Figurative Language Lesson

When I began teaching sixth grade, I was approached by the seventh grade English teaching team. They were concerned that students were coming into seventh grade unprepared for their first unit that revolved around poetry. They had been voicing these concerns for years to no avail, so I was determined to find a way to bridge the gap. This is the result of that determination. I created a final mini-unit for the school year revolving around figurative language. Students could test out of the project and work on independent reading if they scored a 100% on the pre-test evaluation. Students were introduced to this lesson in a computer lab, and then I would post the lesson to my teaching blog in an iframe so that students could use it as a resource.

Process:

• I designed this lesson after a conversation with the seventh grade English team where they voiced their concerns that sixth graders were entering their classes unprepared for their first unit. I needed to design a mini-unit that could be tackled within the last weeks of school while providing students with vital information that would help their transition to seventh grade.
• First, I had to consider that my audience was sixth grade students at the end of the school year. At this point in the year, they are burnt out and longing for summer. I needed to come up with something that was interactive and brief while still being informative. I also added in individual learning paths through the pre and post evaluations as well as the option to retake the course as many times as they wanted.
• Next, I had to design the project. This was my first time making a complete lesson in Storyline, so I had to figure out how to develop a pre-test, course, and final evaluation that would flow together and provide multiple paths of learning. One of the reasons why the seventh grade teachers were running into the problem of unprepared students every year is because figurative language is not outlined in the Georgia Standards of Excellence (common core) for sixth grade. For that reason, I pulled from the seventh grade standards to ensure that I would be providing information based on relevant learning objectives. Additionally, I consulted with the seventh grade teachers to make sure that the main types of figurative language that they focus on would be covered within my lesson.
• Developing the project came next. I needed to be sure that students could self-direct their own learning and feel confident in learning the content. Sixth graders like interactivity and games, so I created mini-games and interactivity to help them learn the content. I also developed the pre and post evaluations and sent them to the seventh grade team for review. They confirmed that the content of the evaluations were aligned with their lessons, and they were pleased with the results.
• Implementing the lesson came next. I would start this lesson every year once we wrapped up our curriculum. Typically, there’s anywhere from two to four weeks at the end of the school year after the main curriculum has been wrapped up. When we would get to the point where things were wrapped up, I would schedule a computer lab so students could take the pre-test. Students that passed the pre-test were allowed to do an independent reading assignment in its place; however, some students still opted to do the figurative language project. I would embed the lesson on my teaching blog for a blended learning experience. This would allow students to revisit the lesson whenever they needed to in order to review the material.
• After completing the lesson and passing the final evaluation, students were tasked with making a poetry book with a certain number of poems displaying the different types of figurative language. They were able to submit this book at any point, and if they submitted early enough, I’d review the material and allow them to adjust if they were unhappy with their grade.
• The seventh grade team reported that students were entering their classes prepared to learn the material after I began implementing this lesson. They noted a large uptick in students ready to begin their curriculum without the need for a review unit before they could start their curriculum. This led to the seventh grade team being able to begin their curriculum at the start of the year and helped them to stay on track throughout the school year.