Classroom Resource

Writing Acrostic Poems with Thematically Related Texts in the Content Areas

Subject Area

English Language Arts

Grade(s)

2, 3, 4, 5

Overview

In this unit, students will use thematically related texts, organized from least to the most complex, to gather a word bank of supporting details and content vocabulary about a concept. Then they use these words as a basis for writing acrostic poems, which support organization of information around a central idea, as the lines of an acrostic poem are held together by the topic or main idea spelled vertically.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 2

ELA21.2.R3

Expand background knowledge and build vocabulary through discussion, reading, and writing.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.2.R3

Vocabulary

  • Background knowledge
  • Vocabulary
  • Discussion

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Relating experiences through discussions, writing, and reading will help build background knowledge and improve vocabulary.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Connect new concepts to prior experiences to increase background knowledge through discussions, reading, and writing.
  • Construct the meaning of words through discussions, reading, and writing.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Background knowledge can increase by relating experiences to new ideas, topics, and words while participating in discussions, reading, and writing.
  • Vocabulary will increase by constructing the meaning of words while participating in discussions, reading, and writing.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 2

ELA21.2.22

Use content knowledge built during read-alouds and independent reading of informational and literary texts by participating in content-specific discussions with peers and/or through writing.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.2.22

Vocabulary

  • Content knowledge
  • Read-alouds
  • Independent reading
  • Informational text
  • Literary Text
  • Content-specific discussions
  • Writing

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Content knowledge is information learned about a specific subject.
  • Content knowledge can be learned by listening to read-alouds or independently reading.
  • Informational text is nonfiction text, and literary text is fictional.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Build content knowledge from listening to text read aloud and from independently reading.
  • Use content knowledge learned from read-alouds and independent reading in content-specific discussions with peers.
  • Use content knowledge learned from read-alouds and independent reading in writing.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Content-specific discussions with peers can demonstrate the content knowledge they learned through read-alouds or independent reading.
  • They can produce writings that demonstrate knowledge of content-specific information.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 3

ELA21.3.R3

Expand background knowledge and build vocabulary through discussion, reading, and writing.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.3.R3

Vocabulary

  • Background knowledge
  • Vocabulary
  • Discussion

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Relating experiences through discussions, reading, and writing will help build background knowledge and improve vocabulary.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Connect new concepts to prior experiences to increase background knowledge through discussions, reading, and writing.
  • Construct the meaning of words through discussions, reading, and writing.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Background knowledge can increase by relating experiences to new ideas, topics, and words while participating in discussions, reading, and writing.
  • Vocabulary will increase by constructing the meaning of words while participating in discussions, reading, and writing.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 3

ELA21.3.18

Demonstrate content knowledge built during independent reading of informational and literary texts by participating in content-specific discussions with peers and/or through writing.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.3.18

Vocabulary

  • Demonstrate
  • Content knowledge
  • Independent reading
  • Informational text
  • Literary text
  • Content-specific discussions

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Content knowledge is information learned about a specific subject.
  • Content knowledge can be learned by independently reading text.
  • Informational text is nonfiction text, and literary text is fictional.
  • Active listening skills.
  • Writing skills.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Build content knowledge from independently reading informational or literary text.
  • Use content knowledge learned from independent reading in content-specific discussions with peers.
  • Use content knowledge learned from independent reading in writing.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Content-specific discussions with peers can demonstrate the content knowledge they learned through independent reading.
  • They can produce writings that demonstrate knowledge of content-specific information.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 4

ELA21.4.14

Demonstrate comprehension of literary and informational text by utilizing its content when discussing or writing in response to the text.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.4.14

Vocabulary

  • Comprehension
  • Literary text
  • Informational text
  • Discussing
  • Writing
  • Response

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Comprehension of text can be demonstrated by referring to the text in discussions or written responses.
  • Informational text is nonfiction text, and literary text is fictional.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Demonstrate understanding of literary and informational text by referring to the text in discussions.
  • Demonstrate understanding of literary and informational text by referring to the text in written responses.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • They can show that they understood literary and informational text by discussing or writing about specific content from the text.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 5

ELA21.5.37

Write about research findings independently over short and/or extended periods of time.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.5.37

Vocabulary

  • Research findings
  • Independently
  • Short periods of time
  • Extended periods of time

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Researching a topic begins by finding information from multiple sources.
  • Independent writing skills.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Find information on a particular topic from a variety of research sources.
  • Independently write about research findings over short and extended periods of time.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • They can share information they have learned about a topic through writing.
  • Some writing projects will last a short time, while others may take longer to complete.
Link to Resource
http://readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/writing-acrostic-poe…

CR Resource Type

Lesson/Unit Plan

Resource Provider

ReadWriteThink
Accessibility
License

License Type

Custom

Custom License Type (URL)

http://www.readwritethink.org/util/legal.html

Approved Date

raulstoncg
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