Lesson plan Grade 6 English Language Arts
Ironsdale's Lead Pipe Notice: A Grade 6 Research Writing Lesson
A grade 6 ELA lesson where students gather details from three short sources about a fictional town's lead service lines and write an informative response.
Objectives
- Students will gather information from three sources to answer a focused question about Ironsdale's lead service lines.
- Students will write a short informative response that combines details from more than one source.
Vocabulary
- Service line
- A service line is the small pipe that connects the water main under the street to the plumbing inside one home or building. It is the last leg of the trip water makes to your tap.
- Corrosion control
- Treatment that keeps water from slowly eating away at the inside of pipes. It helps stop metals like lead from getting into drinking water.
- Action level
- A trigger number in lead and copper testing. If too many homes test above this level, the utility must take steps like improving treatment and telling the public.
Also: source, research question
Teacher overview
Many families first learn about lead pipes from a letter their water utility is required to send. This lesson uses a fictional letter from the town of Ironsdale as the starting point for a short research task. Students read three brief sources, gather the details that answer one focused question, and write an informative response that pulls from more than a single source. The lesson keeps the research small and fully contained, so the skill students practice is selecting and combining evidence rather than searching the internet.
Procedure
Hook (5 min): Ask whether students have ever received a letter meant for the whole household. Explain that water utilities must mail a notice when they find lead pipes, and that reading such a notice carefully is a real-life research skill.
Read the source cards (10 min): Distribute the Student Handout. Read the three source cards aloud: Source A is Ironsdale's fictional notice, Source B explains what a lead service line is, and Source C gives the federal rule facts. Have students mark one detail on each card that seems important.
Model note-taking (10 min): Post the focused research question: "Why is Ironsdale replacing its lead service lines, and what does that mean for a family whose home has one?" Model writing two notes, each tagged with the source it came from (for example, "Source C: action level drops to 10 ppb in 2027"). Stress that a research note names its source.
Guided research notes (12 min): Students complete questions 1 through 4, pulling one detail from each source and deciding which details actually answer the focused question. Remind them that a detail can be interesting yet not relevant.
Write the informative response (15 min): Students answer question 5 by writing a short informative paragraph that uses details from at least two of the three sources and names each source they use.
Close (3 min): Collect the handouts. As an exit check, students write on the back one detail they chose not to use and one sentence explaining why it did not fit the question.
Student Handout
Source A (fictional notice): The Ironsdale Water Department has found lead service lines connecting the water main to about 1,200 older homes. The department will replace these lines over the next several years at no direct cost to homeowners. Until a line is replaced, the notice advises running the tap before drinking and using a filter certified for lead.
Source B: A service line is the pipe that connects a home to the water main under the street. Some older service lines are made of lead. Utilities add a treatment called corrosion control that coats the inside of pipes so lead does not dissolve into the water. When that coating fails, lead can enter tap water.
Source C (federal rule facts): EPA estimates that about 4 million lead service lines remain in water systems across the United States. The federal lead action level is 15 ppb today and drops to 10 ppb in 2027. The updated rule also requires utilities to replace nearly all lead service lines within 10 years.
Focused research question: Why is Ironsdale replacing its lead service lines, and what does that mean for a family whose home has one?
- Write one detail from Source A that helps answer the question.
- Write one detail from Source B that helps answer the question.
- Write one detail from Source C that helps answer the question.
- Which one detail across the three sources is interesting but does not really answer the focused question? Explain your choice in one sentence.
- Write a short informative paragraph that answers the focused question. Use details from at least two sources and name each source you use.
From Water for Schools (waterforschools.org). This material is in the public domain (CC0) and may be copied, edited, and shared freely.
Answer Key
- Answer: Answers will vary. Acceptable details include that Ironsdale found lead lines on about 1,200 older homes, that replacement is at no direct cost, or that families should use a certified filter until replacement.
- Answer: Answers will vary. Acceptable details include that a service line connects a home to the main, that some old lines are lead, or that corrosion control coats pipes so lead does not dissolve.
- Answer: Answers will vary. Acceptable details include the roughly 4 million lead lines nationwide, the action level dropping to 10 ppb in 2027, or the 10-year replacement requirement.
- Answer: Answers will vary. A reasonable choice is the nationwide figure of 4 million lines, since it gives background but does not directly explain what Ironsdale is doing or what it means for one family.
- Answer: Answers will vary. A strong paragraph explains that Ironsdale is replacing lead lines to lower lead in tap water as rules tighten, names at least two sources, and tells the family what to do until their line is replaced.
Exit check: Answers will vary. Look for a detail the student set aside plus a clear reason it did not fit the focused question.
Differentiation
Support
Provide a three-column note sheet labeled Source A, Source B, and Source C with one detail already filled in per column, so students add only one more detail each and then combine them.
Extension
Ask students to write one question the three sources do not answer, such as how a family finds out whether their own home has a lead line, and suggest which kind of source could answer it.
ELL supports
Pre-teach "service line," "corrosion control," and "action level" with a labeled diagram of a pipe running from the street to a house. Allow students to highlight details directly on the source cards and to answer questions 1 through 4 with phrases.