ABRACADABRA Research
Transcription
ABRACADABRA Research
ABRACADABRA Research Prepared by Gia Deleveaux & Francis-Ann Simmons http://grover.concordia.ca/abra/ 2009 Teacher Handbook http://grover.concordia.ca/abra/PD.php Table of Contents Introduction to ABRACADABRA............. 1 What is ABRACADABRA?.............................1 Why ABRACADABRA?.................................1 Evidence-based practice...............................1 Structure.....................................................2 What’s new in ABRACADABRA?....................3 Story text types and themes ...............................5 Suggested ABRACADABRA usage structure.....6 Phonological foundation ................................... 7 Alphabetics.......................................... 8 What is alphabetics?....................................8 Stages of alphabetics....................................8 Why is alphabetics important?.......................8 How does ABRACADABRA support alphabetics?.....................................8 Alphabetics activity descriptions.....................9 Fluency.............................................. 20 What is fluency?........................................20 Why is fluency important?...........................20 How does ABRACADABRA support fluency?.........................................20 Fluency activity descriptions.........................21 Comprehension.................................. 24 What is comprehension?.............................24 Why is comprehension important?................24 How does ABRACADABRA support comprehension?..............................24 How do I teach comprehension?..................24 Comprehension activity descriptions.............23 Writing.............................................. 30 What is writing?.........................................30 Stages of writing........................................30 Why is writing important?...........................30 How does ABRACADABRA support writing?.........................................30 Writing activity descriptions.........................31 Navigational Icons.............................. 33 Samples of Lesson Plans...................... 34 Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample I—Navigating ABRACADABRA........34 II—Introductory lesson on characters.35 III—Smartboard unit........................36 IV—Alphabetics..............................37 V—Alphabetics...............................39 VI—Alphabetics..............................40 VII—Alphabetics.............................42 VIII—Fluency................................. 44 IX—Fluency................................... 45 X—Fluency.....................................46 XI—Comprehension.........................49 XII—Comprehension........................51 XIII—Comprehension.......................52 XIV—Writing..................................53 XV—Writing...................................54 XVI—Writing..................................56 XVII—Writing.................................57 Class Management in ABRACADABRA.58 Technological Requirements................. 59 Introduction Introduction to ABRACADABRA What is ABRACADABRA? ABRACADABRA (A Balanced Reading Approach for all Canadians Designed to Achieve Best Results for All) is an online, highly interactive, evidence-based literacy tool designed for students, teachers, educators, and parents. Why ABRACADABRA? For decades, researchers and practitioners worldwide have been searching for the key to unlock the mysteries of how children learn to read and write. To date, considerable evidence has been collected that suggests that children must not only be exposed to a variety of instructional methods, but that these experiences must be presented in explicit and systematic ways if literacy is to be fully attained. Research shows that children’s engagement and motivation affect their academic success. While skills and drills are important components in literacy achievement, these exercises must be done in meaningful ways for learners. This involves providing appropriate opportunities, texts, and activities wherein students can apply what they have learned in authentic contexts. ABRACADABRA is now in its third transformation: a direct result of a multidisciplinary team of educational professionals who continue to guide its development. This team consists of researchers, policy makers, school administrators, language arts consultants, and teachers from across Canada that gives input and helps steer the overall direction of this project. The Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance (CSLP) continues to practice its policy of working with the educational community, partnering with ABRACADABRA stakeholders to develop the best possible resource for the field. Evidence-based practice The recommendations from the National Reading Panel and other front-runners in the field of language and literacy have remained the foundation of the software. Research conducted within Quebec schools during the 2004–2005 school year yielded results that helped guide the development of new instructional activities within ABRACADABRA. This included expanding the instructional module to include more challenging material as well as additional children’s stories. Dr. Robert Savage, the Literacy Theme Leader, Dr. Philiip Abrami, the Director, and all other team members have established strong partnerships with local schools in order to investigate the efficacy of our software with classroom students. Using the evidence gathered from these trials, we have infused ABRACADABRA with a much stronger content base, refined the tool, and made it ready for further research that was conducted between January and May 2006. This second investigation yielded extremely positive results in both grade one and kindergarten classrooms. For more details on the 2005-2006 research study results, please visit: http://doe.concordia.ca/clsp/ICT-ABRACADABRA.php The 2006-2007 version of the software was redesigned based on the feedback received from the field for that year’s study. This version was then used for our 2007-2008 study that had over 400 students from kindergarten through page 1 teacher handbook grade 2 from 28 classrooms in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec participating. These students were randomly placed in experimental (ABRA intervention) and control (regular literacy lessons) classrooms then pre- and post-tested to see if ABRA would have an affect on their literacy attainment after 10-12 weeks of intervention. Preliminary data collected and analyzed show that ABRACADABRA has had a significant beneficial effect on children’s letter-sound knowledge, word reading and phonological awareness at post-test. The 2008–2009 will build upon last year’s research by continuing with the randomized controlled trial intervention format in sixty classrooms in the three provinces across Canada. It will maintain its focus on learning how reading intervention occurs in classrooms with and without ABRA. We hope that teachers will integrate ABRACADABRA into their English language arts curriculum and let the strong theoretical and pedagogical foundation, flexibility, and fun of the tool work its magic… ABRACADABRA... Structure ABRACADABRA is built around five different modules. Instructional The instructional module is the heart of the ABRACADABRA software. All instructional activities are developmentally appropriate and revolve around a progressional model of instruction providing foundations in four literacy domains: Alphabetics, Fluency, Comprehension, and Writing. Built-in scaffolding and multiple levels of difficulty allow for flexibility. Assessment With the use of trace data (information stored by computer application programs), ABRACADABRA can help teachers oversee what their students are doing and page 2 Introduction how they are progressing. This data can help teachers devise appropriate instruction to meet individual, group, or whole class needs. Professional development This module offers resources and suggestions educators would find useful when teaching the English Language Arts in general, and Reading, in particular. “Just in time” (JIT) videos provide examples of how ABRA in used in different settings. Access to the Assessment Module (where teacher see exactly what their students have done and get suggestions on how they can help them) and the Communications Module where teachers communicate with one another, is accessed in this section. Parent We provide information about different literacy skills needed to help children actively participate in school and the wider society. We also provide resources and information to help parents engage their children in phonemic awareness, reading and spelling activities. JIT videos show parents how ABRACADABRA can be used outside of the classroom setting, while frequently asked questions (FAQs), and helpful tips offer additional support to extend literacy activities. Communication The communication module is a wiki space called ABRA Forum where teachers who are using or thinking of using ABRACADABRA in their English language arts (ELA) program can build a community of practice through discussion topics, shared resources and ideas. Introduction What’s new in ABRACADABRA The Learning Tool Kit (LTK)—a portal to CSLP online learning tools Teachers have access to: Assessment Teachers are able to review the activities that their students are using and how they are progressing in each of the activities. This module includes: • Student report •Date selector (allows teachers to view student activity for teacher specified dates) •Activity specific statistics •Activity specific error reports •Activity insights (elaborates on skills an activity addresses and gives suggestions for reinforcing subordinate skills) • Rubrics and templates • Observation evidence template Communication Teachers may communicate