When I was teaching at St. Paul's, I was required to submit a lesson plan for each of my classes at the beginning of the week. My plans would be posted online to guide students and parents through the days until Friday. Usually, each day would say something like "Read Chapter 18 - discuss," or "Begin Vocab. Unit #8; edit setting paragraph." Period, amen. I suspect that I would have had to go into much more detail about my plans had the effectiveness of my plans been in question. As things stood, the administration and parents trusted me enough that this skeletal outline was all the documentation required.
Behold how times change: Below, I've pasted in one of the LISPs (Literary Intervention Session Plan) that I have to write twice a week to guide my sessions with my six-year-old client. After implementing all of the things detailed in the LISP, I have to write an SAS (Session Assessment Summary), which contains information about the client's performance in each of the areas I targeted. A typical SAS is 1.5 to 2 times the length of a LISP. I'm not certain whether I'll have to go into this much detail in my professional life when I plan, should I decided to become a literacy coach, reading specialist, or go into private practice; if so, it's enough to make me lean towards housewifery.
Literacy Intervention Session Plan #7
Goals for the Semester and Objectives for Session:
1. To improve alphabetic knowledge
a. The client will say the alphabet in sequence. {1a}
b. The client will put lowercase letters in alphabetical order. {1b}
c. The client will write the lowercase letters in alphabetical order. {1c}
2. To improve sight word knowledge
a. The client will identify differences between that and this. {2a}
b. The client will recognize that and this with automaticity. {2b}
c. The client will spell that and this correctly. {2c}
3. To develop decoding skills
a. The client will blend different onsets with the rimes –et, -en, and -eg. {3a}
b. The client will identify words from the –at, -ot, and -it families. {3b}
4. To develop encoding skills
a. The client will separate the onset from words in the –et, -en, and -eg families. {4a}
b. The client will spell words from the –et, -en, and -eg families. {4b}
5. To improve reading comprehension
a. The client will identify a problem faced by characters in The Cat in the Hat. {5a}
6. To strengthen written expression
a. The client will answer a yes/no opinion question.{6a}
b. The client will list text-based reasons for his answer to an opinion question on a graphic organizer. {6b}
Materials:
Paper and pencil, chart with upper- and lowercase letters of alphabet written on it (practitioner created), cards with lowercase letters written on them from previous session, sight word ring, cards from the Words Their Way Word Study Notebook (–et, -en, and -eg families), Word Family log sheet (practitioner created), laptop with Internet access, story map graphic organizer from Scholastic.com, "The Ugly Duckling" (practitioner adapted), The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss (with one photocopied page), colored pencils, opinion question graphic organizer (practitioner created)
Procedures:
I. Familiar Text Time
The client will either read or tell the practitioner about The Christmas Bear.
II. Skill and Strategy Instruction
A. Alphabetic Knowledge
1. The client will recite the alphabet, using his finger to follow the alphabet chart. {1a}
2. The client will put cards with lowercase letters on them in alphabetical order, making reference to the chart if necessary. {1b}
3. The client will recite the alphabet again, using his finger to follow the cards as he checks his work. {1a}
4. The client will write the uppercase letters of the alphabet in order. {1c}
B. Sight Word Knowledge
1. The practitioner will show the client that and this on cards. They will discuss the differences/similarities between the two words. {2a}
2. The client will practice reading the words several times. {2b}
3. The practitioner will write that on a piece of paper.
4. The client will look at that and read it out loud.
5. The client will trace the letters with his finger while saying the letters aloud.
6. The client will close his eyes and visualize the word, spelling it aloud.
7. The client will sky write the word, saying the letters aloud.
8. The client will write the word three times on paper.
9. The client will write the word from memory. {2c}
10. The client will repeat these steps with this. {2a}, {2b}, {2c}
11. The practitioner will give the following dictations, using words from his word ring and today's new words: Who wants this? Can I get help with that? {1a}
12. If the client spells the new words correctly, he will add them to his ring. Any words he misspells will be taken off the ring and added to a list for further practice.
C. Decoding and Encoding
1. The client will sort picture cards from the Words Their Way Word Study Notebook from the -et, -en, and -eg families. He will check his work by saying the names of the pictures in each column.
2. The client will match another set of word cards to each picture, labeling it. Then the client will read the word cards in each column. {3a}
3. The client will copy the words from one of the families into the first column of a Word Family log sheet.
4. The client will write the words again, separating the onsets from the rimes. {4a}
5. The client will move his finger from the Onset column to the Rime column as he blends the two into a word. {3b}
6. The client will play "Missing Letter" on the SpellingCity.com website, using the eleven words from the cards. {4b}
D. Reading Comprehension
Review: The client will state the title, author, characters, and setting of The Cat in the Hat.
1. The practitioner will explain the term "problem" as it relates to story grammar.
2. The practitioner will read "The Ugly Duckling." The client will help to fill in the parts of the story map he has learned in previous sessions. The practitioner will model the process of identifying the problem in the story.
E. Written Expression
1. The practitioner will model filling out a graphic organizer in preparation for writing a response to the following opinion question: Would you like to ride a fast roller coaster? The practitioner will elicit the client's help in writing one or two reasons why it would be a good or bad idea (or a combination of both) in two columns, one labeled with a smiling face and one with a frowning face.
2. The practitioner will allow the client to choose from the following prompts: Would you like it to be Christmas every day? Would you like to have a pet elephant? Would you be happy if school was cancelled forever? Would you like it to be summer all year? The client will answer the question and then use a graphic organizer to plan an answer to the question using reasons to justify his answer. {6a}, {6b}
III. Guided Reading
Review: The practitioner will ask the client to define "problem," and explain the problem in "The Ugly Duckling."
1. The practitioner will ask the client to think about The Cat in the Hat and name the main problem. {5a}
2. The client will continue to read The Cat in the Hat and will add the second main problem in the story. {5a}
IV. Written Expression
Review: The practitioner will remind the client of the graphic organizers used earlier in the lesson. 1. The practitioner will present the client with the question Would you like the Cat in the Hat to visit your house?
2. The client will answer the question, then use events from The Cat in the Hat to explain his answer. The practitioner will encourage the client to refer back to the book to remind him of the events as he identifies his reasons. {6a}, {6b}
V. Personalized Reading
The client will read through The Christmas Bear or the story he dictated during the last session, or, if he chooses, select a new book from the Home Book Depot.
Criteria for Evaluation:
1. The client will say the alphabet in sequence. {1a}
2. The client will put lowercase letters in alphabetical order. {1b}
3. The client will write the lowercase letters in alphabetical order. {1c}
4. The client will identify differences between that and this. {2a}
5. The client will recognize that and this with automaticity. {2b}
6. The client will spell that and this correctly. {2c}
7. The client will blend different onsets with the rimes –et, -en, and -eg. {3a}
8. The client will identify words from the –at, -ot, and -it families. {3b}
9. The client will separate the onset from words in the –et, -en, and -eg families. {4a}
10. The client will spell words from the –et, -en, and -eg families. {4b}
11. The client will identify a problem faced by characters in The Cat in the Hat. {5a}
12. The client will answer a yes/no opinion question. {6a}
13. The client will list text-based reasons for his answer to an opinion question. {6b}
