Unit 3 — Meet in the Middle
Description
Unit 3 focuses on conflict resolution and understanding different perspectives. Students read texts about characters who disagree and learn how kindness, respect, and open-mindedness help resolve conflicts. The unit develops comprehension skills while teaching students about communication, persuasion, and problem-solving through realistic fiction, informational texts, and biography.
Essential Questions
- How can people work out disagreements?
Learning Objectives
- Identify main ideas and supporting details in texts
- Understand character motivations and perspectives
- Use context clues and reference materials to determine word meanings
- Apply prefixes un- and re- to read and understand words
- Use inflections -ed and -ing in reading and writing
- Write opinion pieces with reasons and supporting details
- Decode words with final consonant blends and double consonants
Suggested Texts
- Mango Abuela and Me — realistic fiction (week 1)
- Three Hens and a Peacock — fantasy (week 2)
- Serious Farm — fantasy (week 3)
Supplemental Resources
- Graphic organizers for character comparison and conflict analysis
- Printed passages for close reading about perspectives
- Sentence strips for prefix and inflection practice
- Chart paper for collaborative opinion writing
- Pocket folders for collecting opinion writing samples
Language
Reading: Informational Text
Reading: Literature
Speaking and Listening
Writing
Students explore citizenship, community roles, leadership qualities, and cultural traditions through reading and writing. Lessons emphasize responsible citizenship, government leaders, and diverse cultures.
Formative Assessments
- Prefix and context clue practice activities
- Character perspective and motivation analysis tasks
- Inflection application in reading and writing
- Opinion writing with peer feedback
Summative Assessment
Selection quizzes, weekly assessments, and module assessment on comprehension and writing skills
Benchmark Assessment
— not configured —
Alternative Assessment
Students may demonstrate understanding of character perspectives and conflict resolution through oral retelling with visual supports such as character cards or picture sequences. Word meaning and context clue skills may be assessed through pointing, sorting, or matching activities in place of written responses.
IEP (Individualized Education Program)
For this unit's focus on character perspective and opinion writing, students may benefit from graphic organizers that visually map character motivations and conflict resolution details, reducing the cognitive load of tracking multiple viewpoints. Extended time and the option to respond orally or through dictation during perspective analysis tasks and opinion writing will support students who need alternative output modes. When working with prefixes and inflections, pre-teaching key word parts with visual anchor charts and allowing students to demonstrate understanding through word sorting or verbal explanation can help bridge decoding and comprehension. Shortened writing tasks that focus on a clear opinion and one supporting reason, rather than multiple details, allow students to demonstrate mastery without being overwhelmed by length.
Section 504
Students in this unit benefit from preferential seating during read-alouds and discussion activities focused on character perspectives and conflict resolution. Extended time on written tasks—particularly opinion writing and prefix or inflection practice—ensures access without penalizing processing pace. Providing printed copies of any directions or discussion prompts displayed on the board supports focus and reduces reliance on auditory memory alone during multi-step tasks.
ELL / MLL
This unit's vocabulary around conflict, perspective, and resolution may be unfamiliar, so pre-teaching key terms with picture support, simple definitions, and real-world examples will help students access both the fiction and informational texts. Visual cues such as illustrated conflict-and-resolution sequence charts can support comprehension of character motivations without requiring full English fluency. When possible, allowing students to discuss ideas in their home language before expressing them in English—particularly during opinion writing—helps build confidence and conceptual understanding. Simplified sentence frames for stating an opinion and giving a reason will scaffold written and oral participation.
At Risk (RTI)
Students who need additional support in this unit benefit from connecting the themes of conflict and kindness to familiar personal experiences before engaging with texts, helping activate prior knowledge and build engagement. Providing shorter, accessible text passages that still feature characters navigating disagreement allows students to practice comprehension skills at an appropriate entry point. For word study with prefixes and inflections, working with a small set of high-utility words and using hands-on activities such as word-building with cards can make abstract concepts more concrete. Opinion writing support may include a structured template with a sentence starter for the opinion and a prompted space for one reason, gradually releasing toward more independent composition.
Gifted & Talented
Students who are ready for greater depth can explore how the same conflict is portrayed from multiple characters' perspectives across more than one text, analyzing how an author's choice of narrator shapes the reader's sympathies. In opinion writing, these students can be encouraged to address a counterargument or consider why someone might disagree with their position, moving toward more sophisticated persuasive reasoning. Word study with prefixes and inflections can extend into examining how adding un- or re- shifts meaning in more complex vocabulary, including words drawn from the informational and biography texts in the unit. Students may also explore how real-world figures in biography used communication and persuasion to resolve conflicts, connecting the unit's themes to historical or social contexts.