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Unit Title: Appreciating Individual Differences Grade Level: 2 Created by: Elizabeth PardoRationale:This Unit is an ideal one to begin the school year. It is a fun way to ease into Reading and lays down some valuable lesson regarding expectations I will have within my classroom. I chose this book to read to my students first and foremost, because I love it, but I also selected this piece of literature because it teaches a valuable lesson about appreciating individual differences both in one ’s self and others. The combination of my enthusiasm for the book and its message makes it is a perfect fit for this lesson! Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon appreciates qualities in herself that most people would view flaws. Molly Lou Stands Tall in spite of the disappointment of moving away from her grandma and friends and starting a new school. She does a fantastic job about remaining true to herself and not retaliating against a classroom bully. A perfect message to kick off the year!Unit Goals: Within this Unit focusing on ‘Appreciating Individual Differences’, we will focus on accepting differences in yourself and in others. In addition, I will incorporate the concepts of making predictions, comprehension, practicing vocabulary and encouraging writing skills. These skills will build on existing comprehension and prepare the students for upcoming lessons.Lesson # & TopicLearning ObjectivesInstructional Strategies & Concepts/Skills TaughtLesson 1: PredictionsThe students will be able to predict events in the story and record their predictions using vocabulary words. Day 1: Forty-five minutes have been set aside for today’s lesson. Today we will focus on predictions before reading the text. We will practice predicting and vocabulary when we record our predictions applying vocabulary words.(10 minutes) Prediction: We will begin working in small groups. Each group will have a copy of the book. They will be encouraged to flip through the pages, paying special attention to headings, titles, pictures and other clues they may find about what the book is about. They will be instructed not to read, but can discuss their predictions.(15 minutes) Vocabulary: As a whole group we will review the ten vocabulary words taken from the book. One at a time, they will be placed on the ELMO. Chorally, we will sound out the word phonetically. Suggestions will be taken from the students regarding the meaning of the word. Definitions will be discussed and students will take turns putting them into sentences. Knowing the words in advance will aid in comprehension and fluency. (15 Minutes) Comprehension: Students will work independently while working on their prediction graphic organizer. They will fill in all areas and will be asked to choose 5 of the ten vocabulary words when writing it. Students will also be asked to use context cues within the pictures and observe character interaction when making predictions. We will close the lesson by having some of the students read their predictions out loud.Lesson 2The students will be able to enhance comprehension by predicting events within a book and recalling past events. Students will be able to compose a letter making connections with the text. Day 2: The unveiling! We will allow forty minutes for today’s lesson. We will begin by reading the book. We will make predictions as the text progresses, check for comprehension during a story map activity, which will also touch on writing skills. Lastly, we will play the In/Out game which is a vocabulary activity.(15 Minutes) Read Aloud using Follow with reciprocal teaching: summarizing, question generating, and clarifying, predicting. (p.98) Predictions will be asked throughout text as the book is read. (15 minutes) Writing: Give each student a Story Map with Character Perspectives handout and have them break into groups of two to brainstorm their story maps. They should use story events and recall both Molly and Ronald’s perspective (good for understanding differences)(p. 101)(10 Minutes) Whole Group Vocabulary: Play the In/Out game (p.37) using the pocket chart and vocabulary words printed on cards. Lesson 3Students will be able to use information from the text and prior knowledge to answer questions about the characters. They will also create and sort words. Students will be able to write a letter.Day 3: Forty-five minutes will be reserved for this lesson. We will re-read the book in small groups working on comprehension. Then an independent vocabulary enhancer will be introduced. We will follow with a writing project; a letter to grandma!(15 minutes) Guided Reading Small Group activity- after breaking into small groups of four. Apply QAR; ‘Right There& Think and Search’ (p.72 green book) Students will use this comprehension strategy while generating information and answering questions using the text and by recalling background knowledge.(10 minutes) Vocabulary: Independent activity-Choose vocabulary ‘Mystery Word’ and make as many words as possible write it on cardboard, cut out into individual letter’s in the shape of a square; move letters around and record created words on paper.