State Goal 1: Read with understanding and fluency

CAS (Chicago Academic Standards) A: Strategic Reading Behaviors

CFS: (Chicago Framework Statements)

1. Retell the content of text read independently.
2. Determine and state the purpose for reading stories/text.
3. Clarify meaning by asking and answering questions concerning text.
4. Organize information logically and sequentially based on passage.
5. Determine and explain author’s purpose and explicit main ideas.
6. Make and confirm predictions about events and ideas in text.
7. Summarize text read; incl. Characters, setting, events, solution.
8. Make connections between prior knowledge & new reading selections.
9. Describe problem, solution, or central idea of text.
10. Recognize cause-effect relationships.
11. Alphabetize to the second letter.
12. Draw conclusions.

unfamiliar words and material.

CFS: 1. Identify and orally manipulate small units of sound (phonemes).

1. count the number of syllables
2. add or delete phonemes orally to change syllables or words.

1. Refine and apply word recognition and analysis strategies.

1. Prefixes, suffixes, contractions, and singular possessives,

1. Apply word analysis skills using knowledge of: consonant-vowel

1. Identify word families: common phonic elements, common root
1. Identify base words and affixes.
2. Identify vowel digraphs, diphthongs, and controlled vowels.
3. Apply knowledge of : homonyms, antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs.
4. Identify variant and silent consonants (e.g., /gn/g/)

to convey meaning.

CFS: a. Demonstrate an ability to read aloud with appropriate vocal

patterns.

b. Read various texts aloud using word analysis skills.

CAS D. Exhibit engagement in reading by responding to text orally, in writing, or

through the arts.

CFS: a. Oral presentations (book reports, role-playing, choral reading, and

peer conferencing.

1. Create logs, journals, and book reports.
1. Construct big books, dioramas, murals, illustrations, songs, and plays.
2. Respond to text by generating alternative endings to plots and by substituting new elements (e.g., character traits, reactions, events, and settings).

individual, community, national, world, and historical perspectives.

CAS A: Distinguish among literary terms, techniques, and forms in

significant types of literature.

CFS: a. Distinguish nonfiction from fiction.

1. Describe the effects of humor within a work of literature.
1. Identify the topic(s) presented in works of literature.
2. Compare and contrast character traits, settings, and mood of different stories.
3. Distinguish between works of poetry and prose.
4. Define the major characteristics of significant forms of literature and describe their operation in selected works.

1. Fairy Tales
2. Poetry
3. Fables
4. Tall Tales and Folk Tales
5. Informational selections.

Day 1: Unit opener

Introduce Concept Board: Ideas about Responsibility

The concept board is a bulletin board that stands year-round for the purpose of sharing ideas and communications about unit concepts. Students, parents, and teachers can post pictures or drawings with captions, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, cartoon strips, or written ideas on note cards at any time during the unit. When a new unit is introduced, initial knowledge recordings about concepts are posted, and then as the unit is developed, additional information is accumulated throughout the duration of the unit. Information is reviewed daily at the beginning of the Reading Block, and at the end of the unit, the total mass of information is summarized and shared in class. Finally, the messages on the board are compiled into the "Class Concept Book" for future reference.

Activating Prior Knowledge:

Ask the children to discuss what they know about responsibility. Spend enough time discussing responsibility so that children feel comfortable expressing their opinions openly and honestly. Read any short newspaper clipping or current event article that you feel illustrates an act of responsibility clearly, and will serve to motivate children to add their feelings and opinions about the article, and the concept itself. A recent example of a current event that was on the new this week that I told the children about was a Terrier dog that recently had puppies who nursed an orphaned kitten along with her puppies, and took care of it until it could survive on its own with standard kitten chow and formula. The fact that it was a dog that took care of a kitten was amazing to the children because of the stereotypes about dogs and cats being enemies. It was then easy to have the children complete the next part of this unit preview.

Setting Reading Goals and Expectations

Explain to the children that they will be reading four books by Leo Lionni.

Show them the books, and share observations about the illustrations and themes. Children will notice that the books all have animals for main characters, and that the animals are very much like the classroom pets we share. Explain that throughout this unit they will be participating in activities which will extend their experiences and expand their knowledge about responsibility.

Asking Questions

After discussing the unit theme of Responsibility, reading the newspaper clipping or other current event illustrating this theme, posting it on the concept board as the first item of information to start off the unit, and sharing ideas about aspects of responsibility,

encourage children to discuss questions that they would like to pursue as they read the stories, Swimmy, Fish Is Fish, Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse, and Frederick. Now

pass out strips of tagboard for writing one question that they would like to talk more about. Collect the sentence strips and post them to the Question Board. This could be either a bulletin board space that is reserved for questions, or else a pocket chart that hangs at the front of the room so that it can be used for constant reference.

