Kelly Gibbons

CI 475: Reading Group Reflection Paper

11/29/2010

Reading is an essential aspect of a young learner’s education and plays a crucial role in the

development and understanding of subjects outside of language arts. The way a child experiences

reading at a young age can set the tone for the motivation, interest level and attitude that he or she has

about literature for the rest of his or her life. Creating positive, engaging and meaningful reading

group lessons calls for consideration of specific student needs, the interest level of those included in

the group and careful planning of the function and instructional strategies that will be used to guide

the group through a literary work.

I learned that my instruction must suit the needs of those that I am teaching and foster positive

connections between the student and the literature. My reading group consisted of four students,

performing at grade level reading standards, but who struggle with analyzing and comprehending

different sections within a single textbook. (I personally would not have assigned groups based on

reading ability, but rather on interest, but my reading group was composed and dictated by my

cooperating teacher.) With the specific learning needs and personalities in mind, I created my four

reading group lesson plans based on small group instructional strategies. Small group instructional

strategies include cooperative learning, group discussion and aim to foster intimate connections

between the text at hand and the student. Moreover, I decided this methodology would be best as it is

great for visual, verbal and intradependent learners and each of these type of learners were present in

my reading group. The sequence of my lesson plans was effective for these students because it first

allowed children to make personal meaning of the text by recording their thoughts, but then help them

to justify their responses, revise their thoughts and dissect the meaning of the text through group

discussion. I also learned and observed that this type of learning is helpful because it pushes students

to think critically, a skill that is essential in connecting personal experience or prior knowledge to
text, even those that may contain many unknown words or concepts. By taking these things into

consideration when planning for the function of my reading group and my instructional method for

each lesson, I learned how tedious and well-thought out a teacher’s instructional goals must be, in

order to adapt the lessons for a particular group of students and ensure that they are learning in the

way that is best for them.

I learned that I must be flexible in order to make learning experiences the most worthwhile

and meaningful for the students. In my initial lesson plan, I dedicated a time for group discussion

amongst students. However, I found that the discussion in our first meeting brought up many good

conversation topics and also pushed each group member to get involved and comment. After seeing

how effective and engaging the discussion section was for the group, I modified the upcoming

lessons and dedicated more time for discussion. This was a way to make the learning experience more

meaningful for the student and guide their learning through oral expression. In these discussions I

encouraged students to not only think about a chapter, but about how to connect a chapter content to

other chapters in the book. I also encouraged students to continue to make predictions and personal

connections, as they had begun to do in the first reading group lesson. From the culmination of these

discussion experiences I formed many opinions on verbal expression and its link to literature. I firmly

believe that discussion is a way for children to figure out the intended purpose of a text by listening to

and considering the viewpoints of others. Discussion also allows for children to connect, revise and

organize their thoughts with the help of others, which provides a great foundation for comprehension

and critical thinking about literature. Finally, I believe that discussion is important in helping children

to develop the language, syntax and logical argument processing skills that are essential to forming

opinions and making claims on a text. However, such experiences would not have been had, if I had

not learned to be adaptable to suiting lessons based on initial student performance. This prolonged
discussion aspect helped children to connect to the text, as he or she invested thought and time into

supporting a specific position embedded in the work.

I learned through this project that literature is best learned when children’s responses are taken

into consideration prior to the lesson. When putting together this reading group instruction, I

composed questions for the students to discuss within their groups. In these questions I included sub-

questions that would stem from a specific student response. For example, in the New York chapter, I

wrote the prompt “what part of the transformation of the city is the most interesting to you?” I, then,

predicted that a response to this question might be “I was interested in how New York grew into one

of the most popular states in America in just a couple of years,” as this fact was implied in the text.

To follow up with this question, the sub-question prompt I wrote was “Do you think that it was one of

the most popular? Do you think that all states had the opportunity for this transformation to happen in

their state? Why or why not?” Taking these expected responses into consideration allowed me, as the

teacher, to foster a deeper thinking in the student and help him or her to put a justification behind why

they have a specific thought. Preparing for student response also allows for the teacher to ensure that

the students are achieving the intended objectives and walking away with the enduring

understandings of the lesson, as the teacher can help guide the students along if they seem to be

getting away from the main ideas.

