page contents

Unit 1: Hurricanes

 

Overview:

 

In this unit, students will read related informational and literary texts about different hurricanes to explore the question: How do natural disasters affect communities both negatively and positively?

 

We will express our understanding by writing an expository essay that describes multiple ways that hurricanes impact people and communities.

 

 

Set the Context Videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYnMq-h0hKU&t=3s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AdgcWpfSJk&t=1s 

 

 

Writing Assessments

Culminating Writing Task (end of unit essay)

What are three ways hurricanes impact people and communities? Write a claim statement to answer this question. Then create 3 SPOs to support your claim statement by showing ways that hurricanes have impacted people and their communities in different ways. Use your SPOs to draft three body paragraphs. Finally, write a concluding sentence that restates your claim statement in a different way to conclude your essay.

Be sure to:

  • Review the texts and information gathered about hurricanes from the unit.

  • Describe how people are impacted by hurricanes.

  • Describe how communities are impacted by hurricanes.

  • Include an opening claim statement

  • Write a topic sentence for each paragraph.

  • Support each topic sentence with evidence from the texts

  • Include a concluding sentence

  • Be sure to use proper grammar, conventions, spelling, and grade-appropriate words and phrases.

 

Section 1

Students discuss the following questions as a class, using evidence from the text to support their discussion:

  • How did Hurricane Andrew affect the people of Florida?

  • How did Hurricane Andrew affect communities in Florida?

  • How did Hurricane Andrew affect the environment in Florida?

  • What conclusions can we draw from this about the significance of hurricanes and their impact on people, communities, and the environment?


Section 2

You have read about people's experiences before, during, and after Hurricane Katrina. Expand the following sentences to show your understanding of their experiences. You may use your hurricane understanding tool or A True Book: Hurricane Katrina, by Peter Benoit for help.

 

Section 3

Students will expand kernel sentences to show their understanding of how people prepare for hurricanes.

Students answer the following question to draw conclusions about what the historical fiction text shows about how people and communities prepare for hurricanes:

  • What conclusions can we draw about how people and communities prepare for hurricanes based on the text?

 

Section 4

Students create two SPOs and draft two paragraphs to respond to the following questions: What did Barry and his family experience during Hurricane Katrina? How were Barry and his family’s lives affected by Hurricane Katrina after the storm?

 

Section 5

Students engage in a formal, whole-class discussion about the following questions: How is the information from the first-hand accounts similar to the information from Houston’s Hurricane Harvey Floods? How is the information from the first-hand accounts different from the information in Houston’s Hurricane Harvey Floods? How do the first-hand accounts support and add to your understanding of Hurricane Harvey’s impact on the people and communities of Texas?

 

Section 6

How do communities respond after the destruction of a hurricane?

Students will draft two SPOs and convert their SPOs to paragraphs in response to the following question using evidence from the section texts:

  • What are two ways that people and communities respond after a hurricane?