Next, in Response Journal, have the children write the following ideas:

1. This is what I know about responsibility before reading the stories in the unit:

This format can be xeroxed so that children can either cut it out and glue it in the journals, or else passed out so that they can copy it into their journals. This format can be used at the beginning of any unit, and then referred to later when the unit is finished.

Vocabulary building

Before reading the first book in the unit, Swimmy, explain that since the setting of the next two books takes place undersea, a great many new words about the undersea world will be introduced. Pass out copies of a 3 square X 3 square grid with these words from Swimmy written one per square.

1. mussel
2. medusa
3. marvel
4. fierce
5. invisible
6. midday
7. anemone
8. school
9. seaweed

words, as well as to infer how the fish Swimmy responds to his problem, and to the problems of others.

Reading the selection

Gather the children on the rug, or on the floor for the initial oral reading of Swimmy. Show the book cover and introduce the title, author, and how Lionni illustrated the books he wrote. Read the story aloud, showing the children the illustrations.

DTAR (directed thinking-about-reading)

Stop briefly at the point where the big tuna eats all the little red fish in Swimmy’s

family. Ask children to stop and think about how Swimmy must be feeling right now.

Ask children to predict how Swimmy gets through this problem.

Next, read through the middle events of Swimmy’s journey through the sea.

Read through each description, pointing out every new creature that Swimmy encounters.

DLTA (directed listening-thinking activity)

Review all the creatures that Swimmy encountered up to the point where he

meets the new school of red fish.

(Ahead of time, draw pictures of the creatures, copy enough for everyone, color and cut out each creature. You should have a colored, cut out picture of the medusa, or the

"rainbow jelly fish", the lobster, the "strange fish", the seaweeds, the "sugar-candy" rocks, the eel, and finally, the sea anemones. These could be easily drawn with black marker, and copied so that one of the groups could use the pictures for the sequencing activity after reading the story. Glue a scrap of felt in back of each cut out picture so that they will adhere easily to the flannel board. Keep a pile of small felt scraps on the art table for this use later on.)

Adhere a picture, in sequence, to the flannelboard as each student recalls one of the creatures that Swimmy saw.

Now ask the children to try to predict what might happen next. Ask them if they think that Swimmy’s problems are over, or if they feel that Swimmy has gotten on well with his life.

Drawing Conclusions

Finish reading the story. Conclude by explaining that Lionni often writes stories that can either teach us a lesson, or else illustrate concept that isn’t easy to describe with just a few words. Relate that the concept of responsibility is like that, and ask children to share any ideas about responsibility that they may have learned from the fish, Swimmy.

Some responses might include Swimmy’s willingness to help the school of fish overcome their fear, his effort to think of a way for them to enjoy life again, and his bravery at being their leader in his role as the "eye" of the giant "red fish" that Swimmy thought of.

Informal Assessment

Literal Questions:

1. How is Swimmy different from the other fish in the school?
2. What happens to the first school of fish Swimmy lives with?
3. Can you name some of the creatures Swimmy sees in his travels?
4. How does Swimmy get the second school of fish out of their hiding place?

1. Why is the second school of fish hiding in the rocks?
2. Are the "Strange Fish" really being pulled by an invisible thread?
3. Why did the lobster walk like a "water-moving" machine?
4. Why do you think only Swimmy escaped the fierce tuna’s gulp?

1. Do you think Swimmy acted with responsibility toward the second school of

1. If Swimmy hadn’t come along, do you think that the second school of

1. Do you think that the second school of fish helped Swimmy, too?
1. What kind of life do you think Swimmy and the second school of fish

Evaluative:

1. Did you like the story Swimmy? Why or why not?
2. Do you think that the big tuna is good or bad? Why or why not?
3. Do you think that Swimmy had to help the second school of fish? Why or why not?
4. Which part of the story did you like the best?

1. In Reading Response Journals, answer the following question:

1. Draw a picture and label for each "vocabulary word square".

Day 1 and Day 2 Focus Group Activities for Reading Objectives and Writing -

Grammar Objectives:

(Our class was broken up into 4 groups of 6 children each, with each group named

for a color. The groups were randomly selected, and the colors are BLUE, GREEN,

RED, and YELLOW. After Reading, 2 groups go to a Reading Skills Focus Lesson,

and 2 groups go to a Writing Skills Focus Lesson.)