I learned that assessments must be meaningful to both the student and teacher. In my lesson

plan, I planned assessment in a low-pressured and engaging way. During the three beginning reading

group lesson plans, assessment was based on the note taking of the students and the thought

contribution that was made in discussion. This assessment was authentic from the teacher’s

viewpoint, as it judged whether the students understood the literature that they read. However, it was

also low-pressure and engaging for the students, as many of them are verbal and intradependent

learners—students who enjoying talking. I learned that making assessment subtle within a lesson was
a realistic way to document student progress, as it did not cause anxiety for the student and he or she

was seen in a natural learning environment. For the final lesson, students were asked to write an paper

about which of the cities they would stay at if they were a tourist. This written explanation was a

great form of summative assessment, as it was engaging, thought provoking and meaningful for the

student. For the me, the assessment was perfect, as it was clearly able to judge whether or not a

student grasped the entire concept of the book and how he or she could apply textual knowledge to

other subject areas. The assessment was also useful for the teacher because it showed whether or not a

student could argue in a logical way, support a main idea and justify any statement that he or she

made. For all forms of assessment students were motivated as they thought the prompts and activities

were interesting and applicable to their lives, which as a teacher I believe will efficiently produce

worthwhile results.

Overall, I learned much about the thought and time that is necessary to map out the structure,

function, goals and assessment elements of a reading group lesson plan. I learned through this

assignment that each student has a basic set of needs that need to be accommodated for within

instruction—whether it be through including multiples disciplines or learning techniques—so that he

or she can have positive experiences with reading that will help to engage the student and keep him or

her motivated to make literature a part of his or her life. I believe that this project allowed me to see

the fun that students can have with reading, as well as how a group dynamic must be fostered in order

to make the lesson efficient and academically-centered. As a teacher, I have the power to enhance a

child’s literacy experience in a way that is authentic, but I have learned that this cannot happen

without having preplanned essential questions, enduring understandings and academic goal

expectations for a small reading group. This project leaves me with a final culminating thought:

literacy has the power to change a child’s life, if the teacher is willing to put together plans that foster

such love and intimate connections to a text.

Four Cities, Four Causes: A Reading Group Lesson Plan

Name: Kelly Gibbons

Grade Level/Subject: 5/Reading

Prerequisite Knowledge: The students should have developed independent reading skills. The students should
also have an idea of what is means to be a critical reader (pick out specific elements of a story, etc.) The
students should have worked in a discussion group previously to this assignment so that they understand how
small group discussion runs.

Approximate Time: 30-40 minutes

Student Objectives/Student Outcomes:

 Student should be able to identify cause and effect relationships in literature.
 Student should be able to define specific vocabulary words mentioned in the story.
 Student should be able to identify the text features of a nonfiction work.
 Students should be able to orally explain their thoughts on specific literary questions.
 Student should be able to follow oral directions in order to complete a task.
 Student should be able to work independently without much guidance from the teacher.

Content Standards:
1.A. Apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to comprehend selections
1.A.1a Apply word analysis skills (word patterns, phonics, etc.) to recognize new words
1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.
1.B.2b Identify structure (e.g., description, compare/contrast, cause and effect, sequence) of
nonfiction texts to improve comprehension.
1.B.2d Read age-appropriate material with fluency and accuracy.
1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.
1.C.2b Make and support inferences and form interpretations about main themes and topics.
3.C Comprehend a large range of reading material
3.C.1b Identify important themes in language and topics in order to make predictions
4.A Listen effectively in formal and informal situations
4.A.1a Listen attentively by facing the speaker, making eye contact and paraphrasing what is said
4.A.1b Ask questions and respond to questions from the teacher to improve comprehension
4.A.1c Follow oral directions accurately

