Title – Text to Self Mini-Lesson

By – Emily Kuipers

Primary Subject – Language Arts

Grade Level – 2-3

Duration – 15 minutes

Content Area:

Literacy

Colorado State Standards:

• Oral Expression and Communication 1-2
  
• Reading for All Purposes 1-2
  
• Writing Composition 1-3

Objectives:

• Students will connect a story to their own lives (text to self) and write about it in their response journals.
• This lesson is relevant because students will learn how to make connections and develop deeper thinking.

Resources and Materials:

• response journals
  
• sticky notes
  
• visual for text to self
  
• book for read-aloud
  
• books from library that are readable or may use level books from guided reading

Differentiation:

• All activities are modeled.
• Students may use pictures if their writing isn’t very developed, but they must explain it orally.
• Students can read in partners, but must have individual journal entries.

Transition:

• Students must put everything away and have a seat at the meeting carpet.
• They should be given about thirty seconds to transition.

Expected Behaviors:

• Students are expected to sit on their bottoms with their hands on their laps and eyes on the teacher for story time and the mini-lesson.
• They may not talk until the teacher says so after they raise their hands to be called on.

Motivation/Anticipatory Set:

• Explain that we are going to become better readers today.
• Reading isn’t just about looking at the words; it’s about making connections. When we make connections or relate the story to something else, we understand the story better.
• Today we are going to learn something called text to self (be sure to have some type of visual for the students to see).

Pre-Assessment:

• Ask the students what they might think “text to self” means?
• Maybe talk about each word (text = book, self = me).
• Ask the students if they have read something and it reminded them of something that happened in their lives.
• Give an example and then have students share either as a think-pair-share or just sharing with the class since this is a discussion.

Teacher input:

• Explain to the students that you are going to read a story aloud and then think about how certain events relate to you.
• When you’ve made a connection, put a sticky note on it and then write “ts” (for text to self).
• After the story is finished, write the connection you have made in your response journal.

Modeling:

• Read the story aloud to the students and then do a think aloud about a text-self connection (i.e. this reminds me of when I moved to a different place).
• Be sure to do the sticky note.
• After the story is finished, model what you would write (text-self) in the response journal.

Check for understanding:

• Ask students what “text to self” means and then have a student repeat the directions to the rest of the class.
• Write down the directions on the board as the student is explaining.

Guided and Independent Practice:

• Students can read in partners or independently, but their response journal writing must be individual work.
• Once students have read a book (short story or picture book) and have put sticky notes on parts that connected to their lives, they must write about it in their response journals.
• If they are finished, they may continue their previous unfinished work or start a new journal entry since this is writing time.

Closure:

• Pick a handful of students to share their text to self connections.

Assessment:

• Response journals – (informal) must make a text to self connection
  
• Since this is a response journal, the teacher must “respond” to the students writing (stating opinions, questions, etc.)

Notes & Reflections:

• The actual mini-lesson is about 15 minutes and then the writing can be used during Writer’s Workshop.
• More modeling can be done during the guided writing time if help is needed.

E-Mail

Emily Kuipers

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