Unit Plan 4 (Grade 2 ELA): Building a Small-Moment Narrative

Focus: Beginning–middle–end; temporal words; sense details

Grade Level: 2

Subject Area: English Language Arts (Writing • Language)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

Writers zoom in on a small moment—one slice of life—not a whole day. This unit teaches students to plan and draft a short beginning–middle–end narrative using temporal words (first, next, then, after, finally) and sensory details (what they saw, heard, felt, smelled, tasted). With teacher guidance, writers revise for clarity and edit for conventions so their stories are easy to read.

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…

1. Plan and write a small-moment narrative with a clear beginning, middle, and end, including a sense of who/where/when (W.2.3).
2. Use temporal words to signal event order and add sensory details and feelings to show what happened (W.2.3).
3. With adult guidance, revise for clarity and edit for capitalization, punctuation, and spelling patterns (W.2.5; L.2.2).

Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 2

• W.2.3, W.2.5, L.2.2

Success Criteria — student language

• I zoomed in on one moment and told it in order.
• I used temporal words to connect my events.
• I added at least three sense details or feelings.
• I revised one sentence to make it clearer and edited for capitals, periods, and spelling.