Materials/Resources/Technology:
1. Four Great Cities by Margaret Lysecki (copy for each student)
2. Writing Utensil (one for each student)
3. Hard surface (one for each student)
4. Chair (one for each student)
5. Vocabulary picture cards (made by teacher)
6. Before/After worksheet (one for each student)
Implementation
Time
10 minutes Opening of lesson:
The teacher should instruct the student to sit in his/her chair and be attentive
while directions are explained to the whole class. The teacher should tell the students
that they are going to work in a reading groups. The expectations of the reading
group are that each student reads independently and quietly. There will be a group
meeting before the chapter is assigned and then a discussion after everyone has
finished reading the story. The teacher will then break the class up into their
designated reading groups (grouped by ability level according to teacher preference.)
The teacher will first ask the group to talk about what is means when something
is “nonfiction.” The teacher will also ask the students what features they expect to
be included in a nonfiction text. After the students have been given a chance to
respond, the teacher will have the students open their books and have them follow
along while they look through the table of contents, the index, the glossary, labels
and sidebars. The teacher should explain to the students that nonfiction texts are
informational and can help the reader to find out factual information about a specific
subject. The teacher should also inform that students that nonfiction texts are
usually organized in a specific way. The teacher should have the students flip through
the book again to try and find out how this specific text is organized.
The teacher will then have the students use the text features to make
predictions about what cities are going to be covered in the book and what they will
learn about the cities in each chapter. The teacher will hold a discussion and
establish that Toronto, Sydney, London and New York are the four cities that will
be covered in the book and that the book will tell us about the industrialization and
growth of each of these cities. The book is organized in a before and after sequence.
The teacher will tell the students that they are going to be reading the chapter on
London for this session of reading group The teacher will then use the picture
vocabulary card for the London chapter to have the children first try and guess what
each vocabulary word means and then listen to the actual definition of the word. The
vocabulary words for this chapter are: urban, efficient, goods, interact, rural and
thrive. The teacher will pass out the before and after worksheets to the students.
The teacher will ask them to select 4 parts of the chapter about London and record
how these 4 events were years ago (before) and how they are not (after) and what
event or thing sparked the change.

15 minutes Procedure:
The students will read the chapter on London and fill out their before/after worksheet.
When they are finished reading, the teacher should tell the students to go back
through the text and find the vocabulary words. The teacher should let the students
know that he/she will be available for questions during the lesson, but most of the
work should be done independently if possible during this time. If a student is
really struggling, the teacher can use prompts such as, “Think about what you just
read. Describe one thing that has changed and one thing that has not changed,” “How
do the headings help you understand the chapter?”

10 -15 minutes Summary/Closing:

The teacher should instruct the students to reread page 6 and compare and contrast
London of the past to modern day London. The students should talk freely to one
another during this time without much direction from the teacher. After the
students have pointed out the changes in industry, transportation and people hold a
group discussion about the following questions:
 1) How did comparing and contrasting help you understand what you were reading?
2) What are some of the similarities and differences that you noticed in this
chapter?
3) Was there anything that surprised you about this chapter?
After having the students answer these questions through oral discussion (with little
intervention from the teacher), the teacher should ask the students
to define a cause and effect relationship. The teacher should tell the students that a
cause is the event or action and the effect is what happened as a result of that event or
action. The teacher should tell the students that there are many cause/effect
relationships that happened with the development of London. The teacher should
pose the following questions for small group discussion.
1) What caused so many people to move to London?
2) What effect did this have on the city?
The students should be given 5 minutes to freely discuss these questions among
each other. The teacher should then pull the students back together to go through their
worksheets and talk about some of the causes that they came up with for the before
and after events they chose in the chapter. The teacher should have each student
share one thing they filled in from the worksheet. The teacher should offer
constructive feedback for the students. For example, if a student came up with
an unlikely cause for the before/after the teacher may say “do you think that cause
makes sense with what we just learned about London? Do you think its logical for
that to happen. If that was the cause, does it make sense that the ‘after’ stage
would look like the chapter described?” The teacher should review the vocabulary
words one last time to check for student learning, collect the worksheets and then
send the group back to their seats in the classroom.

Student Assessment:
The students will be assessed on their participation in group discussion, as this is the
best way for the teacher to see if they understand what is going on in the story. The
students will also be assessed on their completion of the worksheet. Finally, the
students will be assessed on their listening and behavior in the group work setting.
Name___________________________________________
Date______________________________

Fill out the boxes below for the London chapter of this book.

