Lessons & Units :: Cause and Effect 3rd Grade Unit

Lesson 3: Implicit Cause and Effect Relationships

Lesson Plan

The Planets | 660L

The Planets
Learning Goal
Identify implicit cause-and-effect relationships in nonfiction.
Duration
Approximately 50 minutes
Necessary Materials
Provided: Example Chart, Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: The Planets by Gail Gibbons, chart paper, markers

  • Teacher Modeling

    will explain that cause-and-effect relationships can also be found in nonfiction and can be used to understand the content of the text. I will begin reading The Planets by Gail Gibbons identifying and charting cause-and-effect relationships in the text, stopping at page 4. I will model my thinking as I identify and/or infer the cause-and-effect relationships. (Direct Teaching and Guided Practice Example Chart is provided below in Teacher and Student Materials.)

  • Think Check

    Ask: How did I identify a cause and effect relationship in the book? Students should respond that you read the text and thought about what happened and why it happened.

  • Guided Practice

    will continue reading The Planets and charting cause-and-effect relationships in the text stopping before the page about Earth. (Direct Teaching and Guided Practice Example Chart is provided below.)

  • Independent Practice

    You will listen as I read one of the remaining sections from the book. You will identify two cause-and-effect relationships from the text, labeling each cause and effect. (Independent Practice worksheet is provided below.)

    TIP: Provide students with a copy of the Independent Practice worksheet before you read the text to so that they listen for the specific implicit cause-and-effect relationships.

Build Student Vocabulary atmosphere

Tier 2 Word: atmosphere
Contextualize the word as it is used in the story During the night, it is bitter cold because Mercury doesn’t have any atmosphere to keep its heat from escaping.
Explain the meaning student-friendly definition) Atmosphere is the air or climate of a place. It is also the layer of air and gases that surround something. If Mercury doesn’t have any atmosphere, that means that Mercury does not have a layer of air to keep heat from escaping the planet.
Students repeat the word Say the word atmosphere with me: atmosphere.
Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts If I say the atmosphere is stuffy in the basement, I mean the air is stuffy in the basement. The Earth is surrounded by its atmosphere. It has a layer of gases surrounding it.
Students provide examples How would you describe the atmosphere in your room? Start by saying, “I would describe the atmosphere as _______.”
Students repeat the word again. What word are we talking about? atmosphere
Additional Vocabulary Words orbit, rotate

Build Student Background Knowledge

Pause while reading page 2 and explain to students that the sun provides the energy (light and heat) necessary to sustain life on Earth, therefore all of the planets orbit around the sun. The sun is the largest object in the Solar System. 98% of all matter (solids, liquids, and gases) in the Solar System is found within the sun. Everything else including, asteroids, planets, comets, and dust make up only 2% of the Solar System. Because the sun is so large compared to everything else, it causes other matter to rotate around it.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

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

User Comments

I have used this site on many occasions. It's FABULOUS!!!

Submitted by fozieali on 9/26/16

Looking forward to using these ideas, right now we are having snow and bad weather delays.

Submitted by rachelschuder_1195799 on 2/19/15

awesome

Submitted by kjohnson_1134070 on 2/2/15

good stuff!

Submitted by tbourne on 5/5/13

I am looking forward to completing this lesson with my students. It seems well organized with great resources and materials.

Submitted by Pam on 11/26/12