with each other and other educational professionals using the ABRA Forum. This wiki environment provides a space where educators can pose and answer questions, share resources, download and upload lesson plans and ideas for activities, and much more. Parents Parents may now become involved in their children’s literacy learning. The parent module is a separate web site parents can access when their child logs in. It provides step-by-step instruction on using ABRACADABRA at home, information about emergent readers, tips on raising a reader and printable resources. page 3 teacher handbook Introduction ABRACADABRA Splash Page Teachers have access to the Professional Development, Instructional and the Parent modules. Professional Development Module Parent Module Parents now have access to print resources, video instruction on using ABRACADABRA and tips about children’s literacy learning. Access both the Assessment and Communication modules through the Professional Development module. Instructional Module Using the tool as a student, teachers can now partner with up to three students for group work, to provide remediation or observe students’ performance. page 4 Introduction Story Genres and Themes Genres (text types) ABRACADABRA helps expose children to different literary genres. A genre can be defined as a category of writing distinguished by shared characteristics such as style, form and content. Research shows that the more experience children have with different text types the more successful they will be when reading and writing different genres. ABRACADABRA features five genres:... Folk and Fairy Tales— stories and their variants passed down from one group to another throughout history Fiction—make-believe stories and stories that could happen in real-life Themes ABRACADABRA stories can also be access by themes: places and spaces foods animals numbers and colors seasons I am special Non–fiction—informational text that provides facts about a particular topic or character These themes support students’ use of their personal social and cultural backgrounds to interpret the text. Poetry—line and verse that evoke emotion or thought in the reader When assigning students to read different stories, one should always consider the frustration, instruction, and independent reading levels of each individual student. Multicultural—stories and myths from or about a variety of cultures Generally, it is accepted that reading is at the entry level when a text is read at 90% or less accuracy (1 or more out of 10 words incorrect); reading is at the instructional level when text is read with 90-95% accuracy (about 1 in 10 words correct); and finally, reading is at the independent level when an easy text is read with 95% or more accuracy (about 1 in 20 words correct). Source McCarthy, T. (1996). Teaching genre: exploring 9 types of literature to develop lifelong readers and writers. New York: Scholastic Professional Books. page 5 teacher handbook Introduction Suggested ABRACADABRA Usage Structure ABRACADABRA is a flexible program that is adaptable to the specific needs of the children in your classroom. ABRACADABRA’s word content and structure are connected to both the stories in the tool and familiar vocabulary words. Below is a suggested structure for using ABRACADABRA during a one-hour Language Arts lesson. We are interested in getting feedback on this structure and how you feel that it can be modified or improved. It isn’t necessary for you to follow this outline exactly, but we do suggest that you make each of these work elements part of every ABRACADABRA-based lesson for the intervention period. I. Word-level work (10 minutes) (Based on the needs and abilities of your class) a. All Alphabetics activities II. Text-level work (15 minutes) (Putting skills into action) a. All Fluency and Comprehension activities III. Collaborative work (20 minutes) (Students working in small groups or pairs on a particular element) a. Pair reading (Fluency and Comprehension) b. Decoding words (Alphabetics) c. Spelling (Writing) IV. Extension work (15 minutes) (Students working on other activities related to language arts) a. Responding to the story they’ve read b. Writing an alternate ending etc. page 6 Introduction Phonological Foundation Reading real words in text Sounding out (phoneme level) Letter sounds (intense) Word changing (within / between) Blending Segmenting Phonological sensitivity Good literacy programs must be built on a solid phonological foundation. This includes phonemic awareness, which is the ability to identify and manipulate sound units in words, and phonics, which involves connecting letters or groups of letters to their specific sound(s). Phonological grounding is a good predictor of future reading success; therefore these building blocks are the backbone of the ABRACADABRA literacy software. Mastery Students are said to have mastered a particular activity when the rate of correct response is 90%-100% for three consecutive entries. When this is achieved, they are encouraged to move on to the next level. Teachers are to keep a close watch on students’ answers—marking them on the observation forms. Extension activities We are developing the ABRACADABRA website to be used by teachers in their classrooms. When the system is fully developed and used in the classroom, teachers will connect the skills being learned on the computer to those being learned in other aspects of their language arts curriculum. It is, therefore, important to help create a link between what the students are learning in ABRACADABRA and how they might use these skills in their daily lives. There are many different ways that the system can be used. Students can take turns reading a sentence, a single page of a story, or even several pages if the text is at an appropriate level. The same is true for activities that have words or sounds as their content. Use your imagination as a teacher to use ABRACADABRA and its activities—but please make sure that all students are getting an equal amount of time practicing. • When you have arrived at a prediction or summary question, encourage all of the students to comment and take a vote. • Have students come up with their own words for whatever letter you are accessing in the Animated alphabet. • Have the students come up with other rhymes as part of the Rhyme matching activity. • Spelling a word would be a good extension of Segmenting after the students have shown mastery of a few levels. Principle of revisiting Do not be afraid to revisit a concept, reread a text, or re-practice an activity. For example, you may be well into Segmenting after having successfully completed all levels of Blending train. At that point, you could revisit Blending train, challenging students to see if they remember how to do the activity. Rereading a text is also an opportunity to practice Fluency. page 7 teacher handbook Alphabetics Alphabetics Why is alphabetics important? Research suggests that children who do not have a solid foundation in these alphabetic principles are less skilled readers as they progress through school. As students reach 3rd grade, the fate of their literacy success is nearly fully formed. Providing children with multiple opportunities to practice sounds and words is crucial for growth in their fluency and comprehension skills. In addition, research shows that it is more advantageous when alphabetic skills are presented with various phonetic or writing activities. What is alphabetics? Alphabetics (Sounds, Letters and Words) is the ability to associate sounds with letters and use these sounds to create words. The sounds associated with letters are referred to as phonemes (smallest units of spoken language) while the written letters associated with these sounds are called graphemes. There are 26 graphemes in English but over 40 phonemes. Stages of alphabetics Children begin their path to reading by being able to distinguish between different sounds and developing their phonemic awareness. They can begin to associate these sounds with print and recognize the correspondence between letters and sounds when they are given practice and modeling. The ability to manipulate these phonemes, either individually (letter by letter) or in chunks such as in rhyming families, is a more sophisticated skill in the area of phonics. Here, the learner begins to segment words by breaking them apart into units that make them easier to read, and then blending these units together. Decoding (the ability to interpret symbols) then begins to take place, as the learner is able to access these strategies to read words. page 8 How does ABRACADABRA support alphabetics? ABRACADABRA has 17 different activities specifically aimed at reinforcing the alphabetic principles. Each activity has multiple levels so that classrooms with a wide range of student needs can find an entry point. There is scaffolding built within each activity to encourage autonomous use of the tool. Many of the alphabetic activities are associated with the stories embedded in the software. This helps to build the context for practicing specific vocabulary and all reading related skills. Also, the activities are appropriate for those students who are at the beginning stages of alphabetic skills development. These activities would focus predominantly on listening skills, auditory discrimination and letter naming. For those students who are ready for more advanced practice, the activities support word family manipulation, decoding games, and blending tasks with text support. Of course, there are fun games that provide practice such as Letter bingo and Letter-sound search. Please refer to the complete table for more details about each activity. Alphabetics Matching Sounds Activity objective The student will identify sounds that are the same. Group facilitation tips Students can take turns matching sets of sounds in this activity. (Since there are only two sounds to match per set, the turns won’t take long.) Content / levels Available stories Level 1 Distinguishable sounds Level 2 Similar sounds Story-independent activity Alphabet Song Activity objective The computer sings the Alphabet Song and the students will sing along with or without the voice of the computer. Group facilitation tips • The facilitator should help focus students’ attention so that they begin the song with the computer. • If necessary, sing along with the students as a form of support. Content / levels Level 1 Music and words (sing along) Level 2 Words fade in and out Level 3 Only music (karaoke) Sub-level A Lower Case Sub-level B Upper Case Sub-level C Mix Available stories Story-independent activity page 9 teacher handbook Alphabetics Word Counting Activity objective The student will identify the number of words in a sentence. Group facilitation tips • Students can take turns or work as a group to count the words in a sentence. • Clapping can be encouraged to support the counting. Content / levels Level 1 2, 3 and 4-word sentences (40%, 40% and 20%). Level 2 2, 3, 4 and 5-word sentences (20%, 30%, 30% and 20%) Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry Darryl! Don’t Dawdle! Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Syllable Counting Activity objective The student will identify the number of syllables in a word. Group facilitation tips • If necessary, explain the concept of syllables and provide some examples using the activity. • Students can take turns or work as a group to count the syllables in a word. • Clapping can be encouraged to support the counting. Content / levels 1 to 4-syllable words randomly presented Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts page 10 Alphabetics Same Word Activity objective The student will distinguish between words that are the same or different. Group facilitation tips Students can take turns (one or two pairs of words per turn). Content / levels CVC words randomly presented. Level 1 Words where only the first letter differs (i.e. cat, fat) Level 2 Words where only the last letter differs (i.e. cat and can) Level 3 Words where only the middle vowel differs (i.e. cat and cot) Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle Feelings I Can Move Like A… Same Phoneme Activity objective The student will distinguish between letter sounds that are the same or different. Group facilitation tips Students can take turns (one or two pairs of sounds per turn). Content / levels All letter sounds Available stories Story-independent activity page 11 teacher handbook Alphabetics Word Matching Activity objective The student will match words that have the same beginning or ending consonants. Group facilitation tips • Students can take turns or work as a group to count the words in a sentence. • Clapping can be encouraged to support the counting. Content / levels Pairs of CVC words randomly presented: • 8 cards (4 pairs) • 12 cards (6 pairs) • 16 cards (8 pairs) Level 1 pairs of words with the same beginning sound. Level 2 pairs of words with the same ending sound. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Animated Alphabet Activity objective For each letter students are shown an animation that includes the letter sound, the letter-writing cue and an alliterative phrase to associate with the letter sound. Group facilitation tips • Have each student say the sentence. • Tell the students you will give them one minute to come up with as many words as they can for that particular letter. Content / levels All letter sounds page 12 Available stories Story-independent activity Alphabetics Letter Sound Search Activity objective Given the pronunciation of a letter sound, the student must identify and find its associated letter. Group facilitation tips • Finding a single letter should comprise a student’s turn. • The facilitator can support a student who needs help by narrowing the area of location of the letter; i.e. “look in this corner around the tree.” Content / levels Level 1 spmtkdlahr Level 2 gconubfizdhpre Level 3 wvyqxiblateh Sub-level A Lower Case Sub-level B Upper Case Sub-level C Mix Available stories Story-independent activity Letter ID Bingo Activity objective Given the pronunciation of a letter name, the student must determine if she has that letter on her bingo card. Group facilitation tips • Students should play as a team – each taking a turn for 1 letter. • If student has difficulty finding the letter the facilitator may narrow down the area of location. Content / levels Level 1 Lower Case Level 2 Upper Case Level 3 Lower Case Challenge edpqglmnuv Available stories Story-independent activity page 13 teacher handbook Alphabetics Rhyme Matching Activity objective The student will identify words that rhyme. Group facilitation tips • Students can work as a group to match rhyming words (one student in control of the mouse). • Students can also take turns controlling the computer and matching one or two pairs of words per turn. • Students love the game format and the challenge in this activity. Make sure the students listen to the words and keep in mind the instructional goal of the activity. Content / levels Available stories Pairs of CVC words randomly presented: • 8 cards (4 pairs) • 12 cards (6 pairs) • 16 cards (8 pairs) All stories are available in this activity. Word Families Activity objective The student will create different words from the same word family. Group facilitation tips The facilitator can choose a specific word family to work on or have the computer randomly pick the word families. Content / levels Level 1 Beginning consonants consist of single letters and phonemes. Level 2 Beginning consonants consist of single letters and phonemes and clusters. Advance Choose the word family on which you want to focus. page 14 Available stories All stories are available in this activity. Alphabetics Auditory Blending Activity objective Given a phonemic breakdown the student will identify a word and its corresponding picture. (i.e. /c/ /a/ /t/ = ‘cat’) Group facilitation tips • Students can take turns (one word per turn). • If necessary, explain the concept of word blending, using an example from the activity. Content / levels Level 1 2-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 2 3-phoneme words with short vowel sounds. Level 3 3-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 4 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the beginning, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 5 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 6 5-phoneme words with blends at the beginning and end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 7 5-phoneme challenge words. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts page 15 teacher handbook Alphabetics Auditory Segmenting Activity objective Given the pronunciation of a word, the student will identify its breakdown. (i.e.:’cat’ = /c/ /a/ /t/) Group facilitation tips • If necessary, explain the concept of segmenting words, using an example from the activity. • Students can take turns (one word per turn). Content / levels Level 1 2-phoneme words with short and long vowel sounds. Level 2 2-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 3 3-phoneme words with short vowel sounds. Level 4 3-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. page 16 Level 5 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the beginning, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 6 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 7 5-phoneme words with blends at the beginning and end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Alphabetics Blending Train Activity objective Given a phonemic breakdown, the student will identify a word. (i.e. /c/ /a/ /t/ = ‘cat’) Group facilitation tips • Students can take turns (one word per turn). • This activity requires participation from the facilitator to monitor student response. • When appropriate, peer monitoring can be encouraged (one student reads the word while the others check for accuracy and give feedback) Content / levels Level 1 2-phoneme words with short and long vowel sounds. Level 2 2-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 3 3-phoneme words with short vowel sounds. Level 4 3-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 5 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the beginning, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 6 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 7 5-phoneme words with blends at the beginning and end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 8 5-phoneme challenge words. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts page 17 teacher handbook Alphabetics Basic Decoding Activity objective Given the visual representation of a word, the student must say the sounds of its letters, and then blend them together to read the word and identify its corresponding picture. Group facilitation tips • This activity combines letter sounding with actual blending of words • The facilitator should be aware of the students’ responses and scaffold where necessary. • The facilitator can encourage other members of the group to aid a student who may be struggling. Content / levels Level 1 2-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 2 3-phoneme words with short vowel sounds. Level 3 3-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 4 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the beginning, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. page 18 Level 5 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 6 5-phoneme words with blends at the beginning and end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 7 5-phoneme challenge words. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Alphabetics Word Changing Activity objective The student must change individual letters or phonemes in a word to form a new word. (i.e. change “bad” to “sad”) Group facilitation tips • The facilitator should be aware of incorrect responses and aid where necessary. • Encourage the group to pay attention to make sure each student gives a correct response. Content / levels Level 1 CVC words. Only first letter is manipulated (rime units) Level 2 CVC words. All letters are manipulated Level 3 CVC words with long vowels. Only first letter is manipulated (rime units) Level 4 CVC words with long vowels. All letters are manipulated Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts page 19 teacher handbook Fluency Fluency What is fluency? Fluency (Reading) describes the level of automaticity that children have when reading a text. Learners are fluent when they are able to decode words with little or no effort, which helps them to concentrate on the content of what they are reading as opposed to figuring out words and sounds. The sub-skills under the umbrella term fluency add to this skill, which correlates to comprehension. Students who read with correct pacing and expression with few or no mistakes are better able to focus on the meaning of a text. Why is fluency important? Research suggests that students who are unable to acquire the skill of automatically reading words will struggle with attending to meaning. In addition, children who have trouble reading accurately at an appropriate pace tend to experience motivational problems. The reading load increases as students progress through the grade levels, making lack of fluency a major obstacle to school success. page 20 How does ABRACADABRA support fluency? Activities in ABRACADABRA allow for extensive practice in reading fluency. The activities cover all of the sub-skill areas, including expression and speed. Through games, students can test their pace against cartoon characters. ABRACADABRA has models of reading built into the story-related activities so students can monitor where they can improve. In addition, the program models how to decode words within the context of a story so they are receiving additional and consistent practice at figuring out words. The more learners are able to practice a specific skill, the better the chance they have of developing fluency. Fluency High Frequency Words Activity objective Given a list of high frequency words the student will identify the words. Group facilitation tips • Remind students that speed in their word recognition is an important element in this activity (time for word recognition is controlled by the computer). • Have students line up and take turns reading a word. Content / levels Available stories Level 1 A set of four words randomly presented four times with gradually less time to read them. Level 2 A set of seven words randomly presented four times with gradually less time to read them. Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen Poetry I Can Move Like A… Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Tracking Activity objective While reading a story, the student will be able to read with one-to-one correspondence and without skipping words. Group facilitation tips • Students can take turns reading the story and controlling the computer (arrow keys for tracking). • Remind students that they can click on the words that they don’t know (and have the computer read them). Content / levels All stories available in this activity include the tracking functionality. Available stories All stories are available in this activity. page 21 teacher handbook Fluency Expression Activity objective The computer reads a paragraph using good or bad expression and the student must decide if it was read with good expression. The student will then read the same paragraph practicing correct use of expression. Group facilitation tips • Before beginning this activity, you can provide examples of how good and bad expressive reading sounds. For example, you can talk about how a story should be read differently if a character is sad or happy. Content / levels The computer plays the voice of someone reading different sentences using different expressions. The listener must decide if the person is reading with the correct expression. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Frogs and the Well Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Multicultural Waterfall Accuracy Activity objective After listening to the computer read a passage, the student must read the same page accurately. Group facilitation tips This activity should be done individually. As the computer reads, the student follows. When s/he reads, s/he can click on a word if help is needed. At the end of each passage, the words clicked will be reviewed in a game-like feature to help the student become more familiar with them. Content / levels This activity can be done at all levels. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Multicultural Waterfall page 22 Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Where am I? Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Fluency Speed Activity objective Using an algorithm of good reading speed, the computer will monitor a student’s reading rate. The student will read a given text at an appropriate pace. Group facilitation tips This game is best played after students are familiar with a story or are comfortable with reading or sounding out words. The game can be played with one to four students. Each student chooses a character and names it. The computer selects who will read and monitors the person’s reading rate. If a student needs help, s/he can click on the word but this slows down her/his reading speed. Content / levels Using an algorithm of good reading speed, the computer will monitor a student’s reading rate. The student will read a given text at an appropriate pace. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff Poetry When I open my eyes Feelings Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Where am I? Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Multicultural Waterfall page 23 teacher handbook Comprehension Comprehension What is comprehension? Comprehension (Understanding the Story) is the cognitive process in which the reader interacts with a text in an attempt to understand its meaning. Reading comprehension is the culmination of all the students’ reading skills. It involves good oral comprehension, vocabulary, and decoding skills. (Depending on the grade level of the students, the importance of each of these prerequisite skills varies.) Comprehension is also affected by prior knowledge, which can help children relate to various texts. Why is comprehension important? Reading for meaning is the ultimate goal of learning how to read. This is the element that takes children from being good decoders to being good readers and literate beings. It is therefore understandable that the acquisition of reading comprehension is a complex process. How does ABRACADABRA support comprehension? ABRACADABRA has focused on developing several specific skills that contribute to overall comprehension. These activities are leveled and range from simpler tasks such as placing the elepage 24 ments of a well-known story in order (beginning, middle, and end) to summarizing an entire text. Other activities allow students to respond to a question prompt, to think critically about a text and to respond appropriately given the context of the story. Additional vocabulary activities help students to build a bank of words that they can read (decode) but may not be able to understand. How do I teach comprehension? Research suggests that there are several strategies that have a positive influence on children’s ability to understand what they read. The National Reading Panel suggests practicing skills such as asking and generating critical questions, using story maps, and monitoring comprehension through cooperative learning opportunities. There is also evidence that modeling appropriate strategies such as using context clues and allowing children to develop skills through providing multiple opportunities to interact with texts also aids in the development of comprehension strategies. Student should have time to read individually, with peers and with adults. Comprehension Prediction Activity objective Based on information from the story, the student will predict future events. Group facilitation tips • Students can read the story as a group (using the tracking functionality) or have the page read by the computer (audio icon). • If necessary re-word or explain the prediction question and encourage discussion among the group. • Make sure students elaborate and justify their responses to the questions. • You can add other questions that may not be embedded in the activity. Content / levels Prediction questions at the end of certain pages in the story. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Multicultural Waterfall page 25 teacher handbook Comprehension Comprehension Monitoring Activity objective After reading a story, the student will identify words that do not make sense (one on each page of the story). Group facilitation tips • Students can work as a group (reading the story and looking for the non-sense words) and take turns controlling the computer. Content / levels One non-sense word per page in every story Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Poetry Darryl! Don’t Dawdle Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Sequencing Activity objective After reading a story, the student will place story events in their correct order. Group facilitation tips • Students can work as a group (reading the story events and discussing the appropriate order) and take turns controlling the computer. • Encourage participation of other students as peer monitors. Content / levels Level 1 Three story events (summary of story pages), displayed in random order. Level 2 Five story events (summary of story pages), displayed in random order. page 26 Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Multicultural Waterfall Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Comprehension Summarizing Activity objective The student will answer story-related questions to help him/her summarize the story at the end. Group facilitation tips • Students can read the story as a group (using the tracking functionality) or have the page read by the computer (audio icon). • If necessary re-word the question and encourage discussion among the group. Content / levels Story-related questions at the end of certain pages in the story, which help the student to identify key elements to include in a summary of the story. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant Multicultural Waterfall The Little Red Hen Henny Penny The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Vocabulary Activity objective Given different attributes of a word, the student must determine which sentences use the word appropriately. Group facilitation tips This activity can be used to preview words from a particular story or to work with words after the story has been read. Content / levels A number of vocabulary words from each story. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Feelings Multicultural Waterfall page 27 teacher handbook Comprehension Vocabulary (ESL) Activity objective The student will be able to match given words with their corresponding pictures then use the words appropriately in given sentences. Group facilitation tips This activity is better done individually or in pairs. If done in pairs, students can take turns controlling the mouse as they each do a set. The other student is there to support and provide assistance if necessary. Available stories Content / levels Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant This activity is better done individually or in pairs. If done in pairs, students can take turns controlling the mouse as they each do a set. The other student is there to support and provide assistance if necessary. The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Feelings Multicultural Waterfall Story Response Activity objective Students are given open-ended questions about the story that they will discuss with one another. Group facilitation tips You may need to remind the student of the story. Content / levels Six questions are presented in a set: Three of which are general and three of which are specific to a story. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts page 28 Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Feelings Multicultural Waterfall Comprehension Story Elements Activity objective The students must answer questions about events that took place in a story. Group facilitation tips This activity can be done individually or in small groups. After reading a story, students must answer questions. They can take turns selecting answers and hitting the piñata. Content / levels Students must select the answer to six questions about the story. Because there are audio prompts to assist, this activity can be done by all students once they are familiar with the story. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Poetry Darryl! Don’t Dawdle Multicultural Waterfall page 29 teacher handbook Writing Writing What is writing? Writing is defined as a system in which graphemes (letters or symbols) that represent a language are placed on a surface (encoded) to be read (decoded) by someone familiar with the code. It is a powerful, multifaceted tool for both personal and interpersonal communication. Stages of writing Writing progresses through at least 7 different stages from children giving meaning to their scribbles, pictures and drawings to conventional spelling. When children begin their formal schooling, they may fall anywhere on this continuum in terms of writing ability. Why is writing important? Writing is a means by which we communicate with others. When children see different ways of writing modeled and used around them, they soon want to engage in its production. Children usually begin writing (albeit through scribbling) before they start to read. Research shows that writing supports reading development and vice versa. When students encode their thoughts using conventional or invented spelling on paper or using a word processing program, they use skills that page 30 support reading and writing development. With the disparity that exists between the number of phonemes and graphemes in the English language (26 and over 40 respectively), students need explicit and systematic phonics instruction to learn how this code works and how to reproduce it. ABRACADABRA is a tool that supports this development. How does ABRACADABRA support writing? ABRACADABRA’s writing component is designed for children to apply phonetic principles and their literacy experiences to the writing of words and sentences. Through game-like activities, children are asked to write words and sentences they have encountered in the different story genres in the program. Scaffolding mechanisms are built in so that students can complete the writing activities on their own; that is, when words are spelled incorrectly, ABRACADABRA will provide prompts to support and encourage students until the words are spelled conventionally. Writing Spelling Words Activity objective The student will spell regular and irregular words using the keyboard. Group facilitation tips Before doing this activity, acquaint students with basic keyboarding skills, especially letters, backspace and enter keys. This activity is better done by individual students or in pairs where they alternate having control of the keyboard. If students make mistake spelling a word, the computer highlights where the error occurred but the students will have to retype the whole word to correct it. Content / levels Level 1 2-phoneme words with short and long vowel sounds. Level 2 2-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 3 3-phoneme words with short vowel sounds. Level 4 3-phoneme words with clusters, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 5 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the beginning, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 6 4-phoneme words with blends mainly at the end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 7 5-phoneme words with blends at the beginning and end, short, long, and r-controlled vowel sounds. Level 8 5-phoneme challenge words. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Feelings page 31 teacher handbook Writing Spelling Sentences Activity objective The students will use keyboarding skills to spell words to make a sentence. Group facilitation tips Before doing this activity, acquaint students with basic keyboarding skills and ensure that they are familiar with the letter, backspace, and enter keys, as well as the spacebar. This activity should be done after a story has been read because the words tested are story specific. It is better done by individual students or students in pairs who take turns controlling the keyboard. If the student makes a mistake spelling a word, the computer highlights where the error occurred, but the student will have to retype the whole word to correct it. Content / levels Because the activity is directly related to a story, have the students read the story before starting to spell sentences. Level 1 2-word sentences. Level 2 3-word sentences. Level 3 4-word sentences. Level 4 5-word sentences. Available stories Folk and fairy tales The Dove and the Ant The Little Red Hen The Three Billy Goats Gruff The Frog and the Well Henny Penny Non-fiction How a Bean Sprouts Poetry When I open my eyes Darryl! Don’t Dawdle I Can Move Like A… Feelings Multicultural Waterfall page 32 Navigational icons Navigational Icons As your students go through ABRACADABRA, they will meet these navigational icons. It may be advantageous to familiarize yourself and students with them to make your experience with the software enjoyable. a-OK help me yes no next repeat magnet paw check super speedy how to adventure not here clock speedy clock page 33 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Samples of lesson plans Sample I — Navigating ABRACADABRA Topic Program introduction — navigating through ABRACADABRA Materials One computer Speakers Projector Classroom procedure devices you have created such as a pocket chart and ABRA activity completions sheet Objectives • Students will be able to follow the icons to get to or back to their desired activities. • Students will be able to develop the expectation of completing each activity— starting with the easiest level and working to the next one(s). Procedures 1. As a whole group, use a projection device to show the website. 2. Click on the “student” section. 3. Discuss the important sections — activities and stories. Discuss the difference between an object that is lit (active) and one that is grayed out (inactive). 4. 5. Show and tell how to clear the desk to move on to other stories or activities. 6. Demonstrate that the stories can be activated without being paired with an activity. 7. Demonstrate that some activities can be activated with out being paired with a story. 8. Have 4-6 students demonstrate how these features are to be used. Collaboration 1. Turn off computer and projector. Tell students that you will now discuss how to show that they have completed an ABRA task. 2. 3. Show how to use the teaching aids you have created. 4. Have 4-6 students model how they would use them. Thank students for their participation and tell them that you look forward to seeing them put these actions into use when you use ABRA the next time. 5. Lesson plan developed by: Janet Jack, Judy Spangler and Gia Deleveaux page 34 Samples of lesson plans Sample II — Introductory lesson on characters Topic What is ABRACADABRA? Materials Computers Headphones Projector/Smartboard ABRA character cards (in Printable Resources) Paper Pencil Crayons Objective Students will be able to navigate ABRA to find the different characters. Procedures 1. Say: I am going to say a wonderful word, ABRACADABRA. What do you think of when I say that word? What do you think it means? 