Reading Focus Lesson 1 (Phonology: Long "e"):

(SG-2, CFS 1.b) BLUE group

Activity: Children will use Swimmy text to find words with the long E sound, but with

the spellings: "ea", and "ee". They will try to make as many words as possible

by substituting different consonants, and consonant clusters to form new words.

Procedure: Either cut out construction paper EELS, or just draw a long Eel on paper,

write the word "EEL" across the top of the paper, or on the paper eel’s head,

make enough copies for the class. Next, with blue construction paper cut into

waves with the label "sea" written on it, or just draw the waves and write "sea"

across the top of the paper. This group will practice writing long "e" words,

which they will find in the text, on the appropriate picture. The "ea" words go

on the "sea" page, and the "ee" words go on the "eel". Children may use the

magazines, dictionaries, flashcards, and classroom word lists to help them once

they have exhausted the Swimmy book.

Materials: copy paper, construction paper, crayons, pencils, books (Swimmy, word books,

flash cards, classroom word lists, dictionary, magazines)

Reading Focus Lesson 2-Contractions (Morphology):

(SG-2, CFS 2.a) GREEN group

Activity: Children will practice writing words that are contractions.

Procedure: Make a chart with the headings: Contraction—Words—Missing Letter(s)

Rule enough lines for at least 15 words. Copy enough pages for the class.

Review the concept of contractions, the act of making two words into one

short word with an apostrophe, and have the children practice writing the

contractions they find in the story Swimmy.

Writing Skills Focus Lesson Part 1 (Syntax):

(SG-3, CAS A.1) YELLOW and RED groups

Activity: Children will review descriptive words in Swimmy, learn that those words are

called adjectives, and see that these words usually come before a noun.

Procedure: Write the first sentence on Page 1 of Swimmy on chart paper, as two groups

sit on the floor. The sentence is, "A happy school of little fish lived in a

corner of the sea somewhere." Ask, "Can you tell me something about the

the school of little fish?" To clarify, add "Are they grumpy?", or "Are they

sad?" Allow time for children to respond, and encourage children to respond

that the fish are happy. Ask, "Is there another word that tells us something

about the fish?" Again, the children should respond that they are "little".

Continue and repeat questioning until a long list of adjectives have been

written on the chart paper. Write the page numbers next to the word for

quick reference. Review the fact that describing words usually come right

before a noun, or sometimes after a noun-connecting verb pattern. Write

the sentence "The fish are little" on the chart paper. Ask children if they can

describe the fish in a short phrase, based on what they just learned about

adjectives coming before nouns. Children should respond "little fish".

End the lesson by presenting a few more "The___ (are) ___", therefore they

are _____ (nouns). Example: The tuna is big., therefore, it’s a big (tuna).

Writing Focus Lesson Part 2: (same group) Reading Focus Lesson 1 & 2-Groups

Blue and Green switch now.

Evaluation: Make copies of a sheet with "The noun(s) is(are) adjective ." on the left

side of the paper, and on the right side, put the phrases: adjective (noun).

Day 2:

Pre-Reading Activity (10 min.): Review the Concept Board. Ask children if they have

any clippings, drawings, or words that they would like to add to the

board. Share any materials that students bring in. I always bring in a

clipping or cartoon for the board to share with the students every day.

Review all vocabulary words and their definitions. Explain to the children

that they will be re-reading Swimmy in pairs, and that before they begin

reading, they will share their vocabulary word pictures from yesterday with

each other, and after they are finished reading, they will take note cards and

write one new word from the story, which we will share at the end today’s

reading lesson.
 
 
 
 

Paired reading/ Swimmy (10 min.) (Yellow , Red, Blue, and Green groups)

Write a new vocabulary word on note card from Swimmy. (More than one is okay!)

With partner, illustrate notecard, write a caption or label which will tell about the word.

Focus Groups: 15-20 min.

Reading Focus Lesson 1-Phonology: Long "e" sound (Yellow Group)

Reading Focus Lesson 2-Morphology: Contractions (Red Group)

Writing Focus Lesson Part 1-Adjective Awareness (Blue & Green Groups)

Writing Focus Lesson Part 2-Adjective Written Evaluation (Blue & Green Groups)

Yellow and Red groups switch Reading Focus Lessons now.

Post Reading (15-20 min.)

Blue & Yellow Groups share new vocabulary words. Sit in a circle on the floor and

take turns sharing words. I will help them to respond to words by asking various

questions about the words, asking them if these words are unfamiliar, or just

interesting, or fun. We will review if any have the long "e" sound, if any are

adjectives, nouns, or verbs. If any children would like to post their words on

the Concept Board, they can do so at this time. The other groups are in Journal

Writing, so if everyone has shared, children could use their words in sentence

strips to create a chart story, or LEA.

