Grade 1: Creative Problem-Solving with Ezra Jack Keats
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http:www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/creative-problem-solving-with-1023.html
Common Core Standards
Reading Literature
RL.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
RL.1.2 Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.
RL.1.3 Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.
RL.1.7 Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.
RL.1.9 Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in stories.
Reading Foundational Skills
RF.1.4 Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
RF.1.4(a) Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
RF.1.4(c) Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Speaking and Listening
SL.1.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 1 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
SL.1.1(a) Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).
SL.1.1(b) Build on others' talk in conversations by responding to the comments of others through multiple exchanges.
SL.1.2 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.
Language
L.1.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 1 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies.
L.1.4(a) Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
L.1.5 With guidance and support from adults, demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
L.1.5(c) Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., note places at home that are cozy).
Description of Unit
This Grade 1 unit plan titled "Creative Problem-Solving with Ezra Jack Keats" is from readwritethink.org with an estimated ELA/Literacy instructional time of at least eight 50-minute sessions. The emphasis of this unit is for students to: participate in class discussions about predictions and story elements (such as characters, problems, and solutions); participate in class discussions comparing and contrasting books; add solutions to the problem and solution bulletin board; read in groups, and complete story maps together. As the summative assessment, students compose a story with a problem and solution.
Cautions
Connecticut teachers should be cautioned that teacher notes and preparation materials will require familiarity to be used effectively. Texts needed for the unit are not included. Standards for writing are repeatedly addressed in the unit and should be added; it is unclear if there is explicit instruction for the language standards listed. It is not clear if students who are ELL or who have disabilities are provided with the necessary scaffolding to meet the targeted standards. Computers are needed to fully implement the plan as intended.
Rationale for Selection
The unit plan is a good example of how to integrate reading, writing, speaking and listening so that students apply and synthesize advancing literacy skills. It uses technology to cultivate student interest and engagement while it elicits direct, observable evidence of the degree to which students can independently demonstrate the targeted unit standards. Lessons include a clear and explicit purpose for instruction.