Artifact 4

This unit plan was developed as a part of my Language Arts and Literacy course. This unit was designed to be used with literature circles. The books are all from the genre of historical fiction and deal with the American Revolution. This makes this unit integrate with the social studies curriculum. The unit includes lessons for books that are below, above, and on grade level. The students are expected to read sections of the book and then complete their assigned jobs. The jobs include Discussion Director, Passage Picker, Word Wizard, Character Sketcher, and Investigator. After reading and then completing the jobs, the students would the be asked to discuss and teach their job to the rest of their groups.
The literature circles unit is an excellent way to teach literature to students on various grade levels. The unit allows students to work at a pace which is comfortable for them and share what they learn with other students. The unit corresponds to the NC Standard Course of Study for Language Arts in the fourth grade. Students are allowed to explore a wide range of texts, expand their vocabulary through wide reading, communicate effectively through spoken and written formats, use media ant technology resources for research, and apply comprehension strategies critically, creatively, and strategically.
This literature circles unit includes a detailed plan with examples to help teachers begin modeling the unit for their students. Teachers are able to select and create learning experiences that are appropriate for curriculum goals through the various jobs the students are assigned in literature circles. The unit is relevant to learners on various levels, based upon principles of effective teaching and learning, and incorporates the use of media and technology in the research done on computer as Investigator (12.7). Students must also refer back to the text and analyze it when answering questions brought about by their discussion and jobs (12.1)