Gary Woodward
PLANNING
Date: Apr. 12. 2011
Grade level: Grade six
Title/Subject of Lesson: Using prepositional phrases
Objective(s): Students will be able to identify prepositional phrases.
Students will be able to effectively use prepositional phrases in their own writing.
State (or District) Core Curriculum Standard(s)
8.2.c. Use strong verbs and precise and vivid language to convey meaning.
8.3 B) students will be able to “enhance fluency by using transitional words, phrases to connect ideas…(e.g.,
varied sentence length, simple and compound sentences).”
Concept(s) to Be Taught:
 structure of prepositional phrases
 punctuation that accompanies prepositional phrases
 identifying the rhetorical effect produced by using an absolute
Materials Needed:
Prepositional phrase examples
1. Within two minutes, or even less, he had forgotten all his troubles.
(Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer).
2. In fact, sharks come in all shapes and sizes.
(Nicola Davies, Surprising Sharks)
3. After all, who would except a shark to have a built in lantern or blow up like a party balloon, or lie on the sea
floor like a scrap of old carpet.
(Nicola Davies, Surprising Sharks)
4. The pebble was flaming red, shiny, and perfectly round, like a marble.
(William Steig, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble)
A preposition is the first word in a prepositional phrase. Here are common prepositions: about, above, across, after,
along, at, before, behind, below, beyond, by, down, except, from, in, inside, like, near, off, on, over, outside, to, through,
under, up, upon, with, within, without.(Killgallon 50-54)
Overheads of all these quotes, as well as imitation, and combining exercises
Strategies to Be Used:
 modeling, guided practice, independent practice
 sentence imitation, sentence combining
PERFORMING
Announcements : None
Continuation from Previous Lesson: Students are in the process of writing a reversal paper. One of the mentor texts is a
picture book called: Surprising Sharks. It features prepositional phrase. I thought that student writing could be enhanced if
students were able to insert prepositional phrases into sentences. This would lead to sentence variation. Although
prepositional phrases can be inserted in many different locations within a sentence, I have chosen due to the age of
students to focus on the beginning or end of a sentence.
Gary Woodward
Lesson Presentation:
A) Getting Started: [review of prior knowledge]
[modeling] Begin by showing the list of prepositions to tune students into what students are looking for in the
each model and ask what effect they think the preposition has:
o with #1 the preposition is within
o with #2 the preposition is in and before
o With#3, the preposition is after
o With#4, the prepositional phrase is like
o What does the prepositional phrase do in the writing? Give a sense of time, helps to order things. It can act as
a transition in topics. It can be a simile as in # 4
o Ask students to look at the structure. Students will notice that a comma is used to separate the phrase
B) Directing the Learning: [learning activities]
[modeling/sentence imitation] OK, now we are I am going to show you how to compose with a prepositional
phrase. I’ll imitate Mark Twain sentence. Show the sentence imitation overhead with my example. Discuss how I
came up with and composed the model.
[guided practice/sentence imitation] Now, you try imitating the structure of Mark Twain’s model.
Remember that the prepositional phrase in this model comes at the beginning. I’ve got a fill in the blanks format
for you on the overhead, write a sentence on your paper.
[guided practice/sentence combining] Locate the prepositional phrase in the model and in the scrambled list. I
am going to use William Steig’s model. What goes first for the scrambled sentences? Next, what word looks the
same as the next piece in the model ? and next? What is the final piece in the model?
Now with a partner, here is a set of sentences that I want you to work on combining to match the model. Now I
want you to write with a partner your own imitation of the model and identify the prepositional phrase.
C) Bringing the Lesson to a Conclusion:
 [independent practice/accountability] Ok you are writing reversal at the moment. I’d like you to read through
your drafts to see if you can find a sentence where you have already used a prepositional phrase. If you cannot
find one, think of a place where you might think it is appropriate to insert one. Remember that prepositional
phrases help with transition, give a sense of time, help to order things and can act as a simile.
 How does it change your writing? Does it add or detract? What is the rhetorical effect?
Assignment: You must include at least two prepositional phrases in your draft.
Evaluation: Was the lesson successful? What worked and what didn’t, what will I modify?
Gary Woodward
Overheads
1. Within two minutes, or even less, he had forgotten all
his troubles.
(Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer).
2. In fact, sharks come in all shapes and sizes.
(Nicola Davies, Surprising Sharks).
3. After all, who would except a shark to have a built in
lantern or blow up like a party balloon, or lie on the sea
floor like a scrap of old carpet.
(Nicola Davies, Surprising Sharks)
4. The pebble was flaming red, shiny, and perfectly round,
like a marble.
(William Steig, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble)
Gary Woodward
A preposition is the first word in a prepositional phrase. Here are
common prepositions: about, above, across, after, along, at, before,
behind, below, beyond, by, down, except, from, in, inside, like, near, off,
on, over, outside, to, through, under, up, upon, with, within,
without.(Killgallon 50-54)
Within two minutes, or even less, he had forgotten all his
troubles.
(Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer).
Before long, he had forgotten all his troubles.
_________, he had forgotten all his troubles.
Gary Woodward
Locate the prepositional phrase in the model and in the scrambled
list. What goes first from the scrambled sentences? Next what
word looks the same as the next piece in the model ? and the next?
What is the final piece in the model?
MODEL: The pebble was flaming red, shiny, and perfectly
round, like a marble.
William Steig, “Sylvester and the Magic Pebble”
a. The snake was bright green.
b. The snake was tiny.
c. And the snake was very thin.
d. The snake was like a shoelace.
a. The shark was smoky blue.
b. The shark was scary.
c. And the snake was tubular.
d. The snake was like a torpedo