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Echo Effect

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Lesson Plan

Paraphrase Practice Plan

In this 20-minute one-on-one session, the student will practice paraphrasing spoken statements and reflective listening to strengthen conversational understanding and social communication clarity.

Paraphrasing ensures the student actively listens and processes conversational cues accurately, improving social interactions and reducing misunderstandings in peer communication.

Audience

4th Grade Student

Time

20 minutes

Approach

Through guided practice drills and reflective prompts.

Materials

Prep

Review Materials

5 minutes

Step 1

Warm-Up Discussion

5 minutes

  • Greet the student and explain the session’s objective: practicing paraphrasing and reflection
  • Ask the student a simple question (e.g., “What did you do over the weekend?”)
  • Model paraphrasing your own answer and then ask the student to paraphrase it back to you
  • Provide immediate praise or correction using the Coach Reflection Prompts

Step 2

Paraphrase Drills

10 minutes

  • Present sentences from the Echo Examples Slide
  • Read each sentence aloud and ask the student to paraphrase it in their own words
  • Use the Mirror Questions to prompt deeper reflection (e.g., “Can you tell me more about that?”)
  • Give feedback after each attempt, referencing the Reflection Accuracy Scale

Step 3

Guided Reflection

3 minutes

  • Invite the student to share how paraphrasing felt and any challenges they noticed
  • Use the Coach Reflection Prompts to guide the discussion
  • Highlight successes and identify one area for improvement

Step 4

Quick Assessment

2 minutes

  • Provide a new sentence and have the student paraphrase it without scaffolding
  • Score the response using the Reflection Accuracy Scale
  • Summarize progress and set a goal for the next session
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Slide Deck

Echo Examples

Observe how statements are paraphrased below.

• Original statements are in italics.
• Model paraphrases reflect the speaker’s meaning without adding new details.

Introduce this slide by explaining that paraphrasing, or “echoing,” helps ensure we understand what someone says. Point out that original statements are shown in italics, and model paraphrases restate key ideas in new words.

Example 1

“I’m feeling nervous about the science fair because I haven’t finished my project.”

Model Paraphrase:
“You’re worried about the science fair since your project isn’t done.”

Highlight that the model paraphrase captures both the emotion (nervous) and the reason (unfinished project). Ask the student: “What words changed? What stayed the same?”

Example 2

“I can’t go to the game tonight because I have extra homework.”

Model Paraphrase:
“You’re unable to go to the game tonight due to extra homework.”

Point out that ‘can’t go’ is restated as ‘unable to go,’ and the cause (‘extra homework’) is retained. Prompt the student: “How would you paraphrase ‘extra homework’ differently?”

Example 3

“I love playing basketball after school because it’s fun and keeps me active.”

Model Paraphrase:
“You enjoy playing basketball after school since it’s fun and helps you stay active.”

Emphasize keeping the positive feeling (‘love playing basketball’) and the reasons (‘fun’ and ‘keeps me active’). Encourage the student to practice swapping in synonyms.

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Activity

Mirror Questions

Use these probing prompts during paraphrase drills to help students elaborate, check their understanding, and refine their reflections.

  1. Can you tell me more about that?

  2. What do you mean by “___”?

  3. How did that make you feel?

  4. Why do you think that happened?

  5. What is the most important part of what they said?

  6. Can you put that in your own words?

  7. What detail would you add or change?

  8. Is there another way to say that?
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Script

Coach Reflection Prompts

Use these cues to guide feedback during paraphrase practice. Choose a prompt that matches the student’s response.

Praise Prompts

  • “Great job restating the main idea! You said, ‘___,’ and that captured what they meant.”


  • “Nice work! You used different words but kept the meaning the same.”


  • “You really listened. You highlighted the important parts when you said, ‘___.’”

Correction Prompts

  • “Let’s try again. What was the key point they were making?”


  • “I noticed a new detail snuck in. Can you paraphrase without adding extra information?”


  • “You’ve got the feeling right. How can you include the reason they gave?”

Follow-Up Prompts

  • “Can you tell me more about why they felt that way?”


  • “What word could you swap out to keep it fresh?”


  • “What’s the most important part of what they said?”
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Rubric

Reflection Accuracy Scale

Use this 1–4 scale to score student paraphrases during the Quick Assessment.

ScoreDescriptor
4Exemplary: Accurately reflects all key ideas and details in new words without adding or omitting content.
3Proficient: Captures the main idea in own words; a minor detail may be missing, but meaning remains clear.
2Developing: Partially accurate—some key ideas are missing or original wording is retained.
1Beginning: Inaccurate or incomplete—misinterprets meaning, adds extra information, or omits core ideas.
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