Elementary Science - The Seasons Lesson Plan


Grade: 3rd
Time: 35 minutes
Subject/Topic: Science/Seasons
Standard: 3.3.3.1.1 – Observe and describe the daily and seasonal changes in the position of the sun and compare observations.
Objective: Students will understand why seasons change as well as what revolve and rotate mean.
Materials:
·         2 minute video on seasons http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuiQvPLWziQ
·         Globe
·         Chalk
·         Provided Worksheet
Introduction: Have the students sit on the floor in front of the smart-board. Ask the students what their favorite season is. Ask them why the seasons change four times a year.
Procedure:
1.      Tell the students that seasons change because the earth is tilted. Show the globe and ask them if they can see the tilt. Have 3 volunteers guess what angle it’s tilted at (23.5).
2.      Ask the students if they know what Earth’s axis is.
3.      Open the first smart-board activity and read the slide. Click on the maroon covered words to get definitions (axis, gravity, the seasons). Play the animation of the earth and sun. (Don’t click on Part 3)
4.      Ask the students to watch Africa and observe which way it faces when going around the sun.
5.      Show the two minute video clip. Ask the students what they observed.
6.      Ask the students why Florida has no snow right now (the sun is shining on the southern hemisphere).
7.      Open the second smart-board activity. Tell the students that they have to fill in the missing words of this paragraph about the earth and the sun.
8.      Have volunteers drag the words to the blank spot. Have the computer sound on as animated students will cheer if they get it right.
9.      Tell students that when Earth rotates, it spins on its axis (creating day and night). Then tell the students that when Earth revolves, it goes around the sun (creating seasons).
10.  Go outside with the students and draw a picture of the Earth with chalk. Have the students get in a big circle around you. Tell them you are the sun and each student will pretend to be the Earth. Then tell them they are going to play Simon says. “When I ask you to rotate, you are going to spin in place. When I ask you to revolve you are going to walk around the sun. Now lets put it together slowly rotate and revolve.”
11.  Ask the students to show you which motion. Which motion causes night and day? Which causes seasons?
12.  Have the class go back inside the classroom. If time permits, have them sit at their desks and complete the provided worksheet.
Closure: Today we learned about why seasons change but next class we will learn about the stars!
Assessment: Ask the students what causes the seasons to change. Ask them what rotating and revolving means. Have the students hand in their completed season worksheet.
Management/Transitions: Students will sit on the floor quietly then transition to their desks. Students will be seated in an appropriate spot, not by their friends to disturb the class. Management techniques will include “Give me five” and clapping.
Considerations:
ELL students will need the teacher or peers to read off the slides of the smart-board lesson.
One student is in a wheelchair so an adult will need to go outside and wheel her around with the other students.  
Adaptations:
Lower level learners will be guided in the class discussion by their peers and partners.
Higher level learners will be introduced to new, higher level vocabulary. 

Moon Trivia For Your Classroom

Q. If you weighed 100 pounds on Earth, how much would you weigh on the Moon?

A. 16½ pounds

Q. If you can jump 3 feet high on the Earth, how high could you jump on the Moon?

A. Just over 18 feet  

Q. How many times heavier is the Earth than the Moon?

A. 81 times

Q. How many Moons would fit inside the Earth?

A. 49

Q. How fast does the Moon travel in its path around the Earth?

A. 2,287 miles per hour

Q. Which is the largest crater on the Moon?

A. The crater Bailly. It is 183 miles across. 

Q. How long does it take radio signals to travel from the Earth to the Moon?

A. About 1¼ seconds. (Radio signals move at the speed of light – about 186,000 miles per second.) 

Q. How many spacecraft have landed or crashed on the Moon?

A. At least 37 – 24 from the United States and 14 from Russia. 

Q. How much did all the Moon rocks brought back by the Apollo astronauts weigh?

A. 842 pounds

Q. Who was the first person to walk on the Moon?

A.  Neil Armstrong

Q. What year did the first person walk on the Moon?

A. 1969

Q. Is there such a thing as a "moonquake"?

A. Yes. Instruments left on the Moon's surface have recorded about 3,000 moonquakes per year.










Morning Meeting Lesson Plan For First Grade

Grade: 1st grade

Greeting
            Have your students take one shoe off and set it in their laps quietly. The teacher will then model how to gently toss it in the middle of the circle. After the teacher tells them to, they will have to pick up one shoe that is not theirs from the circle and walk around saying “Good Morning (student’s name), is this your shoe?” to everyone until they find their match. Once the student finds their shoe and finds the owner of the other shoe, they can return to their chair to sit down.
Group Activity
            Today after a demonstration, our activity will start by counting off students, 1,2,1,2... then break into two smaller groups. Each student will take turns to pantomimes a favorite activity, as the group tries to guess what the student is gesturing. For an example a student may stand up and move their arms in a front crawl motion to gesture the activity of swimming. The class will guess what activity they are gesturing. After the class guesses the student tell the class when the guess correctly, sit down and allow the person to their right to have a chance. 
Idea from:
P. 193- Kriete, R. (1999) The morning meeting book. Green field, MA: Northeast Foundation for             Children           


Group Sharing
Today for the sharing portion of Morning Meeting we will have a few students share what their favorite movie/one of their favorite movies is.  To narrow down who shares, I will have those students whose birthday is in November stand up.  If there are not enough students I will change the month to December, January, etc. Those students who are standing will be the ones to share with their classmates.  Questions and comments will follow after a student shares.

