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Opinion

Introduction Unit 1: Skatepark Unit 2: Storyteller Con Unit 3: Town Fair Related Skills

Pre-Assessment

5th No More Ants

30 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 1

Exploring Mentor Texts

5th Welcome to Storyteller Con

50 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 2

Planning

5th Plan Your Fanzine

50 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 3

Drafting

5th Add Your Evidence

50 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 4

Drafting & Revising

5th Explain Your Evidence

50 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 5

Introduction & Conclusion

5th Introduce Your Fanzine

50 min

Standards Aligned

Lesson 6

Editing & Publishing

5th Design Your Fanzine

35 min

Standards Aligned

Post-Assessment

5th Shaken Up

30 min

Standards Aligned

About this Unit

Students write a four-paragraph literary essay about a theme from a story. Students develop a thesis statement, use story events as reasons, and back their thinking up with evidence and explanations.

Print all student worksheets

Standards

L.5.2
RL.5.1
RL.5.2
W.5.1
W.5.1A
W.5.1B
W.5.1C
W.5.1D
W.5.4
W.5.5
W.5.9
W.5.9A

Pre-Assessment: Pre-Assessment

complete a miniature writing process.

read a narrative short story to determine theme.

gather information, plan, and write a complete opinion text/literary essay.

have their writing evaluated according to teacher rubrics and student self-assessment.

Number of students:

Storyteller Con: Pre-Assessment worksheet	30 copies
Storyteller Con: Student Checklist worksheet	30 copies
Storyteller Con: Teacher Rubric worksheet	30 copies

Prep Instructions

This activity can be used as a way to see student progress before the unit begins. This activity can also be used as a practice activity if not scored.

The standards-based Teacher Rubric for the pre- and post-assessment is the same. Try this: Score student pre-assessments in one color on the rubric. Use a different color on the same rubric to score the post-assessment later on. A quick glance will show student growth and areas for further support.

The Student Checklist for the pre- and post-assessment is the same and can be used as a student self-assessment to guide revision or to set future writing goals.

Lesson 1: Exploring Mentor Texts

read a short story.

read a literary essay about the story.

identify the key elements in a literary essay including: introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

identify text evidence and explanations that support the thesis/theme in the essay.

Number of students:

Fanzine A worksheet	15 copies
Fanzine B worksheet	15 copies
Marco's Hat worksheet	30 copies
Highlighter Each student needs two different colors.	60

Prep Instructions

Marco’s Hat is a three-page worksheet and can be stapled together into a packet to help students with paper management.

If different colored highlighters are not available, colored pencils or crayons can be used instead.

Lesson 2: Planning

read a story and determine a theme.

create a plan for a literary essay that includes a thesis, reasons, and evidence.

Number of students:

OPTIONAL SUPPLIES
Aiko's Voice worksheet	30 copies
Fanzine Planning worksheet	30 copies
Storyteller Con: Sample Fanzine Plans teacher-only resource This can be used as an example or to support students who need help creating their plans.	1 copy

Prep Instructions

Each worksheet in this unit will be used across multiple lessons. These worksheets are labeled as VIPs (Very Important Papers).

We suggest teachers make sure each student has a designated location (such as a folder) to store papers between lessons.

Aiko’s Voice is a three-page worksheet and can be stapled together into a packet to help students with paper management.

Lesson 3: Drafting

draft a body paragraph.

include a reason, evidence, and thesis statement.

use quotes from the text to support the thesis statement.

Number of students:

Fanzine Body 1 Draft worksheet	30 copies
Aiko's Voice from previous lesson	30
Fanzine Planning from previous lesson	30

Prep Instructions

Students will need to bring their completed work from the previous lessons to this lesson.

If some time has passed since students read the story, Aiko’s Voice, we recommend reading the story again with your class before the lesson.

Lesson 4: Drafting & Revising

draft a body paragraph.

include a reason, evidence, and thesis statement.

include an explanation after each quote.

revise first body paragraph to add explanations.

