Grade: Grade 3 Subject: English Language Arts Created by: Patricia Cunningham Lesson Length: 2 hours Keywords/Tags: reading, writing, context clues, the big game Lesson Description: The goal of this lesson is to give students the opportunity to use reading and writing skills. Students will use context clues, read and reread passages, and focus their reading to answer questions based on the passage. This lesson gives students an opportunity to see the importance of rereading important passages and how using context clues can give insight into the story.
Common Core Standards Covered with This Lesson
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.3: Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.4: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.2c: Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.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.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.4a: Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
Lesson Content: Reading
Instructions: Please read the following reading passage as many times as needed (aloud and silent) before starting to go through other lesson pages. Understanding the content of this passage is very important since the lesson activities will be all about this content. Feel free to print the passage if needed.
The Big Game
It was Friday. The football game was Saturday and we were very excited. My brother was going to be the quarterback for our team. It was the first time he would be in that position. He had been hoping to be quarterback ever since he joined the team. He said, “That’s the big job. That’s the one that makes the big difference.”
My mother said, “Be careful, son. That’s the big target, too. You know the other players want to sack you. You can get hurt.”
“Don’t worry; I’m tough and I’m fast. Plus, I have great players who will block them.”
That night I couldn’t sleep well. I worried about my brother. My mother was right. He could get hurt.
The next morning, he left early to get to the game. When we got there, it was about to start. The team ran out on the field. He looked great. He saw us and waved.
Then it started. They were playing hard. One player in particular from the other team kept rushing at him. Then it happened. He knocked my brother down. My brother was slow to get up. My mother was screaming. The coach ran out on the field. He told my brother to take some time on the bench. He was afraid he had been hurt.
My mother ran down to check on my brother. But all he did was smile. “It’s just a bruise. I’m fine. And don’t worry, I’ll be back. This is great. I love leading the team.”
My mother was so worried then, but my brother was right. He plays quarterback every Saturday. She can’t go to the games. She just waits at home and hopes to see him walking in smiling.
Task 1: Vocabulary Activity
(20 points)
Instructions: Please complete the following vocabulary activity by choosing the correct meaning of each word selected from the passage and use of each word correctly in a sentence.
Vocabulary Questions
Word/Phrase: quarterback | Tier: 3 | Points: 5
Q1
The author of the story says, "My brother was going to be the quarterback for our team..." What does quarterback mean in this sentence?
A. A baseball player
B. A wrestler
C. A football player *
D. A soccer player
Which sentence below correctly uses the word "quarterback"?
A. When the cashier gave me change, she gave me a quarterback.
B. Someday I want to be a quarterback on a national football team. *
C. On Wednesdays I go to baseball practice; I am a quarterback for my team.
D. I don't like the quarterback on my city's soccer team.
Word/Phrase: sack you | Tier: 3 | Points: 5
Q2
In the story, the author says, "You know the other players want to sack you..." What does the phrase "sack you" mean in this sentence?
A. To hurt someone *
B. To help someone
C. To scream at someone
D. To walk into someone
Which sentence below correctly uses the phrase "sack you" based on the use in the story?
A. Since I walked into someone at school, I said "I'm sorry I sacked you."
B. The team's coach was yelling at my friends team; later on I asked him, "Why was the coach sacking you?"
C. During the football game, I heard someone from my team yell, "We're going to sack you!" *
D. The woman at the store dropped her bag, so I asked "Do you need me to sack you with the bags you dropped?"
Word/Phrase: position | Tier: 2 | Points: 5
Q3
What does the author mean by "position" in the sentence, "My brother was going to be the quarterback for our team. It was the first time he would be in that position..."?
A. He has never been in that situation.
B. He has never played football before.
C. He has never been in that town before.
D. He has never been in that spot on the team before. *
Which one of the sentences below correctly uses the word "position" based on the story?
A. I'm new to this town. I'm not sure where the position of my school is?
B. He had never been a pitcher before until that game; it's his favorite position in baseball now. *
C. I've never played football before; I'm new to that position.
D. I've never been in a position of losing a game.
Word/Phrase: worried | Tier: 2 | Points: 5
Q4
In the story the author says, "My mother was so worried then, but my brother was right." What does the word "worried" mean in this sentence?
A. She's happy.
B. She's sad.
C. She's scared. *
D. She doesn't care.
Which sentence correctly uses the word "worried"?
A. She was so worried she would lose her purse. *
B. I was so worried when we finally found my lost puppy!
C. I was so worried when it rained outside before I got to go swimming.
D. He was so worried when he finally won the game.
Standards Covered with This Lesson Activity: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.4, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.4, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.4a,
Task 2: Discussion Activity
(30 points)
Instructions: This discussion forum will have questions for students to respond. Read the posted questions, and respond to each. Students are responsible for posting one initial and and two peer responses for each topic.
Topic Title
Replies
Why does the quarterback make the biggest difference in football?
In the passage, the brother says the quarterback is the most important in the football team and makes the biggest difference. In your groups, discuss why you think a quarterback is the most important based on the passage you read then write your answer on your own paper.
Sent on: Oct 4, 2015 by: Patricia Cunningham
0
The mother says, "Be careful, son. You could be hurt"...
In the passage, the mother says "Be careful, son. You could be hurt." Do you think her worry for her son is proven throughout her story? Why or why not?
Sent on: Oct 4, 2015 by: Patricia Cunningham
0
The brother's relationship with the mother is based on...
The mother is always worried about the brother getting hurt in football. The brother comforts the mother by saying, "It's just a bruise. I'll be fine. And don't worry, I'll be back..." What can you tell about their relationship based on the passage? Do you think the mother trusts her son? Why or why not?
Sent on: Oct 4, 2015 by: Patricia Cunningham
0
Standards Covered with This Lesson Activity: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.3, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.1,
Task 3: Writing Activity
(50 points)
Instructions: You are to write 2 paragraphs on the positive and the negative effects football has on the brother's life. Include a paragraph on the effects football would have on the mother as well.
Standards Covered with This Lesson Activity: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.2, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.2c,
