Lesson Title: A Trip to Europe
Curriculum Area: English Language Arts
Social Studies
Technology Strand: Keyboard Util./Desktop Pub./Word Processing
Grade Level: 6
 
Essential Question: How can I use a word processor to write a convincing letter that includes details about a European country?
 
A Activity Summary In this activity, students will use a word processor to write a letter to the head of a European country. The purpose of the letter will be to convince the government official to choose the writer for a fictitious visit to the country. The student will be practicing letter writing skills as well as word processing/desktop publishing skills. Additionally, communication skills will be employed to communicate facts the student has learned about a European country and ways the country is like or unlike North Carolina.
C Curriculum English Language Arts
2.02 Exploring a variety of sources from which information may be attained (e.g., books, Internet, electronic databases, CD-ROM). (2.02)

6.01 Demonstrate an understanding of conventional written and spoken expression by:
- using a variety of sentence types correctly, punctuating them properly, and avoiding fragments and run-ons.
- using appropriate subject-verb agreement and verb tense that are appropriate for the meaning of the sentence.
- demonstrating the different roles of the parts of speech in sentence construction.
- using pronouns correctly, including clear antecedents and correct case.
- using phrases and clauses correctly (e.g., prepositional phrases, appositives, dependent and independent clauses).
- determining the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words by using context clues, a dictionary, a glossary, a thesaurus, and/or structural analysis (roots, prefixes, suffixes) of words.
- extending vocabulary knowledge by learning and using new words. - exploring the role and use of dialects and of standard English to appreciate appropriate usage in different contexts.
- developing an awareness of language conventions and usage during oral presentations.

6.02 Identify and edit errors in spoken and written English by:
- reviewing and using common spelling rules, applying common spelling patterns, and developing and mastering an individualized list of words that are commonly misspelled.
- applying proofreading symbols when editing.
- producing final drafts that demonstrate accurate spelling and the correct use of punctuation and capitalization.
-developing an awareness of errors in everyday speech.

Social Studies
2.01 Identify key physical characteristics such as land forms, water forms, and climate,and evaluate their influence on the development of cultures in selected South American and European regions.
T Technology Keyboard Util./Desktop Pub./Word Processing
2.04 Use proper keyboarding techniques to improve accuracy, speed and general efficiency in computer operation.
2.05 Use WP/DTP menu/tool bar features to publish for a specific audience and purpose.  
 
Activating Strategies
In the classroom the teacher should lead the whole class in completing a sample RAFT writing organizer. (View, print, duplicate and make a transparency of the file: Raft_Letter.)
The prompt for this writing activity is:
Pretend that the head of each European government is offering a free one-week visit to his or her country, for a sixth grade student from North Carolina. To apply for this free trip you must choose a country and write a letter to the head of the country’s government telling a few facts about yourself and why you would like to visit.

Using the transparency of the RAFT writing organizer, plan a letter to a country of your or the classes' choice, as a whole group activity.

R - Role of the writer: Who are you? (Answers: a student, your grade in school, where you live, etc.)
A - Audience: To whom is this written? (Answer: the head of the European country’s government, name and title)
F – Format: What kind of form will it take? (Answer: a letter)
T – Topic plus a strong verb (Answer: persuade the government official to choose you for a free visit)
List the reasons why you would like to visit the country.
Questions to ponder before writing:
Are there things in this country that you would like to see?
Are there ways in which this country is similar to North Carolina or the United States?
Are there ways in which this country is different from North Carolina or the United States?
Students may use the information on the “Tour of Europe Datasheet” as well as other resources, e.g. text books, web sites, library books, for ideas.

Idea for Differentiation: For students who may be experienced in writing, consider changing the prompt to include writing from a different point of view. For example, the student may pretend to be the letter and the student would be describing the journey that the letter takes to get from North Carolina to the European country. Details would include things such as being stored on a ship, riding the train, the number of kilometers traveled, or description of the countryside, etc.
 
