact of word choice on written and spoken language. TSW use their knowledge of how wind affects the weather to complete a fictional letter. TSW revise their writing by adding detail and wind related vocabulary.
Before	Share another business letter with students (I usually google some and add them to my collection, look for the student friendly ones J) Have them pull out their writing so that they can compare it to the letter that you are presenting
During	Conduct a mini-lesson on revision Show the students a sample of your writing (this is something that you can create ahead of time during the class or before this lesson) Go through the piece of writing and have the students notate where you can add detail or add wind related vocabulary Have the students continue to work on their rough drafts and those that are done before the end of this session can begin revision based on the mini lesson All students should be done with their rough draft by the end of this session
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observation & students’ writing

Repeat lessons 5-10 to finish out this prompt. Make sure that you are showing the students a business letter each day and showing them a business letter that you wrote in order to model how to revise and edit their papers.

Part Two-Prompt One: Imagine that you woke up and there were no animals on earth. Write a drama about our first couple of days on earth without animals.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW gain knowledge of a topic by taking a virtual field trip.
Before	Have the students think pair share about what endangered species are Share out Review with the students what endangered species are (students should know this from their study of ecology)
During	Take the students on a virtual field trip of the Appalachian Black Bears (I chose this particular field trip because it is in my state. They have a map of different field trips that you can take. I put the link in the annotated bibliography) While you are taking the virtual field trip ask the students how it makes them feel to know that a species in their region might be endangered or a species in general
After	After your virtual field trip share the prompt with the students: Imagine that you woke up and there were no animals on earth. Write a drama about our first couple of days on earth without animals. Explain to the students that a drama is a play and that they will be working in groups of four in order to produce this writing Show the students the rubric
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW use their knowledge of dramas to begin brainstorming their drama in their small group.
Before	Have 6 of your students come up to the front of the room Allow 5 of them to pick 3 student names out of a hat and allow the 6^th student to only pick 2 student names These will be the groups in which they write their dramas *This is a suggested strategy of how to allow students to pick their groups. You can also give them one minute and they will have to pick their groups without talking
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming what she wants her drama to be about on paper TTW walk through how many characters she wants, the setting of the drama and the scenes of the play (you will have to explain scenes to them and inform them that they are a small part of the drama and take place in different locations, you can set a certain amount for them. I would set 2-4 for my students) TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine who the characters are, the setting and the amount of scenes they will have Walk around and monitor as the students are working
After	Have the students share out what they have brainstormed so far
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3 & 4	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Share with the students the short play that is listed in the annotated bibliography I used a Thanksgiving themed one since this prompt is used around that time
	Explain to the students that they need to list the setting at the beginning of their scene and that they need to give directions to the actors (Explain to the students that the actors need to know where they need to go during the play and how they will be positioned) Leave up a sample of the play that you had them read through earlier Have the students start to create their drama Walk around as the students are writing their rough draft of their drama
After	Review what the students need to have in their drama and what they need to have listed at the beginning of each scene (setting)
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

Have them continue to work on their drama on Day 4

Repeat lessons 5-10 from the first prompt to finish out this prompt. One thing that I would change about the conference circle is that I would meet with each group separately. I would also make sure that I make copies of the drama for each student in the group. Instead of having the publish their work on Day 8, I would have them create props for their play in order to perform them on Days 9 & 10.

Part Two-Prompt Two: Choose a predator from a biome that we’ve studied. Write a poem about why you are a predator.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW gain knowledge of a topic by watching a video.
Before	Have the students play Guess the Word using the vocabulary words predator and prey Review the terms after the students have finished this activity
During	Have the students divide their paper in half. Have them label one side predator and the other side prey Inform the students that they will be watching a video on predators and pray and the will need to take notes as they are watching using the paper that they just set up Have the students watch the video “Mammals of North America: Predators and Prey” on Discovery Education (Link available in annotated bibliography) Stop the video periodically to ask questions and discuss certain things from the video
After	After the video, share out what the students learned from the video about predators and prey Share the prompt with the students: Choose a predator from a biome that we’ve studied. Write a poem about why you are a predator. Show the students the rubric for this writing
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW express their knowledge of predators by brainstorming different predators
Before	Have the students stand behind their chair Have each student name a predator, they do not have to be from the same biome
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming which predator she wants to write about TTW walk through how she will choose her predator by narrowing it down to a particular biome TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine which biome they are looking at and the predators that are within that biome Walk around and monitor as the students are working
After	Have the students share out which predator they might choose
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Share with the students the short story about The Big Bad Wolf that is listed in the annotated bibliography Share out how this story is different from “The Three Little Pigs” Students should see that in this account The Big Bad Wolf claimed to be innocent and says that he is framed
During	Explain to the students that they are going to be writing a poem similar to how The Big Bad Wolf felt in the story read earlier Review the elements of poetry (rhyme, rhythm, similes, metaphors, tone) *This is a review for me because we are completing this prompt as we are studying poetry in reading Inform the students that they can structure the poem as they wish however, they must include one of the elements from above and explain why their animal is a predator Have the students begin their rough draft
After	Have 2-4 students share what they have thus far
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