PAGE BEFORE AFTER CAUSE OF THE

NUMBER CHANGE
Four Cities, Four Causes: A Reading Group Lesson Plan

Name: Kelly Gibbons

Grade Level/Subject: 5/Reading

Prerequisite Knowledge: The students should have developed independent reading skills. The students should
also have an idea of what is means to be a critical reader (pick out specific elements of a story, etc.) The
students should have worked in a discussion group previously to this assignment so that they understand how
small group discussion runs.

Approximate Time: 30-40 minutes

Student Objectives/Student Outcomes:

 Student should be able to identify cause and effect relationships in literature.
 Student should be able to define specific vocabulary words mentioned in the story.
 Student should be able to identify the text features of a nonfiction work.
 Students should be able to orally explain their thoughts on specific literary questions.
 Student should be able to follow oral directions in order to complete a task.
 Student should be able to work independently without much guidance from the teacher.

Content Standards:
1.A. Apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to comprehend selections
1.A.1a Apply word analysis skills (word patterns, phonics, etc.) to recognize new words
1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.
1.B.2b Identify structure (e.g., description, compare/contrast, cause and effect, sequence) of
nonfiction texts to improve comprehension.
1.B.2d Read age-appropriate material with fluency and accuracy.
1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.
1.C.2b Make and support inferences and form interpretations about main themes and topics.
3.C Comprehend a large range of reading material
3.C.1b Identify important themes in language and topics in order to make predictions
4.A Listen effectively in formal and informal situations
4.A.1a Listen attentively by facing the speaker, making eye contact and paraphrasing what is said
4.A.1b Ask questions and respond to questions from the teacher to improve comprehension
4.A.1c Follow oral directions accurately

Materials/Resources/Technology:
1. Four Great Cities by Margaret Lysecki (copy for each student)
2. Writing Utensil (one for each student)
3. Hard surface (one for each student)
4. Chair (one for each student)
5. Vocabulary picture cards (made by teacher)
6. Before/After worksheet (one for each student)
Implementation
Time
10 minutes Opening of lesson:
The teacher should instruct the student to sit in his/her chair and be attentive
while directions are explained to the whole class. The teacher should tell the students
that they are going to work in a reading groups. The expectations of the reading
group are that each student reads independently and quietly. There will be a group
meeting before the chapter is assigned and then a discussion after everyone has
finished reading the story. The teacher will then break the class up into their
designated reading groups (grouped by ability level according to teacher preference.)
The teacher should remind the students that the text is nonfiction, meaning that it is
factual. The teacher should ask the students to recall how the London chapter
was organized. The students should come up with the response “before and after.” If
the students are struggling to remember, the teacher should encourage them to look
back at the chapter to figure out the answer. The teacher should reiterate that
nonfiction texts are usually organized in a specific way. The teacher should tell
the students that they are going to read the New York chapter. The teacher should
have the students flip through the book again to try and find out how the New York
section is organized. The teacher should have the students use the text features to
make predictions about what cities are going to be covered in the book and what
they will learn about the city in this chapter. The teacher will hold a discussion and
help the students to establish that they will learn about the industrialization and
growth of each of New York through its businesses, people and transportation.
They should also be able to tell that the chapter is organized in a before and after
sequence, just like the previous chapter. The teacher will then use the picture
vocabulary cards for this chapter to have the children first try and guess what
each vocabulary word means and then listen to the actual definition of the word. The
vocabulary words for this chapter are: commuters, employ and relied.
The teacher will pass out the before and after worksheets to the students.
The teacher will ask them to select 4 parts of the chapter about New York and record
how these 4 events were years ago (before) and how they are not (after) and what
event or thing sparked the change.

15 minutes Procedure:
The students will read the chapter on New York and fill out their before/after
worksheet. When the student is finished reading, the teacher should tell the students
to go back through the text and find the vocabulary words. The teacher should let the
students know that he/she will be available for questions during the lesson, but most
of the work should be done independently if possible during this time. If a student is
really struggling, the teacher can use prompts such as, “How do these paragraphs
help you compare and contrast? What was it like a long time ago? What is it like
now?” “Look at the bolded words, how dos that help you figure out what the
paragraph wants you to learn?”