2. Show character cards to introduce programme and characters. Use the chart paper to create chart with names and characters’ special skills. Show this to the students. Tell them that we will complete this chart as the lesson goes along. 3. Go to website: http://grover.concordia.ca/abra/ using Smartboard or LCD projector. Talk through actions as items are clicked. • Click on Student • Click Characters 4. Click on Julie and have the computer read her story. Ask students what they think about her and her desires for travel and adventures. Put up Julie’s card. Relate her experience with your class specialists – e.g., the classmate with special skills in math, tying shoelaces, finding things, spelling helper, chef, etc. 5. 6. Repeat step 5 with other characters. Collaboration Give students 10 minutes to peruse this section of the software with a partner. Extension activity 1. Ask students to 2. think about the characters in ABRA and choose a favourite. Students draw a picture or write a sentence about their favourite character. Lesson plan developed by: Janet Jack, Judy Spangler and Gia Deleveaux page 35 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample III — Smartboard unit Materials Smartboard Computers Smart Notebook Colour Printer paper Objective • Teachers will be able to use the Smartboard and its devices to assist with their ABRACADABRA lessons. • Students will be able to do illustrations using Smart Notebook. • Students will develop public speaking skills by presenting their work to the class. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “The Dove and the Ant” 8. Have students choose 2 pages and write questions based on those pages. Procedure Day 2 1. Use the Smartboard as you reread the story The Dove and the Ant. Turn on Smart Notebook and show students how to do illustrations using this software. 2. Have children go to their computers and turn on the software. Once they get to Smart Notebook, they choose their favourite part of the story and illustrate it. 3. Children print copies of their drawings and present their work to the class telling them why they did this work. 4. Procedure Day 1 Procedure Day 3 1. Have a discussion 2. Go into the story The Dove and the Ant 2. 1. Divide Smartboard screen into two vertical parts. (ABRACADABRA browser and Smart Notebook) 3. Read a page or have the computer read it. 4. Write a question that corresponds with that page in Smart Notebook. Advise children that comprehension comes from being able to question what you read so they should always seek to ask themselves questions as they read. 5. Model this a few more times. about the characters in the story The Dove and the Ant. Students analyze character behaviours, intentions, and author’s choice of words. Ask students to use their imaginations and create another story about adventures of a character based on the discussion just had. Students tell their story about the character’s adventure to the group. 3. Once receiving feedback from the group, students write their story using Smart Notebook or traditional methods. Their hard copies will be placed in the class’ Reading Corner. 4. 6. Copy, save, and print the Smart Notebook file. 7. Divide children in pairs and have them continue reading the story. page 36 Lesson plan developed by: Peggy Gerard, Stacey Le Grandeur and Gia Deleveaux Samples of lesson plans Sample IV — Alphabetics Whole class activity Topic Auditory discrimination Time 40 minutes Materials Computer and projector Tennis Balls Objective Increase auditory discrimination skills through gross motor activities. ABRACADABRA activity Syllable counting Procedures Pull up “Syllable counting” on ABRACADABRA and project it onto an area that is visible to all children. When the computer says a word, demonstrate how one could clap one’s hands to count how many syllables are in each word. Use the computer to show how I get the cat to throw the right number of popsicles to the yeti. Then say that I could also use tennis balls just like the cat uses popsicles to count syllables. Select students, two at a time, to be the yeti and the cat. Have those students sit on the floor. When the computer says a word, the “cat” counts the number of syllables in that word and rolls the corresponding number of tennis balls to the yeti. When the “cat” has stopped rolling the balls, the yeti says whether or not the right number has been rolled. The remainder of the class agrees or disagrees. Repeat this activity with another pair of students to ensure students have understood what to do. Then, have students pair up and sit around the room on the floor. Go through safety rules such as the balls must be rolled and not thrown to your partners. Once all pairs have been established and rules understood, have the computer say a word. Students roll the balls. Once each pair is finished, students raise their hands and leave the appropriate number of balls in front of them. Walk around to make sure each group is getting the correct answer. Do this a few times then have students switch roles. After all have played both roles, collect tennis balls and thank them for their participation. Have them return to their places and complete the appropriate worksheet after doing an example with them. Extension activity The children can do a written activity where they write the number of syllables in their names or in other familiar words. page 37 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Name: _______________________________________________________________ Write the number of syllables you hear in each word. Example Cherries: 2 Strawberry: Lemons: Bananas: Pineapple: Grapes: Coconut: Pear: Avocado: Apple: Tomato: Watermelon: page 38 Samples of lesson plans Sample V — Alphabetics Small groups Topic Blending and segmenting words Time 30 minutes Materials Computer(s) Objective Students will practice decoding skills in multiple capacities ABRACADABRA activity One ABRACADABRA story Blending Train (connected to same story) Auditory Segmenting (connected to same story) Basic Decoding (connected to same story) Procedures Read ABRACADABRA story as whole class. Divide students into small groups and assign each group a station. Allow 10 minutes per station. If you do not have enough computers, you can use one computer as a “Reading station” and laminate the word lists (see pages 44 and 45) to be used for the blending and segmenting activities. You can then create a vocabulary list for the decoding activity. Extension activity As an extension activity, children can draw pictures that depict the vocabulary words for a class dictionary. page 39 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample VI — Alphabetics Individual / Small group activity Topic Letter sound correspondence – Encoding words Time 20 minutes Materials Computer OR a printed copy of the story “The Four Seasons” Items that represent the different seasons such as swimsuit, sweater, mitten, earmuffs, brown leaf, seeds Writing tools Objective Students will be able to draw and write about what happens at a particular time of the year. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “The Four Seasons” Procedures Show the child the different items brought in and talk about their uses and the time of the year they are worn. After this is done, sit with the child at the computer and go through the story “The Four Seasons”. Ask the child to give feedback to the story and state if she or he does similar activities in the various seasons. Ask the child to tell about her or his favorite season and why it is preferred. State your preference and discuss it. Show how you would write a sentence to reflect your feelings. Take a few of the child’s sentences and have her or him encode it, making sure to stress the connection between sounds and letters. Have the child draw a picture of herself or himself doing her or his favorite activity. After this is done, ask the child to write a sentence about the activity. Watch as the child vocalizes the sounds and encodes with letters. Encourage invented spelling and help the student sound out the words. page 40 Samples of lesson plans Name: Draw a picture that shows you doing your favorite activity to enjoy a season. Write a sentence underneath it. Write your sentence here. page 41 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample VII — Alphabetics Whole class activity Topic Basic decoding Time 30 minutes Materials Computer Speakers Alphabet chart on the wall 12”x14” cards (laminated hard stock paper with letters of the alphabet on it) Objective Students will be able to decode basic words. ABRACADABRA activity The Alphabet Song Procedures Have speakers hooked up to the computer so the whole class can hear and sing along with the level 3 version of ABRACADABRA’s Alphabet song. As the children are singing, point to the corresponding letters on your alphabet chart. After singing, systematically go through each letter and sound to make sure the children are secure in this knowledge. Practice blending sounds together using the large stock cards. Do this while chanting: “You take a b that’s a /b/ and an a – t “at” You put them all together and they spell bat. That’s bat, b – a – t, bat. That’s bat, b – a – t, bat. You take a b that’s /b/ and an a – t “at” You put them all together and they spell bat.” Do this several times using different word families to give the children practice with how to do this. Have them come up, switch the cards around and create new words from the word families. Sing the song to their words. After this, praise them for how well they have done. Tell them that they are going to do the same thing but individually. Encourage them to sound out the words as before. page 42 Samples of lesson plans Name: _______________________________________________________________ Read the words and look at the pictures. Find the word that names the picture. Draw a line from the word to the picture that it matches. 