Red & Green Groups: Journal Writing. Topic: Ocean Life

Children can write about any of the characters in the story, characters that they

would like to add to the story, or anything that they are familiar with that has to

do with ocean life. We have plenty of Ranger Rick, Ladybug, National

Geographic World, Cricket, Highlights, Your Big Backyard, & Boy’s Life

magazines for the children to browse through. If possible, children could cut

out and paste pictures on their stories, or else copy and color pictures that they

find interesting.

Note: A selection of children’s magazines with Ocean Life topics should be

kept at the Writing Center during this unit.

Groups should switch after 15 or 20 minutes.

SSR-10 mins. (all groups) Children may choose from pre-selected books that serve

to further illustrate the concept of responsibility. (See bibliography).

Total Lesson time: 60-70 mins.
 
 

Day 3: Fish Is Fish

Pre-reading (10 min.):

Activating prior knowledge: Review the concept board, ask children if any of the words

on the board need clarification. Discuss. I will read my clipping about a lady who

takes care of over 100 cats, and was the founder of a special shelter for cats. I will

explain to them that most of the cats were used to being in the house, and cat’s

owner couldn’t take care of them anymore, so they could never survive in the

alley, the way some cats do, or in the wild. These cats were used to their home

life, and the lady knew that so she created a home for the abandoned cats. Discuss

how this lady behaves in a responsible way, and lead into the book theme of

what happens to Fish when he leaves his natural habitat, the water.

Setting Reading Goals and Expectations: Explain that the next book we will read

is called Fish Is Fish. Ask children to share any ideas they may have about

the illustration on the cover, which, again, is beautifully drawn and colored by

the author, Leo Lionni. Some responses may include that it looks like the fish is

dreaming of flying, or thinking of birds. Ask children to listen carefully, because

after the story is read aloud, we will break into groups to play Animal Telephone,

and make a descriptive cluster map.

Asking Questions:

At this time, pass out tagboard strips for children to write any new questions

they may have. Share answers to questions asked on Day 1, and note any

questions that were added to the chart, or were left unanswered. Encourage

children to ask any kinds of questions that they may have concerning Fish Is

Fish now and throughout the week, as well as any questions that they may have

about Swimmy. Model questioning by writing a few Level 1 questions that

could immediately be derived from browsing the selection. Remind children

that "browsing" is a good strategy for understanding the story. Use the "think

aloud" strategy to motivate children to ask their own questions, such as, "I wonder

who that tadpole in the picture is?", or, "Why is there a tadpole in the beginning

of the story and a frog at the end of the story?"

Vocabulary building (10 mins.)

The vocabulary for this selection will focus on nouns and verbs, and the

lesson will be "categorizing". The initial list is:

1. minnow
2. grazing
3. tadpole
4. bank
5. groaned
6. gasping
7. stunned
8. shifted
9. motion
10. instant

1. What is a minnow?
2. What is a tadpole?
3. What did the frog see on land?

1. Why do you think the fish jumped out of the water?
2. Why was it a problem for the fish when he jumped out of the water?
3. Why was the fish happy again when he went back in the water?
4. Why did the frog push him back in the pond?

1. Why did Fish finally agree with Frog that "Fish is fish"?
2. Do you think Fish and Frog remained friends afterwards?
3. Do you think Frog acted with responsibility when he pushed Fish back into the water?
4. If Frog hadn’t come along, what do you think would have happened to Fish?

1. Did you like the story Fish Is Fish? Why or why not?
2. Do you think that Fish is smart, or not? Why?
3. Do you think that Frog had to help Fish? Why or why not?
4. Which part of the story did you like best?

Post reading activity:

1. In Reading Response Journals, answer the following question:

1. Draw a picture and label for each "vocabulary word square".

Day 3-Reading Focus Activity 1- (Phonology: Long "a" sound.)

(SG 1, CAS B, CFS 1.a) BLUE group.

Activity: Children will review the long "a" sound. They will identify words in the story,

Fish Is Fish that have the long "a" sound, but have unusual spellings.

Procedure: Ahead of time, cut out medium sized construction paper fish of all colors.

Have the children write the label "Long ‘a’ " on the fish. Now turn the fish over

find words in the story that sound like long "a", but are spelled in different ways.

Write those words correctly on the fish. Use the fish cards to drill in spelling, or

else to categorize the "a" words.

Reading Focus Activity 2- (Morphology: verbs ending in "ed")

(SG 1, CAS B, CFS 2.d) GREEN group.

