LEVEL N

Lesson Plan Gandhi

About the Book
Text Type: Nonfiction/Biography Page Count: 16 Word Count: 602

Book Summary
Mohandas Gandhi was a man of great leadership and courage. An advocate
of nonviolence, even in the face of tremendous injustice, Gandhi spent his life
working for equality and peace. This Mahatma, or “Great Soul,” served as an
inspiration to other great leaders, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson
Mandela. Students will be amazed by the strength and determination of a
man who brought change to his country and the world.
Book and lesson are also available at Levels Q and U.

About the Lesson

Targeted Reading Strategy

Objectives

st-blends

Materials
indicates resources are available on the website.
Gandhi (copy for each student)

demonstrated by projecting the book on an interactive whiteboard or completed with

paper and pencil if the books are reused.)
Vocabulary
VocabularyA–Z.com.
Content words:
Story critical: conflict (n.), Hindu (adj.), inspired (v.), Muslims (n.), nonviolence (n.), protests (n.)
Enrichment: respecting (v.), tax (n.), unfair (adj.)

Before Reading
Build Background
conflict

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi

a very important man named Mohandas Gandhi. Ask students what they know about Gandhi.

because he solved conflicts without violence. He believed and practiced peaceful communication.

in these parts of the world through nonviolent, or peaceful, actions.

Preview the Book

Introduce the Book

view the photographs of Gandhi. Have students discuss what they see in the photographs. Ask

name).
Introduce the Reading Strategy: Summarize

a summary, or a brief overview, of the most important information in each section. Point out that
a summary often answers the questions who, what, when, where, and why.
Who, What, When, Where, and Why.
Think-aloud: As I read this book, I am going to stop every now and then to remind myself about
the information I have read so far about Gandhi. Doing this helps me remember what I’m
reading and makes me think about new information. I can use a chart like this one to help
me keep track of the important details. When I finish reading the book, I will be able to tell,
in my own words, some of the most important information from each section of the book.
Introduce the Comprehension Skill: Elements of a biography
biography and a story (biography: the story
story: made up by the author, with characters who

Personality, Accomplishments, and Influence

(personality: the qualities that make
accomplishments: influence:
an effect on someone or something).
Think-aloud: As I read through each section of this book, I am going to stop and think about what
I have learned about Gandhi. As I read, I can organize the information about Gandhi into the
categories: Personality, Accomplishments, and . By categorizing the information in this
way, I know I will understand more about him and the events of his life.

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi
Introduce the Vocabulary
inspired, nonviolence, and protests.

students a blank piece of paper. Have students divide the paper into three sections and label each

word and create a definition using their own prior knowledge.

word inspired
word before searching in the dictionary. Ask a volunteer to name the root word of inspired.

inspired in the glossary.

Point out that the dictionary has multiple definitions for the word inspired, depending on the
usage. Have students compare the dictionary definition with the glossary definition, and ask
them which dictionary definition is the most similar. Ask them to compare this definition with
their prior knowledge of the word.
inspired on page 15 and read the sentence containing the word

Set the Purpose

on the world.

During Reading
Student Reading
Have students read pages 4 through 6. Model underlining important details to help
summarize information and identify elements of a biography in the first two sections.
Think-aloud: I made sure to stop reading after the second section of the book to summarize what
I have read so far. First, I thought about the information that answered the questions who, what,
when, where, and why. Then, in my mind, I organized the most important information into a
few sentences. After reading page 4, I decided that this section was a brief overview of Gandhi’s
upbringing and how he came to live in South Africa. I learned that Gandhi was born in 1869 in
India. I also learned that Gandhi was raised in a family that valued nonviolence and caring for one
another. I now know that Gandhi went to school to become a lawyer and could not find a job in
India so he moved to South Africa. I will underline these words and phrases in the text. In the next
section, “South Africa,” I learned that people who were not white were treated poorly. Gandhi
thought this was unfair and worked to help Indians in South Africa. Gandhi led protests, and
many Indians were hurt or put in jail. People around the world were surprised by this violence,
and Gandhi became well known for his leadership. I will underline this information in the text.

a summary with students on the basis of the information in the chart. (Gandhi was born in India
in 1869. He was born into a Hindu family who valued nonviolence. Gandhi went to school to
become a lawyer and then moved to South Africa. In South Africa he worked for equality for
Indian people. Gandhi told Indian people not to follow the unfair laws, and many people were
hurt or put in jail. Gandhi lived in South Africa for twenty years and became well known for his
peaceful leadership.)