1. Clap 2. Dog 3. Hat 4. Pot 5. Slip 6. Clock page 43 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample VIII — Fluency Sounds and expression activity Topic Reading with the correct expression Materials computers, projector, tape recorder or materials that make different sounds Objective Students will be able to decode basic words. ABRACADABRA activity Matching Sounds and Reading with Expression Lesson summary Sounds are all around us. Each sound creates a different “feel” for us. This lesson investigates sounds, their effects on us, and how expressive reading can do the same. Introductory activity — Do the activities • Ticking of a clock. • Ringing of a bell. • Tapping of a pencil. • Ringing of a cell phone. • Voices heard outside the classroom. and ask the question, “What’s that sound?” Procedures 1. Turn on computer and projector to the ABRA 2. Click on the ABRA Matching Sounds activity student section. and complete one level of the activity as a group. 3. Click on to the story Red Hen then the skill Expression. 4. Explain why using expression when reading is important. Give examples. 5. Click and do 2 examples with ABRA. Ask if the sentences were read with the correct expression with the question, “Did I read it right?” Have volunteers click the thumbs up or down icon in ABRA to show response. Ask for corrections if they were not. Collaboration 1. Divide students in pairs or groups to do this activity with the computer. They are to discuss their responses and make corrections whenever necessary. 2. They are to choose one page to practice and read to the whole class with the appropriate expression. They should explain why they have read the page in a certain manner. Extension activity 1. Make a list of 5 unusual sounds they hear at home. 2. Ask them to tell how these sounds made them feel; e.g., happy, sad, frightened, surprised, nervous, etc. Lesson plan developed by: Diane page 44 Samples of lesson plans Sample IX — Fluency Individual or small group Topic Tracking Time 20 minutes Materials Computer OR a printed copy of an ABRACADABRA story A blank cassette Recorder for cassette Objective Students will create a library of readings for portfolio and listening purposes ABRACADABRA activity One ABRACADABRA story Procedures Alone with the teacher or in pairs, students can select (or be assigned) a passage from a story being read in class to record. One student will monitor the reading by following along with a hard copy of the story while the other student is reading the electronic version. The monitoring student will also be in charge of the recorder. When the passage is complete, it is the other student’s turn to read and record. As pairs take turns at recording, you can end up with a fully recorded story that can be added to your class audio library. You can also use these recordings as a way of collecting reading samples to track progress. page 45 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample X — Fluency Topic High frequency words Small group or whole class Time 40 minutes Materials Copies of a set of high frequency words for each student Scissors Copies ABRACADABRA stories – “The Frogs and the Well”, “Little Red Hen”, “The Dove and the Ant”, ”How a Bean Sprouts” and “Feelings” Objective Students will be able to find and read high frequency words in a given period of time. Procedures Tell students that they will be given a sheet of paper that has 20 words they have encountered while reading ABRACADABRA books. They are to read the words then cut along the dotted lines to make individual word cards. Instruct them to write their names on the backs of the cards. Give out sheets and scissors. Permit children to do as you have directed (20 – 25 minutes). Walk around and assist where necessary. After the children have finished, ask them to place their words on their desks in any order they wish. Explain that you will be calling out words and they will have to find them as quickly as possible. Suggest that they may want to sort them by beginning sounds/letters or by words they are sure of on one side and words they are not so sure of on the other. Once the game begins and they have found a called out word, they are to hold it face down on their desks and not show it until you say “time”. At that point, they are to hold their cards up so that you can see them. Students who are not sure can wait for this moment to look around to see what their classmates have held up then find their cards. Once all students have the correct word, praise them and then move on. As children are doing this, make notes on who seems to need help. As time goes on, time permitted to find each card is decreased from 10 seconds to less. After students have done this, they can put their cards away and read copies of the stories to practice these words in context. Extension activity This game can be modified by calling out a rhyming word that corresponds to one in the high frequency word cards children have. Children are to find and raise that matching rhyming word in their set. (NB, the teacher does not have to lead this activity at all times; a student who is fluent in reading can lead this.) Another list of challenge words is provided using words encountered in the stories but not necessarily high frequency words. The original and rhyming games can be played using these cards. page 46 Samples of lesson plans little came was said mother out ran look friend best his that stand very you over away left jump could Cut along the lines to make a set of challenge words. page 47 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans smile growl come phone dried brave around dark game hard real talk give rain page 48 damp right cream shine very bean Cut along the lines to make a set of challenge words. Samples of lesson plans Sample XI — Comprehension Story problem and solution Materials Computers LCD projector or smartboard Printable resource on ABRACADABRA story “Little Red Hen” Objective Students will be able to show their understanding of the story by telling the story problem and solution. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “Little Red Hen” Procedures 1. Have the students retell the story Little Red Hen. 2. Have them suggest what was the problem in the story. Have them conclude what was the main problem. 3. As they give problems, have them suggest how they were solved. 4. Give students the sentence starter handout from the printable resources section for the story Little Red Hen. Instruct students to answer the question and draw a picture to illustrate their response. Lesson plan developed by: Gwen Fredricksen, Heather New, Erin Stinson and Gia Deleveaux page 49 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Name: What did the dog, the pig, and the cow do when The Little Red Hen did not share her bread? Draw your answer. Write your sentence here. page 50 Samples of lesson plans Sample XII — Comprehension Individual activity Topic Story sequence Time 40 minutes Materials Computer OR a printed copy of an ABRACADABRA story Journaling paper Writing and coloring material Objective Students will be able to predict an ending based on context clues. ABRACADABRA activity One ABRACADABRA story Procedures Choose a story from the ABRACADABRA story bank (or another familiar story). Read the story as a whole class. Just before the end of the story, ask the children what they think will happen. Take suggestions from the class and write them on chart paper. Send the students to their tables to work individually on creating their own endings based on what has happened so far. Have children return to the group and ask them to share their answers. Extension activity To bring attention to story elements like beginning, middle and end, use the ABRACADABRA sequencing activity related to the story you have chosen as a whole class or a small group. Have students create their own books by adding a beginning and a middle to their “new” ending modeled after the real story or they can create their own. page 51 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample XIII — Comprehension Small group activity Topic Story response Time 30 minutes Materials Paper Writing material (necessary) Microphone and recorder (optional) Objective Students will be able to generate and respond to critical thinking questions. ABRACADABRA activity One ABRACADABRA story Story Response Procedures After reading through an ABRACADABRA story choice at least once, have students work on “Story Response” related to that story. Have children read the story in their small groups and respond orally to the question prompts. Then tell children they will be interviewing a character from the story. In their small groups, one person will be the character and one will be the interviewer. If there are more than two children in a group, you can have more than one character or interviewer. Have the students brainstorm critical questions for the character. They can use the ones from the ABRACADABRA prompts and create some of their own. When they are ready, have each group come up for their TV interview. You can make this a more real experience by using a microphone, costumes for the interviewer and the character. You can also videotape the interviews for future use. Having the children or groups switch roles can extend this activity. page 52 Samples of lesson plans Sample XIV — Writing Whole class activity Topic Spelling words and sentences Time 30 minutes Materials Computer and projector OR copies of the story “My Town” Writing and coloring material Paper Objective Students will be able to draw a picture and write a label for a place or thing in their town. