Grade 3: A Bad Case of Bullying - Using Literature Response Groups
Rating: 
Common Core Standards
Reading Literature
RL.3.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
RL.3.5 Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
RL.3.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 2-3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Reading Foundational Skills
RF.3.4 Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
RF.3.4(a) Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
RF.3.4(c) Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Writing
W.3.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
W.3.2(c) Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.
W.3.2(d) Provide a concluding statement or section.
W.3.4 With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and purpose.
W.3.5 With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
Speaking & Listening
SL.3.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
SL.3.1(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.
SL.3.1(b) Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).
SL.3.1(c) Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
SL.3.1(d) Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.
SL.3.2 Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Language
L.3.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
L.3.4(a) Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
L.3.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
L.3.5(a) Distinguish the literal and nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).
L.3.5(b) Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful).
L.3.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
Description of Lesson
This lesson plan intended for Grades 3-5 titled “A Bad Case of Bullying: Using Literature Response Groups” from readwritethink.org has an estimated ELA/Literacy instructional time of three 40-minute sessions. The emphasis of this lesson is for students to listen to an interactive teacher read-aloud, participate in class discussions, reflect on text-dependent questions, and make personal connections in journals to share in literature response groups.
Cautions
Connecticut teachers should be aware that no formal rubrics are included to measure student performance. While the checklists included in the plan do list educational expectations for assessment, they are not aligned to CCSS. This plan would be most appropriate at the start of the school year in Grade 3 due to the 540 Lexile level of the text.
Rationale for Selection
This lesson plan is a good example of how to integrate reading, writing, speaking and listening so that students apply and synthesize advancing literacy skills. The lessons cultivate student interest and engagement, address instructional expectations, and are easy to understand and use. Through technology, students enhance their understanding and ability to make deeper connections. Lessons are designed to elicit direct, observable evidence of the degree to which students can independently demonstrate the targeted CCSS standards.