How do you finish drafting your essay once you’ve

written the body paragraphs and intro?

In this lesson you will learn how to write your conclusion by using the reverse funnel

method.

Let’s Review

The Writing Process

Planning Drafting Revising

1 2 3 4Editing

Let’s Review

Have you ever been frustrated when you get to the end of the peanut butter jar and your knife just barely scrapes up what’s left? Most peanut butter eaters have had similar experiences, but how many people have actually come up with solutions to this problem? Many people don’t try their luck at inventing because they don’t know how to start or where to get their ideas. It turns out that there are many ways to invent new things, including by studying nature, by accident, and through trial and error.

One way to invent something new is by studying nature and trying to copy its design. This is called Biomimicry. The Wright brothers’ plane was designed by observing the way birds fly. The Wright brothers based the airplane body design on a bird’s body. George de Mestral created Velcro by studying burrs. Mestral noticed that hooks at the end of burrs legs helped them stick to things, so he used hooks in his Velcro design. Lots of scientists are trying to solve problems today by observing nature. Anyone can be like scientists by observing. What can we observe in nature that might help us solve the peanut butter jar problem?

Another way to invent new things is by accident. In fact, one of the best summertime treats, the popsicle, was created by accident when Frank Epperson made the popsicle. He wanted a refreshing drink one summer, so he mixed soda powder and water and left it on his porch to cool but then forgot about it and left it there all night long. In the morning, his straw was frozen in his pop, but he enjoyed eating it anyway.

Mr. Epperson did not mean to create something so delicious, but people ended up loving his refreshing dessert. Cornelius Vanderbilt made the potato chip by complaining about the thick, soggy fries at a restaurant. He kept sending the fries back to the kitchen telling the chef to make them thinner, until the fries were so thin that they were crunchy. Even though they were no longer fries, people have enjoyed this accidental invention across the world.

New objects are also invented through trial and error. Although the Wright brothers’ initial design idea came from nature, they had to test out many designs and fail a lot before they found something that worked. Twice the motor didn’t work on the Wright brothers’ first airplane design, but Orville fixed it himself. Also, the Plane was damaged after falling to ground during the first attempt to fly it, but they kept making attempts even with a damaged plane. The Wright brothers found that they needed to change some parts of their design when they ran into problems. They kept trying and made a successful first airplane. With pPost-its, the trial was making a really strong glue, but the error was that the glue ended up being really weak. The next trial was using the glue on the back of note paper so that it could stick to sheet music and be moved easily from page to page. This time, the trial worked, and post-it notes were made. : the glue wasn’t as strong as Silver wanted it, so Fry tried it out as page notes.

Essay Draft 1

A Common Mistake

Stop after you write the body paragraphs.

Last night, I dreamt that I was falling into a deep pit of ice cream.

Core Lesson

Summarize the specific information—your thesis statement and main points

1

2 Reflect on the larger ideas—what you have learned.

3 Leave your reader with BIG thoughts or questions.

Core Lesson

Summarize the specific information—your thesis statement and main points1

Have you ever been frustrated when you get to the end of the peanut butter jar and your knife just barely scrapes up what’s left? Most peanut butter eaters have had similar experiences, but how many people have actually come up with solutions to this problem? Many people don’t try their luck at inventing because they don’t know how to start or where to get their ideas. It turns out that there are many ways to invent new things, including by studying nature, by accident, and through trial and error.

Introduction

Like the problem of how to scrape the peanut butter from the bottom of the jar, new problems arise every day, and people must find solutions for them. Often times those solutions are found through biomimicry, by accident, or through trial and error.

Conclusion: Recap

Core Lesson

2 Reflect on the larger ideas—what you have learned.

Like the problem of how to scrape the peanut butter from the bottom of the jar, new problems arise every day, and people must find solutions for them. Often times those solutions are found through biomimicry, by accident, or through trial and error.

I used to think… and

now I think …

I used to think that it was really difficult to find new ideas for inventions. Now I think that I might invent something by doing something I didn’t mean to.

Many people think that coming up with an invention to solve a problem is too hard, so they never try. However, sometimes the answer is just an accident away.

Core Lesson

3Leave your reader with BIG thoughts or questions.

Like the problem of how to scrape the peanut butter from the bottom of the jar, new problems arise every day, and people must find solutions for them. Often times those solutions are found through biomimicry, by accident, or through trial and error. Many people think that coming up with an invention to solve a problem is too hard, so they never try. However, sometimes the answer is just an accident away.

What big lesson did this teach

me?

I see lots of problems that need solving. I could even be an inventor by going

outside and looking around! Take a second to ask yourself, “What problem needs to be solved?” and then go outside and look around. You might just invent the next big thing.