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “My Town” Procedures Explain that the author of “My Town” wrote this story to tell people about his/her town. Inform them that they can do the same. If you have recently read the book, have children retell what they have read. If not, read the book together then ask children to tell of favorite places they like to visit in their town and why. Tell them they will now have the opportunity to draw and write about different places in their towns. Children do the activity. Students who need more of a challenge can write a sentence telling why they chose a particular place. At the end, students can share their work with one other. Extension activity Children write about places in their school’s neighborhood. In pairs, they choose different places and decide in which medium they would like to represent them: painting, computer graphics, crayons, markers, etc. Their work is then compiled into a book that can be shared with other classes or kept in the class library. page 53 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample XV — Writing Whole class activity Topic Understanding the story - real or make-believe (fiction or non-fiction) Time 3 X 45 minutes or longer (depending on students’ needs) Materials Computer and projector OR copies of the story “How a Bean Sprouts” Chalkboard, chalk Paper with blank section on top and lined section on bottom Writing and coloring material Staple gun, staples Authors’ chairs. Objective • Students will be able to write a non-fiction process or sequential story. • Students will be able to work as pairs to produce good work. • Students will be able to present their work in an appropriate manner. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story —“How a Bean Sprouts” Procedures Part One Ask children if they know what “non-fiction” means. If they do not know, tell them that “How a bean grows” is an example because the events are real and not make-believe. Ask them to tell how they know whether something is real or make believe. Explain that in non-fiction books, it is important to get the facts and procedures correct and there is no need to embellish details. If they have been using ABRACADABRA for a while, ask them to tell of any books that would fit into this text type that they have read in ABRACADABRA. (Answer: Canadian Wild Animals, My Town, and How a Bean Sprouts.) Give children copies of “How a Bean Sprouts” if it cannot be projected. Read the story and write the stages of the bean’s growth on the chalkboard. Ask the children to tell of different things they like to do that they must do in stages; for example, making a cake or washing the dog. Write their suggestions on the board. Have them pair up with another student who likes to do the same thing to work as partners writing up the process. Tell them that their page 54 Samples of lesson plans Sample XV — Writing (cont.) job is to co-write a book explaining the steps with their partners for the rest of the lesson and during the next. Remind them of behaviors that show good teamwork. Suggest that it may be better to talk about the process first, draw pictures, and then write their story. Show them where the supplies are and tell them that they can use the computer, copied storybook, or another group if they need help with sequencing. Have children work. Walk around and help where necessary. Part Two Let children sit with their writing partners. Recap the difference between real and make-believe. Remind students that it is important to get the facts and steps correct when writing such books. Allow some pairs to share how things are going in their writing process. They can share successes or areas that they are finding problematic. Praise and remind them that they are to work amicably with their partners. Let them continue working. The goal is to have all groups finished this session. If some finish early, they can share their work with other groups for editing purposes: they can make sure that things are in the correct order and invented spelling can get closer to conventional spelling. When they are sure of their product, they can staple the pages together. They must then discuss their presentation style. Help them when if necessary. Part Three Make a big production of the pairs coming up to share their work with the class. Go over good listening behaviors that will be expected as the authors read. Have them come up and read their books from the author’s chair. Permit classmates to ask questions about the work. Congratulate and praise all teams. Let the students place books in the class library in the newly formed “non-fiction” section. Tell them that they should invite their parents, siblings and friends to come and see their work. page 55 teacher handbook Samples of lesson plans Sample XVI — Writing Individual activity Topic Writing notes (Purpose of writing) Time 45 minutes Materials Computer OR a copy of the story “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” Paper with blank section on top and lined section on bottom Writing and coloring material Objective Students will be able to write a note to a story character about a pleasant or disturbing behavior exhibited in the story. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” Procedures Alternate the reading of the story “Three Billy Goats Gruff” between you and the child. Ask questions about the story to make sure the student has understood it. Invite the student to tell who was her/his most or least favorite character and why. Ask the student to tell how she/he would feel if the same thing were to happen to her/him and why. Explain to students that notes are sent to people to let them know about things such as what is going on, feelings, and opinions. “For example, the teacher often send notes home with you so that the person who takes care of you can know what is going on at school.” Tell student that she/he will write a note to a character in the story telling how she/he felt about what the character did. Have the student write a note then read it to you. A drawing may also be done. This note can be dated and placed in the student’s portfolio. page 56 Samples of lesson plans Sample XVII — Writing Whole class activity Topic Encode personal narratives Time 40 minutes Materials Computer and projector OR a copy of the story “The Frogs and the Well” Writing and coloring material Objective Students will be able to write and draw about something they or someone else did that was not very wise and the consequences of the behavior. ABRACADABRA activity The ABRACADABRA story — “The Frogs and the Well” Procedures Project the ABRACADABRA story “The Frogs and the Well” and ask the children to read it quietly to themselves. Gauge the time given per screen depending on the reading levels of the class. Read the screen or invite a fluent reader to read it until the book is completed. Ask questions along the way to make sure they understand the passage and the moral of the story. Shift into talking about something you have done that was not very wise and the consequence of that action. Invite one or two of them to share their experiences. Split the class into groups of 4 and have them share their experiences and the repercussions in smaller groups. Let them discuss this for 10 minutes. Then they draw a picture of a scene from their “episode” and write a sentence about what happened. Extension activity Have the children meet in their groups of 4 again. They decide which episode they would like to dramatize to the class. They practice and present the piece as a short skit. page 57 teacher handbook Class management in ABRACADABRA Class Management in ABRACADABRA The Learning Tool Kit (LTK) allows a teacher to manage his or her class through ePEARL (the CSLP’s electronic portfolio). Teachers can decide with which teachers they would like to share information through the linking and unlinking feature. Teachers can also link and unlink students to classes. By far, one the most important features the class management tool affords is the ability for teachers to retrieve student nickname and password information. How do I manage my class in ePEARL? Once the LTK is installed in your school, simply log into the LTK lobby and follow the steps below. Step 1: Click on the ePEARL icon. Your e-portfolio will become visible. You may personalize your portfolio, set goals, upload artifacts and access ePEARL resources. Step 2: To manage your class, click on the “Manage” button. From the main “Manage menu” you will be able to manage your classes and students. Step 3: To link and unlink other teachers to your classes, choose “My Class” and follow the directions. Step 4: To link and unlink students to your classes, choose “My Students” and follow the directions. page 58 Technological requirements Technological Requirements ABRACADABRA is an internet-based program that can be run on PC or Macintosh computers. This section delineates the software, hardware and network requirements needed for ABRACADABRA to run properly. Please note that your internet connection must be faster than dial-up and that Adobe Flash Player 9 or higher must be installed on all computers. PC requirements Processor Intel® Pentium® 3 800 mHz or faster (or equivalent) RAM Minimum RAM 256 MB 512 MB recommended OS Windows 2000 or Windows XP Browser Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.x, Firefox 1.x Speakers or headphones are necessary. Adobe Flash Player 9 or higher Mac requirements Processor PowerPC® G3 500MHz or faster processor RAM Minimum RAM 256 MB 512 MB recommended OS Mac OS X Browser Firefox 1.5 is recommended or Safari 1.3 or later Speakers or headphones are necessary. Adobe Flash Player 9 or higher page 59
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