Day 4	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. 5.04 Determine the impact of word choice on written and spoken language. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft. TSW revise their writing by adding detail.
Before	Share animal poems with the class (I usually google some and add them to my collection, I would choose ones that have similes, metaphors and/or rhyme) Have them pull out their writing so that they can compare it to the poem that you are presenting
During	Conduct a mini-lesson on revision Show the students a sample of your writing (this is something that you can create ahead of time during the class or before this lesson) Go through the piece of writing and have the students notate where you can add detail Have the students continue to work on their rough drafts and those that are done before the end of this session can begin revision based on the mini lesson All students should be done with their rough draft by the end of this session
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observation & students’ writing

Repeat Days 5-10, from Part One-Prompt One, in order to finish out this prompt. I would share animal poems with them each day and use an animal poem that I wrote to edit as well.

Part Three-Prompt One: What is your mood today? Choose a landform that fits your mood based on the landforms characteristics.

This prompt is in the form of a free write. You can choose to allow the students to go through the writing process for it by using Days 5-10 from Part One-Prompt One. The rubric I would use for this would only allow for me to grade it on content.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW use their knowledge of different landforms by associating one with their mood in a free write.
Before	Have the students play Guess the Word using the landforms vocabulary words: canyon, meanders, valleys, tributaries, mountains Review the terms after the students have finished this activity
During	Inform the students of the prompt: What is your mood today? Choose a landform that fits your mood based on the landforms characteristics. Explain to the students that this is a free write prompt Explain to them that you will only be looking at the content of their writing and seeing how they can relate their mood to one of the landforms that we have studied Inform the students that you are also looking for detail so that you know they understand the landform that they are speaking of Show the students the rubric as you are informing them of all these things Have the students begin their free write
After	Inform the students that they will begin to share their free writes two days from now
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW use their knowledge of different landforms by associating one with their mood in a free write.
Before	Share with the students a free write that you wrote that compares your mood to a landform that you have studied
During	Have the students continue to work on their free writes As they are working you may set out the “I’m ready to join the conference circle” sheet in order to hear the students free writes and give them positive and constructive feedback as a group
After	Inform the students that they will have the chance to publish their free writes tomorrow
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

I would repeat Days 7 & 8 from the Part One-Prompt One in order for the students to publish their work. I would then repeat Days 9 & 10 from the Part One-Prompt One in order for the students to share their published work.

Part Four-Prompt One: Explain how physics is involved in a piece of playground equipment.

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW use their knowledge of physics by brainstorming how it is involved with playground equipment
Before	Take the students outside to the playground and discuss with them how physics plays a part in the equipment (you and your students must have background knowledge of physics)
During	Inform the students of the prompt: Explain how physics is involved in a piece of playground equipment. Explain to the students that the prompt needs to be responded to in organized paragraphs. Show the students the rubric as you are informing them of all these things
After	Have the students share out of some of the playground equipment that they could write about
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW use the knowledge of physics by brainstorming ideas for their writing.
Before	Have the students list all the playground equipment they can write about while you record it on chart paper
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming what they want to write about on chart paper TTW walk through which piece of playground equipment she wants to focus on and how physics plays a part in it TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine which piece of playground equipment they want to write about and how physics plays a part in it Walk around and monitor as the students are working
After	Have the students share out which piece of playground equipment they have decided on
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Share with the students a piece of playground equipment ant how physics plays a role in it
During	Inform the students that they will begin their rough draft today Explain to them again that they are writing focused paragraphs while discussing how physics plays a role in a piece of playground equipment Have the students begin their rough draft Walk around as the students are writing their rough draft and make sure that they are following the format of focused paragraphs
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

I would repeat Days 4-10 in Part One-Prompt One to finish this prompt. Each day I would choose a piece of playground equipment that my students might not have thought of and show them, through writing, how physics plays a part.

