KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

LESSON PLAN FORMAT

Teacher Candidate:
Cooperating Teacher:
Group Size:

27

Subject or Topic:

Marissa Weidner
Mr. Abruzzi

Date:

Coop. Initials

Allotted Time 20 Minutes

Community Helpers

11/24/14

Grade Level

Section

1st Grade

932

STANDARD:
5.1.1.A: Explain the purposes of rules in the classroom and school community.
5.3.1.C: Identify the value of fire fighters, police officers and emergency workers in the
community.
CC.1.4.1.A: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and
information.
CC.1.2.1.B: Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CC.1.2.1.C: Describe the connection between two individual, events, ideas, or pieces of
information in a text.
I. Performance Objectives (Learning Outcomes):
The first grade students will be able to identify helpers in their community and describe
the jobs that they do and how they help others.
II.Instructional Materials
Career Day by Anne Rockwell
Community Helpers Paper
Community Helpers Sorting/matching
Community Helpers Graphic Organizer
Smartboard
Kidwriting Journal
III.Subject Matter/Content (prerequisite skills, key vocabulary, big idea)
Prerequisite Skills
Students can identify jobs and what they do.
Students can follow multiple step directions.
Write complete sentences.
Students can identify and write about their personal connections.

 Reading ability.
Key Vocabulary
Community: A place where people live, work and play.
Community Helpers: People in the community whos jobs are to help others to have a
safe and happy community.
Responsibility: Your job within a group.
Role: Your position in a group.
Big Idea:
It takes many individuals to create a successful community. A community would not run
smoothly without the help of everyone involved. It is important to understand how each
person has an effect on their community around them.
IV.Implementation
A. Introduction
I am going to read a book to you called Career Day by Anne Rockwell and
I want you to listen for the different jobs that you hear in the story.
B. Development
Stop after every other page to talk about the jobs that appeared in the book.
Ask students questions like, What do they do? How do they help you?
After you read the book, introduce the term community.
Do any of you know what community means? A community is where
people live, learn, work and play. It is a group of people who share the same
things like where they live, language, interests, and many other things.
In a community there are people called community helpers. These
community helpers are the people who have similar jobs in this book. Im
going to list a few of them on the board.
Many of these community helpers were in this book!
Pull up the matching/sorting game on the smartboard.
Have students match the community helper to the specific task that they do.
Mr. Abruzzi and I have both gotten help from a community helper. We are
going to tell you some stories and we want you to to guess who the
community helper would be.
C. Closure
Now I want you to close your eyes and think about someone who has really
helped you. Someone you look up to. A police officer, firefighter, a teacher,
a doctor...
Ok open your eyes. Whisper to a friend sitting next to you what you
thought of.
Dismiss them to their centers.

Writing Center (about 20 minutes each)

Advanced Writers
Bring students over to the kid writing station.
Remind students what a community and community helper is.
Hand out the graphic organizers and make sure that they write their names at the top.
Explain to the students that today they are going to write their first research paper.
Give them a selection of books to choose from.
Let them have about a minute to decide which book they would like to use to help them
write their paper.
Once they have decided on the book and community helper they want to write about,
have them complete the first step of writing on sentence about what they already know.
Then have them start reading the book and tell them that if they find something
interesting, they can write it down in the graphic organizer.
Once they have finished, they can write their personal connection.
Have them go back and read all of their sentences to check their work.
Once they have finished, have them write a rough draft in their journals.
Their final draft will go on a special community helper paper.
On-Level Writers
Bring students over to the kid writing station.
Remind students what a community and community helper is.
Hand out the graphic organizers and make sure that they write their names at the top.
Explain to the students that today they are going to write their first research paper.
Have them choose from a few selected books to decide which one they want to use and
the community helper they are interested in.
Once they have decided on the book and community helper they want to write about,
have them complete the first step of writing on sentence about what they already know.
Then have them start reading the book and tell them that if they find something
interesting, they can write it down in the graphic organizer.
Once they have finished, they can write their personal connection.
Have them go back and read all of their sentences to check their work.
Once they have finished, have them write a rough draft in their journals.
Their final draft will go on a special community helper paper.
Below-Level Writers
Bring students over to the kid writing station.
Remind students what a community and community helper is.
Hand out the graphic organizers and make sure that they write their names at the top.
Explain to the students that today they are going to write their first research paper.
Tell them that they are going to help you find out more about firefighters.
Have them write a sentence about what they already know about firefighters.

