Lessons & Units :: Genre Studies: Biography 1st Grade Unit

Lesson 1: Historical Period

Lesson Plan

Let's Read About…Rosa Parks

Let's Read About…Rosa Parks
Learning Goal
Explain that a biography takes place during a real historical time period.
Describe the historical time period of a biography.
Duration
Approximately 50 minutes
Necessary Materials
Provided: Unit Example Chart, Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: Let’s Read About . . . Rosa Parks by Courtney Baker, chart paper, markers

  • Teacher Modeling

    will explain that I am going to read a biography. Biographies are true stories about a real person. One characteristic of a biography is that it takes place during a real time period in history. I will add this to my Characteristics of Biographies Chart (Example Chart is provided in Unit Teacher and Student Materials). A time period is a group of years that have something in common. For example, in our time period, we share ways of speaking, styles of clothing, and follow similar rules. Your parents or older relatives grew up in a different time period than you did. They wore different clothes, lived through different events, and followed different rules. I can identify the historical time period by looking for explicit clues about the time period when the story took place and by identifying situations or things that are different than they are now. I will read Let’s Read About. . . Rosa Parks by Courtney Baker and model how to identify the historical time period when Rosa Parks was growing up. I will identify the rules and culture of that period that are not part of my world today.

  • Think Check

    Ask: "How did I identify the time period of a biography?" Students should explain that you looked for clues about when the story took place, such as objects, ways of speaking, rules, and events. You looked for things that seem different than they are now.

  • Guided Practice

    will work together to identify details of Rosa Park’s historical time period by thinking about how her life is different from ours. We will reflect on the historical details we identified in the text, and add the title of the book to our chart, along with an example that we identified.

  • Independent Practice

    will identify and describe two ways life was different in Rosa Park’s time. You will explain that one characteristic of a biography is that it takes place in a real historical time period. (Independent Practice Worksheet is provided.)

Build Student Vocabulary apart

Tier 2 Word: apart
Contextualize the word as it is used in the story “There were laws that kept black people and white people apart when Rosa Parks was growing up. They were called Segregation Laws.”
Explain the meaning student-friendly definition) Apart means away from or separated. If black and white people were kept apart when Rosa Parks was growing up, it means that they were not allowed to come together and share things, like water fountains, bus seats, and tables at a restaurant.
Students repeat the word Say the word apart with me: apart.
Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts Two girls were talking in class, so I had to move their seats apart, so they could focus on their work. When my best friend moved to another city, I hated being apart. Even when I feel far apart from my brother, I know he is thinking of me at college.
Students provide examples Can you think of a time when you felt apart from something or someone? Start by saying, “I felt apart when _________________.”
Students repeat the word again. What word are we talking about? apart
Additional Vocabulary Words fair, crowded

Build Student Background Knowledge

Pause on page 14 while reading Let’s Read About . . . Rosa Parks and explain to students that African Americans were not always allowed to vote in the United States. The government added a law to the constitution, which is where the laws of the nation are written, to make sure African Americans were allowed to vote. Tell students that some states did not like this. Even after having the right to vote, some states made it harder for African Americans to vote by making them take unfair tests. If they did not pass the test, they were not allowed to vote. Rosa Parks helped people prepare for the test, so they could vote.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

(To see all of the ReadWorks lessons aligned to your standards, click here.)

User Comments

Thanks for ReadWorks, my English language Learners develop strong reading kills at the appropriate level they are at the beginning of the year, and build upon as the year progresses.

Submitted by aestes_2209200 on 11/14/16

I appreciate having access to readworks for my special needs students. I love the explicit guidance you give me on how to guide my students though their comprehension skills and strategies are very low.

Submitted by jacqueline.person on 3/25/15

Thanks, this was very helpful.

Submitted by lovettehaggard_1250729 on 2/17/15