The Rise of Roblox/5 Ways to Stay Connected

Social-Emotional Learning: self-management (stress-management, self-discipline and self-motivation); social awareness (concern for others); relationship skills (positive relationships)

synthesizing, text features, vocabulary, main idea, cause and effect, author’s craft, inference, drawing conclusions, key details, summarizing, sequencing, text to self, expressing an opinion, explanatory writing

Set a Purpose for Reading/Preview Text Features (15 minutes)

• Look at page 10 with the class. Point out the labels “Paired Texts” and “One topic, two stories.” Have a volunteer read aloud the title and subtitle on page 10 and on page 12. Point out the images that accompany the texts. Then ask students to identify the topic of both stories. (The first explains how a video game platform became popular at a time when people had to spend a lot of time at home, and the second is an infographic that offers ideas of how to stay in touch with friends and family members if you can’t see them in person.)

• Call on volunteers to read aloud the Think and Read box on page 10 and the Think and Write box on page 12. As students read both articles, remind them to look for details that show how the two texts are related.

Introduce Vocabulary (15 minutes)

• We have highlighted in bold four words that may be challenging and defined them on the page: platform, collaborate, moderation, and unwind. 

• Preview these terms by projecting or distributing our Vocabulary Skill Builder (available in your Resources tab) and completing it as a class. You may also play our Vocabulary Slideshow, in which audio and images help students with pronunciation and comprehension.

Reading and Unpacking the Text

• First read: Students should read the article and the infographic one time for general comprehension. 

• Second read: Project, distribute, or assign the Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions (available in your Resources tab) to the class. Preview them together. Ask students to read the article and infographic again and answer the questions as a class or in pairs. (Alternatively, assign all or part of the Learning Journey Slide Deck, which contains the questions—along with other activities from this lesson plan and a link to the stories. Find it in your Resources tab.)

 

Close-Reading Questions (30 minutes)

1. Read the first section of “The Rise of Roblox.”  Why was Robby Scianna’s 10th birthday very different from his other birthdays? (main idea) His 10th birthday party took place online. He and his dad hosted it on Roblox, an online gaming platform.
2. Why couldn’t Robby have a birthday party with his friends in person? (cause and effect) Because Covid-19 was spreading across the United States, people were told to stay home. Robby couldn’t get together with his friends. 
3. Read “Millions of Players.” Why do you think the author says, “Roblox has something for everyone”? (author’s craft/inference) Because the site has more than 40 million video games, every player will probably find a game to enjoy. If players can’t find a game they like on the site, they can build their own games.
4. Why do you think the number of players who visited Roblox increased so much  between February and June of last year? (drawing conclusions) Because of Covid-19, people couldn’t go to school or see a movie. Since they couldn’t leave their homes, millions of people played video games for fun.
   
5. Read “The Power of Play.”  How does playing games such as Roblox help people? (key details) Playing games helps people relax. These games also bring together people who can’t see each other in person.
6. Read “Staying Connected.” What should people be careful to do when they play video games? (summarizing) They should remember that games aren’t the only way to get through a difficult time. Also, spending too much time playing video games isn’t a good idea.
7. Read the infographic “5 Ways to Stay Connected.” Choose one of the five ideas. In your own words, write the directions for the activity you chose. Make sure to include all the steps you need to do for the activity and put the steps in the correct order. (summarizing/sequencing) Answers will vary.
8. The word unwind is defined on page 12. What is one way to unwind that is mentioned in the infographic? Describe another way to unwind using an example from your own life. (vocabulary/text to self) Answers to the first question may vary but should refer to one of the ideas described in the infographic, like holding a dance party. Answers to the second question will vary.

Critical-Thinking Question (10 minutes)

1. Think about both texts. Why do you think it’s important for people to stay connected in a variety of ways during a difficult time? Use examples from both texts in your answer. (synthesizing/expressing an opinion) Answers will vary. Sample answer: Staying connected during a difficult time makes people feel better. It’s important to stay in touch with your family, friends, and classmates. For example, Robby Scianna had his 10th birthday party on Roblox, an online gaming platform. Just hearing his friends’ voices made him feel special. Because you shouldn’t spend too much time playing video games, it’s also important to connect in other ways. You don’t need a computer to write a letter or a poem. You can also make cookies or draw a picture for someone who’s special to you. No matter how you connect, the important thing is to stay in touch with your friends and family.

Staying in Touch

Both texts offer ways for people to keep in touch if they cannot spend time together in person. Many students have experienced disruptions in their lives in the past year. Ask: Do you have friends or family members who you can’t see in person? If so, you can still stay in touch with them! What ways of staying connected would you like to try? If you have already stayed in touch with friends or family members who you can’t see in person, what new ways of staying connected could you try?

Featured Skill: Synthesizing

• Distribute our Connecting Texts Skill Builder (available in your Resources tab) and have students complete it in class or for homework.  

• Discuss the writing assignment in the Think and Write box on page 12. Remind students to include details from both articles when writing their paragraphs.

• Our new Learning Journey Slide Deck (available in your Resources tab) is designed to make your life easier. Have students move through at their own pace, or assign smaller chunks for different days. You can also customize the Slide Deck to your liking.
  

• Hold a whole-class or small-group discussion of the close-reading and critical-thinking questions. As in your physical classroom, establish rules for discussion and appropriate ways to respond to one another. You might have students use a “raise hand” emoji in your virtual classroom or ask students to respond to questions in the chat feature.