“Exploradores” by Irene Zamora

“Exploradores” by Irene Zamora
Shiloh Elementary
Union County, North Carolina
¡Exploradores!: Viaje a la selva.
Description
Students will be able to identify and name some animals that live in the jungle. Students will be able to make descriptions of animals. Students will be able to compare the abilities of animals to human abilities. Students will be able to listen and understand a story in the target language. Students will be able to say a poem. Students will be able to sing a song in the target language.
LanguageSpanish
Grade PreK-K
Subject Mathematics, Science, World Languages, Arts, Health Education
Region Europe, North America
Length
1 lesson of 90 minutes (balanced literacy), 1 lesson of 60 minutes, 2 lessons of 45 minutes, and 2 extra lessons of flexible length
Materials
Flashcards, poem chart with visual aids, worksheets, vocabulary picture and word cards, poem, storybook, online resources, paper of different colors and textures, realia (real pictures, explorer’s hat, visit to the zoo)
Activate Prior Knowledge
The compelling question leads to other questions to use during the presentation activity in
circle time, and also during different moments of various sessions. These questions will also
review previous knowledge and will guide teaching through the interests of students, providing
a meaningful learning environment and giving students the opportunity to be exposed to
comprehensible input and to express themselves in the target language.
Questions prompts: What animals can we find in the jungle? What can they do? Can I do those
things? What are they like? Am I like them?
Comprehension is the main feature of this language learning lesson. Thus, it is based on listening
activities and a lot of enhancing questions to prove and check students’ comprehension levels.
Correct pronunciation, intonation and input are always provided no matter what area we are working
on. Literacy, math, science, PE and arts are globalized, emphasizing language to give commands
and follow instructions through TPR activities.
Ask Compelling Question
What animals can we find in the jungle?
page 2
Investigate/Analyze
PRESENTATION SESSION (Circle time. 45 minutes):
After working on the daily routines to start the day (attendance, good morning song, weather,
calendar, schedule, etc.) introduce the new topic by showing an explorer’s hat, an object that
is going to be a key feature in future activities. introduce yourself as an explorer and ask the
compelling question: What animals can I find in the jungle? Students will try to guess every time you
present a new animal. A suggestion is to show real pictures of animals if possible, instead of picture
flashcards. The vocabulary words will be: cocodrilo, elefante, jirafa, león, tigre, tortuga, rana, loro,
mono, hipopótamo, serpiente, cebra.
After this presentation, it will be storytelling time. I suggest the book ¿Dónde está mamá? by Julia
Donaldson (translation of “Monkey puzzle”). The story works on body parts (previous knowledge)
and other adjectives and colors students already know, which will help when we work on
descriptions. Also, introduce the poem “En la selva:”
Todo buen explorador necesita un hatillo,
un sombrero en la cabeza y también un bocadillo.
En la selva encontrará cebras, leones y ranas,
elefantes y serpientes, y monos colgados de ramas.
Jirafas, loros, tortugas, hipopótamos también,
y cocodrilos que tienen muchos dientes…¡casi cien!
LITERACY (90 minutes):
Divide students into groups (high, medium and low) according to their level of fluency and
comprehension.
Reading
Use the poem “En la selva” in the following ways:
1. Read aloud with an emphasis on intonation and pronunciation.
2. Choral reading with students following word by word, pointing with their fingers or with pointers.
3. Read to someone else according to the group levels:
◦ Low group - One student reads with prompting and support of the teacher, only a couple of words at a time to avoid frustration. Then, another student follows the reading, so they are all engaged.
◦ Medium group - One student reads, the rest listen and follow. Change readers with every new sentence.
◦ High group - Students read in pairs to each other. The roles of “reader” and “listener” change once they finish the first reading.
4. All groups will have to recognize, read and underline high frequency words and vocabulary words in the text.
Writing
The same poem used in guided reading is used here. The three groups will have a worksheet of the
poem with some missing words to be completed.
• Low group - Missing words will have pictures of the animals as clues, the beginning letters to
help students label them, plus the dictation of the teacher.
page 3
•
•
Medium group - Missing words will have pictures as clues to help students label them, plus the
dictation of the teacher.
