UDL Lesson Plan- Character Description/ Analysis Lesson

About This Lesson

DESCRIPTION
This ELA lesson teaches students how to use information from a fiction story to analyze
a character and create a detailed description of a character.

PREREQUISITES
Students will need to understand how to use Padlet, Seesaw, Google Slides and/ or Flip
Grid.

ESTIMATED TIME
1.5 hours

PURPOSE:
Classroom Instruction

GRADE:
4

CONTENT AREAS:
English/Language Arts

COMMON CORE:
English Language Arts

○ Reading: Literature
■ Key Ideas and Details
■ CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.3 (grade 4):
Describe in depth a character, setting, or
event in a story or drama, drawing on
specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s
thoughts, words, or actions).
○ Speaking and Listening
■ Comprehension and Collaboration
■ CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.1 (grade 4): Engage
effectively in a range of collaborative
discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and
 teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas
and expressing their own clearly.
■ Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
■ CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.4 (grade 4): Report
on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an
experience in an organized manner, using
appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive
details to support main ideas or themes;
speak clearly at an understandable pace.
○ Writing
■ Research to Build and Present Knowledge
■ CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.9 (grade 4): Draw
evidence from literary or informational texts
to support analysis, reflection, and research.

Goals

INSTRUCTIONAL GOALS
Students will understand how to analyze a character and create a description of a
character from a fiction story. They will be able to use the thoughts, spoken words and
actions of the character in order to describe the character.

OBJECTIVES
● Students will be able to provide a detailed description of a character from a
story, using information provided in the text.
 ● Students will be able to create a presentation that shares their detailed
description of a character from a story.

*Objectives that would be posted on the board in student- centered form:

-I can provide a detailed description of a character from a story, using information that I
find in the text.

-I can create a presentation where I can share my character description with my

classmates.

VARIABILITY
Variability in Engagement:

In order to help to keep students engaged and actively learning in this lesson I will use
animated instructional video clips, think-pair-share opportunities, partner work time and
different types of technology resources. I will also allow students to choose from three
different choices for how to present their character description project so that they feel a
sense of ownership over their own learning and can get excited about creating their
project.

Variability in Representation and Background Knowledge:

At the start of the lesson I will discuss the learning targets of the lesson to the class
whole group to help them understand what we they will be learning. I will also begin the
lesson with an anticipatory set activity that will help them make connections between
the new material and their own lives. This well help them to form a better understanding
of what they will be learning. I will use a variety of instructional methods in order to
address the varied needs of my students. I will use teacher modeling, visual
representations, instructional video clips, class and partner discussion time, guided
practice time and the use of a graphic organizer.

Variability in Action and Expression:

Students will be given a variety of ways to express their level of understanding of the
new material. During the actual lesson students will use multiple types of technology
resources, will be able to share out in class discussions and will get to work with a
partner in order to complete a check for understanding activity and an exit ticket. When
students complete the summative assessment (character description project) they will
have the choice to either create a Google Slides presentation, a Flip Grid or Seesaw
video or create their own poster. This will allow students to choose the method of
presentation that feels most comfortable and interesting to them.

Assessments

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS
1. Check for Understanding Activity (partner work)
-students will work in pairs to submit a response on Padlet
(What is an example of a physical trait a character might have? What is an example of a
personal trait that a character might have?)

2. Exit Ticket Activity (Seesaw Response) (independent practice)

-students will have the choice to either submit a picture of the character analysis graphic
organizer that they have completed OR create a video post on Seesaw where they
explain their character description orally

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT

The summative assessment will take place at the end of this particular unit. The
summative assessment for these standards will allow students to demonstrate their
level of understanding by choosing from three different presentation types (google
slides presentation, flip grid/ seesaw video or create a poster). Students will select a
character from one of the stories read during the unit and will create a character
description presentation to share with their classmates in a gallery walk activity.

Instructional Methods

OPENING
Anticipatory Set
I will begin the lesson by going over the lesson objectives for this lesson.
-I can provide a detailed description of a character from a story, using information that I
find in the text.

-I can create a presentation where I can share my character description with my

classmates.

I will then introduce the anticipatory set activity where students will be given a piece of
paper to create a circle map to describe themselves (timer will be set for 10 minutes). I
will pull equity sticks to have a few students share with the class some of the words they
used to describe themselves (I will do one as well in order to provide an example). I will
then explain that just like how we can describe who we are to others so that they can
understand who we are, we can also describe who characters in a story are so that we
can understand them better too.