Activity: Children will identify words that indicate action. Review action verbs and

have children find as many as possible in the story. Put the verbs into two

categories- verbs ending in "ed" / verbs. Have charts made up ahead of time

with the "ed" verbs on the left and the verbs on the right, with a line down the

middle. These lists will be used later for irregular verbs, so save them in

gray Word Folders.

Listening Focus Activity-(15 mins.) Yellow and Red groups

(SG 4 -Listen and respond appropriately to oral messages. CAS A.4:Demonstrate

attentive listening by retelling, paraphrasing, and explaining what has been

said by the speaker.)

Day 4:

Pre-Reading Activity (10 min.): Review the Concept Board. Repeat the same procedure

as for Day 2.

Paired Reading/ Fish Is Fish (10 min.) all groups.

Repeat writing of new vocabulary words on notecards from Fish Is Fish. With partner,

illustrate notecard, write a caption or label which will tell about the word. Share.

Focus Groups: 15-20 min.

Reading Focus Lesson 1-Phonology: Long "a" sound (Yellow group)

Reading Focus Lesson 2-Morphology: Verbs ending in "ed" (Red group)

Listening Focus Lesson Part 1: Telephone game (Blue & Green Groups) 15-20 min.

+ Part 2: Creating a semantic cluster map. (see Lesson)

(Yellow & Red groups switch when Part 2 begins for Listening Focus Lesson.)

Post Reading (20 mins.)

First 10 min.-Yellow & Green groups share vocabulary words, post on Concept

Board, create chart story.

Second 10 min.-Blue & Red groups Journal Writing. Go back over the first question

asked at the beginning of the unit and add any new things you learned

about responsibility since reading Fish Is Fish.

Switch groups after the first 10 minutes are completed.

Day 5:

Pre-reading: (15 min.) Review Concept Board. Post any new clippings or pictures.

Clarify any new questions or problems. Review all vocabulary words. Discuss

how the concept of responsibility relates to both stories, Fish Is Fish, and in

Swimmy.

SSR: (15 min.) Re-read each story again, silently.

Post-Reading Activity: (25 min.)

Yellow & Green groups: Discussion circle, role playing.

Review questions on the question chart to see if children can share new ideas

and possible answers to questions. Review discussion questions from DTAR.

When the discussion is closed, if time allows, take turns with partners role playing

one of the situations from either story showing an act of responsibility.

Blue & Red groups: Art project.

(SG 1, CAS D.c) Children will respond to literature by creating a collage’ with torn

bits of construction paper, material, fabric, rocks, tissue paper, and sequins of

either a fish, frog, the pond, the sea, or any other important aspect of the setting or

main characters presented in Swimmy or Fish is Fish.

All groups: Reading Response Journals (5-10 min): "Would you like to be friends

with Swimmy, Fish, or Frog? Why?

Week 2-

Continue on with this unit the same way as with Week 1.

Day 1-(15 min)

Review the Concept Board to share anything that is posted on it. Read a newspaper clipping about how we are collecting toys for the Marines’ "Toys for Tots" program. Explain that sometimes children don’t need all of their toys, and would like to share them with children who have no toys at all, or else children like to buy new toys to give to poor children during the holiday season. Allow time to have the children share their ideas about giving toys to poor children, and ask them if they have ever given any toys away, or even thrown some out in the garbage!

Activating Prior Knowledge:

Introduce the next Leo Lionni story, Alexander and the Wind Up Mouse, and ask children if they can tell what a "wind-up" mouse is. Have a collection of wind-up toys on hand just to show the children what they are. Discuss the responsibilities of owning a wind-up toy versus a real animal, like our hamster, Charlie. Children who have already

"baby-sat" for Charlie know that he needs water, new bedding, food, and exercise in his wheel. Take an informal vote over what might be better, to live life as a real hamster (or

mouse), or a wind-up toy. Model some "thinking aloud" about how the hamster has a

2-3 year life span, but the wind-up toy could last a long, long time. Also, the wind-up toy would never get sick. Allow time for children to predict how responsibility will come into play in this story and share ideas.

Setting Reading Goals and Expectations: (10 min)

Explain that in this story, children will be asked to note contrasts between the settings of the previous stories from last week, the characters from last week, and how responsibility is shown.

Asking Questions

After discussing the goals for reading, model some "thinking aloud" strategies as

you display the illustrations from the book. You might ask, "I wonder who is happier, the real mouse or the wind-up mouse?" "How can a toy mouse and a real mouse be friends?" Encourage children to think aloud as well, and then ask them to write just one

question that they may have for the Question Chart.

