Reading and Writing Thematic Unit

READING & WRITING THEMATIC UNIT

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Reading and Writing Thematic Unit: Colorado State University

Kathleen Hamel


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Description of classroom setting:

The lesson plans for this thematic unit are for a classroom that consists of six

adult learners of English. All six students are employed by Colorado State University in

positions that range from working in the dining halls to cleaning the dorm rooms. They

are enrolled in a Workplace English program through INTO at CSU. The class meets

twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday from 3:15-4:15pm for a ten-week period during

the fall, with the option of reenrolling in the class during the spring. The program is

voluntary to these students; some even get paid from the university (their employer) to

attend these classes. The learners’ first languages span from Spanish to Uzbek, with 5 of

the students originally from Mexico and the other from Uzbekistan, allowing for two

different L2’s in the classroom. The learners range in all four of their skills, listening,

speaking, reading and writing, but for the purpose of this thematic unit, the focus will be

on reading and writing. The highest-level student, according to the ACTFL (2012)

proficiency guidelines, would be intermediate-mid with the lowest considered to be

novice-mid, with most students falling into intermediate-low.

Course Description:

The purpose of this program is to focus on three areas to improve their English:

health and emergencies, workplace vocabulary and social day-to-day interactions,

allowing an ease of transition into thematic units. Based upon these needs this thematic

unit will focus on workplace vocabulary for 5 one-hour class sessions and will be the

third out of three thematic units for the class. This unit will primarily focus on food (in

the home, restaurant and at work) along with cleaning (the vocabulary associated with


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that) and safety aspects of both. Even if one student doesn’t work in one of the categories,

these topics still apply directly to the needs of the students since these situations that can

occur in day-to-day life.

In addition, with the requirements we need to fulfill as directed by the program,

we also receive input from students. We give a needs assessment on the very first day of

class, to see what the students struggle with and what they’d like to learn, we do this by a

free response from the students; it’s important that they are able to express their needs in

whatever detail they deem necessary. Then at the end of week five, we again distribute

another needs assessment. We ask them questions about what they’ve learned in the class

so far and what they’d still like to learn (in their own opinion).

The goals of this class coincide with the thematic units that the class will cover. A

student should be able to learn the different language needed based upon the setting that

arises in their daily lives; this unit will focus on specific workplace vocabulary and

situations that can arise in such setting. The objectives within those course goals include:

being able to write a recipe, at home or at work, and how to read for the general idea of a

passage. Therefore, based off these goals and objectives, the syllabus adopts task-based

and situational characteristics.

Within the syllabus of the course, homework is given to these students on a

weekly basis. However, it is not always expected that these students will return it to you

or even remember that homework was assigned. The purpose of this homework is to

strengthen skills they have been practicing in class; however, due to ties with their

employer, who essentially has a direct say in this program, homework is a requirement

for those purposes. Formal evaluation, such as grading or pass/fail, is not used within this


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program since their progress is solely measured by an increase in their confidence in

LSRW and the correct use of learned vocabulary and grammar within the different

registers; thus informal feedback is given so that the student knows if they are

progressing.

Language skills that will be focused on this thematic unit will include: reading

and writing skills. For writing skills students will be able to write within various genres,

i.e. summaries, recipes, and restaurant reviews, on a specific topic, food. Students will

also learn how to express their opinion through a restaurant review (Lesson 1, Activity 3).

And for reading skills, students will be able to make predications based upon the text and

background knowledge (Lesson 1, Activity 1). Students will also be able to read a

passage to find the main idea (Lesson 2, Activity 2) and be able to get meaning of a

vocab word based on context (Lesson 1, Activity 1). Past the two lessons planned, the

next two lessons students will learn to be able to how to tell when something is in the

future tense, be able to read a safety manual and how to write directions for a coworker.

The goals of these lessons integrate with the language skills to learn: how to write a

recipe or a friend or a manager, how to tell if something is the best (superlative), and how

to decide what they like or don’t like about an experience.