(15 minutes) Independent writing: Write a letter to your grandma using at least five vocabulary words and as many of the newly created words derived from the Mystery Word as you can. The letter express gratitude for the encouragement your grandmother (or grandfather) has given you in the past, or explain a time you felt bullied.Culminating EventEach student will make a book cover highlighting their very best traits. They will include an illustration on the front of the book jacket that would offer context clues about one or more of the traits. The spine should contain a catchy title or student’s name. The back cover should include at least five of the vocabulary words and describe at least five positive aspects or features of the students. The inside flaps should include more information about the author (the student) including interests, hobbies and special talents. When complete, the projects will be run through the laminator and then will be attached onto their composition book journals. These will be used all year to journal in and record thoughts.Materials:Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell Graphic organizer/ Day 1Story Map handout/Day 2Pocket chart for Day 2- In/Out gameTEN Vocab words written on Pocket Chart cardsQAR Graphic organizer handout/ Day 3Cardboard folders cut into strips for Mystery Word/ Day 3Construction paperSources: Lovell, P., & Catrow, D. (2001). Stand tall, Molly Lou Melon. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. McKee, D. (1989). Elmer. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books. N. (2011, December). NCC EDN 362 Techniques in Elementary/Middle School Reading Instruction [Supplementary Materials]. Naperville, IL. Small, D. (1985). Imogene's Antlers. New York: Crown. Willis, J., & Ross, T. (2000). Susan laughs. New York: Henry Holt. Bibliographic information and Summary of the main book Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell Illustrated by David CatrowMolly Lou Melon has a very supportive grandmother who tells her she is perfect just the way she is. So despite her lack of height, good looks, singing voice and coordination, she maintains her self confidence. Even after she must move away from her supportive grandma, Molly continues to believe in herself even despite the fact a bully tries to tell her otherwise. Molly’s positive attitude and appreciation for differences in not only her, but others inspires even the meanest of bullies to accept others the way they are!Bibliographic information and Summaries of three other booksSusan Laughs by Jeanne Willis Illustrated by Tony RossWe follow Susan throughout her day. She does many things we do; she sings, and swings, she rides and hides! Susan has angry emotions, and proud moments just like everyone does! In the end, we learn Susan has a disability. This book helps us realize that despite our differences we have more in common than we have not in common! It helps readers remember that differences in others are OKAY!Elmer by David MckeePoor Elmer! He did not look like all the other elephants! He was a checkerboard of rainbow colors. Elmer did not think he fit in. The other elephants appreciated Elmer just the way he was! He made them happy. Elmer was not happy and decided to make some drastic changes. He painted himself grey to look just like all the other elephants. When he returns no one recognizes him! A little rain helps Elmer remember that he is perfect the way he is!Imogene’s Antlers by David SmallImogene has grown ANTLERS! At first they were a little hard to get used to, but she embraces her new appendages! Everyone else was the problem. People were fainting, prodding and researching her new additions. There were a few people, however, who were finding her antlers very useful! Despite all the hullaballoo, she went to bed just happy to be her!Read-Aloud ActivitiesPre Reading:Introduction: “Do you know what a trait is? (A trait is a characteristic or quality that makes somebody special) Is there anything you really LOVE about yourself? Do you have a favorite trait? Think for a minute and talk to your face buddy about one thing you really like about yourself. Today we are going to read a book about a girl who had many fabulous traits.”Activate Prior Knowledge: - “Second Graders, can you think of a time where you someone said something mean to you or to a very good friend of yours?” Take a moment to think about it and then talk about it with your shoulder buddy. Ask, “Now that we have thought about a time when someone said something mean to you or your friend, I want you to share with your shoulder buddy how that made you feel when that happened.”Prediction Questions:Who do you think this person is on the cover of the book?What types of things can you tell about the character on the cover of the book?What do you notice about her shadow?On the back cover, what does the caption say?What do you think that means?When we flip open the dust jacket and open it up, why do you suppose the author and illustrator put a measuring chart there?Setting the Purpose for Reading:While we are reading this book I would like you to notice how people may view Molly and compare it to how Molly sees Molly! I would also like you to think of a good quality in someone you know that may be underappreciated…perhaps it is of a classmate you just met! During Reading:“Walk proudly and the world will look up to you: What did Molly’s grandma mean when she said that?