Writing Lesson Plan Template
Name: Rachel West
Grade: 4th
Writing Trait: Word Choice
Focus Area: Precision
Curriculum Standards
SOL(s):
Reading 4.5 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, narrative nonfiction texts, and
poetry.
a) Explain the author’s purpose.
b) Describe how the choice of language, setting, characters, and information contributes to the author’s purpose.
c) Identify the main idea.
d) Summarize supporting details.
e) Identify the problem and solution.
f) Describe the relationship between text and previously read materials.
g) Identify sensory words.
h) Draw conclusions/make inferences about text.
i) Make, confirm, or revise predictions.
j) Identify cause and effect relationships.
k) Use reading strategies throughout the reading process to monitor comprehension.
l) Read with fluency and accuracy.
Essential Question(s):
What is a strong verb? How do strong verbs better our writing? Why are they important? How do they help the
reader?
Lesson Objectives: A statement or statements of what the students will be able to do as a result of the lesson. Need
to be observable and measurable.(ABCD format)
The student will be able to state what a strong verb is 100% of the time.
The student will be able to describe how strong verbs better our writing 100% of the time.
The student will be able to identify sensory words in a passage 100% of the time.
The student will be able to describe what they see in their minds when they hear strong verbs 100% of the time.
The student will be able to act out the strong verb written on the card given to them 100% of the time.
The student will be able to correctly guess what strong verb the volunteering student is acting out 85% of the time.
When given a weak verb, the student will be able to come up with a corresponding strong verb 100% of the time.
The student will be able to act out the strong verb they came up with 100% of the time.
The student will be able to guess the strong verb their group member came up with 85% of the time.
The student who chose the verb will be able to describe what the verb they came up with is 100% of the time.
The student who chose the verb will be able to describe how it is stronger than the weak verb that was originally
given 100% of the time.
Assessment of Objectives: Describe how you will collect evidence that individual students have indeed met the
lesson objective(s). These need to be tied to the degree or criteria from your objectives.
The student will state what a strong verb is by using think-pair-share 100% of the time. I will walk around and
observe and take notes.
The student will describe how strong verbs better our writing by using think-pair-share 100% of the time. I will walk
around and observe and take notes.
The student will be able to identify sensory words in a passage by using think-pair-share 100% of the time. I will walk
around and observe and take notes.
The student will describe what they see in their minds when they hear strong verbs by using think-pair-share 100%
of the time. I will walk around and observe and take notes.
The student will act out the strong verb written on the card given to them 100% of the time. I will walk around and
Writing Lesson Plan Template
observe and take notes.
The student will guess what strong verb the volunteering student is acting out 85% of the time. I will walk around
and observe and take notes.
When given a weak verb, the student will come up with a corresponding strong verb 100% of the time. I will walk
around and observe and take notes.
The student will act out the strong verb they came up with 100% of the time. I will walk around and observe and
take notes.
The student will guess the strong verb their group member came up with 85% of the time. I will walk around and
observe and take notes.
The student who chose the verb will describe what the verb they came up with is 100% of the time. I will walk
around and observe and take notes.
The student who chose the verb will describe how it is stronger than the weak verb that was originally given 100% of
the time. I will walk around and observe and take notes.
Explicit Explanation/Direct Instruction: Focusing attention, laying the groundwork, creating interest, sparking
curiosity, setting a purpose, explaining “the why”
“Yesterday, we learned about how we use different words when writing different types of genres. Another word for
precise is ‘specific.’ One way to show good word choice and precision is by using strong verbs. These strong verbs
are more specific than weak action verbs because you can picture in your mind exactly what is going on. For
example, if Lily is feeling tired, we can say she walked slowly to class. However, ‘walked’ is a weaker verb. Instead,
we can use ‘trudged’ in place of ‘walked,’ and after doing this, we can clearly picture in our minds Lily trudging along
slowly and tiredly. It is important to use strong verbs because verbs tell us what is happening. Without verbs,
nothing is really going on. Verbs turn a picture into a motion picture. They add energy and life to writing. Strong
verbs can give characters certain qualities, and we will discuss this next.”
“What is a strong verb? How do strong verbs help better our writing?” Students will think-pair-share for these two
questions.
Modeling (Mentor Text, Teacher Writing): Utilizing strategies to demonstrate how to use the trait/focus area,
thinking aloud, incorporating visuals/examples, scaffolding instruction
I am going to read part of Roald Dahl’s book Matilda. “’When she marched- Miss Trunchbull never walked, she
always marched like a storm-trooper with long strides and arms aswinging- when she marched along a corridor you
could actually hear her snorting as she went, and if a group of children happened to be in her path, she ploughed
right on through them like a tank, with small people bouncing off her to left and right.’ What are the sensory words
in this passage? What do you picture in your mind right now? What are these specific word choices doing for Miss
Trunchbull?” Students will think-pair-share on these three questions. “Verbs give Miss Trunchbull power, like when
she is ‘ploughing’ through children, and when she does this, they ‘bounce’ off her tank-like body.”
Guided Practice: Engaging with new content, applying new knowledge, checking for understanding, reflecting on
learning
Students will act out strong verbs. I will print strong verbs on a 4x6 card. These verbs will include “shrug,” “stare,”
“prance,” “pout,” “slouch,” “dance,” “fidget,” and “cringe.” Students will be split up into groups, and volunteering
students will get the cards. I will help students if they do not know what the word is. The student volunteer will act
out the verb without showing anyone the card. The other students in their group will then guess what the verb is.
As an extension, I will give students a weak verb, and they will act out a corresponding strong verb. Students in their
group will have to guess what they are doing. The student who chose the verb will then describe what the verb is
and how it is stronger than the weak verb that was originally given.
Writing Lesson Plan Template
Rationale: Why teach this lesson in this way? Why give these objectives? Why are these the BEST strategies to
choose and use? Explain why this sequence of activities leads to cultivating the behaviors or performing the skills or
displaying the knowledge called for by the objectives.
I chose to teach this lesson in this way because using mentor texts show students that they too can do what the
published authors do. It shows them that using good word choice like successful authors will give them success too.
Matilda is a much-loved book by many readers, and I think the excerpt from the book shows powerful word choice,
precision, and strong verbs. I gave these objectives because word choice is one of the six traits of writing, and
teaching these traits is a research-backed way to teach writing. I had students act out strong verbs because acting
them out helps them remember them more than writing them down or saying them. Acting them out is more
immediate and vivid.
I first started my lesson with explicit and direct instruction, to teach students what precise word choice is through
teaching them about strong verbs. I gave examples of a weak verb and then a corresponding strong verb. I modeled
using a mentor text, and then I had students act out strong verbs. As an extension and to challenge students, I gave
them a weak verb, and they in turn had to think of a corresponding strong verb and act that verb out. Their group
would then try to guess what the strong verb was. Students would have to justify their strong verb by describing
what it is and how it is stronger than the weak verb that was originally given.