Calvin Book Club Leader: Yvonne Boeskool Grade: 4th Date: December 5, 2018

Subject area ELA. Main Focus: Returning Willy, conclusion of book – moving into a house
How to Steal a Dog, Chapters 20-21 (page 158-170)
In a ‘typical’ lesson plan (ELA) you should show about 3-4 common core standards in
progress.
● Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.1.B
Provide reasons that are supported by facts and details.
● Teaching and Learning Outcomes (Goals)
1 Use reasons from throughout the book, including a quote, to convince the
reader of the poster that they should read the book.
● Assessment:
Final project – poster advertisement
● Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.4.4.B
Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and
expression on successive readings.
● Teaching and Learning Outcomes (Goals):
2
Students are participating in a popcorn reading.
● Assessment:
The students’ performance in reading aloud with fluency, pacing, and
expression.
● Common Core Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.1
Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says
explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
● Teaching and Learning Outcomes (Goals)
3
Refer to details in Chapter 20 and 21 about how Carmella responds, the trail
Mookie is leaving, and how Georgina is feeling.
● Assessment:
Discussion participation, final project – poster advertisement
Differentiation (UDL)
Content: Students are not just having to read the book, but discussing it and
responding to it in a creative way.
Process: Provide multiple ways to learn a vocab word (acting out, discussing past
experiences). Students are responding to the whole book and final chapters by
creating their own poster, reflecting on what the book has meant to them.
Outcomes: Their final project – a poster advertisement for the book – and
adequate responses to questions over Chapters 20 and 21.
Materials and other preparation
Folders, notebooks, How to Steal a Dog, pencils, markers/colored pencils, white
computer paper, colored poster paper, vocab dog bones, tri-fold, tape
(Ready to Teach and the environment is considered)
TEACHER ACTIVITY STUDENT ACTIVITY
Motivating, Engaging. (Introduction)
1. Have students write down one thing 1. Think about and write
they remember from Chapters 18 one thing you
and 19. remember from
2. Have students share their thoughts Chapters 18 and 19.
to remind each other what 2. Share your thought
happened. with the others.
Development (Process)
1. Teach vocab: 1. Write down the words
…as all get out (page 158) – discuss in your notebook.
using dog bone and tape on poster. a. Think about if
○ the utmost conceivable you’ve heard
degree —used in the word
comparisons to suggest before and
something superlative share if you
○ Have students recall a time know it.
they heard this phrase and b. Write or draw
how it was used. something to
familiar (page 159) – discuss using help you
dog bone and tape on poster. remember the
○ Well-known from long or definition of
close association the word in
○ Have students try putting your
the word into a sentence. notebook.
2. Play the Audible recording for 2. Listen to the Audible
Chapter 20. recording for Chapter
3. Ask questions about Chapter 20. 20.
○ What do you think made 3. Think about and
Georgina go back to discuss main points of
Carmella’s house after she Chapter 20.
returned Willy?
○ Why do you think Carmella
was so calm when Georgina
admitted what she had
done?
○ Why do you think Carmella
invited Georgina and Toby
over to take Willy for a
walk?
 ○ At the end of the chapter,
Georgina mentions what
Mookie had said to her:
about the trail you leave
behind being more
important than the path
ahead. What does this
mean to Georgina now?
○ What kind of trail is Mookie
leaving? Carmella?
4. Lead a popcorn reading of Chapter 4. Popcorn read Chapter
21 – the last chapter. 21.
5. Ask questions about Chapter 21. 5. Thank about and
○ What do you think of discuss main points of
Georgina’s final instructions Chapter 21.
in her How to Steal a Dog
notes? Would you have
written the same thing?
○ What kind of trail is
Georgina leaving behind?
○ What significance does the
last line of the book have?
Other than the house
literally smelling good, does
this have another meeting?
6. Lead the group in listing the 6. Think of the important
important themes/meaningful themes/meaningful
topics that this book has covered. topics that this book
List them on a piece of white paper has covered.
taped to the tri-fold poster. 7. Discuss each point
7. Have students discuss each one with with your neighbor
their neighbor as you go. and think about what
○ What did this book teach you have learned or
you about this topic/theme? how your mind has
○ How has the book changed changed about each
your idea on this? topic.
Closure.
1. Begin final project. Have students 1. Begin final project.
make an advertisement, on a large Make an
piece of construction paper, telling advertisement telling
people why they should read this
 book. (Students will hopefully have people why they
time to work on this more on next should read this book.
Monday before the final activity.) a. Include some
a. They should include the title sort of visual.
of the book and author’s b. Include a
name. quote from the
b. They should include some book.
sort of visual.
c. They should include a quote
from the book.
(TURN IN YOUR REFLECTIONS ASAP!!)

Reflection

Today we began by discussing the vocabulary for the last two chapters of the book!

We read Chapter 20 using the Audible recording, and then Chapter 21 as a group popcorn

reading. The final discussion followed, along with the beginnings of the final project (a

poster advertisement for the book), which I had students sketch out in their notebooks first.

I am thrilled that we made it through the book on time, even with one snow day

thrown in there. I was really worried by how behind I got at the beginning of book clubs.

The thing that caught my attention the most during today’s session was the final discussion

about the book. All six students seemed very happy with the book and very engaged in the

discussion, each adding to their peers’ remarks. Even my one student who often tunes out

the discussion had some important things to say about the kind of “trail” that Georgina is

leaving throughout the book. I was very satisfied with how students articulated their

thoughts on the questions about what kind of trail each character was leaving. They even

pointed out that Carmella was leaving a good trail by still being so kind to Georgina after

Georgina had wronged her. The students also had many different contributions to the

discussion of the theme/main ideas of the book. It was interesting to hear how the book

affected them and what they will take away from it.
 What I will take away from this discussion is the importance of giving students

access to meaningful books as well as giving them a choice as to what books they read. In

this case, I believe students had some say in which book they were assigned. This is

effective because being interested in the book keeps them deeper engaged and therefore

raises comprehension levels. I’m excited to provide the students in my future classroom

with the opportunities to read books that can have this kind of impact on them.