Reading Lesson #2 Word Knowledge with Homophones

Reading Lesson Plan # 2: Word Knowledge (Homophones) Rationale: The three students that I have chosen for this lesson are struggling readers. According to Tompkins, there is a close relationship between vocabulary and reading fluency and achievement. Students that have a larger vocabulary will know more high frequency words and most likely have greater knowledge about how to decode difficult words. These students may not be exposed to many new words on a regular basis, especially the ELL student, who may only be very familiar with specific content vocabulary. Teaching homophones is a great way to increase student’s vocabulary and clear up any misconceptions for ELL and any students struggling with comprehension and fluency. By adding these new words, their differences, and their meanings to student’s learned vocabulary, they will be on their way to becoming better readers. Objective for this lesson (performance, condition, criteria): Students will define what a homophone is. They will create and present a homophone poster by listing the words, defining the words, illustrating the words, and using each word in context in a sentence. Materials & supplies needed: Poster board or paper, drawing materials, writing materials, list of homophones, dictionary.

Procedures and approximate time allocated for each event  • Introduction to the lesson (5 minutes) ·       “Today we are going to be talking about homophones. By the end of this lesson you will be able to define a homophone, use a homophone pair in a sentence, define each word, and illustrate each word.” ·       “Does anyone know what a homophone is?” ·       “Homophones are words that sound alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings. Waist-waste is an example of a homophone. Waist spelled this way is a part of your body near your stomach. Waste spelled this way can mean food or other things that you don’t use and you throw away.” ·       “What are some other examples of homophones that you can think of?” ·       “Why are homophones important to know?” ·       “Homophones will be important to know when reading a book or any other piece of writing. They way something is spelled can give you clues to what a sentence means and knowing lots of homophones can help everyone read quicker and with less struggling with words we don’t know. Today we are going to make posters of some different homophones!” • OUTLINE of key events during the lesson (15 minutes) ·       Each of you will get a slip of paper that looks like this. It will have the two homophones and two definitions. Your job is to decide which definition goes with which homophone. Then you need to think of a sentence that uses each homophone. ·       “Here is an example of my homophone poster. I used the homophone soared and sword. You should place one homophone on each half of the paper with the right definition and sentence. Then draw a picture that goes with that homophone. You can use the dictionary as a resource and you will have 10 minutes to complete you poster independently.” ·       The teacher will have slips of paper face down for the students to choose from. After allowing the students to work for 10 minutes the teacher will ask each student to share their poster. ·       “When you share your poster you should say your homophone, then explain what each word means, and read your sentence. What should the rest of the students be doing while one student is presenting?” • Closing summary for the lesson (10 minutes) ·       “What did we learn today about homophones?” ·       “Why do you think homophones are important for students and even adults to know?” ·       “How do you think knowing homophones will help you with your reading?” ·       “Homophones are important to know because they will help you understand the things that you read. Homophones are also vocabulary words and the more vocabulary you know the more books and texts you can read.” Ongoing-Assessment: I will assess each student’s poster to make sure it contains all of the necessary components and that the student understands the meaning of their homophone. I will evaluate the students’ answers during the closing summary to make sure they understand the criteria for homophones and how they are important for students to know when reading and writing. I will record which homophones the students have learned so that the vocabulary can be incorporated into another assignment to check for retention and comprehension.

Adaptations: Based on what you know about your focus students, what Academic, Social and/or Linguistic Support will be needed during the lesson? ·       Students with limited vocabulary of knowledge about the English language may need to look up their homophone pair in the dictionary or online for further clarification with other examples and illustrations. I will have many different examples for a wide variety of student levels.