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Day 1 President Facts Paragraph

Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.5: With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus
on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.2: Write informative/explanatory texts in which they
introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding
statement or section.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.2.2: Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read
aloud or information presented orally or through other media
SS.IS.3.K-2: Gather information from one or two sources with guidance and support
from adults and/or peers.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard
English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard
English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
Objectives:
Students will use a variety of sources to gather facts about their president.
Students will be able to compile their research into a logical paragraph about their
president.
Students will write a paragraph that has a topic sentence supported by factual
information.
Students will revise their paragraph with direction from the teacher.
Students will write a grammatically correct paragraph with proper conventions.
Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities:
The teacher will have the students gather on the rug.
The teacher will read the book Picture??? George Washington to the students.
o The teacher will ask the students questions during the read-aloud.
After the book has been read, the teacher will discuss various methods of research and
ways in which information can be obtained (books, websites, encyclopedias, etc.).
o The teacher will explain how the book that was just read was used to gather 5
facts about George Washington.
The teacher will then have the students return to their seats.
The students will pull up the example facts on George Washington on the Smart Board.
The students can come up one at a time to reveal one of the facts about George
Washington.
The teacher will explain how facts about Washington were obtained from the book, and
then can be used to write a paragraph about him.
The teacher will go over some of the basics needed in the students paragraphs.
o They will need a topic sentence.
o All sentences shouldnt start with He and should be varied.
o The beginning letter of each sentence needs to be capitalized, all proper nouns
need to be capitalized, and every sentence should end in a period.
Lined paper will then be passed out to each student along with the students fact sheets.
Students can begin writing their paragraphs once they have received their paper.
In order to support diverse learning needs:

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The teacher will always be in proximity of students who need extra reminders to
stay on task, as well as to answer any questions the students may have while
they work.
o Students who need extra time to write their paragraphs can be given extra time
later in the day if necessary.
Instructional Resources and Materials:
A Picture Book of George Washington by David A. Adler
Lined paper
Pencils
Smart Board
Assessments:
The teacher will be making informal observations while the students are writing, noting
whether the students are staying focused and on task.
The teacher will collect the paragraphs at the end of the activity, assessing their writing
with a checklist.
o

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Day 2 Media Presentation
Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.6: With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of
digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.1: Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or
book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion,
use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide
a concluding statement or section.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard
English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Objectives:
Students will create a media presentation to publish their findings.
Students will be able to state their opinion concerning the president they were assigned,
using the linking word because.
Students will use proper conventions of standard English on each of their slides.
Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities:
The teacher will first explain to the class the directions for the project.
o Students will take their paragraphs they had written from the previous day.
o They will use their paragraphs to make a media presentation about their
presidents.
o Students already have prior knowledge about making Google Presentations, so
the teacher will refresh the students on how to log into their Google accounts to
access the presentations tab.
o Students will have to include 5 total slides in their presentation. The teacher will
pass out a sheet with the following information on it regarding their presentations
and what they need to include:
A title slide with the name of their president, a picture of him, and their
first and last name.
The first slide will include information about his early life and/or family.
The second slide will include information about what he did as president.
The third slide will include a fun fact about their president.
The final slide will include their opinion on the president and whether or
not they thought he was a good leader and why, based upon their
research. They will use the sentence format: I think _____ was (or was
not) a good leader because _____.
The students also need a minimum of 4 pictures in their presentation.
Once the teacher has discussed the directions with the class, a small group will be taken
out of the classroom to work on their project.
Upon completion of their media presentation, students will be able to present it to the
class using the Chrome Cast and Smart Board.
In order to support diverse leaning needs:
o For students who are gifted/talented:
Students will be instructed on how to do more advanced things with their
presentations, such as how to create transition effects in their
presentation.
o For students with other learning needs:

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Some students will need extra time to complete their presentations, and
this can be given to them.
Students may also need help on how to find relevant images or how to
choose a theme or edit their slides, and will be assisted in doing so.
Instructional Resources and Materials:
Chrome Books
Students president paragraphs
Chrome Cast
Smart Board
Assessments:
The teacher will assess the students completed presentations with a rubric.

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Day 3 President Comparison, Venn Diagram
Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.7: Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g.,
read a number of books on a single topic to produce a report; record science
observations).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information
from provided sources to answer a question.
Objectives:
Students will be able to accurately fill out their Venn diagrams by comparing and
contrasting facts about their presidents.
Students will recall the information learned during the learning segment about their
presidents and share it with their partners.
The students will work cooperatively in pairs by taking turns and listening.
Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities:
The teacher will have the students sit at their desks.
The teacher will pass out Chrome Books for the students to use.
They will access their presentations through Google Docs on the Chrome Books.
The teacher will review how to complete a Venn diagram.
o The teacher will first ask the students if they recall what a Venn diagram is and
how to fill one out.
o The teacher will then complete an example Venn diagram with the class,
demonstrating how where the circles overlap, you will write similarities between
the two people. Where the circles do not overlap, differences between the two
will be written.
o The teacher will do the example diagram on the Smart Board.
The teacher will then pass out blank Venn diagrams to the students.
The students will be instructed to work together with their table partners on their
diagrams.
Students will continue to share their information between each other until they have at
least 3 differences and 2 similarities for each.
In order to support diverse leaning needs:
o For students who are gifted/talented:
Students will be allowed to fill out more than 3 differences and 2
similarities for their presidents.
o For students with other learning needs:
Some students will need assistance in coming up with ideas for
similarities and/or differences for their presidents, so the teacher can
assist them in doing so.
Instructional Resources and Materials:
Blank Venn diagrams
Chrome Books
Pencils
Smart Board
Assessments:
The teacher will use informal observation to make sure the students are staying on task
and working cooperatively with their partners.
The Venn diagrams will be collected after the activity and checked over for accuracy.

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References:
Day 1 President Facts Paragraph:
Adler, D. A. (1989). A picture book of George Washington. New York: The Trumpet Club.