10 -15 minutes Summary/Closing:

The teacher should instruct the students to reread page 16 and note the part about the
“el.” Ask students to discuss what caused the “el” to be built and what happened as
an effect of the “el” being built. The students should talk freely to one
another during this time without much direction from the teacher. After the
students have discussed the teacher should pose the following questions for
group discussion:
1) How does the “before” New York compare to the “after” New York?
 2) What part of the transformation is the most interesting to you?
3) Do you think that this transformation happened in all of the United States
cities? Why or why not?
4) Was there anything that surprised you about this chapter?
After having the students answer these questions through oral discussion (with little
intervention from the teacher), the teacher should ask the students if they remember
what a cause and effect relationship is. The teacher should help the students reach
the conclusion that a cause is the event or action and the effect is what happened as a
result of that event or action. The teacher should tell the students that there are many
cause/effect relationships that happened with the development of London and now,
New York. The teacher should pose the following questions for small group
discussion.
1) What caused so many people to move to New York?
2) Do you think the location of New York has anything to do with its growth?
3) What effect did the growth have on the city?
The students should be given 5 minutes to freely discuss these questions among
each other. The teacher should then pull the students back together to go through their
worksheets and talk about some of the causes that they came up with for the before
and after events they chose in the chapter. The teacher should have each student
share one thing they filled in from the worksheet and what text feature helped
them come up with the event (pictures, text, sidebars, etc.)The teacher should offer
constructive feedback for the students. For example, if a student came up with
an unlikely cause for the before/after the teacher may say “do you think that cause
makes sense with what we just learned about New York? Do you think its logical for
that to happen. If that was the cause, does it make sense that the ‘after’ stage
would look like the chapter described?” The teacher should review the vocabulary
words one last time to check for student learning, collect the worksheets and then
send the group back to their seats in the classroom.

Student Assessment:
The students will be assessed on their participation in group discussion, as this is the
best way for the teacher to see if they understand what is going on in the story. The
students will also be assessed on their completion of the worksheet. Finally, the
students will be assessed on their listening and behavior in the group work setting.
Name___________________________________________
Date______________________________

Fill out the boxes below for the New York chapter of this book.

PAGE BEFORE AFTER CAUSE OF THE

NUMBER CHANGE
Four Cities, Four Causes: A Reading Group Lesson Plan

Name: Kelly Gibbons

Grade Level/Subject: 5/Reading

Prerequisite Knowledge: The students should have developed independent reading skills. The students should
also have an idea of what is means to be a critical reader (pick out specific elements of a story, etc.) The
students should have worked in a discussion group previously to this assignment so that they understand how
small group discussion runs.

Approximate Time: 30-40 minutes

Student Objectives/Student Outcomes:

 Student should be able to identify cause and effect relationships in literature.
 Student should be able to define specific vocabulary words mentioned in the story.
 Student should be able to identify the text features of a nonfiction work.
 Students should be able to orally explain their thoughts on specific literary questions.
 Student should be able to follow oral directions in order to complete a task.
 Student should be able to work independently without much guidance from the teacher.

Content Standards:
1.A. Apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to comprehend selections
1.A.1a Apply word analysis skills (word patterns, phonics, etc.) to recognize new words
1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.
1.B.2b Identify structure (e.g., description, compare/contrast, cause and effect, sequence) of
nonfiction texts to improve comprehension.
1.B.2d Read age-appropriate material with fluency and accuracy.
1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.
1.C.2b Make and support inferences and form interpretations about main themes and topics.
3.C Comprehend a large range of reading material
3.C.1b Identify important themes in language and topics in order to make predictions
4.A Listen effectively in formal and informal situations
4.A.1a Listen attentively by facing the speaker, making eye contact and paraphrasing what is said
4.A.1b Ask questions and respond to questions from the teacher to improve comprehension
4.A.1c Follow oral directions accurately

