Kaitlyn Coirazza

EDUC 5904

Curriculum Review

May 20th, 2017

Uncommon Schools 4th Grade Writing Unit 5: Poetry

1. Alignment to the Depth of the Common Core State Standards

Pros:
o Has clear and explicit purposes for each lesson in the unit
o Targets grade level standards through rigorous instruction
o Begins to build students content knowledge of reading and writing in Social
Studies and the Arts, as students learn the Japanese history behind the Haiku
and students write creative poems about the world, art, music, etc.

Cons:
o Selects few texts that are within the grade level complexity band and are of
sufficient quality and scope (does not include any real mentor texts to teach
poetry other than the Haiku author, Bansho)
o Does not integrate reading so students can apply and synthesize advancing
literacy skills
o Does not integrate quality speaking and listening activities

Rating: 1/3

2. Key Shifts in the Common Core State Standards

Pros:
o Builds students academic language of poem types and characteristics
o Builds disciplinary knowledge of Social Studies and the Arts
o Multiple opportunities for short, on demand poetry writing

Cons:
o No extended, process writing (the longest students have to work on one poem is
two days)
o Although this is solely a writing unit, there is no close reading or analyzation of
mentor texts to teach poetry (there are only a few poems written by the
curriculum developers that students analyze)
 o Does not have students draw on mentor texts to help them form clear, coherent
writing

Rating: 1/3

3. Instructional Supports
Pros:
o Engages students in productive struggle writing different kinds of poems (i.e.
limerick, haiku, diamond, etc.)
o Includes a progression for learning in every lesson
o Gradually removes supports, requiring students to demonstrate independent
capabilities (i.e. I Do, We Do, You Do in every lesson)
o Includes targeted instruction for grammar, conventions, and writing strategies

Cons:
o Does not provide appropriate scaffolding for all students (all students are
expected to participate in the same activities the same way)
o Does not integrate appropriate supports for students who have disabilities, ELLs,
and/or students below grade level (no differentiation built into any lessons; all
students are expected to participate in the same activities in the same way)
o Does not give students the opportunity to engage in inquiry, to evaluate their
own writing, or to reflect on their own poems
o Does not provide any extensions for students well above grade level

Rating: 1/3

4. Assessment

*While there are multiple, formative assessments included throughout the poetry unit,
the summative assessment provided does NOT assess whether students can
independently demonstrate what was taught throughout the poetry unit as the
summative assessment does not assess poetry, but instead assesses normal narrative
writing. However, based on the provided summative assessment:

Pros:
o Includes a rubric to score students writing
o Includes formative assessments throughout unit to determine student mastery
of certain poems (teacher reviews student poems after each type of poem is
taught)
o Assesses using methods that are unbiased and accessible to students
 Cons:
o N/A

Rating: 1/3 (as the assessment doesnt even assess what was taught)

Implementation of Writing Unit

There are multiple changes I would make for implementation of this writing unit. First,
the duration of this unit as written is only eight days, which does not provide enough time for
students to truly engage in authentic, process writing. Therefore, if I was in charge of the
modifications and implementation of this unit, I would extend the unit to fifteen or twenty
days. Additionally, because the Common Core State Standards do not require certain poem
types to be taught in fourth grade, I would decrease the types of poems taught from seven to
three. I would focus on haikus, acrostic, and free verse, which would allow for at least five days
of instruction on each type of poem. I would implement the use of mentor texts (in childrens
books, ideally) to help engage students and effectively teach each type of poetry. This would
work best if a professional development session was devoted to teaching writing using mentor
texts, as my school has never really used mentor texts for writing before. For haikus and free
verse, I would use Writers Workshop, where students could have adequate time to plan, draft,
revise, edit, and publish their poetry writing. I would also plan a professional development
session around Writers Workshop, as only a few teachers at my school currently use Writers
Workshop effectively. By having school wide PD on Writers Workshop, writing instruction
would align between all teachers and all grade levels. Finally, I would create a new summative
assessment that assessed students poetry knowledge including academic language, history of
each poem type, and ability to write an example of each poem to make this writing unit even
better.

Sample Timeline

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5

PD: Using N/A PD: Using PD: Writers N/A
Mentor Texts *Teachers should Mentor Texts Workshop Teachers should
Part 1 review new unit on Part 2 look over the writing
their own time *Teachers should unit before starting
come to this PD with to teach on Monday
any questions after
looking over the
writing unit
Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 Day 9 Day 10
Lesson 1: Lesson 2: Lesson 3: Lesson 4: Lesson 5: Haiku
Acoustic Poetry Acoustic Poetry Acoustic Poetry Acoustic Poetry Poetry
*Formative *Based on
Assessment formative
assessments,
teacher can skip
this lesson and
use this extra
day later in the
unit as needed

Day 11 Day 12 Day 13 Day 14 Day 15

Lesson 6: Haiku Lesson 7: Haiku Lesson 8: Haiku Lesson 9: Haiku Lesson 10: Free
Poetry Poetry Poetry Poetry Verse Poetry
*Completion of
Writers
Workshop for
Haikus

Day 16 Day 17 Day 18 Day 19 Day 20

Lesson 11: Free Lesson 12: Free Lesson 13: Free Lesson 14: Free Lesson 15:
Verse Poetry Verse Poetry Verse Poetry Verse Poetry Summative
*Completion of Assessment
Writers
Workshop for
Free Verse