“Molly Lou Melon had buck teeth that stuck out…” What are buck teeth?“Molly had a voice that sounded like a bullfrog…” Do you think Molly thought her voice sounded like a bullfrog?“Molly was often fumble fingered…” What does fumble fingered mean? Can you use context clued to figure it out?Molly’s grandma told her to believe in herself, how can you believe in yourself?Take a look at the picture; does Molly seem sad in this picture of her moving away?When Ronald called Molly SHRIMPO, do you think Molly called Ronald a name back in gym class?Do you suppose you would have thought to balance pennies on your teeth? Should you put money in your mouth?What do you think it sounded like when Molly said, “QUACK” to Ronald?Why do you think Ronald brought Molly a stacking penny on the fifth day of school?Looking at Molly’s grandma, do they have anything in common?After Reading the Story/Responding:Here are two prompts to draw or write about in their reading log:Draw a picture of Molly thinking about what she looks like on the inside.Draw a picture of Molly and Ronald together on day 10 of school.Here are two prompts to write about in their reading log:After Ronald gave Molly Lou Melon a stacking penny on the fifth day, write what Molly said to Ronald.Pretend you are Molly Lou. Your grandma called. What would you tell her about Ronald?After Reading the Story/Exploring the Technical Aspects of the Text:Predictable Lines: “And so s/he did”The children will each write a book of our class rules so they can each have a personal copy. Six pieces of paper will be pre-folded in half (hamburger style)and stapled together at the ‘spine’. Students will decorate the cover and label it, “Rules I Was Asked to Follow; And so I Did.” Inside the book, on the left side/ left page, the student will write one of our 6 classroom rules. On the right page, the student will write, “And so I did.” This pattern continues until the student has written all 6 rules. They should also draw a picture representation of the rule on each page, so if a non-reader were to look at their book, they could guess the rule using context clues.After Reading the Story/ Applying:Act it out! Students will be assigned a page from the book with major text. They will work in two’s or threes and act out the page as it is read by a narrator (another student, either from their group, or several who have volunteered that would rather read than act.). Student groups should have access to a copy of the book to read it, look at the pictures and make note of applied punctuation and practice for 10 minutes. Then, as the story is read, each group will come up to the front and act out the page! Line it up! Students will work in pairs. Each pair will come up and draw a vocabulary word out of a hat. Each of the vocabulary words will be words used in the book. Once every pair has drawn a word, they will quietly discuss together where in the book they remember seeing this word. After they have had time to visualize the portion of the book this word was taken from, we will work together to‘re-write’ the book. I will start by saying the first sentence or two of the book, and then the pair that had the vocabulary word would stand at the front of the room and ‘speak’ that portion of the story using the vocabulary word. We would keep adding to the story in the correct order. If there were to be a dispute, then we would discuss as a class what we remember from the text. When the game is finished, all students should be standing in their pair’s around the perimeter of the room, vocabulary words in the same order as they appear in the book. We have successfully re-told the story!“Making Words” ActivitiesPurpose: The purpose of this lesson is for the students to make as many words as possible from the letters provided. The students will also work on alphabetizing the consonants and vowels. We will be stressing the pattern “OW” “OU”Letters Required: W-D-C-O-T-U-H-N-OMystery Word: TOUCHDOWNLives on a farm and makes milk! (Cow)Add one letter to the last answer and discover another word for food! (Chow)Elevators can go two ways. Name one. (Down)When I left, I went ________ the door. (Out)When I fell and hurt my knee, I said, “________.” (Ouch)Add a one letter to the last answer, and discover what kind of screen my phone has. (Touch)What is another name for a dog? (Hound)Swap one letter to write what you get on your knee when you fall on cement. (Wound)Use all the letters to construct the Mystery Word. (Hint: it is a compound word, and is said ‘outside’ most of the time!) (Touchdown) Explanation--The reason the above are aligned as they are is to have the students notice the ‘ow’ pattern, and then move to the ‘ou’ pattern and realize, with the exception of the last word ‘wound,’ they sound the same.Conclusion: “Students, today we saw firsthand the amount of word possibilities that can be derived from just one word. In addition, when we discovered the answers to our puzzle, all of our words were constructed using the ‘ou/ow’ patterns and, (In most cases) sound they sound exactly the same!Strategies That