Lesson
1
:

Learning Understanding from Literature

Grade

Grade 5

UNIT

8

Understanding

Last Updated:

June 10, 2025

In Unit 8, Lesson 1, “Learning Understanding from Literature,” students will learn examples of understanding from a contemporary work of children’s literature. Additionally, students will create their own sentences that demonstrate their comprehension of the word understanding. Finally, students will practice their reading and conversation skills by sharing sentences with classmates.

SUGGESTED TIME:

20 minutes

RELATED SUBJECT:

English Language Arts

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

  • Listen to a read aloud, or read independently, to improve understanding of English sentence structure and comprehension 
  • Ask and answer questions to understand the meaning of a text 
  • Determine the central message, lesson, or moral of a story and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text
  • Demonstrate comprehension of the word understanding 
  • Demonstrate understanding of standard English sentence structure and grammar  
  • Engage effectively in collaborative discussions

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

VOCABULARY:

  • Legend: A story about a person or event that may lack evidence. Legends usually tell stories about things that could be possible, so they are often believed to be true.
  • Understanding: I seek knowledge and try to learn the truth. I think about other people’s views that might be different from mine.

ELA COMMON CORE STANDARDS MET

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.2

Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.4

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.5

Explain how a series of chapters, scenes, or stanzas fits together to provide the overall structure of a particular story, drama, or poem.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.10

By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 4-5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.5.3

Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.5.3.A

Use combined knowledge of all letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology (e.g., roots and affixes) to read accurately unfamiliar multisyllabic words in context and out of context.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.5.4

Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.5.4.A

Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.5.4.C

Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.5.9

Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1.B

Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1.C

Pose and respond to specific questions by making comments that contribute to the discussion and elaborate on the remarks of others.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.5.3

Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

CHARACTER AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL (CSED) NATIONAL STANDARDS MET

Intellectual Character A2

Understand the skills (being prepared, focused effort, diligent practice, attention to detail, etc.) that enable someone to acquire or polish a skill

Intellectual Character B4

Demonstrate the ability to analyze data, facts, and information

Social-Awareness A4

Explain a time when you put yourself in “someone else’s shoes” in order to understand their perspective and point of view

LESSON PROCEDURE

  1. Ask students what understanding means. 
  2. Give them the definition: I seek knowledge and try to learn the truth. I think about other people’s views that might be different from mine.
  3. Ask students what the word legend means.
  4. Give them the definition: A story about a person or event that may lack evidence. Legends usually tell stories about things that could be possible, so they are often believed to be true.
  5. With these definitions in mind, let’s learn about a real person who demonstrated the character strength of understanding. Her name was Patience Wright.
  6. Play the video: Meet Your Revolutionary Neighbors: Patience Lovell Wright by Crossroads of the American Revolution (~2 min)
  7. Read the book: Patience Wright: America's First Sculptor and Revolutionary Spy by Pegi Deitz Shea
  8. Have students complete the questions on their worksheets. 
  9. Have students read their sentences to a partner.

GRADE 5 UNIT 8 WORKSHEET 1: LEARNING UNDERSTANDING FROM LITERATURE

  • Vocabulary
  • Legend: A story about a person or event that may lack evidence. Legends usually tell stories about things that could be possible, so they are often believed to be true.
  • Understanding: I seek knowledge and try to learn the truth. I think about other people’s views that might be different from mine.

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER AFTER READING by Pegi Deitz Shea:

  1. What was unique about the Quakers during this time that allowed Patience and her sisters to develop their understanding?

  1. How did Patience use her understanding to start a business and develop her artistic talent?

  1. According to the book, did Patience send information to pass on secrets, and to whom did she send this information?

  1. According to the book, what things did Patience’s messages help the members of the Continental Congress and other American patriots to understand?

  1. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, “It has been reported that Patience Wright passed on to Benjamin Franklin military intelligence gleaned from her contacts in London society, but there is little evidence to support this.” How does this make the story of Patience Wright a legend? 

  1. What do you think is this story’s main message about understanding?

Prohuman K-12 Curriculum © 2025 by Prohuman Foundation is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.
To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

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