Lesson Plan Template LTM-612

TC Name: Andrew Vanden Date: 11/2/16

Busch

Lesson Allusion Grade Level/Course 7th Grade Language Arts

Title/#

Add lesson elements in blank boxes below explanation/directions.

Teacher Readiness

Common Core/Model Academic Standards:

RL.7.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a context, including
figurative and connotative meanings.

Student Learning Objective(s):

Students will recognize and identify the use of an allusion in a piece of text. Students will also
apply their understanding of allusion by explaining how the references enhance a given written
work.

Material:

Students:
-3 Subject Notebook
-Pencil

Teacher:
-Google Slides Presentation
-Graphic Organizers for Students
-Printed Notes
-Lesson Plan
-(Anchor Chart)

Prior Knowledge

Students just recently finished creating their own narrative stories that include different forms of
figurative language. Students understand that writers make deliberate choices when crafting their
stories and narratives. This lesson will focus specifically on the students understanding of
references in a piece of media and its effect on the reader. Students are currently working in
Book Club groups that allow for collegiate discussion about a chosen piece of literature.
Students are aware that they will then be using these books to create a companion guide about
the text after reading through it once and close reading with a group. This lesson will add a piece
of figurative language they could focus on with their companion guides in the future.

Questions (to ask students to promote higher order thinking)

When writing a narrative, why is it important for writers to make deliberate choices about the
content they put in their work?

What makes allusion an effective tool for writers to use in their toolbox?

How might we work through a situation where the reader doesnt make the allusive connection?

Differentiation Planned Support

Whole Class Differentiation

-Allusion Film Clips for Visual/Auditory Learners

Small Group Differentiation

-Group/Pair conferencing to compare notes/answers

Individual Students Differentiation

-Graphic Organizer for visual learners

-Printed notes for students with difficulties of pulling information from text
-Some students are on IEPs, these students will receive assistance from any of the classroom
teachers when answering questions and identifying any allusions on paper

Academic Language

Language Function

Recognition students will recognize the elements in an allusion. This is a brief and indirect
reference to something in a piece of writing.
Identification students will identify when an allusion shows up in a piece of writing using the
recognition skills they will learn in class.

Vocabulary

Allusion A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea in a piece of written
work.
Figurative Language craft techniques that enhance a piece of writing

Discourse

Note-taking, Exit Slip, Pair/Whole Class discussion

Syntax
Sentences

How will you support students so they can understand and use the language associated with the
language function and other demands in meeting the learning objectives of the lesson?

I will be constantly checking in with students during note-taking time, taking informal assessment of
how they can strongly identify the elements of and recognize the use of allusion in a given quote. I
will also informally assess students final understanding of the material through the use of an exit
slip that asks students to choose one sentence of a given list, identify the allusion elements, and
explain and examine how it enhances the understanding of the sentence.

STUDENT READINESS

Engagement Strategy (Hook)

Begin class with a video clip of Disney/Pixars Toy Story 2 that creates a connection to Star
Wars. Students will then be asked to write in their notebooks why they believe this was
effective. What connection was being made in this clip? What characteristics were
involved? Why was this effective?

Lesson Activities:

Instruction/teach
Class will begin with a continuation of the read aloud A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. Students
will have mentor copies of the story that they will be close reading while the instructor reads the
story aloud as well. Through the read aloud, the instructor will also be making comments about
things they are noticing to model the thought process behind close reading and close reading
strategies.

Instructor will begive class with Hook related to Toy Story 2 and Star Wars. After think, pair,
share activity related to the clip instructor will explain a formal definition of an Allusion:
A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea in a written work.
Instructor will probe questions asking for understanding or explain the definition in normal people
words.

Lesson will then move into different examples of allusion. Instructor will explain that allusions
come in all forms from writing in books, to titles, to references in films. The first example will come
from the book Savvy by Ingrid Law related to the wicked witch and the Wizard of Oz. Instructor
will then, with the help of the class, identify three pieces related to the illusion:
Identifying the allusion (Circle It)
Explain the allusion
How is the allusion effective?
 Informal Assessment/Check for understanding
The second example to be used will be from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian.
This allusion references Kentucky Fried Chicken. In this case, students will explain to the
instructor where the allusion is to be identified, explain it, and have a discussion about how it is
effective.

There will be a third allusion will be shown on the slide. It will be a sentence that says His
Herculean strength made the massive weight he was carrying seem like absolutely nothing at all.

The instructor will then ask the students to answer the same three prompts in their notebooks.
After they will compare with a neighbor, and then finally discuss as a group together.

Finally, the lesson will end with a strategy related to how good readers work around allusions they
do not catch or do not realize are allusions. There will be a quote from To Kill a Mockingbird by
Harper Lee:
Jems nose wrinkled, Are we as poor as the Cunninghams?
Not exactly. The Cunninghams are country folks, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest.
Atticus said professional people were poor because the farmers were poor. As Maycomb County
was farm country, nickels and dimes were hard to come by for doctors and dentists and lawyers.
(ch 2, p. 21)

Instructor will challenge the class to identify what allusion is happening in the story. Through
discussion the technique is explaining that allusions are used as a figurative language tool to
emphasize understanding, but knowing EXACTLY what the allusion is does not hinder the overall
message of the piece of writing.

Model
Gradual Release of Responsibility (I do, We do, You do)

Application and Closure Strategy:

Formal Assessment
Students will be given half sheets of paper with two questions. One will again have a sentence
that uses allusion. The students will then have to identify the allusion, explain what is being
alluded to, and why the allusion strengthens the understanding of the passage. Instructor will then
collect the half sheets of paper when they are finished.
Closure
Class will close out with any remaining time to read with the challenge to pick out allusions in their
reading.