Core Lesson Essay Draft 1

Have you ever been frustrated when you get to the end of the peanut butter jar and your knife just barely scrapes up what’s left? Most peanut butter eaters have had similar experiences, but how many people have actually come up with solutions to this problem? Many people don’t try their luck at inventing because they don’t know how to start or where to get their ideas. It turns out that there are many ways to invent new things, including by studying nature, by accident, and through trial and error.

One way to invent something new is by studying nature and trying to copy its design. This is called Biomimicry. The Wright brothers’ plane was designed by observing the way birds fly. The Wright brothers based the airplane body design on a bird’s body. George de Mestral created Velcro by studying burrs. Mestral noticed that hooks at the end of burrs legs helped them stick to things, so he used hooks in his Velcro design. Lots of scientists are trying to solve problems today by observing nature. Anyone can be like scientists by observing. What can we observe in nature that might help us solve the peanut butter jar problem?

Another way to invent new things is by accident. In fact, one of the best summertime treats, the popsicle, was created by accident when Frank Epperson made the popsicle. He wanted a refreshing drink one summer, so he mixed soda powder and water and left it on his porch to cool but then forgot about it and left it there all night long. In the morning, his straw was frozen in his pop, but he enjoyed eating it anyway. Mr. Epperson did not mean to create something so delicious, but people ended up loving his refreshing dessert. Cornelius Vanderbilt made the potato chip by complaining about the thick, soggy fries at a restaurant. He kept sending the fries back to the kitchen telling the chef to make them thinner, until the fries were so thin that they were crunchy. Even though they were no longer fries, people have enjoyed this accidental invention across the world.

New objects are also invented through trial and error. Although the Wright brothers’ initial design idea came from nature, they had to test out many designs and fail a lot before they found something that worked. Twice the motor didn’t work on the Wright brothers’ first airplane design, but Orville fixed it himself. Also, the Plane was damaged after falling to ground during the first attempt to fly it, but they kept making attempts even with a damaged plane. The Wright brothers found that they needed to change some parts of their design when they ran into problems. They kept trying and made a successful first airplane. With pPost-its, the trial was making a really strong glue, but the error was that the glue ended up being really weak. The next trial was using the glue on the back of note paper so that it could stick to sheet music and be moved easily from page to page. This time, the trial worked, and post-it notes were made. : the glue wasn’t as strong as Silver wanted it, so Fry tried it out as page notes.

Like the problem of how to scrape the peanut butter from the bottom of the jar, new problems arise every day, and people must find solutions for them. Often times those solutions are found through biomimicry, by accident, or through trial and error. Many people think that coming up with an invention to solve a problem is too hard, so they never try. However, sometimes the answer is just an accident away. Take a second to ask yourself, “What problem needs to be solved?” and then go outside and look around. You might just invent the next big thing.

Core Lesson

Summarize the specific information—your thesis statement and main points

1

2 Reflect on the larger ideas—what you have learned.

3 Leave your reader with BIG thoughts or questions.

In this lesson you have learned how to write your conclusion by using the reverse funnel

method.

Guided Practice

Summarize the thesis and main points of the paragraph below.

The lifecycle of the mosquito consists of four stages. The first stage is the egg. The next stage is the mosquito larva. The third stage in the cycle is the pupa, and finally mosquitos become adults.

Guided Practice

Add to your new conclusion on mosquitos by reflecting and adding a big lesson.

I used to think… and

now I think …

What big lesson did this teach

me?

Extension Activities

Extension Activities

Practice reflecting on topics you are familiar with

Topics I used to think… and now I think …

School lunchesP.E. class??

? ? ?? ? ?

? ? ?

Extension Activities

Extension Activities

Add to your reflections some big lessons you have learned from each topic.

Topics I used to think… and now I think …

School lunchesP.E. class??

? ? ?? ? ?

? ? ?

Big Lessons I’ve Learned

??????

Let’s Review

Quick Quiz

Write the conclusion to your essay draft by using the reverse funnel method.

Lesson Slides Rubric

Use this rubric to ensure your lesson plan is great!

Writing Lesson Rubric  Criteria for Success Things to avoid

Storyline or Arc of the Lesson

There is a clear arc to the lesson.  One slide leads naturally to the next so that there is a flow and a building of meaning

All the components of the lesson are there but they seem disconnected, as if the author wrote each without thinking about how they fit into the whole. 

