Unit Lesson or Title
Age/Grade/Subject
NGSS Performance
Expectations
Common Core State
Standards Connections
Lesson length:
Background
Information:
Traveling Terrain: Comprehending Nonfiction Text on the Web
Grades 3-5; Language Arts and Science
5-ESS3-1: Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the
Earth’s resources and environment
ELA/Literacy:
RI.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. (5-ESS3-1)
RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently. (5-ESS3-1)
RI.5.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably. (5-ESS3-1)
W.5.8 Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources. (5-
ESS3-1)
Three 30 minute lessons
Strategic instruction and explicit teaching of targeted comprehension strategies can allow students to integrate skills into their current competencies, thus improving their overall reading ability. This lesson identifies three skills (i.e., identifying text features of nonfiction text in a Web format, locating specific information, and generalizing information) to be taught in strategic lessons that build upon each other and allow for scaffolding of skills when necessary.
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/traveling-terraincomprehending-nonfiction-98.html?tab=1#tabs
Disciplinary Core Ideas ESS3.C: Human Impacts on Earth Systems
Human activities in agriculture, industry, and everyday life have had major effects on the land, vegetation, streams, ocean, air, and even outer space. But individuals and communities are doing things to help protect
Earth’s resources and environments. (5-ESS3-1)
Science and
Engineering Practice
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information in 3–5 builds on K–2 experiences and progresses to evaluating the merit and accuracy of ideas and methods. Obtain and combine information from books and/or other reliable media to explain phenomena or solutions to a design problem. (5-ESS3-1)
Cross Cutting Concepts Systems and System Models
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5E Stage
Engage
A system can be described in terms of its components and their interactions. (5-ESS3-1)
Science/Engineering
Practice or Crosscutting
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information in 3–5 builds on K–2 experiences and progresses to evaluating the merit and accuracy of ideas and methods.
Obtain and combine information from books and/or other reliable media to explain phenomena or solutions to a design problem. (5-
ESS3-1)
What the Teacher Does… What the Students Do….
Lesson 1: Define keywords that appear on the chart.
Hyperlink—mouse control turns into a hand when rolled over the link; then the user can click and move to another page.
Menu—words or phrases that appear in a list format
Introduce the Missouri
Botanical
Gardens/Evergreen website. http://mbgnet.mobot.or
g/
Students will participate in discussing prior knowledge of vocabulary.
Students complete the Text
Feature Chart.
What Are Students Learning?
What is the Evidence of
Learning?
Building connections between prior knowledge and new knowledge through the senses
(Using Gardner-learning styles and meta-cognition—to build schemas-Bruner).
Teacher can complete the Text Feature Chart as a whole-class activity or provide some information on the chart and allow students to
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identify features in a guided practice format
Explore
Explain
A system can be described in terms of its components and their interactions. (5-ESS3-1)
RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.(5-ESS3-1)
RI.5.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably. (5-ESS3-1)
W.5.8 Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of
Teacher will hand out the
Scavenger Hunt handout.
Use the Connecting
Concepts Organizer
( http://www.readwriteth
ink.org/lesson_images/le sson98/connecting.pdf
) bubble chart to guide students in generalizing the biome information and comprehending how human interaction impacts the environment.
Explain how this website is similar to text features in nonfiction texts. These text features include clues to help the reader understand the information that is presented.
Students can work independently or in pairs to complete the Scavenger Hunt
( http://www.readwritethink.
org/lesson_images/lesson98/ scav.pdf
) handout.
Students should identify two facts that illustrate destruction or endangerment to the biome and then synthesize how human interaction is causing this.
Then they should develop an action that could help to solve the problem.
Participation in group discussion, illustrates assimilation of knowledge and schemas built through research.
Participation in group and individual activities illustrates developing expert knowledge.