High group - Missing words will not have any clues, only the dictation of the teacher.
Word study
Play a matching game with picture and word cards of the following vocabulary: cocodrilo, elefante,
jirafa, león, tigre, tortuga, rana, loro, mono, hipopótamo, serpiente, cebra.
• Low group will have to be able to say the words.
• Medium group will have to be able to build sentences with specific words.
• High group will play in pairs or teams and they will have to be able to build sentences and say
those sentences to their partners.
After playing a quick round of matching, students will play a version of “Simon says,” in which the
person wearing the explorer’s hat will say, “Soy un explorador y veo…(and an animal),” and the rest
of the students will have to act out the animal. Model the activity with the hat to start the game and
then students will take turns wearing the hat and being the leader.
MATH (60 minutes):
As a cooperative and whole class activity, work on finding differences and similarities between
humans and jungle animals, comparing them in Venn Diagrams (one for each animal). Divide
students into pairs or groups of three and have each group be in charge of studying one specific
animal. The Venn Diagrams will be displayed on the wall, and students will have the opportunity
to share their products with the whole class. As an individual activity, students will complete
worksheets in which a jungle picture will show a lot of animals. Students will count and write the
number of animals they can see, classifying them and expressing which animals appear more and
less times.
SCIENCE (45 minutes):
Talk about features and habitats of jungle animals, and the actions they take and the food they
eat. All the vocabulary to use have been previously taught: verbs, adjectives, body parts, colors,
food, etc. Encourage students to participate in this oral activity by giving easy patterns such as,
“Yo puedo_______(verb), y______(animal) puede_______(verb).” or“Yo tengo_______(body part)
y______(animal) tiene_____(body part).”
Another activity to develop during this session is a TPR game linked to the song, “Dicen que,”
which uses vocabulary related to jungle animals, as well as adjectives presented in groups of
antonyms.
P.E. (flexible timing):
Motor tale. Have student explorers act out an adventure from the beginning by getting up in the
morning, getting their bags ready, putting on their explorer’s hats and driving their jeeps until they
get to the jungle. Once they get there, and depending on the possibilities that your room and school
offer, students will explore the jungle by going to other classrooms, the gym, the cafeteria, the
playground and so on, finding traces that help us get to the animals that you are looking for. Act
out all the verbs used before: climbing to see monkeys and parrots on top of trees, crawling to see
snakes, running to follow (or to escape) from lions and tigers, crossing rivers or swimming to see
hippos and elephants, walking slowly to see turtles or jumping to ride zebras.
page 4
On the way back, have students drive their jeeps, stop to drink water and rest, and finally get
back to your classroom. After the motor tale, relax and cool down by listening to a storytelling
video:“¿Dónde se esconden los elefantes?”
ARTS (flexible timing):
Have students make collages of jungle animals with colored paper, construction paper, newspaper,
magazines or other textures, and add the final products to decorate the Venn Diagrams.
Synthesize/Create
Students will answer the compelling question through the guidance of the teacher, through a
storybook and through an online storytelling video, all of them giving comprehensible input. They
will be motivated to ask and answer more questions. Their products in this lesson will be mainly
oral, and will show the usage of the new vocabulary and how they are able to link it to the previous
knowledge of the language.
Share
Students will share their learning during the cooperative activities such as circle time, during the
math comparing activities or during the TPR activity in which they have to take turns leading the
“Simon says” game.
Reflect/Revise
The multiple oral and shared activities are each opportunities for students to revise and reflect on
their learning in a cooperative way. Students will also have time to reflect individually during the
writing activity in which they need to write the specific vocabulary of this lesson plan.
Assessment
As a formative evaluation, the teacher will use observation as a main tool, and will also have
a rubric ready to assess students when they are working in small groups, as it will be easier
to observe their strengths and the skills they will need to improve. As a summative evaluation,
the math and writing worksheets, and the Venn Diagrams, will be important evidence to show if
students understood some of the concepts taught.
Extension Activity
I suggest two very enriching sessions to add to this lesson plan.The first one involves students’
families in an investigation project. Each student will have to research a jungle animal and bring
the information to school to share with the rest of the class. That information can be added to the
collages and Venn Diagrams.The second extension activity consists of a planned field trip to the
zoo, where you can focus on jungle animals.
