Lesson Plan I for Unit on Trees and Seasons
Sarah Kincaid
SIOP Features
Content and Language
Objectives
Supplemental
materials/manipulatives
Interaction: class, pairs
Building background:
Making content relatable
Language Skills: reading,
writing, listening,
speaking
Comprehensible Input:
visuals
Strategies: Language
learning
Ivy Elementary School, Portland, OR
Background
Students will form small groups and go on a walking field trip to
gather samples from various types of trees, from leaves and
needles, to blooms and seeds to investigate and learn about
types of trees and the four seasons.
English Proficiency Level: Speech Emergent
Grade: 2
Subject: Science
Standards (from ODE): Plan and conduct an investigation
collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for
evidence to answer a question. (2-LS2-1)
Preparation
Content Objectives: Students will learn to distinguish between
deciduous and evergreen trees and the changing seasons.
Students will collect samples to conduct an investigation and
gather data.
Language Objectives: Students will read books, listen to books
being read out loud, and discuss sample collection in groups.
Students will record science observations.
Materials: National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees (North
America), paper bags, picture books about trees (fiction and
NF), four seasons tree drawing sheet
Key Vocabulary: deciduous, evergreen, identify, seasons
Motivation
Have students meet on the carpet for class discussion. Go over
content and language objectives (written on whiteboard and
verbal). Facilitate a class discussion on trees and their family
and culture. Discuss ways we interact with trees. Have students
break away into pairs to answer questions (“What can you eat
from a tree?” “Does your family use a tree in any celebrations?”),
then share answers with the class. Read books about trees
(teacher read out loud, students read in pairs). Watch time lapse
videos of trees changing with the seasons. Have students
complete a worksheet drawing how a deciduous tree looks in
each season.
Comprehensible Input:
Word wall
Presentation
Strategies:Cognitive Begin a word wall on the whiteboard. Add key vocabulary and
provide translations in ELL native languages. As a class, read
Learning strategies:
higher order thinking and pronounce English and non-English key vocabulary.
Facilitate a class discussion with pairs break away to discuss
Interaction: Native higher order thinking questions (“We are gathering our data in
language support
the Fall, what do you think we might find other times of the
Practice/Application: year?” “Describe what a deciduous tree looks like in each
Hands on activity season.”). Have students stand for a physical representation of a
Strategies: Social deciduous tree. Hand out sheets with tree parts and have
Affective students attempt to correctly form the tree.

Hands on activity Practice and Application

Have students draw a favorite tree. This can be in their own
Background Building yard, or elsewhere in the neighborhood. Discuss what type of
Strategies: social tree they think it might be (is it deciduous or evergreen?). Assign
affective groups for the walking field trip. Explore the local area, including
a nearby park, and work in groups to collect a wide variety of
Hands on activity
Interaction: groups tree samples. Float to each group to check in on what they are
gathering.
Feedback
Review/Assessment
Review content and language objectives, review key vocabulary,
Assessment and have a class meeting and ask higher order thinking questions to
feedback
assess student understanding of the lesson.
Review Key Vocabulary