Lesson Plan
Who Am I Without Him?
| Subject: | Literacy |
| Grade span: | 6 to 8 |
| Duration: | 60 to 90 minutes (once a week on an ongoing basis) |
Description:
This lesson is one example of how you can implement a read-aloud. Students select a text they want to read and work with on an ongoing basis. Although the group meets four times a week, this read-aloud activity occurs once a week. The instructor reads a chapter from the text each week, gradually working through the entire text.Learning Goals:
- Practice reading fluently and expressively
- Make connections among literature, students' lives, and the world around them
- Apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, and appreciate texts
- Use spoken and written language to communicate effectively
Materials:
- A copy of the text, Who Am I Without Him?: Short Stories About Girls and the Boys in Their Lives, by Sharon Flake, for each student
- A journal and pen/pencil for each student
Preparation:
- Ask your students to choose a book they want to read. A group of girls might choose Who Am I Without Him?: Short Stories About Girls and the Boys in Their Lives, by Sharon Flake. This is a good choice for middle school girls, but you and your students may choose any book that everyone agrees to read.
- Read the book yourself, making notes of key themes, any new vocabulary, and possible discussion questions for each chapter.
What to Do:
- Each week, ask students to read a chapter, and write notes on a notecard about the narrator and characters, including any questions and thoughts the chapter raises
- After students have read the assigned chapter, an instructor reads the chapter aloud, or students can take turns reading aloud. During the read-aloud, the reader should pause to ask questions, invite predictions, or introduce new vocabulary. Questions may include: What is Erika's dilemma? Why is it a dilemma? What do Erika's fellow students think of her? How do you know?
- Ask students to pause and jot answers in a journal to share later or pair and share, in which they discuss their response to the question with a partner
- After reading and discussing the chapter, the leader gives the students a choice of two writing prompts and asks them to write in their journals for approximately 15 minutes
- Writing prompts may include: What would you do if you were Erika? How do you feel about Erika having feelings for a White boy?
- When the students finish, the leader collects the journals which she will read and respond to in writing for each of the students
Evaluate (Outcomes to look for):
- Student engagement and participation
- Comments and answers that reflect an understanding of the stories, key themes, and new word meanings
- Comments and answers that reflect students' ability to connect the stories to their own lives and the world around them
