Curriculum / ELA / 6th Grade / Unit 1: Developing Resilience: The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963 / Lesson 20
ELA
Unit 1
6th Grade
Lesson 20 of 32
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Unpack a prompt, study a Mentor Text, and begin a plan for rewriting a scene from The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 from a new perspective.
Book: The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis — pp. 12–13 and 178–179
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Tasks that represents the peak thinking of the lesson - mastery will indicate whether or not objective was achieved
In preparation for answering the following prompt, note down the setting, characters, and main events from pages 178–179:
Kenny Watson is the narrator of The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963. The reader sees the world of the novel through Kenny's eyes, gaining access to his thoughts and feelings. What would it be like to read the same text, but from the perspective of a different character?
Your task is to rewrite the events from pages 178–179 from Byron's perspective. Your narrative must:
An example response to the Target Task at the level of detail expected of the students.
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W.6.3 — Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
W.6.5 — With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
Standards that are practiced daily but are not priority standards of the unit
L.6.6 — Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
RL.6.10 — By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6—8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
SL.6.1 — Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 6 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
SL.6.6 — Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
W.6.4 — Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
W.6.10 — Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Lesson 19
Lesson 21
Describe how author Christopher Paul Curtis establishes setting in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
RL.6.3 RL.6.6
Explain how author Christopher Paul Curtis develops the narrator’s unique point of view in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
L.6.1 RL.6.6
Explain how Christopher Paul Curtis develops Kenny’s point of view of himself and other characters.
Writing
Unpack a prompt, study a mentor text, and gather evidence in preparation for writing a paragraph response.
RL.6.3 W.6.1 W.6.5
Synthesize annotations and create a strong outline for a paragraph response.
Draft a paragraph response and revise for analysis.
RL.6.3 W.6.1.a W.6.1.b W.6.1.c W.6.5
Explain how and why characters respond and change in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
RL.6.3
Explain how author Christopher Paul Curtis develops the point of view of his narrator and other characters in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
RL.6.6
Provide an objective summary of a nonfiction text.
RI.6.2
Provide an objective summary and determine the central idea of a nonfiction article.
Write an objective summary of a section of text in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
RL.6.2
Explain how author Christopher Paul Curtis develops the point of view of his narrator and characters through word choice.
RL.6.4 RL.6.6
Explain the impact of literary devices and how they help develop mood and meaning in the poem "The Children's Hour."
L.6.5 L.6.5.a RL.6.4
Gather evidence and create an outline in response to a writing prompt.
RL.6.9 W.6.1 W.6.5
Draft and revise a paragraph response, focusing on writing strong claims, analysis, and introducing evidence effectively.
RL.6.9 W.6.1 W.6.1.a W.6.1.b W.6.1.c
Write an objective summary of a section of The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
Explain the purpose and impact of the "Green Book” using text, audio, and visual resources.
RI.6.7
Explain how author Christopher Paul Curtis develops and contrasts characters’ perspectives in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
Determine the meaning of unfamiliar words using context clues, and then check the accuracy of inferred definitions using a reference text.
L.6.4 L.6.4.a L.6.4.c L.6.4.d RL.6.4
Explain how characters respond and change as the plot of The Watsons go to Birmingham –1963 progresses.
W.6.3 W.6.5
Outline and draft narratives.
W.6.3 W.6.3.a W.6.3.b W.6.5
Revise narratives for descriptive language and sensory details, and identify the cases of pronouns in writing.
L.6.1 L.6.1.a W.6.3 W.6.3.a W.6.3.b W.6.3.d
Explain how Christopher Paul Curtis uses sensory details to develop mood in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.
RL.6.4
Identify Kenny’s point of view and explain how it changes over the course of a chapter and the text overall.
Explain the impact of George Wallace’s “Segregation Forever” speech using text and photographic resources.
Explain how Randall develops voice and perspective in the poem “The Ballad of Birmingham."
RL.6.2 RL.6.6 RL.6.9
Socratic Seminar
Take a clear position on a question and share evidence to support that point of view in a Socratic dialogue.
SL.6.1 SL.6.1.a SL.6.1.b SL.6.4
Unpack the expectations of a writing task, study a mentor text, and begin to plan a personal narrative.
Outline and begin to draft narratives.
W.6.3 W.6.3.a W.6.5
Write strong conclusions and revise drafts for descriptive language.
W.6.3 W.6.3.b W.6.3.d W.6.3.e W.6.5
Provide peer feedback and self-assess using a rubric.
Assessment – 2 days
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