Constitution Convention- Lesson 1

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Descriptive Data Which class is this for? What grade? What subject area?
This Unit Plan is for a 15:1 pull-out group. The students range from 5th to 6th
grade. They are focusing on anything that gets them writing and reading. I like to
incorporate many topics considering they are getting pulled from their general education
classes during social studies, science and occasionally, ELA. For this particular lesson, I
plan on focusing on a social studies topic. The students are about to learn about the three
branches of government. I decided to take a step back and first talk about our constitution
and the specific event of the constitutional convention. I usually have four students
during the ELA pull-out sessions and I meet with them for a half-hour, four-times a week.
This specific lesson will take approximately two days.
Materials, Equipment and Technology What will you need for this lesson? How will
you use technology, if applicable?
For this specific lesson, I will be using a Promethean Board to display the picture
to all of the students. The students will also have a printed version of the picture. A laptop
will be available for my student who is unable to use a pencil. All the material will be
offered on his laptop as well.
Standards and Objectives How does the plan align with the CCSS and your learning
objectives?
a. Common Core State Standards
i. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using
effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
ii. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3.a
Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator
and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
iii. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3.b
Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description, and pacing, to
develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to
situations.
iv. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3.c
Use a variety of transitional words, phrases, and clauses to manage the
sequence of events.
b. Learning Objectives
i. The students will be able to create a character based on a picture that is
given to them.
ii. The students will be able write about a character that they created.
iii. The students will be able to complete an exit ticket listing 3 things they
learned from the lesson, 2 things they are still curious about and 1 thing
that they found shocking.

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Procedures What will you do to help the students learn?

a. To begin the lesson, I will post a picture on the Promethean Board of the
Constitution Convention. I will not inform the students of what the picture is. I
will then hand out the graphic organizer, Character Creator, and I will explain to
students that they will be completing this with a partner.
b. I will also give students the picture as a printed version so they are able to sit
somewhere away from the board to work with a partner.
c. The students will be directed to work in pairs to create a character. Their goal will
be to each have their own character, but their character will be working with their
partners character. They can have them talking to each other, hating each other
anything they please.
d. Rather than having the students work separately, I am modifying it to allow them
to work with a partner. This will allow them to use a partner to work their ideas
off of.
e. I will then put 15 minutes on the timer on the Promethean Board. Students will
have 15 minutes to complete their characters.
f. Once their characters are created, the pairs will present their characters one-byone.
g. Students will then be instructed to complete another Character Creator graphic
organizer for their homework, only this time, they will be focusing on one
character and also writing it in a paragraph. Students have just learned about diary
entries/journal and they also know about basic paragraph writing skill. It is up to
them as to how they write about their character, just as long as they have at least 5
sentences to describe their character.
h. The following day, the students will come in and present their new characters.
Their paragraphs will be collected and graded based on a 3-point rubric.
i. We will begin reading about the Constitutional Convention. Students will start
learning more about the convention and the people who attended it and why.
j. As we read, we will be stopping to discuss after each paragraph to ensure they are
comprehending what is happening. Students will have graphic organizers to help
them take notes about the reading.
Modifications How will you adapt parts of the lesson to meet the needs of students
with disabilities, with limited English, or with other special needs?
a. This lesson is provided to students with special needs. These students are pulled
out because they need more attention focused on reading and writing. This unit
allows students to break the material down by using graphing organizers, working
in pairs, using technology and visuals to meet their needs, and spending extended
time on a topic to better their understanding.
Student Assessment How will you know the students were successful?
a. The students will be assessed on their exit ticket and on their paragraph that they
completed for homework. Each student has a writing goal that we are working
towards. Their paragraph will show me how they are doing based on their goal.

The exit ticket will show me how well they are understanding the material that
they are working with. As the unit goes on, students will continue working more
with this material. If the students do not seem to understand the material right
away, I am not concerned. The next lesson has them really working and breaking
the material down.
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Initial Reaction notes on your teaching experience. What went well? What would
you change and why?
a. TBD- after lesson is taught.