Hook Slide

The teacher poses a simple question that illicits the response, “yeah, I do wonder how that works…”  

The question is short A relevant example is included when it is short and 

further pulls the learner in  The question mirrors what the student will do in 

the guided practice

The question seems formulaic, inauthentic, or overly “school-ish” (message: you have to learn this because you’re in school rather than, this is genuinely interesting)

The hook is overly-complicated and potentially confusing The question does not parallel the guided practice 

questions

Objective Slide

The objective follows the form (you will learn X by doing Y)

Is concise and follows the form provided in the examples

Does not follow the form Is overly vague in describing either the X or the Y Is too long Is written for teachers but not students

Let’s Review

Reminds the student of how this lesson fits within the writing process

Is as concise as possible

Is either too detailed or not detailed enough in connecting the lesson to other lessons

Leaves out important touch points Makes the lesson overly dependent on the other lessons 

(student will be confused or feel like they’ve made a mistake, if they watch this lesson alone)

Is too elaborate

Common Mistake Points out a “common mistakes” that students 

make and quickly explains why that is a mistake The mistake is overly simplistic or complicated.  Does 

not feel authentic

Steps

Clearly connects with the objective Includes 2-3 steps that a writer can take to achieve 

the objective Is student focused (the steps accurately imagine 

what a student who has never done this before will need to do)

Is logical and specific (you can visualize the act of doing the step.  There is no magic leap that happens between steps)

The connection with the objective is unclear Includes 4+ steps (and therefore should be split into two 

or more lessons) Involves a  magic leap that assumes a student can make 

a leap between steps that is natural to an adult

Modeling

Is in “think aloud” format.  The teacher is opening up his/her thought process to the student and modeling the struggle; showing how he/she drafts and revises ideas in his/her mind

Engages the learner by asking questions along the way to build suspense

Examples are authentic  - they show empathy for the learner and his/her interests, concerns, problems without speaking down the learner

Fails to explain his/her thinking along the way.  The teacher effortlessly runs through the steps as if it’s all obvious and easy

Does not ask any questions along the way to pull the learner in

Uses examples which are unlikely to connect with the learner’s life

 

Steps and Objective Review

Reviews the steps and objective in a “see what I just did” way

Serves as a “let’s pull this all together” moment that helps organize the lesson in the learner’s mind

Creates abrupt feeling between the modeling and the reviewing (subtext: “we’re done modeling, let’s quickly bring this lesson to a close.”)

Guided Practice Challenges the learner to carry out the same steps Is at the same difficulty level modeled in the lesson 

Seem unrelated to the hook question Is at a different difficulty level than that modeled in the 

lesson

Extension Activity Suggestions

Includes suggestions for at least 2 extensions Includes a suggestion for a struggling student who 

needs more opportunities for practice as well as a student ready to be challenged more

Suggestions should clearly build from the approach in the core lesson

Does not include differentiation Does not thoughtfully connect or flow from the lesson Does not clearly build from the approach in the core 

lesson

Aesthetics

The slides use the correct colors (blue, green, red) in the correct sequence 

The slides use the correct fonts The slides use handwriting and the handwriting 

appears as written in the right places The slides only use the headers/titles provided  The slides use the provided visuals or include 

visuals created by the author or LearnZillion The slides use animation, highlighting, and circling 

to scaffold the learning, keeping the eye focused on what the teacher is introducing/explaining

The slides clean and uncluttered.  The visuals and text do not exceed the maximum amount (see tutorial for example of maximum)

The slides use other colors or vary the order of the colors

The slides add new headers/titles that aren’t part of the template

The slides use clip art The slides are cluttered Animation is distracting and feels more like sizzle than 

part of the steak

Graphic and Image Templates

Copy and Paste items from these slides to make your presentation look great!

You can copy and paste these items into any slide

Green text box that appears letter by letter

Green text box that fades in

Blue text box that appears letter by letter

Blue text box that fades in

Red text box that appears letter by letter

Red text box that fades in

You can copy and paste these items into any slide—make sure you copy both the bubble and

the text!Do I feel strongly about it?

Do I have a lot to say?

Do I feel strongly about

it?

Do I have a lot to say? Do I have a lot to

say?

You can copy and paste these items into any slide. You can resize them as

needed!Use black text when you write in me please! Also, keep my text left-justified rather than centered!

Use black text when you write in me please! Also, keep the text left-justified rather than centered!

All arrows can be recolored by changing the “shape fill.” You can also resize them or rotate

them!

[Write first step here…]1

2 [Write second step here…]

3 [Write third step here…]

You can use these when discussing main ideas or steps in a process…

You can resize any of these boxes and use them to highlight text or ideas.

Let’s Review

A Common Mistake

Guided Practice

Quick Quiz

Extension Activities

Core Lesson