Theoretical foundations:

In order for this class to be successful, students must find inner-motivation. In order

to facilitate students finding motivation, as a teacher I must adopt some practices based

upon theoretical evidence to promote motivation in my students. This means that when I

teach, the students must have a direct say in what they’d like to be learning and it must be


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done with communicative intent since that’s what the basis of this program intended to

accomplish. In order to take away any anxieties that one has, the classroom environment

is one of ease and includes physical activation to do so, like getting up, and walking

around.

• The learning of a language should be done with communicative intent (Larsen-

Freeman & Anderson, 2011, p.122)

• The physical activation of the students in the classroom allows for a fast, non-

stressful environment of learning a language (Larsen-Freeman & Anderson, 2011,

p.104).

• “When learners perceive the relevance of their language use, they are motivated

to learn” (Larsen-Freeman & Anderson, 2011, p.138).

• The repetition of the language is important in the evaluation process to indicate

what has and has not been learned (Larsen-Freeman & Anderson, 2011, p.155)

• The curriculum is not predetermined, however it is constantly being evolved

based on student’s needs in their responses in the ‘needs analysis’ (Larsen-

Freeman & Anderson, 2011, p.174)

Lesson Plan 1

Overview of lesson objectives:

• Students will learn kitchen vocabulary to be used at work, social settings or at

home.

• Students will be able to make predications based upon what was read.


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• Students will be able to write specific types of proses relating to food, i.e. recipes

and restaurant review.

• Students will be able to understand the main idea of a passage.

• Students will be able to get meaning of target vocabulary through context.

Materials Needed:

• 6 ‘Have you ever?’ handouts

• ‘What’s cooking?’ transparency slide

• Projector

• White board

• 6 ‘What’s cooking?’ handouts

• ‘Recipe card’ transparency slide

• 6 small poster boards

• Markers

• 6 ‘How to Write a Restaurant Review’ handouts

Warm Up- Have you ever? -5 minutes

Purpose:

• To be able to introduce students to food and restaurant vocabulary

• To increase the flow of energy to start off the class

Procedures:

• Distribute “Have you ever?” handout to students.


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• Describe to the students that they will stand up, ask another student one of the

questions, and if they answer correctly, have them sign their name in the

designated spot.

• Explain to the students that each will have an opportunity to have write who did

what on the board in complete sentences

• Have students read each sentences and make corrections when necessary

Transition: I don’t know about you but after that activity I’m feeling very

hungry. Being able to satisfy that hunger is something everyone is able to do through

cooking. How many of you cook at home? How many of you work in a kitchen?

Activity 1: What’s cooking? - 20 minutes

Purpose:

• For students to be able to understand the main idea of a passage

• To target certain kitchen vocabulary words

• To make predictions of vocabulary words & of the story based upon background

information

Procedures:

• Pass out ‘What’s Cooking?’ handouts

• Have each student read about 2-3 sentences out loud as a whole class

• Ask students if there is unknown vocab

o Ask students if they can identify the meaning of the words based on the

context of the sentences/prose


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o Write words and definitions (that they create) on the board

o If students are unable to predict definitions, also provide this for them on

the board

• Have the students answer the questions to themselves

• Pair up students to exchange answers

• Go over questions and answers as a class

Transition: So now that we know some basic kitchen vocabulary we will be able

to read all different kinds of recipes. Not only will we be able to read them but write them

as well.

Activity 2: How do you make that? - 20 minutes

Purpose:

• Students will be able to use targeted vocabulary to create their own recipes

• Students will read unknown passages (recipes)

Procedures:

• Display ‘Recipe Card’ transparency on projector, ask the students if they know

what this is

• Pass out small poster board, explain to the students that they will create their own

recipe card for their favorite recipes

• Students write and create recipes on poster board- then they are displayed

throughout the classroom; students walk around the room and read each recipe

card


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• Have students write down two questions based upon the recipes

• Go over questions and answers as a class

Transition: I bet some of those recipes looked appealing to make at home. I’ll

make sure to give you all the recipes we’ve created. Some might have looked not so

appetizing to you. We call this a ‘critique’ of the food; we can also critique our food and

experience at a restaurant as well.

Activity 3: How to Write a Restaurant Review- 15 minutes

Purpose:

• Have students reflect on an experience in a restaurant

• Students write an expression of opinion and critique

Procedures:

• Ask students when the last time they went to a restaurant

o Ask why they went to a restaurant- was it recommended to them?

