Target Course/Grade Level: Fifth Grade Timeline

Unit Overview Content Area: English Language Arts Unit Title: Writing ~ Memoir Target Course/Grade Level: Fifth Grade Timeline: Unit Summary: Memoir is a unique subgenre within the autobiography writing genre. While autobiographies tend to encompass the writer’s entire life span, a memoir recounts a smaller period of time in one’s life. Memoirs are written from a first person point of view and offer a personal account of an event or period of time in a person’s life in order to show an enduring quality of the writer via personal reflection. While we often think of memoirists as presidents, politicians, and others who have achieved national fame, writing a memoir is a valuable reflective experience for any writer. In this unit, students will gain an appreciation and understanding of the memoir genre through shared mentor texts and modeled narratives. Students will learn how to organize a memoir and will write a personal memoir to reflect on an important time in their own life. Primary interdisciplinary connections: Reading, Speaking and listening, Grammar, Character Education 21st century themes and skills: Creative Thinking and Problem Solving, Communication and Collaboration, Life and Career Skills: -flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social skills, productivity and accountability, leadership and responsibility Anchor Standards: Anchor Standards for Writing: Text Types and Purposes* W.3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well- chosen details, and well-structured event sequences. Production and Distribution of Writing W 4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. W.5. Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. Range of Writing W.10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audience Anchor Standards for Reading: Key Ideas and Details R.2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas. Craft and Structure R.4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone. R.6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text. Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration SL.1. Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. SL.2. Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally. SL.3. Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric. Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas SL.4. Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. SL.5. Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations. SL.6. Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. Anchor Standards for Language: Conventions of Standard English L.1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking. L.2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. Knowledge of Language L.3. Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening. Vocabulary Acquisition and Use L.5. Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings. L.6. Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to comprehension or expression. Learning Targets/Activities Domain: Writing, Reading, Speaking and Listening, Language Cluster: Text Types and Purposes,* Production and Distribution of Writing, Range of Writing, Key Ideas and Details, Craft and Structure, Comprehension and Collaboration, Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas, Conventions of Standard English, Knowledge of Language, Vocabulary Acquisition and Use Standard # Standards W.5.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective a,b,c,d,e technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences. Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description, and pacing, to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to situations. Use a variety of transitional words, phrases, and clauses to manage the sequence of events. Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely. Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events. W.5.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.) W.5.5 With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. W.5.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences. RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text. RL.5.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes. RL.5.6 Describe how a narrator’s or speaker’s point of view influences how events are described. SL.5.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led) with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly. a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion. b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles. c. Pose and respond to specific questions by making comments that contribute to the discussion and elaborate on the remarks of others. d. Review the key ideas expressed and draw conclusions in light of information and knowledge gained from the discussions. SL.5.2 Summarize a written text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally. SL.5.3 Summarize the points a speaker makes and explain how each claim is supported by reasons and evidence. SL.5.4 Report on a topic or text or present an opinion, sequencing ideas logically and using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace. SL.5.5 Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes. SL.5.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, using formal English when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 5 Language standards 1 and 3 on pages 28 and 29 for specific expectations.) L.5.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when a,b,c,d,e writing or speaking. Explain the function of conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections in general and their function in particular sentences. Form and use the perfect (e.g., I had walked; I have walked; I will have walked) verb tenses. Use verb tense to convey various times, sequences, states, and conditions. Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.* Use correlative conjunctions (e.g., either/or, neither/nor). L.5.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, a,b,c,d,e and spelling when writing. Use punctuation to separate items in a series.* Use a comma to separate an introductory element from the rest of the sentence. Use a comma to set off the words yes and no (e.g., Yes, thank you), to set off a tag question from the rest of the sentence (e.g., It’s true, isn’t it?), and to indicate direct address (e.g., Is that you, Steve?). Use underlining, quotation marks, or italics to indicate titles of works. Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed. L.5.3.a,b Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening. Expand, combine, and reduce sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style. Compare and contrast the varieties of English (e.g., dialects, registers) used in stories, dramas, or poems. L.5.5.a,b,c Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings. Interpret figurative language, including similes and metaphors, in context. Recognize and explain the meaning of common idioms, adages, and proverbs. Use the relationship between particular words (e.g., synonyms, antonyms, homographs) to better understand each of the words. L.5.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however, although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition). Unit Essential Questions Unit Enduring Understandings How can the moments of a writer's life become A memoir is a writer's medium to reveal something compelling stories? enduring and important about themselves through the How do writer's learn lessons from their own lives narration of selected moments in their life. and prior experiences? Writers use personal reflection to gain an understanding of their life and experiences and they select vignettes that demonstrate this understanding in their writing. Unit Learning Targets Students will ...  Identify characteristics of a memoir by listening to or reading a variety of mentor texts (RL.5.2, RL.5.4, RL.5.6, RL.5.10)  Narrow focus for a memoir from an assigned theme (W.5.3.a, W.8)  Use a graphic organizer to plan and organize ideas for memoirs (W.5.4, W.5)  Write a memoir following a logical sequence of recalled, event or events using a reflective process to bring meaning to the memories (W.5.3, W.5.4, W.5.5)  Break memoir into paragraphs and use effective transitions based on changes in action, dialogue, time and place (W.5.3)  Write an effective lead, trying a variety of strategies (W.5.3a)  Use vivid verbs and sensory details (W.5.3.d)  Apply standard English conventions as noted in Conventions Unit. (L.5.1.a-e, L.5.2.a-e, L.5.3.a)  Determine and comprehend the meaning of unfamiliar, content specific vocabulary (including those signaling contrast, addition, and other logical relationships) in writing. (L.5.6)  Utilize a checklist to revise the memoir (W.5.5)  Receive and possibly incorporate feedback on their writing from their peers and teacher (W.5.5)  Review and edit their work for sentence construction, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, usage and clarity (W.5.5, L.5.1, L.5.2, L.5.3)  Engage in collaborative small and whole group discussions about memoir writing modeling respected and established expectations. (SL.5.1.a-d)  Demonstrate the ability to summarize a text, information presented and the point a speaker makes using the support of reasoning/inferring and textual evidence. (SL.5.2, SL.5.3)  Share by presenting on a topic (memoir) with an audience (offering appropriate and relevant facts in a sequential order, descriptive details; speaking clearly and an understandable pace) utilizing multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sounds) and visual displays to enhance the development of the main idea. (SL.5.4, SL.5.5, SL.5.6) Learning Activities  Whole class read alouds of mentor memoir texts  Grammar instruction and mini lessons (ie: use of with targeted mini lessons on their organization, figurative language to enhance writing, reflection and theme, and writing techniques application of comma rules, use and formatting  Small group reading of mentor memoir texts of dialogue, vivid verb choice, etc.) with targeted practice activities (ie: search for  Whole group and individual brainstorming of vivid verbs, use of transitions to show changes in writing topics for memoirs within a given theme time/place, use of dialogue, theme, etc.) (ie: overcoming a fear, learning a valuable  Journal entries or short reading responses to lesson, perseverance pays off, etc.) mentor memoir texts  Planning and drafting of memoirs  Think-pair-share  Peer revision conferences and/or student-  Visualization activities for developing sensory teacher conferences details in writing  Sharing of student memoirs with class feedback