Part Four-Prompt Two: We experience forces and motion every day. Explain how forces and motion have played a part in your life today

Day 1	NCSCOS Objective: 3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects TSW use their knowledge of physics by brainstorming how it plays a plays a part in their daily life.
Before	Instruct the students to do the following: stand up, sit down, get a pencil out of their desk, stand back up, walk quickly around the room and then come to a sudden stop TTW have the students explain how these activities involve physics
During	Inform the students of the prompt: We experience forces and motion every day. Explain how forces and motion have played a part in your life today. Explain to the students that the prompt needs to be responded to in organized paragraphs. Explain to them that they need to make sure that their writing is sequential, meaning that the events must go in the order in which they occurred Show the students the rubric as you are informing them of this As a class begin to brainstorm ways that forces and motion play a part of your life everyday by listing activities.
After	Have the students share out of some of the ways they may write about that forces and motion have played a part in
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 2	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW use the knowledge of forces and motion by brainstorming ideas for their writing.
Before	Have the students complete the following activity with a partner: using a beanbag, toss it to your partner, the partner will then toss it back, roll the beanbag to your partner, the partner will roll it back, simply drop the beanbag and have your partner pick it up, have your partner do the same As a class share how forces and motion played a part in this activity
During	TTW model how to start brainstorming what they want to write about on chart paper TTW walk through how many things she wants to discuss that forces and motion played a part in (I would settle on three events and have the students do the same. That way they can have three focused paragraphs) TSW help guide the teacher along as she brainstorms Explain to the students that it is now their turn to brainstorm Express to them that they can organize their brainstorm paper however they want to but they need to make sure they determine three events that have to deal with forces and motion and how they have to deal with forces and motion Walk around and monitor as the students are working
After	Have the students share out one event that forces and motion was involved with
Evaluate	Teacher observations and student responses

Day 3	NCSCOS Objective: 4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content. TSW begin to put their ideas on paper by completing their rough draft.
Before	Share with the students an event that occurred in your day that dealt with forces and motion (I will leave this up to you J)
During	Inform the students that they will begin their rough draft today Explain to them again that they are writing focused paragraphs while discussing how forces and motion have played a part in their life on a particular day Have the students begin their rough draft Walk around as the students are writing their rough draft and make sure that they are following the format of focused paragraphs
After	Have 2-4 (depending on time) students share their rough draft that they have so far For those that share, have the other students give a positive of their writing and something
Evaluate	Teacher observations and students’ writing

I would follow the plans for Days 4-10 for the rest of this prompt. Each day for the engage I would come up with a new activity that I did that has to deal with forces and motion.

Evaluation

I use rubrics to evaluate my students writing as you might have noticed me mention throughout the first Day of introducing the prompt. I use a program that I have place in the annotated bibliography section. I made a sample rubric for the first prompt so that you could see what my rubric would look like once it is generated from the database. Please reference Appendix C.I hope that you can find this useful and create rubrics, not just for writing but, for other things as well. J

Annotated Bibliography

” Create a New Rubric .” RubiStar Home http: //rubistar. 4teachers.org/ index. php?screen = New Rubric§ion_id=5#05(accessed November 7, 2010). This is the program that I use to generate rubrics. They have things that you can choose from and you can add what you want to them.

“Appalachian Black Bears: Field Trip Earth .” Field Trip Earth. http://www.fieldtripearth.org /div_index. Xm l?id=4 (accessed November 7, 2010).This is the virtual field trip that I mentioned in Part Two-Prompt One.

Bradford, Wade. “Thanksgiving Skit – Terri and the Turkey – Thanksgiving Day Play.” Plays / Drama. http : // plays.about.com/od/oneactplaysandscenes/a/turkey.htm (accessed November 7, 2010). This is the play that I would have my students act out for the engage part of Part Two-Prompt One.

“Elementary Proofreading and Editing Marks.” Warren Consolidated Schools. www.wcskids.net/ curriculum/ resources/k-5_writing/download/editing_and_proofreading_marks.pdf (accessed November 7, 2010). This is the page that I created my edit symbols chart from. You can print it out and have the students add it to their writing notebooks.

“Google.” Google. http://www.google.com (accessed November 7, 2010). I would Google animal poems here.