• Pass out ‘Write a Restaurant Review’ (from Project Success)

• Write on the board: List two things that can be reviewed about a restaurant

• In pairs, students will read the passage on the worksheet & create those two things

• Have each student come up to the board and write the two things

• Class discussion about the listed things

Closure: 5 minutes

Purpose:


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• To assign the ‘Write’ portion from ‘How to Write a Restaurant Review’ about a

restaurant they recently have visited, or they can visit a new one

• To review the kitchen vocabulary that was presented

HW Assignment:

• Write a review of your favorite restaurant following the guidelines from ‘Write a

Restaurant Review.’ It is emphasized that we will use this HW assignment at the

beginning of the next class period to increase motivation among students.

Evaluation

Informal feedback is given to students during the ‘How do you make that?’

exercise. This is by the correct use of vocabulary and grammar points that have only been

previously discussed in class.

Lesson 2

Overview of lesson objectives:

• Students will be able to makes predications based upon background knowledge

and their interpretations (i.e. based upon title of a story)

• Students will understand what a summary is and how to write one

• Students will know what the superlative is and how to create it

Materials Needed:

• 6 “Don’t Eat the Furniture” handouts

• Projector

• White board

• Markers


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• 6 ‘Superlatives’ handouts

• ‘Superlative’ transparency

• “Don’t Eat the Furniture” transparency

• 6 ‘Presentation guideline’ handouts

Warm Up- Write a Restaurant Review- 10 minutes

Purpose:

• To have students read an opinion piece; an opinion that may or may not be

different from theirs

Procedures:

• Ask students to pass their review to the right and read the one that has been placed

in front of them

• Once they have read the first one, have them pass that one to the right, continue

this until they have read three

• Ask the students which restaurants they want to try and which ones they don’t and

their reasoning

Transition: It’s not only necessary to be able to talk with friends, or even

strangers, about what you like and don’t like about things like restaurants, sometimes a

restaurant might have the nicest servers in town, and you need to share! Do you know

what it’s called when someone is the very best at something? Like nicest, for example?

Activity 1: Superlative- 20 minutes

Purpose:


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• For students to learn what the superlative is & how to use it

• Students will practice using the superlative with guided free-writing sentences

Procedures:

• Ask the students if they can list off any words that mean ‘the best of…’

o Explain that this is called the superlative

• Pass out ‘Superlatives’ (adapted from Project Success) & display transparency

and go over ‘Study’ section out loud

• Have students complete the ‘Complete the Sentence’ section on their own

• Write 1-6 on the board, and have the students choose one sentence to write on the

board

• Go over sentences as a class to look for errors

Transition: It’s important to know how to describe something as the best or the

‘truest’ because sometimes something that’s true doesn’t necessarily seem like it!

Activity 2: Poster Project- 25 minutes

Purpose:

• The overall purpose of this project is to have students read a passage, summarize

and present summary to entire class

• During this class period, this project’s purpose is to describe to students what a

summary is

Procedures:


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• Place “Don’t Eat the Furniture” (from True Stories in the News) transparency on

the projector and pass out “Don’t Eat the Furniture” handouts

• Ask students to read the title out loud

o What do you think the story will be about based upon the title?

o Explain to the students that this is a true story

• Have each student read in a ‘Popcorn’ format

o A Popcorn format is when a student reads as much as they’d like, say

‘Popcorn’ and someone’s name in the class, that person begins where the

person left off

• Ask students if there are any vocabulary words that are unfamiliar to them

• Define words as a class on the board

• Ask students what was the story generally about

o Ask students if they know what a summary is

§ If students are uncertain about this, provide an explanation that it is

the main point of an article along with some important details.

• Pass out the Presentation Guidelines Handout- explain the handout to students

o They will read a story, write a summary and define three vocab words to

present to the class

o Explain that we will work on these projects in class over the course of four

classes and will present to the whole class

Closure: 5 minutes

Purpose:


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• To have students pick a story they find interesting based upon their interest in the

title out of “True Stories in the News”

• Assign students to read the passage and to write a brief summary, at least two

sentences

HW Assignment:

• To complete the first paragraph on the ‘Presentation guidelines’

Evaluation:

Students will receive informal feedback as they read out loud, if needed; mistakes

are corrected if it is impairing the meaning of the passage, more than one student has

demonstrated difficulty or if it is a reoccurring mistake for one student. Students will also

give one another feedback during the warm up and first activity; this would be through

clarification questions or simply correcting a mistake during the on-board time in the

Superlatives activity.

