Grade 4: Module 1A: Unit 2: Lesson 1

Text Features: Introduction to The Iroquois: The Six Nations Confederacy

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Long-Term Goals (Based on Common Core Standards)

• I can explain what a text says using specific details from the text. (RI.4.1)
• I can explain how pictures or graphics help me understand the text around them. (RI.4.7)

Lesson Goals and How We'll Check Learning

Goals:

• I can describe text features (special parts of informational writing, like headings or captions) that help me understand the main idea.
• I can use text features to find information about the Iroquois Confederacy (a group of six Native American nations joined together).

How we'll check learning:

• A class chart about text features
• Students' answers to questions about the text
• Students' answers on the "Learning Using Text Features" worksheet

Plan for the Lesson

1. Opening – Get students interested (5 minutes)
2. Work Time
3. Explore text features (10 minutes)
4. Build a class chart about text features (10 minutes)
5. Read aloud and answer questions about the text (15 minutes)
6. Reread, paying close attention to text features (15 minutes)
7. Closing and Check-In (5 minutes)
8. Homework

Notes for the Teacher

• Before this lesson: Read Chapter 1 of The Iroquois: The Six Nations Confederacy and look over the questions students will answer.
• In this lesson, students will look through several different informational texts to notice common text features. This helps them see that many nonfiction books use similar tools to organize information.
• This lesson doesn't teach new vocabulary about the Iroquois themselves — the focus is on text features.
• A note on names: In an earlier unit, students learned that the Haudenosaunee (the name this group calls itself) is known in English as "Iroquois," a word that actually came from French. The book used in this unit is called The Iroquois: The Six Nations Confederacy. Even though "Haudenosaunee" is the preferred name, this unit will use "Iroquois" to match the book's language, so students aren't confused. If needed, you can replay the short video from Unit 1 that explains where the name "Haudenosaunee" comes from and how it's used today.

Words to Know

Informational text, text feature, main idea, headings, glossary (a list of word meanings), caption, index, sidebar, bold print, italics, pronunciation guide, impressed, Iroquois, Confederacy, constitution (from Unit 1)

Materials Needed

• The Iroquois: The Six Nations Confederacy (one book per student)
• Index cards
• About 15 copies of different informational texts (any nonfiction books with text features will work)
• A new class chart titled "Questions about the Iroquois" (made by the teacher)
• Markers
• One "Learning from Text Features" worksheet per student

Opening

A. Getting Students Interested (5 minutes)

Talk with students about how learning about the Iroquois has taught the class a lot about oral traditions (stories and history passed down by speaking, not writing) and about building a peaceful society. Say something like: "Learning about the Iroquois has made me want to know even more. Do you want to find out more too?" Ask students to think about questions they still have or things they're curious about. Write their questions on the new "Questions about the Iroquois" chart. If needed, offer your own example questions, such as: "How did the Iroquois use natural resources?" or "How did men, women, and children work and play?" or "What traditions did the Iroquois have?"

Explain that students will read a new nonfiction passage from The Iroquois, along with other informational texts, to learn more about how the Iroquois lived long ago and how they live today. Remind students that the Iroquois are still a living community in the Northeast today, and they continue to shape our culture and society.

Read the first learning goal together as a class: "I can describe text features of informational text that help me understand the main idea." Ask students to point out any words in that sentence they don't know. They might mention "text features," "informational text," or "main idea" (a term they should already know from Unit 1). Discuss what informational text means (writing where the author's goal is to teach the reader something) and what main idea means (the most important point the author wants to share). Tell students that together, you'll figure out exactly what "text features" means during the lesson.

Teaching tip: Using pictures and charts can help English Language Learners and other students understand questions and discussions. Write down main points from the discussion and keep all questions posted where students can see them.

Work Time

A. Exploring Text Features (10 minutes)

Have students flip through The Iroquois. Ask them to talk with a partner about how the pages are organized, and how that's different from how storybooks or novels are set up. Call on a few volunteers to share what they noticed.

As students point out a text feature, tell them its correct name (for example, "sidebar"). Write each term on an index card, leaving space to add a definition, its purpose, and an example later. If helpful, display a few pages using a projector and point out features like headings, glossaries, captions, indexes, sidebars, bold print, italics, and pronunciation guides.

Explain that what students found are called "text features" — the same term from the learning goal. Ask students why they think authors of nonfiction books use these features.

Give pairs of students a copy of a different informational text. Have them work together to see whether the text features they already found also appear in this new book. If they spot any new features, they should list them on scrap paper. It's okay if they don't know the official name yet — they can just describe what they see.

Teaching tip: English Language Learners benefit from talking with native English speakers, who can model good language use.

B. Building a Text Features Chart (10 minutes)

Ask students to share any new text features they found in the other books. Write each new feature on an index card.

Divide the class into small groups — one group for each text feature card. Give each group an index card and 3 to 5 minutes to do the following:

• Write a definition of the text feature.
• Write a sentence explaining its purpose.
• Find an example, including the book title and page number.

Have each group share their work with the class. As they present, write their definitions, purposes, and examples onto a class chart titled "Informational Text Features." Fix any confusing wording or mistakes as you go.

Teaching tip: Consider pairing English Language Learners with a classmate who speaks the same home language for tricky discussions. This lets them talk through ideas more deeply and clarify points together.

C. Reading Aloud and Answering Questions (15 minutes)

Hand out copies of The Iroquois to students. Ask them to follow along in their books as you read pages 5 to 8 aloud. Partway through page 6, pause and say, "Oh! I just found the answer to one of our questions!" Have students talk with a partner about this question: "How did the Iroquois people use natural resources?" Call on a few students to share their answers.

Keep reading until you reach the illustration on page 7. Ask students what they think the word impressed means. Show them the strategy of "reading on" to figure out a word's meaning. Point out that the text explains how Thomas Jefferson used ideas from the Confederacy when writing parts of the U.S. Constitution. Say something like: "If Thomas Jefferson liked these ideas enough to use them, he must have really admired and learned from what the Iroquois did. So impressed must mean 'to really admire and learn from something.'"

Continue reading to the bottom of page 8. Ask students: "Why does the author say, 'the people of the longhouse have survived'?" Have students reread the passage quietly on their own, then discuss the question with a partner. Listen in on their conversations to see how well they understand the new material.

Teaching tip: Consider breaking the text into smaller chunks — sometimes just a few sentences — for English Language Learners. Check in on their understanding as they write or talk about what they read.

D. Rereading with a Focus on Text Features (15 minutes)

Ask students to reread from the front cover through page 9 and fill out the "Learning Using Text Features" worksheet.

Depending on your class's needs, decide whether students should work alone or with a partner. You might also pull aside a small group that needs extra support.

Closing and Check-In

A. Wrap-Up Discussion (5 minutes)

Ask students to think about the new information they learned by using text features to guide their reading.

Have students talk with a partner about this question: "What should we add to our Text Features chart about why it's important to use text features when reading nonfiction?" Choose one strong summary sentence from a student and add it to the class chart.

Teaching tip: Consider giving English Language Learners extra time to answer questions during class discussions. They often need more time to process and translate information, and they receive extra time as an accommodation on New York State tests.

Homework

Finish reading Chapter 1. Keep thinking about how life for the Iroquois was different long ago compared to today.

Note: If you're worried about students finishing the reading at home, you may want to schedule extra reading time in class later.