The document outlines a 5th grade mini-unit on informational/expository writing following Common Core State Standards. It involves reading two books by Steven Sheinkin - Lincoln's Grave Robbers and The Notorious Benedict Arnold. Students will participate in activities like a mock interview on Benedict Arnold. They will write an informational text on him using research and citing sources in MLA format. The goal is to strengthen students' skills in reading and writing informational texts through scaffolding activities connected to the books. Formative and summative assessments will evaluate students' understanding.

1. COMMENTARY: This is a mini-unit to be taught in 5th grade following CCSS for reading and
writing. Informational/Expository writing is absolutely necessary for students to master by
graduation. Once entering college the bulk of writing becomes informational based and they will
be required to use writing to demonstrate what they have learned while reading. This is the
essence of informational/expository writing. The CCSS Anchor Standards and grade level
standards all outline this type of writing as a requirement and the development of the skill will
start in kindergarten and continue throughout high school. I feel the goal of the standards is to
graduate accomplished writers with a rounded skill-set. The more exposure to informational and
expository texts and practice with writing these types of pieces will only strengthen students’
ability to articulate their research clearly but also demonstrate their analysis and synthesis of the
topic and resources used to support it. It will also enhance their ability to cite appropriately
which is not necessarily used when writing narratives but is always necessary with informational
text writing for quoting sources.
OBJECTIVE: The students will be expected to write a well-developed informational text
demonstrating their research of Benedict Arnolds’ life following a group activity and mock
interview project.
WRITING PROMPT: You will write an informational text on Benedict Arnold using MLA
citation rules following our study and group interview project.
ASSESSMENT: Many forms of summative assessment will take place throughout the following
activities that are designed to strengthen skills for reading and developing analytical and
synthesizing skills of informational/expository texts. Some of the assessments will include
observations (reenactment) made by the teacher, checklists provided to the students, I-Chart and
graphic organizer review and writer’s conferencing during research paper on Benedict Arnold.
Formative assessment will include a teacher created rubric used to assessment the
informational/expository paper following the reenactment interview. Students will be provided
an overview of the expectations for their informational writing and scaffolding will take place up
to when the independent research process begins.
MODEL TEXT FOR INFORMATIONAL/EXPOSITORY WRITING: The two books listed
below with scaffolding activities written by renowned author Steven Sheinkin are good examples
of informational texts. The teacher will also provide examples to the students for resources of
good expository and informational text. They will be located on the internet and may include:
scholarly journal articles and new articles that can be used as resources for suggested activities
connecting the readers to the books below.
OVERVIEW OF MINI-UNIT: The teacher would begin with a brief overview of Steven
Sheinkin as an author and ex-history teacher and the two books being read, discussed and written
about throughout the lessons outlined below. This will take place during a whole group
discussion. The teacher will explain that all of his books are written with the reader in mind and
they are considered an informational narrative, similar to fictional books we’ve read in the past
such as “Harry Potter”. Steven Sheinkin takes history to a whole new level for readers; do not
expect your boring old textbooks and dry articles. He brings humor into a subject that many find
difficult to learn about and he writes in a way that the history almost feels like a fictional story