“A Practice Theory of Self and Identity.” In Identity and Agency in Cultural Worlds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1998. 19-46.

“Mammals of North America: Predators and Prey.” Discovery Education. player.discoveryeducation.com /index.cfm?guidAssetId=CAEC3349-9006-46B1-81B5-F485FC1D4997 (accessed November 7, 2010). This is the video clip that I mentioned to use for Part Two-Prompt Two, Day 1.

Nolen, Jerdine . Plantzilla. San Diego: Silver Whistle, 2002. This is the book that I use to go over the format of a friendly letter for Part One-Prompt One.

SMITH, LANE, and 375 Hudson Street New York NY10014. “The Wolf’s Side of the Story.” Somerset Computer Center-Superhighway Online-Somerset, PA. http://www.shol.com/agita/wolfside.htm (accessed November 7, 2010). This is the story that I mentioned to use for the engage part of Part Two-Prompt Two, Day 3.

“The Environmental Literacy Council – Sample Business Letter.” The Environmental Literacy Council. http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/431.html (accessed November 7, 2010). This is an example of a business letter that I use with my students.

“The Magic School Bus: Wet All Over.” Discovery Education. player.discoveryeducation.com/ index.cfm? guidAssetId=7465FD96-A981-4EDC-B996-D40E8CB6B2EC&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US (accessed November 7, 2010).

“Wind.” Clouds R Us.com-Weather Features. www.rcn27.dial.pipex.com/cloudsrus/wind.html#Wind facts (accessed November 7, 2010). This is a good place to refresh on how wind can affect weather and temperature. It was mentioned in Part One-Prompt Two.

Appendix A

Implementing District Standards

North Carolina 5^th Grade Language Arts Standards that are covered in this unit:

3.06 Conduct research (with assistance) from a variety of sources for assigned or self-selected projects.

4.01 Read aloud grade-appropriate text with fluency, comprehension, expression, and personal style demonstrating an awareness of volume, pace, audience, and purpose.

4.06 Compose a draft that elaborates on major ideas and adheres to the topic by using an appropriate organizational pattern that accomplishes the purpose of the writing task and effectively communicates its content.

4.09 Produce work that follows the conventions of particular genres.

5.04 Determine the impact of word choice on written and spoken language.

5.07 Edit final product for grammar, language conventions, and format.

Appendix B

Appendix C

Letter-Writing : Day in the Life of a Raindrop

Teacher Name:

Student Name: ________________________________________

CATEGORY	4	3	2	1
Salutation and Closing	Salutation and closing have no errors in capitalization and punctuation.	Salutation and closing have 1-2 errors in capitalization and punctuation.	Salutation and closing have 3 or more errors in capitalization and punctuation.	Salutation and/or closing are missing.
Format	Complies with all the requirements for a friendly letter.	Complies with almost all the requirements for a friendly letter.	Complies with several of the requirements for a friendly letter.	Complies with less than 75% of the requirements for a friendly letter.
Ideas	Ideas were expressed in a clear and organized fashion. It was easy to figure out what the letter was about.	Ideas were expressed in a pretty clear manner, but the organization could have been better.	Ideas were somewhat organized, but were not very clear. It took more than one reading to figure out what the letter was about.	The letter seemed to be a collection of unrelated sentences. It was very difficult to figure out what the letter was about.
Grammar & spelling (conventions)	Writer makes no errors in grammar or spelling.	Writer makes 1-2 errors in grammar and/or spelling.	Writer makes 3-4 errors in grammar and/or spelling	Writer makes more than 4 errors in grammar and/or spelling.
Neatness	Letter is typed, clean, not wrinkled, and is easy to read with no distracting error corrections. It was done with pride.	Letter is neatly hand-written, clean, not wrinkled, and is easy to read with no distracting error corrections. It was done with care.	Letter is typed and is crumpled or slightly stained. It may have 1-2 distracting error corrections. It was done with some care.	Letter is typed and looks like it had been shoved in a pocket or locker. It may have several distracting error corrections. It looks like it was done in a hurry or stored improperly.

Appendix D

Materials for classroom use

Writing notebook (I use a composition notebook)
Sticky Notes
Chart paper
Science textbook
“Thanksgiving Skit – Terri and the Turkey – Thanksgiving Day Play” (play) By Wade Bradford
“The Wolf’s Side of the Story” (can be found online. Good if you have a Promethean or SMART board)
Red or colored pens

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