Julianne K. Kaphar
Lesson 1: Inquiry Chart
Goal
The goal of this activity is to have students discuss their prior knowledge of the subject, which was generated through the gallery walk, and to list that knowledge. This helps the teacher to find out what level students are at in their knowledge of the subject and where their interests lie.
Objective
Students will be able to share prior knowledge orally with a partner and formulate questions they have about the topic.
Materials
A piece of chart paper with two columns, each with a heading: "What we think we know about trash," and "What we want to know about trash."
Lesson Design
Students will first discuss with a partner what they think they know (I emphasize
think
because sometimes they are mistaken!), and then they will share out one fact they want me to write down on the chart. I write their initials after each statement. Fill out both sides of the chart in this manner- with students discussing first with a partner, and then reporting out. One possible modification of this is to have the students report out on what their partner said. If needed, they can refer to a chart with discussion stems, such as:
"_______ told me that…."
"_______ pointed out that…"
"One interesting thing I learned from _________ is that…."
This chart helps develop students' academic language. I write exactly what the students say, modeling correct usage of quotation marks and punctuation. This chart stays up for the duration of the unit. Each time one of the questions is answered, I go back to the chart and code it with an "A" for answered.
Lesson 2: Big Book
Goal
Students will gain a deeper understanding of the "big idea" about trash and recycling
Objective
Students will be able to read fluently with the teacher in shared reading as they become familiar with the patterned text
Materials
Teacher-created big book using attached text (Note: when assembling this book, the text can be enlarged, cut out and glued onto large construction paper with pictures that relate to each page, then laminated. This creates an enjoyable big book for the students to reread on their own.)
Lesson design
First, read the book to the class during a read aloud period. For younger children, it can be broken up into two sessions. The book can be reread everyday (or a page a day, depending on the students). With repeated readings, students will begin to read the repeated line along with the teacher, thus developing their oral language and fluency in reading. After each page, the teacher can also have the students share with a partner one fact they learned. Students can also write what they have learned in their learning logs.
Text
The Important Book About Trash
By Julianne Kaphar
(page 1)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
People like you and me throw away lots of things every day. Did you know that the average person in the United States throws away 4-6 pounds of trash a day? Imagine that!
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
(page 2)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
All through history, humans have had trash. Sometimes people would dig a hole in the ground for their trash. Sometimes they would throw it in a river. Sometimes they would burn it. Now, we have learned that trash impacts, or causes damage to, the environment. Scientists have been working hard to find the best ways to get rid of all our trash.
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
(page 3)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
Most of our trash goes to a place called the landfill. To make a landfill, a deep hole is dug. A protective layer of plastic surrounds the hole. This is to protect the leachate, or the liquid from the decaying trash, from mixing with the groundwater. Then, trucks bring trash from the city, which is poured in the hole in layers. Each layer is pressed down, or compacted, and covered by soil. When the landfill is finally full, it is covered with more plastic, soil and grass. You can walk by a landfill and not know it is there!
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
(page 4)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
Trash has become a big problem in our society. More and more people are consuming, or using, more and more things. This causes a lot more trash than we have room for! Also, landfills disrupt nature and destroy habitats for animals. They can also leak poisonous fluids or gasses that are harmful for living things.
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
(page 5)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
We can help solve the trash problem if we learn to reduce, reuse and recycle. To
reduce
our trash means to not throw so much away. If we use less of things, we won't make so much trash. For example, we can bring a cloth bag to the grocery store instead of using paper bags each time. That way, we will have less paper bags to throw away. To
reuse
means to use things over and over again. For example, instead of throwing away your old homework papers, turn them over and use them as scratch paper. Finally, when certain things are too old to reuse, we can
recycle
them, which means that they can be turned back into usable products again. Usually, you can place recyclable goods in special trash cans that have the recycle symbol on them. This means they will go to a different place than the landfill, where they will go through a special process to be used again.