Number of students:

Fanzine Body 2 Draft worksheet	30 copies
Aiko's Voice from previous lesson	30
Body 1 Draft from previous lesson	30
Fanzine Planning from previous lesson	30

Prep Instructions

Students will need to bring their completed work from the previous lessons to this lesson.

If some time has passed since students read the story, Aiko’s Voice, we recommend reading the story again with your class before the lesson.

Lesson 5: Introduction & Conclusion

write an introduction that includes a hook, a brief summary, and a thesis statement.

write a conclusion that reviews the key points of the essay and suggests a takeaway for the reader.

Number of students:

Fanzine Conclusion worksheet	30 copies
Fanzine Introduction worksheet	30 copies
Body 1 Draft from previous lesson	30
Body 2 Draft from previous lesson	30
Fanzine Planning from previous lesson	30
Stapler	1

Prep Instructions

Students will need to bring their completed work from the previous lessons to this lesson.

If some time has passed since students read the story Aiko’s Voice, we recommend reading the story again with your class before the lesson.

Lesson 6: Editing & Publishing

review work to edit and focus on fixing punctuation, capitalization and spelling.

use quotation marks to denote direct quotes.

review and revise fragments to make complete sentences.

Number of students:

Final Fanzine Cover worksheet	30 copies
Final Fanzine (digital) worksheet	30 copies
Final Fanzine Pages worksheet	30 copies
Body 1 Draft from previous lesson	30
Body 2 Draft from previous lesson	30
Conclusion from previous lesson	30
Introduction from previous lesson	30
Stapler	1

Prep Instructions

Students will need to bring their completed work from the previous lessons to this lesson.

This lesson is separated into two parts and can be taught in two different sessions if needed. A natural stopping point is included after students are prompted to recopy onto their final fanzines.

We recommend printing extra fanzine pages for students with longer essays who may need more writing space.

The step-by-step instructions for how to assemble the final fanzines are provided in the second half of this lesson.

Students can recopy their work by hand, or type by making a copy of the digital worksheet. If you choose to let students type their fanzines, be sure they are printed out before completing the second half of this lesson.

Post-Assessment: Post-Assessment

complete a miniature writing process.

read a narrative short story to determine theme.

gather information, plan, and write a complete opinion text/literary essay.

have their writing evaluated according to teacher rubrics and student self-assessment.

Number of students:

Storyteller Con: Post-Assessment worksheet	30 copies
Storyteller Con: Student Checklist worksheet	30 copies
Storyteller Con: Teacher Rubric worksheet	30 copies

Prep Instructions

This activity can be used as a way to see student progress after the unit ends. This activity can also be used as a practice activity if not scored.

The standards-based Teacher Rubric for the pre- and post-assessment is the same. Try this: Score student pre-assessments in one color on the rubric. Use a different color on the same rubric to score the post-assessment later on. A quick glance will show student growth and areas for further support.

The Student Checklist for the pre- and post-assessment is the same and can be used as a student self-assessment to guide revision or to set future writing goals.

Opinion

Storyteller Con

Pre-Assessment

5th No More Ants

Exploring Mentor Texts

5th Welcome to Storyteller Con

Planning

5th Plan Your Fanzine

Drafting

5th Add Your Evidence

Drafting & Revising

5th Explain Your Evidence

Introduction & Conclusion

5th Introduce Your Fanzine

Editing & Publishing

5th Design Your Fanzine

Post-Assessment

5th Shaken Up

About this Unit

Pre-Assessment: Pre-Assessment

Lesson 1: Exploring Mentor Texts

Lesson 2: Planning

OPTIONAL SUPPLIES

Lesson 3: Drafting

Lesson 4: Drafting & Revising

Lesson 5: Introduction & Conclusion

Lesson 6: Editing & Publishing

Post-Assessment: Post-Assessment

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