Author’s Purpose Grade 2 Lesson Plan: Activity

Grade Levels: 3

In this lesson plan, second graders use BrainPOP Jr. resources to learn about the concept of author’s purpose. They learn how authors write to persuade, inform, or entertain. Then they apply their understanding by writing samples of each type of author’s purpose.

 

Students will:

  1. Build background knowledge: Watch the Author's Purpose movie.
  2. Think and Do: Write to persuade, inform, and entertain.
  3. Complete an Assessment: Take the Author’s Purpose Quiz to show what they learned.

Materials:

  • Internet access for BrainPOP Jr.  
  • Offline Option: Printout of Activity 
  • Offline Option: Printout of Quiz

Preparation:

  • Preview the movie Author's Purpose to plan for any adaptations 
  • Read Author's Purpose Background Information
  • Assign Activity  (optional)
  • Assign Quiz (optional) 
  • Offline Option: Print out the Easy Quiz for students by clicking the print icon   in the top right corner.

    • Lesson Procedure:

    1. Tap students’ prior knowledge. Prompt them to think of a book you read or that was read to you. Ask: Why do you think the author wrote the book? Was it to learn something new, persuade you, or tell you a story?
    2. Watch the Author's Purpose movie. Click the pause button each time a question appears in Annie’s Notebook and invite students to answer it. Then play to see how Annie answers it.  TIP: The pause button turns red to remind you to pause.   Offline Option: Print out the transcript and Annie’s Notebook for a grown-up to read aloud at home. Suggest that the child play Moby and “Beep” in response to Annie. 
    3. Instruct students to open their Activity assignment. Or, if you are not using the Assignment Builder, show how to open Activity.  
    4. Hover over the prompt to hear it read aloud:  Use the sentence “Don’t be a litterbug!” in writing that persuades, informs, and entertains. Direct students to click the Start arrow. When they complete the activity, remind them to click the Submit To Teacher button and/or print it out. Offline Option: Students complete the Activity offline.
    5. Have students open their Quiz assignment. Or, if you are not using the Assignment Builder, show how to open the Quiz. You can choose the Easy or Hard Quiz.
    6. To hear the questions and answer read aloud, show students how to hover over the words. If you assigned the quiz, you will see students’ results in your Dashboard. If not assigned, remind students to click the Submit to Teacher button. Offline Option: Read aloud each question and answer options, repeating as needed.
    Filed as:  Author's Purpose, BrainPOP Jr., Lesson Ideas, Lesson Plan, 3