Materials/Resources/Technology:
1. Four Great Cities by Margaret Lysecki (copy for each student)
2. Writing Utensil (one for each student)
3. Hard surface (one for each student)
4. Chair (one for each student)
5. Vocabulary picture cards (made by teacher)
6. Before/After worksheet (one for each student)
Implementation
Time
10 minutes Opening of lesson:
The teacher should instruct the student to sit in his/her chair and be attentive
while directions are explained to the whole class. The teacher should tell the students
that they are going to work in a reading groups. The expectations of the reading
group are that each student reads independently and quietly. There will be a group
meeting before the chapter is assigned and then a discussion after everyone has
finished reading the story. The teacher will then break the class up into their
designated reading groups (grouped by ability level according to teacher preference.)
The teacher should ask the students to recall how the London and New York chapters
were organized. The students should come up with the response “before and after.” If
the students are struggling to remember, the teacher should encourage them to look
back at the chapters to figure out the answer. The teacher should reiterate that
nonfiction texts are usually organized in a specific way. The teacher should tell
the students that they are going to read the Toronto chapter. The teacher should
have the students flip through the book again to try and find out how the Toronto
section is organized. The teacher should have the students use the text features to
make predictions about what cities are going to be covered in the book and what
they will learn about the city in this chapter. The teacher will hold a discussion and
help the students to establish that they will learn about the industrialization and
growth of each of Toronto through its businesses, people and transportation.
They should also be able to tell that the chapter is organized in a before and after
sequence, just like the previous chapter. The teacher will then use the picture
vocabulary cards for this chapter to have the children first try and guess what
each vocabulary word means and then listen to the actual definition of the word. The
vocabulary words for this chapter are: tourists and ruins. The teacher will pass out
the before and after worksheets to the students. The teacher will ask them to select
4 parts of the chapter about Toronto and record how these 4 events were years ago
(before) and how they are not (after) and what event or thing sparked the change.

15 minutes Procedure:
The students will read the chapter on Toronto and fill out their before/after
worksheet. When the student is finished reading, the teacher should tell the students
to go back through the text and find the vocabulary words. The teacher should let the
students know that he/she will be available for questions during the lesson, but most
of the work should be done independently if possible during this time. If a student is
really struggling, the teacher can use prompts such as, “How do these paragraphs
help you compare and contrast? What was it like a long time ago? What is it like
now?” “Look at the information that is provided other than the words on the page.
Can these things help you try and figure out what the author wants you to know
about this page?”

10 -15 minutes Summary/Closing:

The teacher should instruct the students to reread page 20-21. The teacher should ask
the students to name and describe the country that Toronto is extremely important to.
The teacher should encourage the students to look at the pictures and read the
captions about why Toronto is so important to Canada. The students should talk
freely to one another during this time without much direction from the teacher.
After the students have discussed the teacher should pose the following questions
for group discussion:
1) How does the Toronto’s industry then compare to its business now?
 2) What part of the transformation is the most interesting to you?
3) Was there anything that surprised you about this chapter?
After having the students answer these questions through oral discussion (with little
intervention from the teacher), the teacher should ask the students if they remember
what a cause and effect relationship is. The teacher should help the students reach
the conclusion that a cause is the event or action and the effect is what happened as a
result of that event or action. The teacher should tell the students that there are many
cause/effect relationships that happened with the development of London, New York
and now, Toronto. The teacher should pose the following questions for small group
discussion.
1) What caused so many people to move to Toronto?
2) How do you think this affected the rest of Canada?
3) What effect did the growth have on the city?
4) Do you think that this affected the United States at all?
The students should be given 5 minutes to freely discuss these questions among
each other. The teacher should then pull the students back together to go through their
worksheets and talk about some of the causes that they came up with for the before
and after events they chose in the chapter. The teacher should have each student
share one thing they filled in from the worksheet and what text feature helped
them come up with the event (pictures, text, sidebars, etc.) The teacher should offer
constructive feedback for the students. For example, if a student came up with
an unlikely cause for the before/after the teacher may say “Do you think that cause
makes sense with what we just learned about Toronto? Do you think its logical for
that to happen. If that was the cause, does it make sense that the ‘after’ stage
would look like the chapter described?” The teacher should review the vocabulary
words one last time to check for student learning, collect the worksheets and then
send the group back to their seats in the classroom.