WorkConnecting Known to New: Every child by the time s/he reaches grade two, has encountered someone who may not fully appreciate their ‘attributes’ and most likely has had to deal with a bully. This text is perfect for making Text-To-Self connections; I would use the text to help students make connections to their own lives. The students will be able to make a connection when Molly Lou is picked on, and perhaps the text will offer a new way to react to such situations. All through the book, this piece of literature offers perfect examples of how this can happen: “On the second day of school, Ronald Durkin called her BUCKY-TOOTH BEAVER!” Molly Lou Melon took out her pennies, stacked ten high on her teeth, and smiled big as day.”Visualizing: Visualizing is important to making connections to the story. On the page that Molly Lou Melon’s voice is described as sounding like a bullfrog being squeezed by a boa constrictor, we could discuss the whole visualization technique and describe in many different ways how that may sound. We could talk about the fact that it may not have sounded like that exactly, but it was the author’s intent to help us visualize an unpleasant sounding voice.Determining Importance: There are so many areas in this book that offer the opportunity to demonstrate this strategy. Laced throughout the whole book, Molly’s shortness, buck-toothedness, awful voice and fumble-fingeredness is noted. We could go into the reasons for this, one of which would include the fact that she remained true to herself despite her imperfections. An area of the book where this would be very good to emphasize determining importance is when Molly moves away from her grandmother. We could talk about why the author may have wanted us to hear all grandmas’ encouraging words while Molly lived near, and to see what would happen to Molly when she was away from all that encouragement (she still liked who she was!).Inferring Meaning: This book is packed with text that has inferred meaning. One example would be when Ronald called Molly “SHRIMPO” We could discuss what he meant by that. He was obviously referring to the sea creature, which is very small. We then must conclude that he was inferring Molly was small! Another example is when Molly Smiled, “…as big as day.” A day is long, and big, so we can infer that Molly’s smile was a very, very big one!Think Aloud Script: Teacher: (speaking) The book Walk Tall, Molly Lou Melon uses a lot of analogies. Has anyone heard of the word analogy before (wait for and take responses) Here is an example, see if you can figure out what an analogy is after I say it… I am as cold as ice! (Take suggestions and offer the definition: to compare something) Our author has written many analogies in this book to infer meaning. What that means is he wants us to be able to use our imagination to discover the meaning of his words. For example, ‘cold as ice’ would mean the author wants us to know that you probably not get any colder than you are right now!Teacher: (reading) “Walk as proudly as you can and the world will look up to you.”Teacher: (speaking) Why do you suppose, if Molly Lou Melon was so short, that her grandmother told her the world will look up to her? Teacher: (reading) “Smile big and the world will smile with you.”Teacher: (speaking) Do you think this means that whenever Molly smiled, everyone else in the whole world smiled at the same time?Teacher: (reading) “Sing out clear and strong and the world will cry tears of joy.”Teacher: (speaking) How can someone cry tears of joy? Have you ever been really happy, but were crying at the same time?Teacher: (reading) “Molly Lou Melon was often fumble fingered.” Teacher: (speaking) Is anyone able to tell me using the pictures as context clues, what fumble fingered means? Where do you think the word fumble was invented? Teacher: (reading) “She had to say good-bye to her grandma and all of her friends…and start in a new school.”Teacher: (speaking) Take a look at the picture; what do you think the author is trying to tell us by the way Molly is standing? How do you think Molly feels here when she has to say good-bye to her friend? How do you think her friend is feeling? (TURN PAGE for continuation of sentence) Wow! Look at Molly here. How do you think she is feeling now? It looks like her eyes are closed. What do you think she is feeling? Can anyone predict what will happen once she gets to school?Teacher: (reading) “On the first day of school, Ronald Durkin called her “SHRIMPO” in gym class.”Teacher: (speaking). Ronald was obviously referring to the sea creature, which is very small. What was he inferring about Molly?Teacher: (reading) “On the fifth day of school, Ronald Durkin brought Molly Lou Melon a stacking penny for her tooth and smiled at her.”Teacher: (speaking) Wow! Ronald brought her a penny! What is being inferred by him bring this to her? Why did he do this? What is the author inferring about what will happen on day six??Teacher: (reading) “Dear Grandma, I wanted to tell you that everything you told me was exactly right!”Teacher: What is inferred by Molly’s letter to her grandma? How does this tell us what Molly is thinking? ................
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