Resources - video
Dicen Que Music Video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=thzadGzMmcs&list=RDthzadGzMmcs
page 5
Cuenta Cuentos: ¿Dónde puede esconderse un elefante?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtZTo2WexDE
Resources - Coloring Pages
Elephant: http://www.123paracolorear.com/images/elefante-para-colorear/elefante-para-colorear-2.
gif
Lion: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-lion-i17903.html
Giraffe: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-giraffe-i17896.html
Crocodile: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-crocodile-i17575.html
Parrot: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-parrot-i17813.html
Monkey: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-monkey-i17690.html
Snake: http://www.edupics.com/coloring-page-snake-i17907.html
Toucan: http://99coloring.com/toucan-coloring-page-for-kids-20700.html/toucan-coloring-page-forkids-printable-coloring-sheet-99coloring-com
Hippo: http://thingkid.com/hippo-color-page-animal-coloring-pages-plate-sheet/
Tiger: http://www.educima.com/dibujo-para-colorear-tigre-i17818.html
Standards Alignment
Common Core State Standards
RLK1: With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
RLK2: With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details.
RLK3: With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.
RLK4: Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.
RLK5: Recognize common types of texts.
RLK10: Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding.
RFK1: Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print.
RFK2: Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables and sounds. (phonemes).
RFK3: Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
WK3: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several
loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a
reaction to what happened.
WK7: Participate in shared research and writing projects.
WK8: With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather
information from provided sources to answer a question.
SLK1: Participate in collaborative conversations about K topics and texts with peers and adults.
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SLK2: Confirm understanding of a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other
media by asking and answering questions about key details and requesting clarification if something
is not understood.
SLK4: Describe things with prompting and support, providing details.
SLK5: Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.
KCCA3: Write numbers from 0 to 20. Represent a number of objects with a written numeral 0-20.
CCB4: Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to
cardinality.
KCCB5: Count to answer “how many?” questions about as many as 20 things arranged in a line, a
rectangular array, or a circle, or as many as 10 things in a scattered configuration; given a number
from 1–20, count out that many objects.
KCCC6: Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to
the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies.
KMDA1: Describe measurable attributes of objects. Describe several measurable attributes of a
single object.
KMDA2: Directly compare two objects with a measurable attribute in common, to see which object
has “more of”/“less of” the attribute, and describe the difference.
KL1: Compare characteristics of animals that make them alike and different from other animals and
nonliving things.
KL1.1: Compare different types of the same animal to determine individual differences within a
particular type of animal.
_______________________________
Name: ________________________________________
Vs.
Venn Diagram
_______________________________
Date: ______________________
page 7
page 8
En la selva.
Todo buen explorador
Necesita un hatillo,
Un sombrero en la cabeza
Y también un bocadillo.
En la selva encontrará
Cebras, leones y ranas,
Elefantes y serpientes,
Y monos colgados de ramas.
Jirafas, loros, tortugas,
Hipopótamos también,
Y cocodrilos que tienen
Muchos dientes… ¡Casi cien!
Por Irene Zamora.
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cocodrilos
hipopótamos
tortugas
loros
jirafas
serpientes
monos
elefantes
ranas
leones
Identifies HFW.
cebras
selva
explorador
también
que
de
y
la
el
un
Is aware of rhyming words and
phonics.
Understands text.
Decodes sounds. (blending)
Uses correct intonation and
pace. (periods, comas,
exclamation points)
Points at words while reading.
READING
RUBRIC
Identifies and understands vocabulary words.
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cocodrilos
hipopótamos
tortugas
loros
jirafas
serpientes
monos
elefantes
ranas
leones
cebras
selva
explorador
Compares animals and humans.
Describes animals.
WORD STUDY
RUBRIC
Knows the meaning of the words.
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cocodrilos
hipopótamos
tortugas
loros
jirafas
serpientes
monos
elefantes
ranas
leones
cebras
selva
explorador
también
que
de
y
la
el
un
Uses writing conventions:
Upper case, spaces, periods.
Correct letter formation and
handwriting.
Phonic identification of words
while being dictated.
WRITING
RUBRIC
Spells correctly while writing.
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