Student Assessment:
The students will be assessed on their participation in group discussion, as this is the
best way for the teacher to see if they understand what is going on in the story. The
students will also be assessed on their completion of the worksheet. Finally, the
students will be assessed on their listening and behavior in the group work setting.
Name___________________________________________
Date______________________________

Fill out the boxes below for the Toronto chapter of this book.

PAGE BEFORE AFTER CAUSE OF THE

NUMBER CHANGE
Four Cities, Four Causes: A Reading Group Lesson Plan

Name: Kelly Gibbons

Grade Level/Subject: 5/Reading

Prerequisite Knowledge: The students should have developed independent reading skills. The students should
also have an idea of what is means to be a critical reader (pick out specific elements of a story, etc.) The
students should have worked in a discussion group previously to this assignment so that they understand how
small group discussion runs.

Approximate Time: 60 minutes

Student Objectives/Student Outcomes:

 Student should be able to identify cause and effect relationships in literature.
 Student should be able to define specific vocabulary words mentioned in the story.
 Student should be able to identify the text features of a nonfiction work.
 Students should be able to orally explain their thoughts on specific literary questions.
 Student should be able to follow oral directions in order to complete a task.
 Student should be able to work independently without much guidance from the teacher.

Content Standards:
1.A. Apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to comprehend selections
1.A.1a Apply word analysis skills (word patterns, phonics, etc.) to recognize new words
1.B. Apply reading strategies to improve understanding and fluency.
1.B.2b Identify structure (e.g., description, compare/contrast, cause and effect, sequence) of
nonfiction texts to improve comprehension.
1.B.2d Read age-appropriate material with fluency and accuracy.
1.C. Comprehend a broad range of reading materials.
1.C.2b Make and support inferences and form interpretations about main themes and topics.
3.C Comprehend a large range of reading material
3.C.1b Identify important themes in language and topics in order to make predictions
4.A Listen effectively in formal and informal situations
4.A.1a Listen attentively by facing the speaker, making eye contact and paraphrasing what is said
4.A.1b Ask questions and respond to questions from the teacher to improve comprehension
4.A.1c Follow oral directions accurately

Materials/Resources/Technology:
1. Four Great Cities by Margaret Lysecki (copy for each student)
2. Writing Utensil (one for each student)
3. Hard surface (one for each student)
4. Chair (one for each student)
5. Vocabulary picture cards (made by teacher)
6. Before/After worksheet (one for each student)
7. Vacation Worksheet (one for each student)
Implementation
Time
10 minutes Opening of lesson:
The teacher should instruct the student to sit in his/her chair and be attentive
while directions are explained to the whole class. The teacher should tell the students
that they are going to work in a reading groups. The expectations of the reading
group are that each student reads independently and quietly. There will be a group
meeting before the chapter is assigned and then a discussion after everyone has
finished reading the story. The teacher will then break the class up into their
designated reading groups (grouped by ability level according to teacher preference.)
The teacher should ask the students to recall how the previous chapters have been
organized. The students should come up with the response “before and after.” If
the students are struggling to remember, the teacher should encourage them to look
back at the chapters to figure out the answer. The teacher should reiterate that
nonfiction texts are usually organized in a specific way. The teacher should tell
the students that they are going to read the Sydney chapter. The teacher should
have the students flip through the book again to try and find out how the Sydney
section is organized. They should also be able to tell that the chapter is organized in
a before and after sequence, just like the previous chapters. The teacher should have
the students flip to pages 4-5 and find Sydney on the map. The teacher should
explain that Sydney is located on the continent of Australia and note that the
Australia is both a country and continent. The teacher should ask the students to share
anything they know about Australia. The teacher will then use the picture
vocabulary cards for this chapter to have the children first try and guess what
each vocabulary word means and then listen to the actual definition of the word. The
vocabulary words for this chapter are: flourished, congested and destinations.
The teacher will pass out the before and after worksheets to the students.
The teacher will ask them to select 4 parts of the chapter about Sydney and record
how these 4 events were years ago (before) and how they are not (after) and what
event or thing sparked the change.