Sequence and Scope Lesson

# Competency Reading Skills Writing Skills Topics/Subtopics

1 - Students will be able to read recipes - Students will be able to understand someone else’s opinion - Students will be able to discuss their experiences within the food industry

- Students will be able to predict the future based upon the details of the text - Students will be able to read for context

- Students will be able to write specific types of prose- recipe and restaurant review - Students will be able to express their opinions

- Food related health issues - Focus on food related topics - Students will know vocab used within the kitchen and restaurant


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2 - Students will be able to describe something as ‘the best’ (superlative)

- Students will be able to read a story for the main idea - Students will be able to read an opinion piece

- Express major ideas in a summary - Students will be able to write the superlative correctly in a sentence

- Focus on food related topics - Students will practice vocab that was presented

3 - Students will learn cleaning vocabulary

- Students will be able to infer word meaning based upon general text

- Students will be able to write brief descriptions based upon pictures

- Focus on food- clean up - Focus on household chores and cleaning

4 - Students will know general safety precautions at work and in the home

- Students will be able to read a safety manual

- Students will be able to write safety directions to a coworker

- Focus on cleaning -Focus on safety with cleaning (products, etc.) and in the kitchen

Evaluation of Students in Unit

In this unit, students are constantly being evaluated. They are given comments by

the instructor or by peers if something is spelled, or read incorrectly. Evaluation is not

formal and therefore grades or pass/fail is not given to the students; this is thought within

this program to deter students because it would bring more anxiety to the learning

process, and this program is meant to encourage students to learn English. Progress is

seen through proper productive output from the student. Within the needs assessment,

students are able to self-assess their progress in addition to giving feedback on the course

(Nation & Newton, 2009, p. 165).


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Closure of Unit

To wrap up this unit, there will be a transition from workplace into socialized

English. To transition to this unit, we will present the students with a possible phone

conversation you would have with your boss, based upon vocabulary that was discussed

within the unit. We would then present the difference between phone conversations

between a boss and friends. This unit is applicable to the students because it will allow

them to have social interactions with their native coworkers and bosses.


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Lesson 1 Activities

What’s Cooking? Last night, I was at my friend Thomas’s house and he decided to bake us something. While I was standing in his kitchen, I watched him measure flour, sugar and baking soda. I helped him preheat the oven to 350°. He greased the baking pan. We beat eggs and then added them to the mixture. Finally, we mixed in the other ingredients like chocolate chips and vanilla.

Can you guess what we ate?

Since he baked cookies for me, I will cook for him on Friday. I am thinking about a recipe I want to make. First, I will chop up an avocado, some chives and lettuce. Second, I will cook the meat. To do this, I will simmer the ground beef in seasoning. Then, I will spoon the meat, vegetables and some salsa into some tortillas. Finally, I will use a grater to grate cheese on top. I am excited to cook for Thomas and the thought is making me hungry.

Can you guess what we are going to eat? Answer the following questions based upon the above reading. Be sure to use complete sentences. 1. What did Thomas measure?

2. What did Thomas bake for us?

3. What day will I cook for Thomas?

4. How many steps will it take me to cook my recipe?

5. Based on what you read, what do you think I will cook on Friday?


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Lesson 2 Activities


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References

Heyer, S. (1996). True stories in the news. White Plains, NY: Longman.

Larsen-Freeman, D., & Anderson, M. (2011). Techniques & Principle in Language Teaching. New York, NYs: Oxford University Press Nation I.P., & Netwon, J. (2009). Teaching ESL/EFL Listening and Speaking. New York, NY: Routledge

Pomann, H., Gaer, S., Lynn, S. and Pomann, J. (n.d.). Project success.

Reading and Writing Thematic Unit

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Transcript of Reading and Writing Thematic Unit