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Elaborate sources. (5-ESS3-1)
Human activities in agriculture, industry, and everyday life have had major effects on the land, vegetation, streams, ocean, air, and even outer space. But individuals and communities are doing things to help protect
Earth’s resources and environments. (5-ESS3-1)
Have students use the facts they wrote in the appropriate bubbles to write two paragraphs
Essay rubric
Students will obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas on biomes to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
Students will write an information text to convey some solutions to endangered areas and biomes.
Students will peer review each other’s paragraphs.
Students integrate expert and go beyond given information to generate and improve their ideas as is evidenced by solutions to endangered biomes secondary to human action.
Evaluate Text Features chart, Scavenger
Hunt handout, bubble organizer and paragraphs on solutions on endangered areas and biomes.
Grouping Strategies
Materials and
Equipment
Description of
Performance Tasks
Note: The performance tasks should include elements from the three dimensions from the NGSS – knowing
Pairs and individually
Chart paper and markers, computers with internet access, pen and paper, handouts and organizers.
Lesson 1:
Introduce the Missouri Botanical Gardens/Evergreen Project ( http://mbgnet.mobot.org/ ) website. Explain how this website is similar to text features in nonfiction texts. These text features include clues to help the reader understand the information that is presented. Students then complete the Text Features
( http://www.readwritethink.org/lesson_images/lesson98/text_chart.pdf
) chart as you describe each feature.
Space is provided for additional features if desired.
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and doing Define keywords that appear on the chart, such as:
 Hyperlink—mouse control turns into a hand when rolled over the link, then the user can click and move to another page.
 Menu—words or phrases that appear in a list format
The completed chart below explains the text features to be discussed: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/traveling-terrain-comprehending-nonfiction-
98.html?tab=4#tabs
Teacher can complete the chart as a whole-class activity or provide some information on the chart and allow students to identify features in a guided practice format.
Lesson 2
Students can work independently or in pairs to complete the Scavenger Hunt handout. The focus of the activity is for students to locate specific information within the text. Questions begin very simply where only one link must be clicked to locate the answer and progress to where three links are required to arrive at the page with the answer. A teacher's key is included to provide not only the answers, but also the hyperlink icon labels that create the path leading to where the information is in the text.
Lesson 3
Use the Connecting Concepts Organizer (bubble chart) to guide students in generalizing the biome information and comprehending how human interaction impacts the environment. Students should identify two facts that illustrate destruction or endangerment to the biome and then synthesize how human interaction is causing this.
Then they should develop an action that could help to solve the problem. Have students use the facts they wrote in the appropriate bubbles to write two paragraphs. (Rainforest, grassland, wetlands, and shorelines are the best biomes in the site for accomplishing this task.) Students will exchanges papers and peer review paragraphs.
Extension:
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Continue investigating other forms of information by viewing videotapes that support the Missouri Botanical
Gardens/Evergreen Project.
Supporting English
Learners
Reading or Writing Activity
Listed in Learning and
Instructional Sequence
Story:
Chart/ vocabulary words
Summaries
Supporting Struggling
Learners
Activity
Support for Emerging learners
Whole grouping
Cooperative pairs
Support for Expanding learners Support for Bridging learners
Words/pictures
Leadership roles
Support for Students who Need Minor Support
Adult and peer
Adult and peer
Supports for Students who Need Intensive
Support
Drawings
Maps
Supporting Advanced Learners
Activity
Listed in Learning and Instructional Sequence
Continue investigating other forms of information by viewing videotapes that support the Missouri Botanical
Gardens/Evergreen Project.
Extension for Advanced Students
You may also want to check your media resources for videos that were created to accompany the Missouri Botanical Gardens/Evergreen Project site. These videos are currently being repackaged for marketing and are unavailable but have been previously sold since the early 1990s. The video education quality is excellent for this grade level band.
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Then they should develop an action that could help to solve the problem. Have students use the facts they wrote in the appropriate bubbles to write two paragraphs.
Compare information found on the website with that in a textbook, checking for accuracy and observing what information was included in each. (Was it the same or different? If different, how?)
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