 Then introduce the book you are going to read to them. Read the whole thing once and
then read it again.
Remind them that when they hear something interesting that they should write it down
on their graphic organizer.
Help the students as they are writing and stop after each page.
Have them write a personal connection.
Have them use their kid writing journals to write a rough draft, and then use the
community helper paper for their final draft.
D. Accommodations/Differentiation
For students having a difficult time listing the facts that they have found in the
text, give them a list of key words to listen for. Then have them create a list of
2 new words or ideas that they heard in the text.

E. Assessment/Evaluation Plan
1. Formative: Collect their final draft of their research papers. Used rubric to
assess their work.
2. Summative: Create an anecdotal record to record if the students are
completing their written work and understand the text that they are reading.
V.Reflective Response
A. Report of Students Performance in Terms of Stated Objectives (after
lesson is taught)
During the lesson, all of the students were participating and answering the
questions that I was asking them. I asked them questions about the jobs in
the story and they were all able to answer them.
During the matching game, the students were able to identify the job
description to the community helper. Only one student had difficulty
identifying a community helper to its job description and I helped them
answer it with prompting.
When students were asked to write a research paper and to use the graphic
organizer, 3 of them had a hard time writing facts from the text. With
prompting, they were able to complete the graphic organizer and write their
research paper.
Overall, 24 out of 27 students were able to complete the graphic organizer
and write the research paper.
Remediation Plan
For the students that were struggling, I would provide extra time for them to
complete the organizer and write in their journals. I would also spend some
one-on-one time with them to make sure that they get the concept and write
complete sentences. This will help me to see their comprehension and writing
skills and if they understand the concept of a research paper.

B. Personal Reflection
Did I provide students with enough examples and background knowledge to help them
with their research?
I believe that I supplied all of the students with enough book selection to make the
research paper more fun and interesting. The students were very engaged and they
seemed to really enjoy writing the paper and using the graphic organizer. The sorting
game also helped them to get their interests sparked in community helpers.
Did I keep students engaged throughout the entire lesson?
I believe that I did because I had them answer questions throughout the read-aloud. The
sorting game also had them really engaged and working together to find the match. The
students were also able to pick topics that they were interested in and it made them want
to learn more about their community helper.
Were the students able to focus on one community helper and successfully complete the
graphic organizer to write a research paper?
Most of the students were successful with completing the graphic organizers. Their
personal connections were great and they used the text to help them identify the things
they have learned and found interesting.
VI.Resources
Community Helpers FREE Writing Paper Printable Worksheets Social Studies. (n.d.).
Retrieved November 22, 2014, from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/
Community-Helpers-FREE-Writing-Paper-Printable-Worksheets-SocialStudies-1377595
Rockwell, A., & Rockwell, L. (2000). Career day. New York: HarperCollins.
Yanong, M. (n.d.). Community Helpers Research Booklet. Retrieved November 22, 2014,
from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Community-Helpers-ResearchBooklet-330836

Name: !

Book Title: ! !

Research Paper Graphic Organizer

Directions: Complete the graphic organizer by writing complete sentences.
Topic: !

What I already Know

1.

What I Have Learned

1.
2.
3.

My Personal Connection

Name: !

Book Title: ! !

Community Helpers Graphic Organizer

Directions: Complete each section of the organizer. Write complete sentences.
Topic: !

What I Already Know

1.

What I Have Learned

1.

2.

Personal
Connection

Name:

Book Title:

Community Helpers Organizer

Directions: Complete the graphic organizer using complete sentences.
Topic:

What I Already Know

1.

What I Have Learned

1.

Personal Connection

!!

Community Helpers Sorting Game

Mail Person -------- I deliver the mail to your house.
Librarian ----------- I help you find books.
Teacher ------------ I help you learn in school.
Doctor ------------- I help people feel better and keep them
healthy.
Fire Fighter -------- I help put out fires and save people.
Police -------------- I make sure everyone is following the law
and keep people safe.
Dentist ------------- I help you to keep your teeth clean and
healthy.
Construction Worker -- I build houses and buildings.
Garbage Person ------ I keep our neighborhood clean. I pick up
the garbage from your home.
Farmer -------------- I grow food for you to eat. I raise animals
for meat, milk and eggs.
Baker --------------- I work in a bakery. I make bread and cakes.
Mechanic ------------ I fix cars that have broken down.