DURING
Introduce New Knowledge
I will start introducing new knowledge by explaining the difference between the different
types of ways we can describe a character (using an anchor chart).
-Some descriptions might include physical traits of a character, while other descriptions
are describing who that character is as a person (personality traits).

I will play a youtube video clip called "Characters and Character Traits" to give a more
visual/ animated look at the difference between the types of traits we might use to
describe a character and how we can look through a story to find details about a
character.

Students will do a think- pair- share to try and come up with some more examples of
character traits they can use. I will pull equity sticks to have partners share out with the
class.

Model New Skills and Knowledge

We will do a class re-read of the text “Molly Whuppie” (short story). *any fiction text can be used

I will use a character from the story (Molly) to demonstrate how we go about creating a
character description. I will talk through how we use information from the story to help
us describe who they are and what their main goal/ challenge is throughout the story. (I
will be writing all of this down and projecting it on the doc camera for the class to see)

*I will call on students throughout this time to help find text evidence of character traits
(thoughts, words, actions)

*Check for understanding activity- students will work with partners to submit
responses on Padlet (What is an example of a physical trait of a character? What
is an example of a personality trait of a character?)

Guided Practice
Students will be given a character analysis graphic organizer that we will work on
together whole group (I will display the same handout up on the doc camera for
students to follow along)

-Choosing a character from one of the two stories we have read this week (* "Coyote"
from "Coyote and the Hen") we will work together as a class to complete the graphic
organizer
*any fiction text can be used

Independent Practice
Students will be given another copy of the character analysis graphic organizer to
complete on their own (they can choose any character from the two stories that we have
read this week- other than the one we did together) (they can use the one we completed
whole group as a guide to help them).

When students have completed their graphic organizers they will take a picture of it and
upload it to our class Seesaw page to share with their classmates OR they can record a
video post on Seesaw explaining their character description instead. They will be given
time explore our Seesaw page and read each other's character descriptions while I pull
small groups to the back to help those who need extra support and instruction).

CLOSING

I will close this lesson by pulling up a couple of student work examples to have students
share out what they came up with. I will re-state the objectives of this lesson and re-
explain the purpose for describing characters (to help us understand them better). To
end the lesson I will introduce the character description project that they will be starting
to work on at the end of the week (I will also put the rubric up to go over with them
during this time). I will explain to them that they get to choose from three different types
of presentation styles to get them excited about the project they have coming up.

Materials

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

-media/ technology: (doc camera, student Chromebooks)
-websites/ resources: (Youtube, Seesaw, Padlet, Flipgrid, Google Slides)
-graphic organizers/ rubrics: (rubric for character description project, character analysis
graphic organizer handout)
-poster paper
-markers
-equity sticks

Lesson Reflection:

I think that this lesson plan does a good job of adhering to UDL principles of
lesson planning and instruction. Firstly, it provides multiple strategies for the variability
of student needs in terms of engagement. In order to keep students engaged and on-
task this lesson uses strategies such as instructional video clips, think- pair- share
opportunities and different types of technology resources. In terms of variability in
representation, this lesson uses a variety of instructional methods in order to address
the varied needs of students. These methods include teacher modeling, visual
representations, class and partner discussion time, guided practice time and the use of
a graphic organizer. Finally, the variability of expression is addressed through the
variety of ways that students are able to express their level of understanding of the new
material. Students are given multiple options of ways to present their understanding,
such as written or oral representations. Students also will get to choose from three
different types of presentation styles when completing the summative assessment
project. The technology resources that has been integrated into this lesson are ones
that allow for different types of student responses. For example, students who prefer to
share what they have learned in written form will be able to submit their work that way
and students who prefer to respond orally will be able to present their work in that form.
The technology integration in this lesson is all about providing students with options and
flexibility so that they can choose the method that is most comfortable for them.
Character Description Project Rubric Name:
 #:

Presentation Content:
1 2 3 4

Needs Improvement Fair Good Work Excellent

__________________________________________________________________________
Project is clear and
on- topic. (SL.4.4)
__________________________________________________________________________
Includes details that include
the thoughts, words or
actions of the character.
(RL.4.3)
__________________________________________________________________________
Description includes
both physical traits and
personality traits of
character. (RL. 4.3)
__________________________________________________________________________
Makes direct references
to the story. (W.4.9)
_________________________________________________________________________

Presentation Structure:

1 2 3 4

Needs Improvement Fair Good Work Excellent

Information is well
organized. (SL.4.4)
__________________________________________________________________________

Includes the 3 main

parts (description,
major goal/challenge,
response to goal/
challenge) (RL.4.3)
__________________________________________________________________________