2. you can get lost in. We will be centering all of our reading, discussing and writing around two
specific books written by Sheinkin, Benedict Arnold and Lincoln’s Grave Robbers.
Book Bios:
The Notorious Benedict Arnold
A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery
A name not spoken of in your history books, Benedict Arnold was revolutionary in our fight for
Independence. “He longed for action, craved attention, and bristled at anything he perceived as
criticism or disrespect” (Steven Sheinkin). Labeled a Hero and later vilified by his peers, General
Arnold was the first Batman of America. Join him in his journey from childhood to rise in the
ranks during the Revolutionary War and ultimate fall from grace. This historical narrative is told
as only Steve Sheinkin can, creative and true to events. Sheinkin considers this is pride and joy
comparable to his favorite child.
Lincoln’s Grave Robbers
Money Counterfeit, The Secret Service, Detectives and Grave Robbing: What do all of these
things have in common and what does Lincoln’s grave have to do with money counterfeiting?
Steve Sheinkin explains in this book dated in 1875, Chicago, a story about not-so- famous master
counterfeiter Benjamin Boyd. After his arrest, his crime ring hatches a plan to get him back…
How? You ask. Well, by stealing Abraham Lincoln’s body, naturally. Still confused? Well you’ll
have to read this heart-pounding real-life historical crime thriller to find out.
My hope is that the group discussion regarding the author and the two book bios will get the
students excited to start reading and learning from these informational texts and supporting
materials such as the internal, journal articles and magazines. The lessons will follow in cession
of one another as follows below; some activities will take days and others weeks depending on
the length of the book and amount of writing outlined in the activity.
SUGGESTED SCAFFOLDING ACTIVITIES:
Lincoln’s Grave Robbers by Steven Sheinkin:
1875 was the year, begin with a group think aloud and internet research to develop a timeline of
important events during this year. Discuss the importance of Lincoln as a president, “why would
somebody want to rob his grave?”, as the title suggests.
Read the book together as a class (allowing for volunteers to read as well as the teacher). Take
time to stop and delve deeper into the book by thinking and talking about importance of events,

3. characters, phrases etc, answer all questions that come up in conversation. Give explicit
instructions that we are doing a book talk while reading.
Use these questions as discussion starters (or others you may find valuable for deeper
comprehension): display them on the board while reading to ensure students are thinking about
the text not just reading it. This activity supports and scaffolds analyzing and synthesizing
informational text and is a great book for demonstrating a writing style that is un-textbook like.
1. Why was Patrick Tyrell a good choice to work for the Secret Service in Chicago?
2. Why did Nat Kinsey turn informant on his former prize student in engraving? What made
Ben Boyd turn to a life of counterfeiting? How did Tyrell corner Boyd and why did it
take so long for him to make the arrest?
3. Why did the United States start to create paper money in the mid-nineteenth century?
What was the advantage of using paper money rather than coins? How did this make it
easier to counterfeit?
4. Why did Jim Kenally’s first plot fail? Do you think Kenally was right when he “didn’t
believe he needed a better plan. He just needed a better team” (p. 57)?
5. Why was John Carroll Power the only one concerned about the safety of Lincoln’s grave
after the first plot failed?
Informational/Expository Research and Writing Activities that could be used following the
reading and group book talk of Lincoln’s Grave Robbers:
 Look up information on the Hayes/Tilden presidential campaigns of 1876. Compare
that election year to others that have been contested. Imagine what a Hayes or Tilden
TV advertisement would have looked like if they had our technology back then. Use a
graphic organizer to develop a comparison between the campaign in 1876 and present
day campaigns. Students should do some research on the internet (using reputable
sources on politics) and magazine and scholarly journal articles to gather ideas and
support the information used in the organizer.
 Research the history of the Pinkerton detective agency and list their involvement in
significant historical events. Discover their connection to Abraham Lincoln when he
was alive. Group students together and have them discuss, research using the internet
and create a, I-Chart for what they find. Ask them to use this Lincoln’s Grave
Robbers and two resources found on the internet to fill in the I-Chart.
Both of the above activities would strengthen skills for reading expository and informational
texts and would allow students to branch out to other medias. However, many short tasks
could be developed from these ideas as well because there is only so much time allowed to
devote to this interdisciplinary topic (could be used in ELA or social studies).
CCSS-
RL.5.1. Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when
drawing inferences from the text.

