Lesson 12: Hidden Figures, Research Writing, Part 3

Use this routine to help students orally rehearse ideas before writing. Partners should face each other and keep the chapter open to the assigned section.

Think-Pair-Share

Say these Directions: Find the section of text where Katherine studies the flight recorder evidence. Discuss the following question with a partner:

Ask: How did Katherine prove her mathematical abilities to her team at Langley? What are some of the problems she and the engineers solved together?

• Katherine’s mathematical analysis impressed the team and her efforts uncovered the real cause of the crash. Together with the engineers, they developed changes that would lead to safer flight rules.

Connection to Today's Learning

• Say: In this chapter, you can see how the author shows the relationships between events and explains their outcomes. As writers, it’s important to clearly show the order of events, the results, and explain how the evidence links them together.

Students will learn how explanatory writers show cause-and-effect relationships using precise transitions to connect ideas.

Language Study

Teach: Showing Cause and Effect with Transitions

Say these Directions: In this lesson, we will study how writers connect ideas by showing cause-and-effect relationships. Instead of just listing events, writers show how one idea leads to another using precise transitions to explain the connection. Read and review the following quotes from Chapter 13 then respond to the questions..

Model and Deconstruct

Read the first quote aloud and model responses to the questions.

"The data showed that the air disturbance caused by a jet that flew past could trouble the air for as long as a half hour after it had passed through."

• Ask: What event or action is the cause in the first sentence? (the air disturbance caused by a jet)

• Ask: What is the effect? (the air could be troubled for up to half an hour)

• Ask: Which words signal the cause-and-effect relationship? (caused by)

Prompt students to work with a partner to repeat the process you modeled using the second quote from Chapter 13.

"The research done by Katherine and the engineers on the team led to changes in air traffic regulations, requiring minimum distances between flight paths to prevent similar accidents."

• Ask: What is the cause in the second sentence? (the research done by Katherine and the team)

• Ask: What is the effect? (changes in air traffic regulations)

• Ask: Which words show the relationship between the ideas? (led to)

Lead a whole class discussion of the following question:

• Ask: How do these transitions help the reader understand the sentences? (They show how one idea directly results in another.)

To show cause and effect, writers:

• identify what happened (cause)

• explain what happened next (effect)

• use transitions like caused by, led to, and as a result

This helps readers understand how ideas are connected, not just what happened.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: In this lesson, you explored how cause-and-effect language can be used to connect ideas. Next, you will rehearse and write how each step in Katherine’s investigation led to the next and how her mathematical work and collaboration resulted in safer flight.

Part A: Use Transitions Effectively (W.6.2.c) (15 minutes)

Say these Directions: With a partner, review the Chapter 13 section “A Bumpy Ride.” Work together to map the investigation steps from the initial problem to the resulting flight safety change. Identify each step, paraphrase the details that describe it and use transitions to show how the process moves forward. Pay close attention to the cause-and-effect relationships. Take notes in a 3-Column Chart and label each column as indicated:

• Column 1: Step

• Column 2: Paraphrased evidence

• Column 3: Transition word or phrase

• Ask: What is the first step in Katherine’s investigation and how does it launch the additional steps that eventually lead to safer flight regulations?

  • The first step was when Katherine analyzed the flight recorder images and compared them to the later experiment data. That is where the evidence begins to show that rough air from the larger jet stayed dangerous after the jet had already passed. Without that step, the later rule change would not make sense.

Part B: Draft an Explanation (W.6.2.c) (15 minutes)

Students will draft an explanatory paragraph using their notes from Part A. Remind them that this is not a summary of the whole chapter; it is an explanation of the steps that led to safer flight regulations.

Quick Write

Teach:

• Say: As I draft an explanatory paragraph, I start with the big idea, not with a tiny detail. My topic sentence answers the question by naming both mathematical evidence and collaboration. Then I move in order: Katherine’s analysis first, the experiment next, the discovery after that, and the safety change at the end. I am careful to paraphrase, which means I keep the meaning but use my own wording. I also underline my transitions so I can check whether the paragraph sounds smooth instead of repetitive. Before I finish, I reread and ask, Did I show how each step led to the next one?

Say these Directions: Use your notes in the 3-Column Chart to write an explanatory paragraph that responds to this question: How did Katherine’s mathematical expertise and collaboration with others lead to safer flight?

Include in your paragraph:

• at least two paraphrased details from the section

• transitional language to show the sequence and cause/effect relationships,

• a final sentence that explains the resulting safety impact.

Underline your transitions as you write.

• Katherine Johnson’s mathematical evidence and collaboration helped make flight safer by revealing the hidden cause of a crash. First, she carefully analyzed the flight recorder images from the small plane so the team could study what happened over time. Next, the engineers recreated the same conditions with a test flight, and Katherine compared that new information to the earlier evidence. The two kinds of evidence pointed to the same conclusion. As a result, the team learned that disturbed air from a larger jet could remain dangerous long after the jet had passed. Eventually, this discovery led to changes in air traffic regulations that required more distance between flight paths. Katherine’s analysis and the team’s experiment worked together to help prevent similar accidents.

Lesson 12 Writing Rubric: Explanatory Paragraph — Transitions for Sequence

Writing prompt: Write or revise an explanatory paragraph about a key moment in Katherine Johnson's or Dorothy Vaughan's work that uses transitional phrases to show the sequence of events and connect ideas clearly.

Turn and Talk

Say these Directions: Today you practiced one of the most important parts for your final project: explaining a person’s work in a clear sequence. When you research your own hidden innovator, you will need to show how evidence, actions, and results connect. Using clear transitional language will help your reader follow that chain of thinking.

Discuss the following question with a partner.

• Ask: Why is it important to show relationships between steps?

  • When describing a complex process, it’s important to guide the reader clearly through each step and show how the steps connect. Using precise transitional language helps link ideas and make the sequence easy to follow; without it, the writing can feel confusing.

Have students read Chapter 14 of Hidden Figures. Instruct students to take notes in their Journal on the following prompt:

As you read, annotate the text for the following:

• Places where Katherine’s work, evidence, or collaboration helps move discovery forward