Slipping, Sliding, Tumbling: Reinforcing Cause and Effect through Diamante Poems

Lesson Introduction

Combine higher order thinking with creativity in this lesson that uses diamante poems to illustrate the phenomenon of cause and effect. Students define and identify instances of cause and effect to help them generate their own examples. After practicing the diamante format in a shared writing experience, students construct their own diamante poems illustrating cause-and-effect scenarios of their choice. The diamante poem will start with the cause and transition to the effect.

Learning Objectives

In this lesson, students will have opportunities to:

  • Develop critical thinking skills by defining and identifying cause and effect and generating examples of cause and effect statements.
  • Learn the structure and format of a diamante poem through shared and partner writing.
  • Apply their knowledge of cause and effect in diamante poem format.

Materials and Resources

To teach this lesson, you will need:

  • computers with Internet access and connection to a printer
  • one classroom computer with projection capability for demonstration (optional)
  • overhead projector (optional)
  • chart paper
  • colored markers or highlighters
  • printouts
  • Diamante Poems This online tool enables students to learn about and write diamante poems
Lesson provided by ReadWriteThink.org, a website developed by the International Reading Association and the N.C.T.E.

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