4. RL.5.2. Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how
characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a
topic; summarize the text.
RL.5.3. Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama,
drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).
RL.5.10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and
poetry, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
RI.5.1. Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when
drawing inferences from the text.
RI.5.2. Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key
details; summarize the text.
RI.5.3. Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas,
or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.
RI.5.10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including
history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text
complexity band independently and proficiently.
5.W.2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and
information clearly.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other
information and examples related to the topic.
c. Link ideas within and across categories of information using words, phrases,
and clauses (e.g., in contrast, especially).
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or
explain the topic.
5.W.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types
are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
5.W.8. Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from
print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished
work, and provide a list of sources.
5.W.9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection,
and research.
5.W.10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and
revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of
discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Benedict Arnold-Talk Show Invitation:
Pair the class into groups of three (varying level of reading abilities- 1 above, 1 at level, 1
below). Rational- using diverse reading abilities will aid in peer teaching for struggling readers.
Assign each student The Notorious Benedict Arnold by Steve Sheinkin as independent close
reading; students should be keeping a journal of key notes, phrases, quotes, characters, events,
timelines, facts and other interesting information found in the text. Remind students to read with
a dictionary for referencing unknown vocabulary and to document pages and paragraphs where
the information was found in their journals (reading may take about two weeks). Have a time set

5. aside for a daily group book discussion including information they found interesting and that
could be useful for the Talk Show assignment (one student should be the scribe for the group).
Once the students have completed the reading, the daily discussion time will become small group
work time for the project. They will be required to select a real Talk Show to mimic as a
reenactment for the class. CNN 360 for instance: one student will be the host (Anderson
Cooper), one student will be Benedict Arnold, and one student will be a second character from
the book (to be chosen by the group). Students will then create dialogue, questions and answers
(using the information collected during reading and book discussion). Once groups are satisfied
with their work and have practiced their reenactments, book discussion time will become Talk
Show time. Students will act out the interview for the class displaying their knowledge gathered
from The Notorious Benedict Arnold.
Independent Research and Writing Activity: (this is a really lengthy and time consuming
assignment)
The students will use the research done on Benedict Arnold and the information obtained from
the historical narrative The Notorious Benedict Arnold to write an informational paper on him.
They may select any aspect of his life included: information used during the group project
interviewing project to demonstrate what they have learned about an unknown but very
important character of the American Revolutionary War. They will use the tools for organizing
their research that were scaffolded in previous lessons, i.e.: I-Charts and graphic organizers.
Students will be required to use MLA citation rules to dictate resources used. This process was
learned during previous writer’s workshop and explicit instruction on informational text writing
not mentioned in this mini-unit. The students will go through all formal steps of the writing
process from researching and collecting data, organizing it, drafting, revising, conferring,
editing, proofreading and a final typed copy. The final product once revised, edit and typed
without errors will be assessed using previously discussed writing rubric for informational text.
CCSS-
RL.5.1. Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when
drawing inferences from the text.
RL.5.3. Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama,
drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).
RL.5.10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and
poetry, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
RI.5.1. Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when
drawing inferences from the text.
RI.5.2. Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key
details; summarize the text.
RI.5.3. Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas,
or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.
RI.5.4. Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a
text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area.
RI.5.10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including
history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text
complexity band independently and proficiently.

6. 5.W.2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and
information clearly.
a. Introduce a topic clearly, provide a general observation and focus, and group
related information logically; include formatting (e.g., headings),
illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other
information and examples related to the topic.
c. Link ideas within and across categories of information using words, phrases,
and clauses (e.g., in contrast, especially).
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or
explain the topic.
e. Provide a concluding statement or section related to the information or
explanation presented.
5.W.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types
are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
5.W.5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing
as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach. (Editing for
conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1–3 up to and
including grade 5.)
5.W.6. With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the
Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others;
demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages
in a single sitting.
5.W.7. Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build knowledge
through investigation of different aspects of a topic.
5.W.8. Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from
print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished
work, and provide a list of sources.
5.W.9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection,
and research.
5.W.10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and
revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of
discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Resources:
Diana Mitchell. (1998). Fifty Alternatives to the Book Report. English Journal, 87 (1),
ncte.org/library.
Sheinkin, Steve (2012). Lincoln’s Grave Robbers. New York, United States. Scholastic Inc.

7. Sheinkin, Steve (2010). The Notorious Benedict Arnold, A True Story of Adventure, Heroism &
Treachery. New York, United States: Roaring Brook Press.
Oregon Department of Education, United States Department of Education. Common Core State
Standards. (1998-2013). Retrieved from http://www.ode.state.or.us/home/