Evidence of Learning Formative Assessments · Participation in class discussion of mentor memoir texts and learning activities. · Completed graphic organizers · Exit cards · Journal entries/ reading responses to memoir texts · Grammar practice handouts and/or quizzes · Comments on memoir drafts · Peer revising/editing conferences and completed conference checklists Summative Assessments  Final draft of memoir graded with holistic rubric

RESOURCES/TECHNOLOGY Teacher Instructional Resources:  NJ Holistic Writing Rubric and Teacher Created Memoir Rubric  NJ Open Ended Response Rubric (adapted for 5th grade)  Writing organizers and planning sheets  Teacher created memoir models  What You Know First, by Patricia MacLachlan  The Writer, from New and Collected Poems, by Richard Wilbur  Memoir: The Art of Writing Well by Lucy Calkins from Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5  Lessons That Change Writers, Nancie Atwell  6 + 1 Traits of Writing: The Complete Guide to Writing, Thinking, and Learning by Ruth Culham and Beverly Ann Chin  In the Middle: New Understandings about Writing, Reading, and Learning, Nancie Atwell  Guiding Readers and Writers (Grades 3-6): Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy, Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell

Short Story Resources:  Journey, Patricia MacLachlan  “Laughter,” from The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros  Mama Sewing, Eloise Greenfield  A Girl From Yam Hill, Beverly Cleary  When I Was Young In the Mountains, Cynthia Rylant  There’s a Tarantula in My Purse: and 172 Other Pets, Jean Craighead George  The Bracelet, Yoshiko Uchida  My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother, Patricia Polacco  Thank You Mr. Faulker, Patricia Polacco  Leon’s Story, Leon Walter Tillage Integration of Technology:  Smartboard and ELMO Technology Resources: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ www.dictionary.com

Opportunities for Differentiation: Differentiation of mentor texts for classroom activities Writing organizers Selective grouping Question/discussion techniques Teacher Notes: