Kindergarten Sample Module 2: Developing as Critical Readers, Thinkers, and Writers

Kindergarten Sample Module 2: Developing as Critical Readers, Thinkers, and Writers
In module 2 Kindergarteners immerse themselves in the world of stories, building on the close reading
strategies introduced in Module 1. We’ll revisit favorites introduced in Module 1 as well as introduce
new, more complex text to support retelling narratives with key details. (K.RL.2) As oral language skills
grow (*K.SL.1) by describing everyday situations with detail (K.SL.4), students transfer this learning to
discussing characters, settings, and events in a deeper way. (K.RL.3) Students compare and contrast
experiences of characters introduced thus far. (K.RL.9) In Module 1, students gained experience asking
and answering questions about text that they now apply when meeting unfamiliar words. (K.RL.4)
Overview:
By this time Kindergarteners would have built stamina to discuss and write about their favorite story,
author or character. (K.W.1) They will be stating their own opinions and listening to the viewpoints of
peers (S.S. PS 7), adding details to both their oral discussions about these topics and their writing as
well. (K.SL.5) As students gain confidence in their ability to retell stories in sequence using temporal
words such as first, then, next… they use oral language as a foundation to craft narrative texts. (K.W.3)
Students enjoy using 3 blank pages stapled together to tell their tales in sequence and across pages.
The concept of time order can be reinforced through teaching timelines. (S.S. P.S. 6) During shared
writing lessons students offer ideas to strengthen class narratives (*K.W.5) as well as building language
concepts. (K.L.1, K.L.2)
Although the focus of Module 2 is Narrative we continue exposure to Informational text related to our
content. The genre of Narrative Nonfiction could dovetail nicely with developing an understanding of
sequence and timelines. Foundational skills continue to build through a variety of phonemic awareness
activities. (K.RF.2)
An option for a theme which encompasses S.S., Science, and Narrative elements could be a unit on
“Farm to Table”. This theme works well starting in the Fall at harvest time. It can incorporate all
elements of how many foods come from plants and are grown and harvested and how they end up on
our tables. Social studies lessons about American history and the Pilgrims also blend well into this
theme and are meaningful to the students.
Structured Oral Language
Culturally Conscious
Strategies (what does it look
like/sound like in a classroom)
Within this module you will find
specific suggestions for these
practices. They will be identified by
a
Essential and Guiding
Questions
Standards
(those with an * are yearlong
standards)
Since standards were listed by
strand in the overview, in this
section you will see how related
standards are “nested” together.
Seeing the relationship of standards
from various strands may help us to
view the unit holistically in a way
that makes sense for children’s
Academic Vocabulary
Positive Descriptive
Feedback on Effort


Think-Pair-Share
 Teacher models vocabulary
 Descriptive, explicit, and
and focused sentence
specific feedback on
Teacher modeling language
frames appropriate to
student effort
(Use of sentence frames.
language levels
Ex. Character A is
 Praise and recognize effort
similar/different from
 Teach what the academic
 Value the process of
Character B because…)
vocabulary asks students to
thinking with genuine
do (i.e., compare, analyze)
 Pairing students
feedback
strategically (note: this may
 Help transfer vocabulary
 Develop relationships with
not always mean pairing
across disciplines
students
“higher” students with
“lower” students)
EQs are used to stimulate thought, to provoke inquiry, and to spark more questions, including thoughtful
student questions, not just pat answers. They are provocative and generative. By tackling such questions,
learners are engaged in uncovering the depth and richness of a topic that might otherwise be obscured by
simply covering it. (Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins, 2013)
Essential Questions:
What is your opinion of what we read?
What are the key components of retelling a story?
How do I write a narrative story about something that has happened to me?
Guiding Questions:
What is a farm and why are farms important to us?
Why is reading and writing about farming important?
K.RL.2 With prompting and support, retell familiar stories including key details.
K.RL.3 With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.
K.RL.4 Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.
K.SL.4 Describe familiar people, places, things, and events, and with prompting and support, provide additional
detail.
K.W.3 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.
--------------------------------------------------------------------K.RL.9 With prompting and support, compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in
learning as opposed to a checklist of
skills.
It is important to remember that
you are INTRODUCING these skills
as they form a foundation for your
year. You are not TESTING all of
these standards after this 8-week
module. You will use your
professional judgment on which
standards to assess and report in
the first grading period.
familiar stories.
----------------------------------------------------------------------K.RF.2 Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds (phonemes).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------K.SL.5 Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.
K.W.5 With guidance and support from adults, respond to questions and suggestions from peers and add
details to strengthen writing as needed.
*K.L.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or
speaking.
Links to units and lessons that The following are links to units on the “Farm to Table” theme:
may complement the module www.delightfulchildrensbooks.com- good list of books about farming with descriptions of each book
www.nourishinteractive.com- nutrition activities and information
www.learnnc.org- a list of lessons and resources on various topics including farming
http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/curriculum/2071.htm- information on writing units for Kindergarten
http://www.engageny.org/sites/default/files/resource/attachments/ckla_gk_d5_anth.pdf- EngageNY unit on farming
Portland writing units on narrative writing:
http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/curriculum/2071.htm
Video example or narrative writing with kindergarten- Full writers workshop lesson -long but good 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iboqoB7Z4F8- video of a phonics lesson used for writing
Retelling stories:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEWitdYB6_Y- video you could show students on the components of a good
retell
Suggested Works:
There are many other
possibilities for texts to use.
A quick search of your school
or community library will
yield other good choices on
plants, food, farming, and
harvest.
Narrative read alouds: most of these books widely available district-wide
Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
 Capital and lowercase letters
 Fruit and vegetable vocabulary
The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
 Patience
 Growing a plant from a seed
Pancakes, Pancakes by Eric Carle
 Farm to table
 How-to for making a pancake (harvest wheat, gather an egg, milk a cow, etc)
 Hard work
The Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone
 Hard work
 How-to for making bread (planting and harvesting wheat, milling the wheat, etc)
Pumpkin, Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington
 Pumpkin life cycle
 Seasons
Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens
 Hard work
 Vegetable vocabulary
Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington
 Apples
 Fall
How Groundhog’s Garden Grew by Lynne Cherry
 Seasons
 Hard work
 Farming
Informational read alouds: most of these books are widely available district-wide
Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert
 Farm to table
 Vegetable vocabulary
 Making soup
From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons
 Plant life cycle
 Nonfiction text features
How a Plant Grows by Bobbie Kalman
 Plant life cycle
Good Enough to Eat by Lizzy Rockwell
 Nutrition
 Food groups
We Can Eat the Plants by Rozanne Lanczak Williams
 Repetitive text
Additional Professional
Resources
Already Ready by Katie Wood Ray & Matt Glover
Interactive Writing by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell
The Common Core Lesson Book K-5 by Gretchen Owaki
The Common Core Writing Book by Gretchen Owaki
Vocabulary
It is recommended that you create
clusters of related words and
illustrate each one with a picture or
photo
(See the link in module 1 for ideas
on word walls)
Building academic
vocabulary and more
importantly the transfer of
these words in relevant
situations is especially
important to underserved
students.
Informational or nonfiction
Academic Vocabulary
compare
identify
describe
retell
Content Vocabulary
plant
seed
farming
harvest
roots
leaves
flowers
trunk
branches
crops
feast
nutrition
Sample Lesson Ideas
and
Sample Performance Task
Assessments
Activity Example #1: Read: The Little Red Hen
Activities:
 Narrative input chart of the story (GLAD strategy)(K.RL.2)
 Compare and contrast chart of 2 different versions of the story or two different characters from the
story (K.RL.9)
 Reader’s theatre with stick puppets of characters from the story (K.RL.2-3)
 Make a class book where each child or group makes a page from the story or creates their own different
characters and makes a new version of the story. (K.W.3 & 5)
 Students write in their journals about their favorite part of the story or favorite character. (K. W. 5)consider having the students do a Think-Pair-Share before they write. Use the sentence frame: My
favorite part was _____ because _______.
 Listening center of the story. Follow up with a recording sheet on what happened first, next and last in
the story. (K.RL.2)
Activities from Hubbard’s Cupboard website: http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/the_little_red_hen.html
 Shared reading activity with “The Little Red Hen’s Song” and discussion about new vocabulary (K.RL.4)this is a good way to reinforce sequencing the story
 Class discussion of events in the story with discussion questions. See Hubbard’s Cupboard website on
The Little Red Hen. (K.RL.3)
Assessment Examples #1:
 Sequencing page for Little Red Hen (K.L.5)
 Look at journal entries and check for understanding (K.W.7) (K.W.5)
 Using picture cards from “Little Red Hen” story, students puts them in sequential order and retells story
with key details and gives definition of key words from word bank. (K.RL.2) (K.RL.4) (K.SL.4)
 Individual quick-check by asking about the characters, setting and problem of the story .(K.RL.3)
 Checklist during whole-group participation during narrative input chart and reader’s theater. (K.RF.2)
(K.L.1)
Activity Example #2: Activities for Pumpkin, Pumpkin by Jean Titherington and The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
Read both stories: Do a T-Chart to compare and contrast the two stories (K.RL.9)- Consider having the students
discuss how the stories were similar/different (sentence frame: Pumpkin, Pumpkin was similar/different from
The Carrot Seed because ______.
Narrative Input Chart of both stories with pictures and captions from the story (GLAD strategy)(K.RL.2)
Reader’s theater of The Carrot Seed (K.RL.2-3)
Journal writing: Story starter “In my garden I would plant…” (K.W.5)
Assessment Example #2:
Sequencing page for sequencing a pumpkin and The Carrot Seed. Sequence and retell the story. (K.RL.2-3)
Journal conferencing (K.W.3 & 5)
Checklist during narrative input charts to check for participation and understanding (K.RF.2) (K.L.1)
Quick-check with checklist on characters, setting, problem and solution of The Carrot Seed (K.RL.3)
Activity Example #3: K.RL.2
Retelling Ropes from http://abcprimary.blogspot.com/
The retell rope is a tool introduced in The CAFE Book to aid students in retelling stories. This paper version of the
retell rope is easy to print off and distribute to students to keep it in their book baggies so they can practice
retelling after reading. The idea is that the student touches the top picture (character) and tells who the story is
about, the second picture (setting) and tells where the story takes place, the boot (kick off) and tells how the
story kicks off, each of three beads (first through third events) and tells three important things in the story, and
the last picture (tie it together) and tells how the story concludes. For a 3-D version go to
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Retelling-Rope-FREE-225047 or a video of kids using one see
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuswWlbI69U
Sentence frame: A good retell should include _____ because ______.