Vocabulary Building:

Use the 9 X 9 square grid to do vocabulary words again. Here is a list of words:

1. saucers
2. directions
3. broom
4. ordinary
5. circles
6. quivering
7. woolly
8. mousetrap
9. hideout

Reading the selection: (15 min)

DTAR (directed thinking-about-reading)

Read through the story and stop when Willy tells Alexander of the magic lizard.

Have children try to predict which mouse will change. Read the rest of the story. Stop short of the ending and ask the children if Alexander was really too late to change Willy with his wish. Finish the story.

Informal Assessment

Literal Questions:

1. Who is Willy?
2. What kind of mouse is Alexander?
3. Who is Annie?
4. What is the purple pebble for?
5. What does the lizard do?

1. Why would Annie throw Willy away?
2. Did Annie really love Willy?
3. Why do you think Alexander felt envy for Willy?
4. Why do you think people threw things at Alexander but not at Willy?

1. Do you think that Alexander and Willy always stayed friends?
2. Do you think that Willy like being a real mouse?
3. If Alexander wouldn’t have come along, what do you think would have happened to Willy?
4. Do you think Willy would have helped Alexander if he were in danger?

1. Did you like the story Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse? Why, or why not?
2. Do you think that Annie is a good or bad little girl? Why?
3. Do you think that Alexander had to help Willy?
4. Which part of the story did you like best?

1. In Reading Response journals: "How do you think Alexander felt when he

‘it was too late’?"

1. Draw a picture and label for each "vocabulary word square"

Day 1 and 2 Focus Group Activities for Reading & Writing Objectives:

Reading Focus Lesson 1 (Phonology: the letter "g" with "j-sound" as compared to

(20 min) "g" with "hard-g sound"

(SG-2, CFS 1.b, CFS 2.g)

BLUE Group

Activity: Children will use the Alexander story to identify as many words as possible

with the letter "g" in it. Then they will determine if the "g" sounds like a "j" or

like a hard-g. Some of the "g’s" the children find will be silent, or create the

"ng" sound.

Procedure: Ahead of time, copy enough paper with the word "Garden" written across

the top, decorated with a garden border for the children to decorate. Also, have

a paper with the word "Change" decorated with pictures of both Willy and

Alexander on either side of the word, a page that says "Night" with stars and the

moon, and a page that says "Morning" decorated with the sun rising, for the silent

"g", and the "ng" sounds. Have children find as many words as possible from the

stories, and they can use the other books when they are done with Alexander.

Each page should be decorated, colored, punched with holes, and tied

with string to make a "G" book.

Materials: Photocopies, yarn or string, hole puncher, crayons, markers, pencils.

Reading Focus Lesson 2-(Morphology: Compound Words)

(SG 1, CFS 1.g)

GREEN Group

Activity: Children will identify compound words by counting syllables and breaking

the word up into the two main parts.

Procedure: Children will find as many words as possible from the story that are

compounds, including some of the vocabulary words. They should take turns

writing the words on giant chart paper, or the chalkboard in back of the room.

They will then illustrate at least 5 of the words by, for example, drawing a

mouse and writing the word "mouse" + drawing a trap and writing the word

"trap" = "mousetrap" (with a drawing of a mousetrap). Compile all the pictures

a book by punching holes on the sides and tying with string. Some words will

include, mousetrap, pebblepath, afternoon, butterflies, something, and blackberry.

Writing Focus Lesson Part 1-Using quotation marks for dialog.

(20 min) Part 2-Writing complete sentences with dialog that asks

questions and makes exclamations.

Writing Focus Lesson Part 1:

(SG 3, CAS A, CFS 2: Use standard punctuation conventions.)

YELLOW & RED groups

Activity: Children will identify parts of Alexander where there is dialog, and whether the sentence is a question, statement, exclamation, or command.

Procedure: Gather groups on the floor with the chart-story paper, and copies of story.

Teacher will make quotation marks on the paper, and explain to the students that

these marks were found in all the books we read so far. Ask the children if they

can explain what the marks are for. Allow children time to respond and think

how the characters in stories "talk". Direct responses toward marks indicating

that something has to show that someone is talking, not the book or narrator.

For listening and speaking, take turns reading dialog with a narrator and character.

Switch Groups for Part 2-Blue and Green.

Part 2: Write sentences containing dialog, using questions & exclamations.

(SG 3-CAS A-CFS 5, CAS C-CFS 1.) Write a variety of complete sentences, work

independently.

Activity: Children will first copy one sentence containing dialog with a question,

and one sentence containing dialog with an exclamation, then create two

sentences of their own.