20 minutes Procedure:
The students will read the chapter on Sydney and fill out their before/after
worksheet. When the student is finished reading, the teacher should tell the students
to go back through the text and find the vocabulary words. The teacher should let the
students know that he/she will be available for questions during the lesson, but most
of the work should be done independently if possible during this time. If a student is
really struggling, the teacher can use prompts such as, “How does what you just read
connect with what you read earlier in the chapter or in a previous chapter? Look at
the sidebars and headings, how do those help you find out what the author wants
you know from the chapter?”

30 minutes Summary/Closing:
The teacher should instruct the students to reread page 26. The teacher should
Encouraged the children to think about how geography affected the industries that
developed in Sydney. The students should discuss the answer to this questions
without much direction from the teacher. After the students have discussed,
the teacher should pose the following questions for further group discussion:
1) How does the Sydney from before compare to now?
2) What part of the growth of Sydney was the most interesting to you? Why?
3) How do you think the transformation of Sydney affected the people who lived
there?
 4) Was there anything that surprised you about this chapter?
After having the students answer these questions through oral discussion (with little
intervention from the teacher), the teacher should ask the students if they remember
what a cause and effect relationship is. The teacher should help the students reach
the conclusion that a cause is the event or action and the effect is what happened as a
result of that event or action. The teacher should tell the students that there are many
cause/effect relationships that happened with the development of London,
New York, Toronto and now Sydney. The teacher should pose the following questions for
small group discussion.
1) What caused so many people to move to Sydney?
2) Do you think the location of Sydney has anything to do with its growth?
3) What effect did the growth have on the city?
4) Do you think that growth in Sydney takes longer than other countries?
Why or why not?
The students should be given 5 minutes to freely discuss these questions among
each other. The teacher should then pull the students back together to go through their
worksheets and talk about some of the causes that they came up with for the before
and after events they chose in the chapter. The teacher should offer
constructive feedback for the students. For example, if a student came up with
an unlikely cause for the before/after the teacher may say “do you think that cause
makes sense with what we just learned about Sydney? Do you think its logical for
that to happen. If that was the cause, does it make sense that the ‘after’ stage
would look like the chapter described?” The teacher should review the vocabulary
words one last time to check for student learning. To make the ending of the book
cohesive the teacher should have the students go back and look through the
photographs of Sydney and orally compare and contrast them with the ones that were
taken in London, New York and Toronto. The students should have an open
discussion about their observations.

After the discussion has died down, the teacher should have the students turn to the
appendix on page 30. The teacher should have the students read the appendix.
The teacher should then ask, “if you were going on a vacation, which of these four
cities would you pick to visit?” The teacher should instruct the students that they
are going to write a two paragraphs on why they would go to ____. The teacher
should explain to the students that each paragraph should state a reason and then have
supporting sentences for that reason. This example can be given: “I would want to
travel to New York because it I think that it’s blend of many cultures would help me
to learn more about people other than myself. “ Supporting sentences for that reason
could talk about the different restaurants, museums and spoken languages that were
mentioned in the book. The teacher should also remind the students of punctuation
and capital letters. Finally, the teacher should show the students the large box on the
worksheet. The teacher should tell the students that they are also responsible for
drawing a picture of the city they would like to vacation to inside that box. The
teacher should then pass out the vacation worksheet and give the students 20 minutes
to work. If the students do not finish in this allotted time, the teacher should assign
the worksheet for homework.

Student Assessment:
The students will be assessed on their participation in group discussion, as this is the
best way for the teacher to see if they understand what is going on in the story. The
students will also be assessed on their completion of the worksheets. The students
will be graded on their grammar/punctuation, logical thought process, organization,
sentence structure and completion of the required elements. Finally, the
students will be assessed on their listening and behavior in the group work setting.
Name___________________________________________
Date______________________________

Fill out the boxes below for the Sydney chapter of this book.

PAGE BEFORE AFTER CAUSE OF THE

NUMBER CHANGE
Name___________________________________________
Date______________________________

The city I would travel to is…_____________________________

Here is why:
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Here is a picture of_______________________________.