ESOL Lesson Plan Template

Unit Title and Day: Characters and Celebrations, Day 5

Lesson Title: A Christmas Character

Grade Level(s): 2nd

Language Proficiency Level(s): Newcomers – All Level 1

Time Needed: 70 minutes

State Language Proficiency and State Content Standards:

WIDA
• ELP Standard 2: The Language of Language Arts
o Match Visuals of characters, places or objects with oral statements form
illustrated pattern or predictable books
o Describe people or objects in titles and illustrated covers of fictional
stories with a partner in L1 or L2.
o Describe people or places depicted in story pictures or wordless picture
books in small groups or pairs.
o State actions of characters or describe events depicted in story pictures of
wordless picture books in small groups or pairs.
o Describe characters or settings of stories from picture books.
o Match voice to print by pointing to icons, letters or
illustrated words
o Cross-check pictures with phonics clues with a partner
o Use phonics clues to sound out illustrated words in context
o Pair rhyming words from illustrated charts or displays with
a partner
o Blend sounds together to make words, shown visually
o Remove or add sounds to existing words to make new
words, shown visually (e.g. “Cover up the t in cart. What
do you have now?”)
o Generate lists of word families from illustrated models.

DCPS
• Social Studies
o 2.1.2 – Locate the continents, regions or countries from which students,
parents, guardians, grandparents, or other relatives or ancestors came to
Washington, DC.
o 2.5.1 – Distinguish traditional food, customs, sports and games, music
from other countries that can be found in the U.S. today.
o 2.5.2 – Describe beliefs, customs, ceremonies and traditions of varied
cultures, drawing from folklore.
 • English/ Language Arts
o 2.LT – U.1 – Identify major and minor characters in several stories.
o 2.LT – F.7 – Describe the characters’ traits in a story
o 2.LT – C.4 – Make relevant connections between earlier events and later
events in text
o 2.IT – E.2- Answer questions about text heard or read.
o 2.BR – P.11 Know and use word families
o 2.EL.6 – Spell – high frequency irregular words correctly, basic short
vowel, long vowel, “r” controlled, and consonant blends patterns in words,
and orthographic patterns and rules, consonant doubling, dropping “e’, and
changing “y” to “i”.
o 2.BR – P.5 – Apply the most common letter sound correspondences
including the sounds represented by single letters, consonant blends,
consonant diagraphs and vowel diagraphs and diphthongs

Instructional Objectives:

Social Studies
• SWBAT describe common traditions practiced on Christmas.

ELA
• SWBAT identify the difference between short “i” and short “u”
cvc words.
• SWBAT describe a character’s traits in a story in writing.

Essential Questions:
• How do people celebrate Christmas?
• What holidays do you celebrate and what do you do on these
special days?
• How can we describe a character by writing about him or her?

Instructional Materials:
• Picture word cards (Santa, people opening presents, Christmas
tree, letter to Santa)
• “Phonics Street” by Hampton Brown - read-alone short “i” and
“u” phonics stories
• “Phonics Street” by Hampton Brown Phonics picture short “i” and
short “u” word cards (see LP2, WS1 and LP4, WS2/WS3)
• Post-it notes with “i” or “u” on them (on for each student).
• Truffle’s Christmas by Anna Currey
• Student writing journals
• Phonics Progress Assessment for short “i” and short “u” (see
LP5, R1)
Set Induction (15 minutes):
 • Read objectives (in letter format to students)
• Indicate on our unit map that students have already described
characters by talking about them and have been able to
understand characters better by listening to descriptions of them
and now it is their turn to write about characters. Explain that
we will also talk about the holiday Christmas. Explain that it is
important for them to be able to write about stories and
traditions so that they can communicate with their classmates
and teachers and express important information about their own
traditions.
• As part of the daily review of the date, look at the calendar and
point out Christmas. Explain that this holiday is celebrated by
some people of the Christian religion and that one way they
celebrate the holiday is by putting up a Christmas tree as they
see in the picture on the calendar.
• Hold a discussion about Christmas and what traditions are
practiced on that day. Because all three students celebrate
Christmas, they will hopefully be able to explain a couple of
things they do on this day.
o Discussion will be prompted by showing students picture
word cards of (all of which are relevant to the book read in
class together):
 Santa
 Presents (particularly people opening presents)
 Christmas Tree
 A letter to Santa
o Ask questions such as:
 What do you do on Christmas?
 Do you believe in Santa?
 What presents do you like to receive on Christmas or
on any other special day?
 What else do you know about Christmas?
o Finish discussion by telling students that you will read
about a mouse named Truffle and how he celebrates
Christmas.

Lesson Content/Skills/Teaching & Learning Strategies

(Procedures):
• Phonics Review (20 minutes):
o Ask students to recall the chants for the short “i” and short
“u” words. Sing these twice together.
o Have students do a popcorn reading of each of the short
“i” and short “u” phonics stories from the Hampton Brown
“Phonics Street” series.
 o Mix up phonics picture short “i” and short “u” word cards
(see LP2, WS1 and LP4, WS2/WS3) and place them in a
bag. Pick pictures out of the bag and read them aloud to
students. Students may not see the spelling of the words,
but they can look at the pictures if they are confused. Ask
students to determine if the word is a short “i” or a short
“u” cvc word (ask: “what sound do you hear in the
middle?”) depending on which they think, they will hold up
either a post it with a “u” on it or a post it with an “i” on it.
This will serve as a check for understanding.
• Main Reading Lesson (25 minutes):
o Introduction to New Material:
 A detailed introduction to the read aloud is not
necessary because of the discussion that took place
during the Set Induction. However, teacher should
explain that now we are going to read a book about a
mouse name Truffle and a problem he had on
Christmas.
 Explain that you will fill in the Character Traits/Event
T-Chart they are already used to filling in and that
after they are going to write about the character and
the chart will help them.
o Guided Practice:
 Teacher will read the book Truffle’s Christmas aloud
to the class.
• During reading, teacher will show students an
actual hoola hoop and a blanket (which are the
two things that Truffle wants for Christmas).
• Ask students: “Which does Truffle need more?
A hoola hoop or a blanket for his family?”
 Teacher will ask student volunteers to help fill in the
T-Chart on the board.
 Once the T-Chart is filled in, teacher will model how
to use the information from the chart to start writing
about the character.
• The board will look like this:
o I read the book Truffle’s Christmas by
Anna Currey. The main character is
Truffle. He is sad because he doesn’t
know what to ask form Santa for
Christmas. ..
Assessment/Closure (10 minutes):
• Instruct children to copy the initial guided writing on the board
into their Writing Journals. Then tell them that they will have to
 use the rest of the information in the chart to finish writing about
the character. Students will do this quietly and independently.
• Students will then be given a chance to draw Truffle showing one
of the character traits he demonstrates.
• While students are working on their drawings, teacher will
complete Phonics Progress Checks, for short “i” and short “u”
words, individually with students. (see LP5, R1)

Reflection:
• This lesson is a continuation of our efforts to learn about different
traditions and holidays around the world. Although the mouse story
does not shed particular light on a particular culture, it does
demonstrate important Christmas traditions.
• Just as we began the unit with a holiday that was familiar to the
Vietnamese students, we will end it with one they do celebrate so
that it is easier for them to remember and internalize what this unit
was about