Wit & Wisdom® Prologue™
Discover our collection of supplementary lessons designed to support multilingual learners and students with language-based disabilities in grades 6-8.
- Effective scaffolding for students who are having trouble accessing grade level curriculum due to language challenges.
- High-quality lessons that can be used for Designated English Language Development (ELD) or intervention time aligned to the ELA content.
- Guidance for how TESOL teachers, special education teachers, and other specialists can support the ELA content.
GRADE 6 | MODULE 1 | LESSON 20
In this Prologue sample lesson, students deconstruct important sentences from the core text, Out of the Dust, into words, phrases, and clauses. By focusing on word choice, symbolism, and figurative language, students deepen their understanding of complex language. This work prepares students to analyze the text in advance of Lesson 20.
Below, we have provided a sample lesson plan for you to see Prologue in action, as well as annotated lessons that highlight effective supports for multilingual learners and students with language-based disabilities.
Components of Prologue
Prologue is a collection of 30-minute lessons designed to help a variety of students meet the learning goals of Wit & Wisdom. Every Prologue user will receive:- 12 lesson plans spread out through each module
- One Teacher Guide per grade
- Downloadable handouts and answer keys
- A glossary available in English or English/Spanish
Free Prologue Professional Development
To support successful implementation of Prologue, we've included free on-demand professional learning for all Prologue users. These videos are designed to guide implementation best practices for both teachers and specialists.
Scaffolding for Wit & Wisdom Instruction
There are four types of Prologue lessons: reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language. The Launch-Learn-Land format of lessons will be familiar to both teachers and students from Wit & Wisdom core lessons and Deep Dives. The main body of the lesson, the Learn section, will always include
- explicit modeling to support student progress toward meeting language expectations,
- opportunities for peer interaction and oral language practice, and
- attention to disciplinary language.
Instructional Design Backed by Research
A recent UnboundEd (2020) concept paper emphasized that “the equitable way to ensure the efficiency and rigor of supplemental instruction is by providing it in service of the current or upcoming work of the grade.” Prologue provides Wit & Wisdom educators and their partner teachers with coherent lessons that preview content and directly support the learning goals of Wit & Wisdom. When we were writing Prologue, we worked to answer these three questions:
Introducing Prologue
Watch this FREE webinar to learn more about using Prologue to support multilingual learners.
Both multilingual learners and students with language-based disabilities benefit from engagement with grade-level content, access to complex texts, and time to build the language skills necessary for successful reading comprehension. This webinar, moderated by Sarah Woodard, National Director for Educational Partnerships on the Great Minds Humanities team, will introduce educators to Prologue, a collection of lessons for Grades 6–8 that build the foundation students need to access high-quality, grade-level materials and develop the confidence to meaningfully participate in Wit & Wisdom.
Panelists include:
- Sarah Webb, Senior Curriculum Designer for Multilingual Learners, Great Minds
- Tsianina Tovar, EL Coach, K–12, Buncombe County Schools
- Robin Hegner, Owner/Instructor/Consultant, Pathways to Reading Success
QUESTIONS?
Click here to connect with your Great Minds partner to learn more about Prologue or to schedule time to discuss how you can implement these lessons in your classroom.