Dr. Seuss’s ABC

 

I chose this book because I enjoyed the language it offers. There is tricky language play such as assonance patterns and subtle vowel changes such as in "when beetles battle", "ducks like lakes", and "ticks and clocks get mixed up with the chicks and tocks". I have large array of alphabet books in the classroom, but not many that keep their attention. I feel that children will find humor in this book while gaining alphabet recognition skills.

 This would be a great book to use when doing a unit on the alphabet. The teacher can read this book aloud, and then have children create their own alphabet books. Children can create their own illustrations that connect to what is written in their alphabet books such as a word starting with the appropriate letter.



This lesson meets standards:

• RL.PK.9 I can make connections between a story or poem and my own experiences
• RL.PK.3 I can act out characters and events from a story or poem read aloud
• RL. PK. 10 I can listen actively as an individual and as a member of a group to literature that is read aloud
• RF.PK.1d I can recognize and name some upper and lowercase letters in the alphabet and can name the letters that are in my own name.
• W.PK.2 I can either draw or explain information about a topic

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

I recently purchased Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for my classroom. Although this is an older book dating back to 1987, this is a classic and a book I think all children can relate to.

When using this book in the classroom I would have children have a group discussion about a bad day they have had and what led up to make it a bad day. Then, I would have children create their own “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day” books where they would write about a bad day they had and provide illustrations that complement their writing (i.e. with the help of the teacher).

The content meets curriculum requirements for the age group it is intended for. Students are able to understand that everyone has bad days, but that it is important to learn how to deal with them effectively. When reading this book, children learn that it is O.K. to express your feelings and emotions. Children learn effective communication skills and expressive behavior. Such expressive skills are good to have in the classroom and help to foster emotional development, social development, and problem solving skills. The content of the book is very relatable for children in the age group in which this book is intended for. 

When teaching this lesson children will meet the following standards:

• SL. PK. 4 I can describe a personal experience by telling real or imagined stories
• SL.PK. 5 I can add drawings or other visual displays and explain them to others
• SL. PK. 6 I can speak with an appropriate voice level and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas

Animals, Animals by Eric Carle

In the next three lesson plans, I will be talking about some books I recently purchased for my classroom. One of the books I received in my order was Animals, Animals by Eric Carle.

This book is appropriate for the preschool age and has language that is repetitive with easy vocabulary words (ex: “There is only one horse on all the earth and his name is All Horses. There is only one bird in the air and his name is All Wings…”). Children in my classroom enjoy repetitive books so that they can read along with me.   


I would use this book in the classroom when teaching a thematic unit on poetry. Children could learn about specific types of poetry (i.e. haikus) one-by-one, eventually leading to the reading of Eric Carle’s Animals, Animals that has an array of several different types of poetry. Children could act out animals from the book and discuss what they know about each animal. Each week the teacher can focus on a specific type of poetry, like the types in Eric Carle’s Animals, Animals. After introducing specific types of poetry and the reading of Eric Carle’s Animals, Animals, children can create their own poetry book by illustrating pictures for the poems we read in class and discuss their favorite animal from the poems.


Teaching a lesson such as the one above meets the following standards:

• RL.PK.9 I can make connections between a story or poem and my own experiences
• RL.PK.3 I can act out characters and events from a story or poem read aloud
• RL.PK.1 I can ask and answer questions about a story or poem
• RL. PK. 10 I can listen actively as an individual and as a member of a group to literature that is read aloud

Positional Words

The week of my first observation I taught positional words for the very first time. In this lesson,  introduced positional words as a group using a ball and a box. Then asked the children where the ball is in relation to the box (e.g. over, under, inside, between, beside). Then children worked in small groups of two children per teacher and read the scarecrow positional word cards then place the crow in the designated location which correlates to the positional word.  

I have done other positional word activities since. I have provided objects such as a dollhouse and a figure and a puppy and a doghouse and had them use the props to describe where the objects are positioned. I am glad that I have been teaching positional words in the classroom, as recently I assessed children for their progress reports on positional words and they did very well! Almost all children knew every positional word. This was very reassuring to me as a teacher. I felt like they actually grasped this concept. I think they enjoy using props and the hands-on approach. Perhaps I can think of some more hands on approaches to use when teaching letter identification and name formation.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

In the first week of November I taught a lesson on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. In this lesson children participated in an interactive read aloud with two of the same stories written by two different authors. The teacher  described key details throughout the book while reading. After both books had been read, children turned and talked about the differences and similarities of the two stories to a partner. Partners shared their findings to the class. Their finding were placed in a venn diagram.

Children really enjoyed listening to both versions of the story and comparing the differences as they all had very meaningful conversations with one another and I.


With completion of this lesson, children met the following standards:

• RI.PK.7 I can describe important details from an illustration or photograph

• RL.PK.2 I can retell a sequence of events from a story or poem read aloud

• RL.PK.10 I can listen actively as an individual and as a member of a group to literature that is read aloud

Most children were able to describe the similarities and differences in the two books. However, after completing this lesson, I realized I would have been better off reading the books on two separate days. I think I would have received more elaborate answers and had more time to truly focus on each of the titles.

Speaking and Listening

Throughout the course of the day children have been illustrating pictures that connect with our topic. It could be anything they have learned about the topic. They save their pictures and then share them at circle time. Most children share something they liked about an activity they illustrated or why they chose to draw this picture.

This was not a planned activity. This actually began when weeks back I noticed a child drawing one of our thanksgiving number games. I asked her what she was drawing and she told me it was the number game. I asked her why she chose to draw this and she said she liked playing the game in class. She was very proud of her picture so I asked her if she would like to share it to the class. She was thrilled to share her picture and talk about what she drew.

I enjoy turning every moment into a teachable experience. With her sharing her illustration she was able to:

SL.PL.1 I can participate in conversations with peers and adults in small and large group settings.
SL.PK.1a I can follow rules for speaking and listening during groups
W.PK.2 I can either draw or explain information about a topic
W.PK.1 I can tell you words to express my preference or opinion about a topic
L.PK.1.f I can speak in full sentences

and much more!

This also provided me feedback about what children enjoy about school and has helped me to plan my curriculum for the week.

Alphabet Knowledge

As you know, I have been implicating the Handwriting Without Tears program in my classroom. During the week we do a letter activity every day whether it's writing the letter, sharing our letter bags, letter searches, etc. However, I'm noticing that some children still aren't remembering the letters we've learned. After five letters we do a review week and go over all of the letters, but this still isn't helping.

How can I increase their letter identification skills of previously learned letters? Again, I am trying to meet standard RF. PK. 1a I can recognize and name some upper and lowercase letters in the alphabet and can name the letters that are in my name. I have worked in small groups with children and practiced a identifying a few letters. I sometimes need to tell the child the letter and they will repeat it. Then, when we go back to the letter and I ask again what the name of the letter is he/she will forget. Is this an issue with short term memory or are they just not grasping identifying letters with letter names?