Technology Vocabulary: Word Processing Vocabulary
Detailed Technology Instructions: Microsoft Works for Windows Desktop Publishing Instructions
 
Cognitive Teaching Strategies
Preparation:
1. If your students will be saving to a diskette, be sure that disks are available for each student.
2. View, print, and duplicate the file: Letter_Writing_Dir. This file has step by step directions for creating and editing the letter.

Teaching the Lesson:

In the classroom, give each student a copy of the RAFT Writing Organizer and assign them to complete the RAFT for a letter to the country of their choice.

In the computer lab:
1. Explain that the purpose of the assignment is to use a word processor to write the letter that was planned using the RAFT writing organizer.

2. Distribute copies of the student directions (Letter_Writing_Dir).

3. Using a presentation station or screen share, demonstrate the word processing skills described in the directions. To write this letter, students will need to know how to do the following: align text, change the font, size and style of text, change line spacing, insert the page number and indent a paragraph using the tab key. The directions for how to do each of these skills are in the student's Letter_Writing_Dir document.
Students should already know how to accomplish most of these tasks. Only demonstrate the skills with which you anticipate the students may need review.

Helpful Tip:
It is helpful to have students show all characters as they work so that the teacher will be able to see that students are using the correct techniques for alignment and indenting. This is done by clicking the paragraph symbol on the toolbar. Another way is by choosing the View menu and selecting All Characters.

4. Explain to students how to launch the program. (Step one in the directions).

5. Assist the students with step two (saving the file). Students may need help saving the file in the correct disk location. Explain the importance of saving their work (documents can be lost if power goes out, saved work can be edited later, etc.)

6. Instruct students to read and follow the directions on their handout to write their letter. Students must read the directions (Step #3) to find out how to set the font, size, and line spacing for the letter.

7. Before students begin to type the heading of their letter, orally go over the five parts of the letter as shown in steps 4-8 in the student directions. Step 4 includes setting a tab stop. This skill should be demonstrated:

Using a presentation station, demonstrate viewing the ruler and setting a tab at 3". Type the heading for the sample letter. Point out that the City and State are separated by a comma and a space. Also point out where the comma and space are located in the date. Demonstrate how to press Enter twice to skip a line. Demonstrate how to remove the tab by dragging it off of the ruler.

Orally go over steps 5-8 and the reminders on the second page of their directions.

8. Students should be reminded to use their writing organizer to guide them through writing their letter. Remind them that the task is to convince the head of the government as to why they should be chosen to visit the country.

9. At this point students should begin to work independently to write the letter. The teacher should monitor students closely to check for correct letter writing format, as well as checking for appropriate content in the letter.

10. Students should save their work when finished.

Editing
1. Students should proofread their work and use spell check to aid in finding spelling and typographical errors. Then students should save again. (Demonstrate how to use the spell check if the students have never used it.)
2. Students should use the Thesaurus to improve their writing. (Demonstrate how to use the Thesaurus if the students have never used it.)
3. Printing should only occur with permission from the teacher.
4. Saving often and at the end of the lesson will prevent loss of student work.
 
Summary Strategies
Divide students into pairs. Have one student take on the role of the head of the government who will receive the letter while the other presents the letter that they just wrote. The "government official" will read the letter and look for the important features of their pretend country. The "official" will then tell their partner the country's features that they find in the letter.
The pair can then change roles, and repeat the activity.
 
Resources
Click for directions on how to download files on a Windows computer. 
Microsoft Word Documents:
RAFT Writing organizer (Raft_Letter)
Letter_Writing_Dir_Works or Letter_Writing_Dir_Word (Student Directions)
Microsoft Works 4.0 or 4.5 ...or...
Microsoft Word


Microsoft Word Files
Raft_Letter.doc
Letter_Writing_Dir_Works.doc
Letter_Writing_Dir_Word.doc
 
 
Re-teaching and Enrichment Activities
Continue to use word processing/desktop publishing for writing in a variety of genres.

This is the last desktop publishing lesson in the European Studies series. The next lesson in the series is Chillin' Out in Europe.

The concept for this lesson plan was submitted by
Cindy  Cooper
Prescott Technology Center, Data last modified: 8/12/2006