Procedure: After copying the sentences out of the book for practice, and referring to our chart, they will create their own dialog sentences that say anything they

choose. They will write one question, and one exclamation. They will use these

for later when they write a conversation in their journals.

Finally, the children will illustrate each sentence. They could draw a cartoon

with dialog bubbles.

Evaluation: The children should write the quotation marks correctly (the first time, about

75% of the time. This skill takes a lot of practice!)

Day 2:

Pre-Reading (10 min)

Review concept board, use same procedure as before.

Paired reading/ Alexander and the Wind Up Mouse (all groups) 10 min.

Write new vocabulary words to share, on note cards, like last week. Use Alexander book.

Focus Groups (20 min.) Same as Day 1-Switch all groups.

Post Reading-Day 2 (15 min)

In Response Journals, using quotation marks, ask a question to the Magic Lizard

that you hope he will answer. Write the Magic Lizard’s answer. Your question can be

a wish for anything in the world! Illustrate.

SSR-10 min (all groups) Again, choose from pre-selected books.

Day 3: Frederick

Activating Prior Knowledge: (15 min)

Ask children if they remember the fable about the squirrel who wasted all of his

time playing while his friends were busy collecting nuts for the Winter. Review the

concept with them, and ask them-just from what they now know, what they think will

happen to the playful squirrel now that it is cold and there are no longer any nuts to be found? Some answers should include that the squirrel will starve without food, and he should have helped the other squirrels find nuts. Motivate the children by explaining that this story is about a mouse who is similar to the silly squirrel, but the story ends quite differently because there is a special twist involved.

Setting Reading Goals and Expectations:

Remind children that they are to determine if Frederick behaved responsibly, based on what they now know about responsibility. They are to think about if the silly squirrel behaved responsibly when he had to go begging for food one Winter day, and they are to compare how the squirrel was treated by his friends, with how Frederick will be treated. They are also to listen carefully to rhyming words, because we will have a

lesson on rhyming words later.

Asking Questions: (5 min)

At this time , review the question board, and ask children to write any new

question that they may have on a sentence strip. Model the strategies of "wondering" and "thinking aloud" as you display the pictures, browse the text, and ask the questions,

"I wonder if Frederick’s friends are going to slam the door in Frederick’s face later on when he gets hungry?" and "Is Frederick really working or is he just kidding?"

Vocabulary building (10 min)

The vocabulary for this selection will focus on nouns and verbs, like in

the last story. A class chart with NOUNS and VERBS will be at the front of the

room for categorizing. A focus lesson will be on plural nouns, and irregular plurals, so

this chart will be useful.

1. meadow
2. granary
3. reproachfully
4. memory
5. remembered
6. nibbled
7. periwinkles
8. moment
9. applauded

1. Who stayed on the meadow?
2. What kind of mice are Frederick’s family?
3. What do the mice gather?
4. What does Frederick gather?

1. Why do you think that the pictures are gray and dreary?
2. Why did Frederick ask the other mice to close their eyes when

1. What do you think a Fallmouse is?
1. Why is Frederick talking about the seasons to the other mice?

1. What did Frederick know about the Winter?
2. Were the other mice mad at Frederick?
3. Why did Frederick say that he was gathering words because "we’ll run out of things to say?"
4. Why did Frederick say that we’re lucky to have four seasons?

1. Did you like the story Frederick?
2. Do you think that the things Frederick gathered are really valuable to us?
3. Do you think that Frederick was acting responsibly?
4. What was your favorite part of the story?

1. In Reading Response Journals, answer the following question: "If you could

illustrate!

1. Draw a picture and label for each "vocabulary word square".

(SG 1, CAS B, CFS 2.c)

GREEN Group.

Activity: Children will go through the story Frederick and try to find rhyming

couplets. The rhymes can be spelled the same way for the rhyme, or else

just sound the same with different spellings.

Procedure: Pre-cut mouse shapes, and flower shapes to start them off. Have the children

glue one mouse shape onto a paper, and write the label "MOUSE" at the top. The

children will then find words that rhyme with mouse and write: 1.mouse-house

They can use other books, or make up new consonants to substitute for the "h" in

house. Next, glue two mouse shapes on a paper, and label it "MICE". Point out

that more than one mouse makes it a plural, mice. Find rhymes for "MICE" and

write it 1. Mice-nice. Do the same thing for the flower shape paper. Example:

1. Flower-Shower.
2. Flower-power
3. Flower-tower

Reading Focus Activity 2-(Morphology: plurals) 20 min.

(SG 1, CAS B, CFS-2.d, SG 3, CAS A, CFS-1.a)

BLUE Group:

Activity: Using the book, children will categorize plural nouns by those you add "s" to,

those that are irregular, like mouse-mice, those that end in "y" and change to "ies"

and finally, those that end in "f" and change to "ves".

