Teacher Education Lesson Plan Template

Teacher: Miss Mitchell Date: February 5th, 2020

Title of Lesson: Drawing Conclusions about Cooperating Teacher: Ms. Nance

Sensory Details

Core Components
Subject, Content Area, or Topic:
English; Language Arts; Reading
Student Population: 19 students; General Education;
10 Female: 9 African American; 1 Hispanic
9 Male: 8 African American; 1 Caucasian
Learning Objectives:
ELA.4.5.2 Draw conclusions and/or make inferences using the text as support.
ELA.4.5.9 Identify the theme(s).
Virginia Essential Knowledge and Skills (SOL):
4.5 - b)Identify the theme(s).
h) Draw conclusions/make inferences about text using the text as support.
VDOE Technology Standards:
N/A
English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS)
N/A
Materials/Resources:
Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming (Available in RS book room)
Topic cards 
Graphic Organizer (attached)
Chart paper
High Yield Instructional Strategies Used (Marzano, 2001)

Check if Used
Strategy Return
Identifying Similarities & Differences 45%
X Summarizing & Note Taking 34%
X Reinforcing Efforts & Providing Recognition 29%
X Homework & Practice 28%
Nonlinguistic Representations 27%
X Cooperative Learning 23%
X Setting Goals & Providing Feedback 23%
Generating & Testing Hypothesis 23%
X Questions, Cues, & Advanced Organizers 22%
DOES YOUR INSTRUCTIONAL INPUT & MODELING YIELD THE POSITIVE
RETURNS YOU WANT FOR YOUR STUDENTS?
Check if Used Strategy Return
Teach Others/Immediate Use of Learning 95%
X Practice by Doing 75%
X Discussion 50%
McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
X Demonstration 30%
Audio Visual 20%
X Reading 10%
Lecture 05%
Safety (if applicable)
N/A

Time
(min.) Process Components
*Anticipatory Set:
TTW explain, To determine a story’s theme, it helps to first name thematic topics—one-word
issues, ideas or concepts. It is likely that any one story will connect to more than one thematic
topic. You can think about the struggles the character is going through, the way the story ends up
and/or the title to help you figure out what those words might be. Let’s explore a few common
topics. 
5
mins.
TTW provide student pairs with one topic card for discussion. TTW reveal various read-aloud texts
from previous times in the year for all students to see and remember.

TSW brainstorm read-aloud books or independent reading books that connect to the thematic topic
they have been given. Students can determine other topics that are not already provided on the
topic cards.
*State the Objectives (grade-level terms)
1 min.
I can…draw conclusions about theme by thinking about thematic topics and lessons learned.
*Instructional Input or Procedure:
NOTE: The pages of the book, Boxes for Katje, are not numbered. For the purposes of this lesson,
page numbering begins on the first page with text from the story. This page has a picture of a man
riding a bicycle and waving at neighbors.

TTW explain, In order to infer the overall theme of a text, it is helpful to stop and think about the
thematic topics in your book. Then, it’s important to ask yourself, “What’s the author saying about
this big idea?” This allows you to name the thematic topic and then say the theme as a sentence, in
many cases it can be a lesson learned.
For example, as I was reading Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen, I noticed patience was a thematic topic I
kept thinking about over and over again. When I ask myself, “What is the author saying about
patience?” I realize that Jane Yolen wants us to infer that patience often leads to positive effects.
Just like in Owl Moon when the character finally saw the owl, I know that when I am patient in life,
things always seem to work out more positively for me. This overall theme of the text can be shared
in two ways: as the thematic topic of “patience” or as a lesson learned, such as “patience leads to
positive outcomes”.
TTW explain, today we are going to read a new book. While I am reading, you should be thinking
about different thematic topics you notice popping up. As you think of one, jot the word or phrase
in your reading journals (or on a sticky note). 

TTW read up to p. 15 of Boxes for Katje, stopping at various points for students to share their
thoughts about thematic topics of the book. 

TSW listen to the read-aloud and jot down topics on the graphic organizer.
(Possible topics students might discuss war, gratitude, generosity, hope, community, survival, etc.)

McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
TTW model how to complete the second section of the graphic organizer to record inferences about
the theme.
*Modeling:
TTW model how to complete the ‘Lesson Learned’ section of the graphic organizer to record
inferences about the theme and to determine what the author is trying to say about the big idea.
*Check for Understanding:
TTW walk around the room monitoring students progress with the graphic organizer. TTW glance
at thematic topics that each student might be getting from the text. TTW also stop to ask questions
and take note of student’s responses.
*Guided Practice:
TTW elicit student responses and list topics on chart paper to create an anchor chart with the
following information. 
Choose one topic and ask students to consider the question: “What was the author saying about
this?”

TSW jot the theme as a “lesson learned” sentence on the graphic organizer. Turn and talk about the
theme with a partner or group of four.

TTW circulate during individual think time and partner discussion.

TTW repeat this procedure as necessary for students to demonstrate more proficiency with
inferring the theme. Some students may need more prompting from the teacher, so consider the
following questions:
 What did the character(s) learn?
 How did the character(s) grow or change?
 Why did the character(s) act this way?
*Independent Practice:
Teachers can consider having students complete one or two boxes on the graphic organizer
independently to formatively assess students’ ability to infer the theme of Boxes for Katje. 

Students should practice thinking about thematic topics in their independent reading books and
inferring the lesson learned by asking, “What is the author saying about this?” 

Students can practice using the graphic organizer provided or creating a list in their reading
notebooks.
Assessment:
TTW collect the graphic organizer to formatively assess students’ progress in inferring the theme.
Student notebooks or independently completed graphic organizers can also be used as formative
assessments.
*Closure:
TTW remind students the theme is something that must be inferred and, therefore, other people
may have different interpretations. The most important thing to remember is considering what
happened in the text that supports one’s conclusion about the theme.

TSW reflect on their progress in reaching the learning target for the lesson:
 I can draw conclusions about theme by thinking about thematic topics and lessons learned.
Differentiation Strategies (enrichment, accommodations, remediation, or by learning style):
Teachers may consider photocopying certain pages of the read-aloud text to support students as they
complete the guided practice. Students can focus on one particular page to identify the thematic topic and
infer the lesson learned based on that shorter piece of text. The hard copy provides support for students who
benefit from annotating the text.
McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
Classroom Management Issues (optional):

Lesson Critique. To be completed following the lesson. Did your students meet the objective(s)? What part
of the lesson would you change? Why?

*Denotes Madeline Hunter lesson plan elements.

Intern Signature Cooperating Teacher Signature Date

McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
Topic Cards (example)

Trust True “Beauty”

Fitting in Perseverance
Honesty Greed
Courage Responsibility
Acceptance Survival
Privacy Individuality

McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
Graphic Organizer Example

Name: ______________________________

Drawing Conclusions about Theme

From Thematic Topic to Lesson Learned (possible examples)

Thematic
Lesson Learned: What’s the author saying about this big idea?
Topic
community We should respect and work together with those in our community.

war War can cause great devastation that requires people to come together to heal.

generosity A little bit of generosity can go a long way.

gratitude Showing gratitude is important for relationships.

hope Hope can spread among groups of people for a variety of reasons. Empower others to feel
hopeful.

survival We all have the same basic needs for survival; we can support each other when they are in
need.

McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015
Name: ______________________________

Drawing Conclusions about Theme

From Thematic Topic to Lessons Learned

Thematic Topic Lesson Learned: What’s the author saying about this big idea?

McDonald’s Draft (2010). Modified by Kreassig and Gould (2014) for use with student teachers.
Revised August 2015