Close Reading Lesson Plan for Literature
CCSS: RL2.1,3,6,7,10; S&L2.1a-c; W2.10
Technology:
Art Integration: Art analysis
RL3.3,4,6,9,10; S&L3.1a-d; W3.10
Text: (worthy of a close read)
LEXILE:
The Other Side by Jaqueline Woodson
Text Complexity Score:
AD300L
Essential Question: What can I learn from the text that can help me be a better citizen?
Purpose for FIRST reading
KEY IDEAS & DETAILS



General Understanding
Meaning
Main idea
Themes





Key Ideas
Who, what, where, when, why,
how
Identify
Describe
State
Message, lesson, or moral





Describe Story Elements
Character
Setting
Events
Plot
Genre





Comprehension
Retell
Summarize
Predict
Simple inferences
Ask & Answer questions
1. FIRST READ - What did the text say?
2.
Students read text (*Do not activate prior knowledge or use pre-reading activities) Entire story: teacher read-aloud
Materials Needed: paper or learning log
Reading Format: whole group
Discussion Format (Cooperative Learning): partners, small group, whole group
Text-Dependent Question(s):
2nd grade – What is the genre of this text? What evidence from the text and illustrations supports your conclusion? (Students write
clues they find from the text and illustrations that support the historical fiction genre.) (RL2.1)
2nd grade – What is the problem of the story? Cite evidence from the text. (Students write down their answers then share with a
partner. (The girls can’t cross the fence to play together.) (RL2.1)
2nd grade – According to the text, how do the characters overcome their challenge of not being allowed to cross the fence? (Students
write their answers. After sharing with a partner, students share what their partners said with whole group. (They sit on the fence.)
(RL2.3)
3rd grade – What sequence of events brought about the change in the characters? (Look at text/illustrations on pages 5-6 [girls
playing jump rope] and pages 25-26 [girls playing jump rope]. Use a T-chart to compare the text/illustrations [one side of the T-chart
lists ideas from pages 5-6 and the other side lists ideas from pages 25-26]. Share in groups of three. Share with whole group. (RL3.3)
Writing Format:
Short Response (answer)
Graphic Organizer – T-chart (listing)
(W2.10) (W3.10)
Purpose for SECOND reading





Vocabulary
Academic
Domain specific
Tier 2
Multiple meanings
Figurative language




CRAFT & STRUCTURE
Syntax
Sentence Structure
Organization
Rhythm
Presupposed prior knowledge







Text Structures
Description
Compare/Contrast
Sequence
Cause/Effect
Problem/Solution
Poetry
Drama



Point of View
Author
Character
Own Presupposed prior
knowledge
3. SECOND READ - How did the text say it?
Reread selected text focusing on text-dependent questions. Selected text- Pages 23-24 (Mom hanging laundry.)
Materials Needed: poster paper or butcher paper, markers
Reading Format: whole group
Discussion Format (Cooperative Learning): partners, small group, whole group
Text-Dependent Question(s):
2nd grade – What is the point of view of the mother when she discovers that her daughter had made a new friend? Cite evidence from
the text. (Brainstorm a list of emotions as whole class [6-8 emotions - include curious]. Write each emotion on a separate piece of
chart paper and place the charts around the room. Divide the students into small groups of three or four. Have them participate in a
Gallery Walk; each group should write different clues on the posters about body language that a person feeling that emotion would
exhibit as they walk around the room [i.e., slumped shoulders, smile, closed eyes, etc.]. Have groups return to seats. Turn to pages 2021 which shows Clover’s mother hanging the laundry. Have students read and act out the mother’s dialogue, “I see you made a new
friend,” using the information about the body language listed on the charts. Tell students that they are going to figure out what
emotion the author intended as the characters’ point of view. Cite details from the text/illustration that would lead to one of the
emotions. For instance, the text says, “Mama smiled.” Eliminate any emotions that would not include a smile. Continue and eliminate
any others that do not fit with the text or illustration. She is watching the girls, or peeking, as she hangs the laundry which would lead
us to believe she is curious.) (RL2.6)
3rd grade – How does the author feel about the topic? List three details from the text that support your decision. (Write how your
point of view is similar to or different from the author’s point of view. Share with a partner.) (RL3.6)
3rd grade – What does the figurative language, or idiom, of “sitting on the fence” mean? How does figurative language bring depth to
the literal content of the story? (Cite and discuss as a whole group places in the text where Clover was figuratively “sitting on the
fence.” [Page 4, “Maybe Yes. Maybe No.”] Students will determine the difference of the literal and figurative phrase “sitting on the
fence” then define and describe each using examples from the text. (RL3.4)
3rd grade – What does the fence in the story represent? (Discuss the final page and the figurative language, “Someday somebody’s
going to come along and knock this old fence down.” Students draw a fence and write what it represents on the rails and posts.)
(RL3.4)
Writing Format:
Short Response (answer) Gallery Walk
Listing – Top Hat graphic organizer
Sketch and label
(W2.10) (W3.10)
Purpose for THIRD reading INTEGRATION OF KNOWLEDGE & IDEAS
Infer
Analyze/Critique
Compare/Contrast
Integrate/Connect
4. THIRD READ - What does the text mean?
Purpose: Synthesize, analyze, compare/contrast, and integrate information from text with other texts or media
Additional Text(s): [Articles, Primary sources, Poetry] Each Kindness by Jaqueline Woodson [AD640]
Selected Text: whole book
Materials Needed: paper or learning log
Reading Format: partners, small group, whole group
Discussion Format (Cooperative Learning): partners, small group, whole group
Text-Dependent Question(s):
3rd grade – What are the similar or different themes of the two books? Cite evidence by identifying specific events in each story. (List
what was taught about being a good citizen through these events in each story. Organize thinking on a graphic organizer. Share with
partners. Share with whole group.) (RL3.9)
3rd grade – What can I learn from these texts by Jaqueline Woodson that can help me be a better citizen? Cite specific details from the
texts. (Students write a paragraph.) (RL3.10) (3SS3.1b)
Writing Format:
Listing – student produced graphic organizer: Top Hat
Short Response (answer)
(W2.10) (W3.10)
ART INTEGRATION
[Media: Video, Visual Art, Music, Technology; Quantitative: Charts, Data]: Art analysis
Materials Needed: “Moving Day” by Norman Rockwell
Reading/Looking/Listening Format: whole group
Discussion Format (Cooperative Learning): whole group
Text-Dependent Question(s):
2nd & 3rd grades – Key Ideas & Details: What is the theme of the painting? (Describe the subjects in the painting.) (S&L2.1a-c)
(S&L3.1a-d)
2nd & 3rd grades – Craft & Structure: What message does the artist want to portray by adding the objects in the children’s hands? How
do the animals represented in this art piece add to the artist’s message? (Compare/contrast the children on the left with the children
on the right.) (S&L2.1a-c) (S&L3.1a-d)
2nd & 3rd grades – Integration of Knowledge & Ideas: What is a common theme or message in the two books and painting? Cite
evidence. (Compare/contrast the characters in the books The Other Side and Kindness and the subjects in “Moving Day.” Write for 5
minutes.) (RL2.7,10) (2SS2.1a) (RL3.9,10) (3SS3.1b)
Writing/Arts Format:
Sustained written response (answer)
(W2.10) (W3.10)