Procedure: As for Activity 1, have precut shapes of mice, leaves, clovers, and red

poppies. Have the children glue each shape onto a big piece of white paper.

1. Label the mouse picture: mouse-mice.
2. Label the leaf picture: leaf-leaves.
3. Label the clover picture: clover-clovers.
4. Label the poppy picture: poppy-poppies.

children to internalize. They will need time to add new words to each category every

single day this week. A written assessment will be need to see if children are internalizing this concept. Another week on this, or part of this skill may be needed.

Writing Focus Activity Part 1 and Part 2: Brainstorming and Fiction writing.

Part 1: Brainstorming (Red & Yellow Groups)

(SG 3, CAS B.1)

Activity:

Children will brainstorm ideas about responsibility and ways that they could

create a situation, main characters, and setting to illustrate how someone was responsible in some way.

Procedure: First, review the Concept Board to see if there are any ideas that would spark

a story line to write. Review the four stories that we have read, and see if any of

those plots could be adapted to make an original story line.

Next, write ideas on a story map. The theme of Responsibility goes in the

middle. Draw a picture of an animal for a main character, since we have been

reading about animals for main characters. Also, think of a problem, and how one

of the characters could solve the problem in a responsible way. Think about how

the story will end.

Part 2- Write a narrative/fiction story about responsibility.

Switch groups for Reading Lessons now.

Activity: Using the story map, write a rough draft of your story.

Procedure: Write your ideas in your Response Journals, save it for tomorrow for

revising. Check to see if it has a strong beginning which introduces the main

characters and the setting, and if it tells about the problem. Make sure the

the problem part starts a new indented paragraph. Describe the problem.

Have the main character solve the problem in a responsible way. Indent the last

part when the ending is near. Describe how the whole thing ends.

Use the Writing Rubric for grading purposes.

Total: 70 min-reading, extra 20 min. for writing.

Day 4-Frederick

Day 4-Pre Reading (10 min)

Review Concept Board. Use the same procedure as before.

Paired Reading/ Frederick (10 min.) (all groups)

Again, write new vocabulary words on note cards from Frederick. Illustrate, share with

your partner.

Focus Groups, 20 min.

Reading Focus Lesson 1-Red

Reading Focus Lesson 2-Yellow

Writing Focus Lesson Part 1 & 2-Green & Blue

Post Reading: (15-20 min)

Blue & Yellow: Groups share new vocabulary words. Same procedure as before.

Green & Red: Role Playing. Groups will find partners within themselves, and think

of a way to present a part of either Frederick or Alexander to their group.

Try: On note cards, copy one or two sentences from either book. Have children

choose randomly to act out.

(These two groups will switch on Friday for Post-Reading)

SSR-10 min. (all groups) Same as Last week.

Day 5: Review

Pre-Reading (15 min):

Review all of the ideas we discussed for the Concept Board. Explain to children

that we are finished with the unit on Responsibility, but that we should still try to be

responsible every day. Share clippings that are new, look at the ones on the board.

SSR- (15 min) Children will re-read any book(s) from the unit.

Post Reading: Switch groups from Day 4.

Focus Lessons: Enrichment Choices (Culminating Activities from Each Book)

Lesson 1: "Wanted Poster" of Swimmy using adjectives and describing words.

(See Lesson-next page)

Lesson 2: Art Project: Diorama of any story.

Materials: Shoeboxes, constructions paper, cellophane, styrofoam, pipe cleaners, fabric, etc. Glue, scissors, stickers, dried weeds and flowers.

Lesson 3: Go to Accelerated Reader Computer to take tests on books. Children

Waiting can read other books that are placed in the Computer Center.

Lesson 4: Poetry

Activity: Using the poem, Mice, by Rose Fyleman , children will copy the poem on large

poster, illustrate with markers and art materials, and make a POEM Chart. Next,

they will read it to the class, taking turns with verses.

As soon as 20-25 min. is up, switch groups. Groups can choose where they will go.

Final Post- Reading Activity-20 min.

Activity: Rewrite your story about responsibility and illustrate. Read it to your partner.

Any body who would like to read their stories to their group may do so when we

finish up any unfinished projects.

Reading Response Journal:

After reading all four stories, this is what I learned about responsibility.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________My favorite story was:____________________________________________________________________

I liked it best because:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Copies of this format can be used at the end of every unit to cut out and paste in journals.

Written Evaluations: See extra copies of worksheets, vocabulary tests, Rubric for

Writing, and practice sheets.