Opinion Writing in Grades 1-3: Conserving Water

Adapted by Angel Peavler and Jean Wolph from NWP i3 College Ready Writers Program materials

KWP RSPDI

2

Writing Reading Argument MINI-UNITEmphasis

# of Lessons

ARGUMENT SKILLS PRODUCT ELEMENTS OF

ARGUMENT CLOSE READING STRATEGIES

RESPONSE TO READINGS TOPICS

Draft, Feedback, Revise, Reflect Close reading strategies

Writing & talking to develop knowledge on

topic or issue

Using text-based evidence to support an opinion

4 Lessons

Entering Skills:• Using

Flipbook format for writing

• Partner talks• Ind. sentence

writing in response to a question

Foundational Skills: • Giving text-

based evidence

• Commenting on evidence

• Conclusion

Product: Multi-page flipbook (First I Thought, Then I Learned, Now I Think)

Researching to make an informed opinion

Giving reasons based on evidence

Commenting on evidence (this makes me think)

Partner Talks

Scaffolded writing:First I Thought, Then I Learned, Now I Think)

SHOULD WE CONSERVE WATER?

3 shared readings (image, podcast, article)

Mini-Unit Overview

Writing Standards Emphasized in the Mini-Unit

• Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic.

• Write opinion pieces in which they state an opinion, giving reasons.

• Write opinion pieces in which they provide a concluding statement or section.

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4

Introduce research question (inquiry).

Begin Flipbook.

First I Thought: Write in response to research question.

Partner sharing.

Study image.

Partner talks.

Then I Learned: Write in response to research question.

Listen to podcast.

Partner talks.

Then I Learned: Continue writing in response to research question.

Read article.

Then I Learned: Continue writing in response to research question.

Re-read flipbook.

Learn about conclusions.

Now I Think: Write a conclusion. What should we do about water conservation?

Mini-Unit Sequence

Starting Our Flip Book

Should we conserve water?Write this on the flap.

This is our research question.

Should we conserve water?

What do you think?

Think-Pair-Share

Page 1 of Our Flip Book

Should we conserve water?

First I thought…

Write this on the next flap.

Should we conserve water?

What did you and your partner think?

• I’ve never thought about it before.

• I think we should conserve water because __________.

• I do not think we should conserve water because ___________.

Should we conserve water?

What did you and your partner think?

• I’ve never thought about it before.

• I think we should conserve water because __________.

• I do not think we should conserve water because ___________.

Fill the first flap: First I thought…First I thought…

Use the space to explain your thinking.

Should we conserve water?

Study the image. Turn and talk: What do you notice about this pie graph?

Text #1Now let’s start our research. We’ll look at several texts to gather information about our water resource.

Should we conserve water?

Let’s observe the information! What do the numbers tell you?

Text #1

What Did We Say in Partner Talks?

• After observing the pie graph of indoor water use, I noticed that ____________________.

• According to the Awwa Research Foundation, ______________________. This makes me think__________________.

• The pie graph says _________________.

Capturing our thinking

What Did We Say in Partner Talks?• After observing the pie graph of indoor water

use, I noticed that we use more water to clean than to drink.

• According to the Awwa Research Foundation, 26.8% of water is used to flush the toilet. This makes me think I should flush the toilet less to save water.

• The pie graph says we use less water to take a bath than taking a shower. Maybe I should take more baths to save water.

Page 2 of Our Flip Book

Should we conserve water?

First I thought…

Then I learned…

Write this on the next flap.

Let’s continue writing: Then I learned…Then I learned…

Use the space to explain facts about conserving water. You may use ideas we recorded as a class or you may write your own sentences.

More RESEARCH!

Nature + You

People need nature to thrive. It’s true for everyone.

Including you. Every meal you’ve ever eaten …every breath you’ve ever taken …every job you’ve ever had …everything you’ve ever owned …

Nature made it all possible.

http://www.conservation.org/pages/nature.aspx

Text #2Now, we are going to listen to “Nature is Speaking”.

http://natureisspeaking.org/

More RESEARCH!Text #2

http://natureisspeaking.org/

TURN-N-TALK:

What did you learn about water from the “Nature is Speaking” video?

What Did We Say in Partner Talks?

• After watching Nature Is Speaking video, I realized ___________________________.

• According to the video, Nature Is Speaking, I learned ____________________________.

• Nature is Speaking video described _____________________________________.

Capturing our thinking

What Did We Say in Partner Talks?• After watching Nature Is Speaking video, I

realized that water is taken for granted.

• According to the video, Nature Is Speaking, people need water, water doesn’t need people.

• Nature is Speaking video described water as rain that flows down from the mountains into the rivers and streams all the way to the ocean.

Capturing our thinking

Return to Our Flip Book

Should we conserve water?

First I thought…

Then I learned… Find this spot. Here you will continue recording new learning about conserving water. Use the back of the sheet, if needed.

Use the back of the flap or add a new sheet, if needed: Then I Learned…

Then I Learned…

Use the space to explain facts about conserving water that you learned from the video.

EPA Water Sense KIDS websiteText #3 Let’s READ and RESEARCH to find out more!

http://www.epa.gov/WaterSense/kids/index.html

Let’s capture things we learned about Conserving Water

After reading “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”,

I learned __________________________.

After researching on the “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”, I discovered ______________.

Based on what I read on the “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”, ___________________________.

Let’s capture things we learned about Conserving Water

After reading “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”, I learned that a family of four in the USA uses 400 gallons of water per day.

After researching on the “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”, I discovered that if we turn off our faucet while we brush our teeth we can save 8 gallons of water a day.

Based on what I read on the “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”, a running hose wastes 6 gallons of water per minute but a bucket only uses a few gallons.

Use the back of the flap: Then I Learned…

Then I Learned…

Use the space to explain facts about conserving water that we discovered after reading “EPA Water Sense KIDS website”. You may use ideas we listed as a class or you may write your own sentences.

Finishing Our Flip Book

Re-read everything you have written so far.

Should we conserve water?

First I thought…

Then I learned…

Now I think… Then write this on the last flap.

It’s time to CONCLUDE (or end).

Good endings often do one of these two things:

•Tell the reader what you would like him/her to do.

•Explain to the reader what you would like him/her to think.

Fill the last flap: Now I think…First I thought…

Use the space to explain your thinking. Now that you’ve done the research, what do you think about conserving water? You might try this sentence framework:

[WHO] should (or should not) do [WHAT] because [WHY].

Sharing

• Read your flip book to your partner.• Talk about ways you plan to conserve water!

Something to think about…

Next Steps

• Students could develop other flip books on new topics, using the same process.

• A revision study could be planned. Students would select ONE flip book to turn into a polished piece.