Lesson 16: March, Explanatory Writing, Part 3

Reviewing Verbals

Say these Directions: Review what you learned about verbals in Lesson 10.

• Verbals are words formed from verbs that function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.

• The three types of verbals are gerunds, participles (present and past), and infinitives.

This lesson focuses on gerunds and participles.

Say these Directions: Read the sentences from “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” below. Identify and name the type of verbal in each sentence.

• "Such love goes to the extreme; it remains loving and forgiving even in the midst of hostility" (gerunds)

• “It matches the capacity of evil to inflict suffering with an even more enduring capacity to absorb evil, all the while persisting in love." (gerunds/infinitives)

• "We seek to create a society in which human dignity is recognized." (infinitives)

Using Verbals to Add Clarity and Precision 

Explain to students how verbals add clarity and precision to analysis. 

Say:

• When we write analysis, verbals help us name what is happening and why it matters in a more exact way than general verbs like is or shows. They let us describe actions, effects, and purposes in fewer words.

• Gerunds (verbals that act like nouns) help us state an idea as a concept we can analyze.

  • Example: Instead of “The author is hopeful,” write “The author emphasizes hoping for change” or “The text highlights resisting injustice.”

  • Why this is clearer: Hoping and resisting name the central action/idea directly, so the reader knows exactly what the text is about.

• Participles (verbals that act like adjectives) help us describe details precisely by showing which person, idea, or action we mean.

  • Example: “The author uses repeated phrases to build urgency.” (past participle)

  • Example: “The rising tension in the scene makes the decision feel unavoidable.” (present participle)

  • Why this is clearer: Repeated and rising point to specific features we can support with evidence.

• Verbals also help you connect evidence to your interpretation smoothly.

  • Example: “By showing the rule and its consequences, the text pushes the reader toward questioning whether the system is fair.”

  • Example: “The description of events, combined with the speaker’s word choice, ends up shaping how the reader judges credibility.”

Connection to Today’s Learning:

• Say: Today, you will use verbals when writing in this lesson, and at the end of the lesson, you will engage in a Quick Write where you will be expected to write one sentence explaining how you might use a verbal in your analysis.

Part A: Comparing Information in Two Texts (RI.8.9) (15 minutes)

Instruct students to independently reread “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk" before transitioning students into partnerships. Then have students engage in the Think-Pair-Share routine.

Think-Pair-Share

Say these Directions: Reread “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk" and then use the think-pair-share routine to answer these questions with a partner.

• Ask: How does the information in the newspaper article “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” agree or disagree with the information about the Montgomery bus boycott in March?

  • In March, Lewis shows how the Montgomery Black community boycotts the buses as a positive collective action against segregation. He shows that over 50,000 people participated for over a year and that Martin Luther King Jr. is the organizer of the boycott. Lewis portrays the boycott as an important action taken by the community that galvanizes other Southern Black folks as they feel “like we are a part of it, too” (p. 58). The newspaper articles disagree with the boycott portrayal in March, as the mayor states that the boycott is disrupting the “social fabric of our community.” The newspaper’s interpretation of the boycott is that the participants are being unreasonable and causing “racial strife.” The newspaper article portrays the boycott as negative for the community of Montgomery and as a problem for the “fine relationships which have existed between the Negro and white people for generations.”

• Ask: Consider John Lewis's childhood experiences and reflections over the course of pp. 1–61 in March. How does the information in the newspaper article “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” disagree with Lewis's own personal experiences and reflections about segregation?

  • The mayor in the newspaper articles states that “no other city in the South of our size has treated the Negro more fairly. In Montgomery, they have better facilities in schools, hospitals, health centers and the like . . .” This information disagrees with Lewis’s own experience of segregation and inequality. Lewis experiences unequal school facilities as he reflects on white children’s “nice playground equipment” and his “hand-me-down” bus (p. 48). The mayor also says that there have been “fine relationships” that have existed between Black Americans and “white people for generations.” This statement disagrees with Lewis's own experience of white people as he drives through the South with his Uncle Otis on their road trip. As they drive through the South, Lewis and his uncle cannot stop at any place to eat and can only use certain bathrooms. These experiences show that there is no “fine relationship” between white people and Southern Black Americans.

Part B: Planning Explanatory Writing (RI.8.9, W.8.2.a-b, W.8.9.b, L.8.1.a) (15 minutes)

Say these Directions: In the next lesson, you will write an 8-10 sentence analysis paragraph explaining how the information expressed in the newspaper article “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” agrees or disagrees with Lewis's experiences and reflections in March: Book One. The writing prompt is:

• Say: Write an eight-to-ten-sentence analysis paragraph explaining how the information expressed in the newspaper article “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” agrees or disagrees with Lewis's experiences and reflections in March: Book One. In your response, you must use at least one verbal and one comma to indicate a pause or break.

Transition students into the Graffiti/Table Talk routine to begin planning for their mini-analysis. Provide each student with a T-chart. Instruct them to label the headings according to the sample responses below.

Graffiti/Table Talk

Say these Directions: Use the T-Chart to prepare for your analysis. Complete your T-chart by:

• Writing at least two pieces of text evidence from March, pp. 1–61, that show Lewis’s experiences or reflections in the left column.

• Writing at least two pieces of text evidence from "Mayor Stops Boycott Talk" that relate to or disagree with Lewis’s account in the right column.

• Drafting a topic sentence explaining how the primary source agrees or disagrees with information in March at the bottom of the T-chart.

As students work on their T-charts, circulate to ensure their evidence is accurate and clearly connected to their topic sentences.

Display chart paper with the same T-chart format. After students finish their individual T-charts, hand out markers. Have each student write one of their ideas in the appropriate place on the chart paper.

Once every student has written one idea on the class T-chart, encourage students to examine their classmates’ ideas and add new ideas to their individual T-charts.

Lesson 16 Writing Rubric: Paragraph Plan — Mayor Stops Boycott Talk vs. March

Writing prompt: Plan an 8–10 sentence analysis paragraph explaining how “Mayor Stops Boycott Talk” agrees or disagrees with Lewis’s experiences and reflections in March: Book One. Build a T-chart pairing evidence from both texts.

Quick Write

Say these Directions: Write one sentence in response to the following question:

• Ask: How might you use a verbal in your written analysis?

Optional Sentence Starter:

“I will use a verbal to ____.”

• I will use a verbal to add precision by explaining purpose or cause (for example, to show why an event matters or to recognize what a detail reveals).

In your Journal, begin writing a rough draft of the analysis paragraph you will complete in the next lesson. Remember to use the ideas you planned out in your T-chart to support your writing.