Introduction to Newsela

Teacher(s): / Subject: / Grade:
Lesson Title / Introduction to Newsela: From Sign Up to Success
Featured Newsela Article / Nobel laureate Malala and Afghan novelist show the power of words (MAX)
Student Video
Newsela PRO 101 Webinar
Learning Objective
Example statements about what students will learn from this particular activity. / Today I am learning … to register for a Newsela account
So I can… read articles, annotate, Write, and take Quizzes on Newsela
I know I understand when…I can complete the Simple Six Student Checklist.
Learning Standard Include the standard that this activity helps teach. / CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.7
Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.10
Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently
Lesson Content
How will you introduce the lesson to your students? How will you teach them the skills they need to be successful? How will you allow students to practice the skills they learned with Newsela’s Write + Quiz feature? How will you assess mastery? / Direct Instruction: (~7 min)
●Today we are going to get started with an exciting resource that we will be using this year. This resource is called Newsela.
●Some of you may have used this in previous year and that’s great! You can help be an expert as we introduce to the rest of the class.
●Some of you may also have started to use Newsela in other classes. That’s great too!
●To get started, we are going to watch a short video to guide us through the process of using Newsela.
●You will use the Student Intro Video Guided Notes sheet to help you check for understanding. We will review after the video
Modeling: (~10-15 min)
●Now let’s review our Guided Notes.
○What will we need to join a Class?
■Sign Up Code
○What are four features on each Newsela article that help us develop close reading skills?
■Write, Quiz, Highlight, Annotate
●Let’s practice signing in and creating an account.
○Teacher Note: Make modifications as necessary for your school/ class. For example:
■Sign up with Google Single Sign In
■Have students that already have accounts help other students.
●Join Class:
○Teacher should guide students to Accounts, Setting, Classes.
○Provide Sign Up Code.
●Model looking through homepage and Student Binder.
○Open assignment in Binder.
■Teacher Note: Students will see article assignments as soon as they are registered for your Class with Sign Up Code.
■Pre-assign: Nobel laureate Malala and Afghan novelist show the power of words (MAX - 440L)
Student Practice: (~15-20 min)
●Option One: Simple Six Student Checklist
○To review and master the other Newsela Features, complete the Simple Six Student Checklist. You are already Sign Up Samurais!
○You will read the article Nobel laureate Malala and Afghan novelist show the power of words (MAX) to help guide checklist.
■Teacher Note: See our suggestions for sharing and completion.
○Sign Up Samurai
Now that you are a registered Newsela user, make sure to join a Class in your Settings with your teachers Sign Up Code. Bonus Points: Join multiple classes from different teachers.
○Radical Reader
Start your reading revolution and read your first article! Check your student Binder to see if you have any assignments from your teacher. Click on the article to begin reading.
○Awesome Annotation
While reading, find a new vocabulary word and select with your cursor. Highlight with a cool color. Next Annotate the definition using context clues or research where it says “write something”.
○Wonderful Writer
After reading answer Write prompt located with the pencil icon. Read the directions and submit to your teacher for review.
○Quality Quizzer
Take your first Quiz to check your comprehension of the article. After you submit, make sure your review your answers. Remember: we learn from our mistakes.
○Super Searcher
Now that you’ve completed your first teacher assignment, search Newsela to find an article that is of high interest to you. Review the topics on the top of the homepage, are you a “Science” scholar or a “Health” nut? Extra Credit: Use the magnifying glass icon to search based on a keyword to find an article that is just right for you.
●Option Two: Article Assignment
○Once you’ve set up your Binder and Assignments. Students can complete reading the article and complete Quiz and Write prompt.
○Students will use the assigned article Nobel laureate Malala and Afghan novelist show the power of words (MAX) in their Binder to complete classwork and discussion.
○Facilitate a discussion:
■How did reading on Newsela help you understand the article?
■What are some challenges you are facing in using Newsela?
■What are three new things you learned today?
■What can we learn from Malala?
○Homework Extension : Complete Simple Six Student Checklist
Guided Questions:
●What are examples of the features for the Newsela articles?
●What challenges are you facing in using Newsela?
●How were you successful in class today using Newsela?
●How can we establish a positive classroom culture using Newsela?
●How can we relate Malala’s experience to our classroom culture?
Assessment:
●Students will complete complete Simple Six Student Checklist to show mastery of Newsela feature
●Students will show understanding through completion of Quiz, Write prompt, highlights, and annotations.
Accommodations
What scaffolds can be included to support learners? Can you anticipate different reading levels for students? / ●Student Intro Video Guided Notes will provide additional learning support.
●Replay Student Intro Video to provide repeated instruction and review.
Extensions
How can you support high level learners? Can you anticipate reading levels and Writing Prompt to challenge? / ●Simple Six Student Checklist Extensions: Have student take screenshots of each step and share them in a folder; Students can also Tweet their success to class Twitter.
●Early Finishers: Assign more articles or provide a research question for investigation using Newsela Search.
●Extension Article: Girl tech: Dancer, other students find computer science a next step (MAX)