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi

Think-aloud: After reading pages 5 and 6, I have learned some details about Gandhi’s personality.
Gandhi worked very hard to help other Indians. He did not give up even when he was hurt and
put in jail. On the basis of this information, I can say that Gandhi was caring, determined, and
courageous. I will write this on my chart under the heading Personality.
Check for understanding:
reading, have them work with a partner to identify the important information. (Who: Mohandas
Gandhi, the British government, and the people of India. What: Gandhi worked to free India
from British rule through demonstrations and protests, marched across India with his followers
to the sea to protest the British tax on salt, was arrested and put in jail. When: Gandhi returned
to India in 1915. Where: India; the salt march ended in Dandi, India. Why: Gandhi wanted India
to be free from British rule, he thought it was unfair that the Indian people had to pay for salt
that was from Indian lands.)

Personality: smart, brave, determined, loving. Accomplishments: led protests and

demonstrations against the British government, led a march across India to the sea to protest the
British salt tax. Influence: involved people all over India to stand up against the British government.)

How would you describe Gandhi’s personality? What

characteristics of his personality might have influenced him to do the things he did when he
returned to India?

details and to use the information learned to identify the elements of a biography (personality,
accomplishments, influence on others).

Have students make a question mark in their book beside any word they do not understand

and figure out its meaning.

After Reading

Reflect on the Reading Strategy

who, what, where, when,

and why while reading. Have each group discuss the information they underlined in their section.

have finished, have them share and discuss their summaries aloud.
Think-aloud: I know summarizing keeps me actively involved in what I’m reading and helps
me remember what I’ve read. I know I will remember more about Gandhi because I summarized
as I read the book.

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi
Independent practice:

to write a brief summary of the book Gandhi

Reflect on the Comprehension Skill

how his passion for nonviolence influenced people and leaders all over the world.

additional information about the personality, accomplishments, and influence of Gandhi from

Enduring understanding:
and spend years in prison for what he believed in. Now that you know this about Gandhi, do you
think it is important to stand up for what you believe in, even if it means great personal sacrifice?

Build Skills
Phonics: Initial and final consonant st-blend
stay and west on the board and say them aloud with students.

as students say the whole word aloud. Ask students to identify which two letters represent the
/st/ sound at the beginning of the word stay and at the end of west.
st-blend on a separate sheet of paper while saying
the /st/ sound.
st-blend on the board, leaving
stopped, coast, stand, fast, most, still, rest, stack. Say each word,
one at a time, and have volunteers come to the board and add the consonant st-blend.

Check for understanding:

circle the word with the initial consonant st-blend (stay) and underline the words with the final
consonant st-blend (against, protest).
Independent practice
st-blend and underline the words with final consonant st-blend.
Grammar and Mechanics: Sentence Types

read and as they write. One type of sentence is called a combined sentence. A combined sentence

Gandhi went to London. Gandhi became a lawyer. Ask students to identify the subject

two simple sentences that share the same subject can be combined into one sentence by using
the conjunction and. Ask students how to rewrite the sentences on the board. (Gandhi went
to school in London and became a lawyer).
Gandhi walked to the sea. His followers walked
to the sea. Ask students to identify the predicate (or what the subject is, says, or does) in each

same predicate can be combined into one sentence by using the conjunction and to create a
combined sentence. Ask students how to rewrite the sentences on the board. (Gandhi and his
followers walked to the sea.)

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi
Check for understanding:
and a pencil to copy and combine the sentences.
Gandhi stayed in South Africa for twenty years. He worked for better treatment of Indians.
Gandhi marched against the salt tax. Many Indian people marched against the salt tax.
Independent practice: sentence types
worksheet
Word Work: Synonyms and antonyms
large on the board. Ask students to suggest a word that means almost the same
thing (huge).
word is called a synonym. Ask students to suggest a word that means the opposite of large (tiny).
antonym.

Many Hindus believe in nonviolence and caring for and

respecting others. caring. Ask students to suggest a word that means the same
or almost the same as caring (kind, thoughtful). Ask students to suggest a word that means the
opposite of caring (unkind, mean).
Check for understanding: Give pairs of students a thesaurus. Ask them to find the word small

antonyms for small.

Independent practice:
worksheet

Build Fluency
Independent Reading

parts of the book to each other.

Home Connection

Have students demonstrate how a reader asks questions and then reflects on the answers
while reading.

Extend the Reading

Personal Narrative Writing Connection

the problem, the obstacles to solving the problem, and how the problem was peacefully resolved.
Once students have completed the brainstorming process have them complete the personal

their writing with the class.

Visit for a lesson and leveled materials on narrative writing.

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Lesson Plan (continued) Gandhi
Social Studies Connection
Provide each student with copies of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King Jr. from
com

how to create a basic Venn diagram to compare and contrast information. Provide students with
a blank piece of paper to create a Venn diagram. Have students brainstorm to arrive at similarities

response with the class.

Skill Review

or as a journal entry.

as a purpose for reading.

Assessment
Monitor students to determine if they can:

st-blends

and on a worksheet

Comprehension Checks
Book Quiz

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