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
(page 6)
The important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
Remember, we all make trash, but we can be responsible about what we do with it! So next time you go to the garbage can to throw something away, think about if you can
reduce
,
reuse
, or
recycle
! You can make a big difference!
But, the important thing about trash is that we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle to protect the environment.
Lesson 3: Poems and Chants
Goal
Students will develop their fluency in reading content-specific text through repeated choral readings
Objective
Students will be able to read the poems independently and recognize the content-specific words in other contexts by the end of the unit
Materials
Teacher-created charts of the following poems, using the color-coding system for the various parts of speech (adjectives- orange, nouns-blue, verbs- red, adverbs- green, prepositional phrases- purple). Also, pictures can be placed on the poems to support the content.
Lesson Design
First, the teacher will introduce the poems one at a time. The teacher should read them aloud as the students listen. The teacher and students can invent hand signals to go along with each line. New vocabulary should be highlighted with highlighting tape and discussed. As students become more familiar with the poems, they can get their own copies of "poetry books" where they can highlight important words and illustrate the poems. They can become paired reading activities as well.
The teacher can reinforce the newly learned vocabulary through games. One possible game is to tell the class, "I'm looking for a word that means…" Students can come up with post-it notes and tag the word, or all students can write the "mystery word" in their learning logs.
Trash Here, Trash There
Trash here, trash there
Trash, trash everywhere!
Contaminated trash polluting,
Recycled trash being reused,
Biodegradable trash decomposing,
And toxic trash destroying.
Trash in landfills,
Trash around wildlife,
Trash between incinerators,
And trash along the highway.
Trash here, trash there
Trash, trash everywhere!
Trash! Trash! Trash!
Water Cycle Boogie
Evaporation, Condensation, Precipitation, Transportation
The water cycle boogie goes round and round,
The water cycle boogie goes up and down
Round and round
Up and down
The water cycle boogie goes round and round.
(hand signals for: evaporation- fingers moving up
Condensation- fingers make cloud shape
Precipitation- fingers move down like rain
Transportation- hands move sideways like a river)
Unusual Conservationist
I know an unusual conservationist
An extremely unusual conservationist
An extremely unusual conservationist
Who thinks like me
Reducing waste day and night
Reusing paper and plastic
Recycling cans, bottles, and paper
Composting biodegradable scraps
Speaking out against pollution
And respecting the environment
I know an unusual conservationist
An extremely unusual conservationist
An extremely unusual conservationist
Whose name is ___________ !(student name here)
Lesson 4: Sentence Patterning Chart
Goal
Students will learn about the parts of speech by looking at the function of newly and previously learned vocabulary, as well as develop reading and writing fluency in English.
Objectives
Students will be able to categorize new words into parts of speech, and students will be able to write complete sentences in English.
Materials
A large chart broken up in to the following sections: Articles, Adjectives, Noun, Verbs, Adverbs, Prepositional Phrases. Use the same color-coding system from Lesson 3. Under "Noun," choose one noun from the table groups (e.g. conservationist)
Lesson Design
Begin by showing students the chart with only the parts of speech headings and the noun. Explain that they are going to think about words that describe conservationists, which are adjectives. Give a few examples to get them started, and see if they can refer to the poems for other adjectives to describe the noun. Then, move on to verbs, adverbs, etc., explaining each part of speech first and giving examples. Remind the students that the word they give must make sense in the context of the sentence. This activity is best done in short segments (1-2 columns in a sitting).
Once the chart has been filled up, students can come up in pairs and create a sentence (using 2 adjectives) by placing post-it notes beneath the words they choose. Then, the whole class can sing the sentence to the tune of "Farmer in the Dell." Also, students can create their own sentences in their learning logs.
Many variations of this activity can be done, depending on the ability level of the students. For example, for beginners, the noun can be plural and the articles and adverbs removed. Or, for more advanced students, this activity can be used to show subject/predicate, or dependent clauses (which can be cut out and moved around).
Example:
(table available in print form)