Morning Message
good morning class. Today is February ___, 2010
today we will be going two the Zoo.
            For our morning meeting the students will sit in their chairs around the white board and I will then read the morning message to them. I will then say there are some errors that need to be fixed in this message. I will ask the students what do you think is missing from the date? And then I will have them add the date, then I will say students I think there are 3 more errors do you see them? I will have the students correct the t and g in sentences then have them fix the one that is a little more tricky and that would be the two. After the students have corrected all the sentences I will have the students read it together with me at the end.

Five Day Racism/Prejudice Unit Lesson Plans

            I chose to do an English content with racism weaved into the curriculum for third graders. I picked to incorporate racism because the problem in society is big and addressing it to younger children will have a greater impact on their future as well as others. Having to teach about the issues of racism to third graders is a great thing because as a future elementary teacher, I will be the one helping to set their foundation for life.  Younger children are usually more open-minded where as older children usually already have a set mindset that is more difficult to change.
            On the first day of my unit, I chose to incorporate prejudice into my curriculum because that is a huge piece that ties into racism. I decided to use the orange activity as an opener to get my students to critically think about how everyone may look different but it doesn’t make a difference when you look “inside” them or get to know them. This teaches using critical multicultural education because like on the CME handout, one of their goals is to broaden students’ perspectives about others and of themselves. I thought it was a good idea to have them distinguish the difference between race and ethnicity is like we did in class (while also knowing what those words mean). I decided after to address racial profiling because that goes a long with race and it is a problem in society today. I figured if I came up with examples and scenarios of how people are racially profiled then the students could relate and get their emotions and opinions going. I picked the book Smoky Night by Eve Bunting because I thought it was a good choice having the main character go through the story of at first not liking some people because of their race to accepting all cultures and ethnicities the way they are. I thought it was a good way to introduce how racism relates to violence.
            On the second day of my unit, I chose to read the book “Black like Kyra, White like Me” because I thought it would fit perfectly into addressing issues of racism. Having read this story, students can understand an example of how people are being racist while discussing how to overcome the problems. I thought this book could lead into a great discussion about how racism and being prejudiced affects everyone around them.
            On the third day of my unit, I chose the movie “Groark Learns About Prejudice” because I thought it would fit perfect for addressing about the issue of people being prejudice. Like from our notes in class, I want the students to know everyone has some degree of prejudice but we want to get rid of the negative aspect. One of the main goals of teaching through a CME lens is decreasing oppression and all that is associated with it (oppression=race + power). I wanted to show this video also because it shows great examples of people being prejudice against different “races.” I wanted the students to know that being prejudice/racist is different than just not liking someone. The overhead questions I made were to get the children critically thinking about how to act if they see or experience racism. I also included a handout for the students to bring home to their parents/ guardians because I learned from the speakers in this class that the parents are a huge part in the process.
            On the fourth day of my unit, I decided to get two stories (both of which show racism) even though one is an animal it still has the same concept of being excluded from the group because of the color of his beak. I chose the story about Asian Americans because we talked about in class that some people deny the experience of racism for people of Asian decent and Asian Americans. I thought these stories would really open up the students eyes about the verbal abuse that some people receive because of their race or culture. I also wanted the students to talk to their peers in a group to discuss how they can make their school a safer place without racism. This fits into the SJE category because we want everyone to be treated equally as human beings not only in schools but society.
            On the fifth day of the unit, I wanted to address to the students that eliminating racism is possible but it all starts with their actions. The main goals I am trying to address to the students are through Social Justice Education (off the SJE handout) which are student empowerment, and social responsibility. Student empowerment means that students have information and they know what to do with it which ties right into my action piece of this lesson. The social responsibility goal is for students to feel responsible because they know they are a part of the whole and have them act to transform their world. I had them think about all the books they’ve ever read up to third grade and to identify any stereotypes that they have seen because it’s very important that we start decreasing those books in schools. I wanted to talk a lot about stereotypes and to get across to them that most the time, they are just ridiculous and they shouldn’t believe them. For an action I chose to have the students write a letter to the principal because I wanted them to see that there are actually things they can do to help raise awareness for the issue of racism. I had them also make posters to put around the school because I have affected my student’s knowledge and I wanted them to include all the other children and adults to get involved for social change. 

Geography State Capital Game (I Have, Who Has)


Title: “I have, Who has?” Game
Grade Level: 4-6
State Standards:
1.      Geography with the sub strand of concepts of location. The standard is identifying and locating major physical and cultural features that played an important role in the history of the United States. Benchmark is having students locate and name all 50 states.
Level of Bloom’s Taxonomy: The students will be using the knowledge category of Bloom’s taxonomy where they can tell, repeat, name, state, know, remember, match, and list state capitals.
Instructions:
You will need 50 note cards, writing one state and capital on each. It must start with “I have ___” and fill in a state capital and right underneath it write “Who has the capital of ____?” filling in the blank with a state name.
To start this game, you will pass out all the note cards to each student (some might have two or three) and then the teacher will pick any state name in the United States and say “Who has the capital of _____?” Whichever student has the card that says the right capital, will then recite what’s on his or her card. This leads to asking someone else the capital of another state. This can be a fun game for review and you can even time how long it takes the class to get all of them. Doing this game is a good way to get students involved and actually have fun while learning.
The teacher will have a copy of all the states and capitals that match just for a cheat sheet to make sure the students are connecting the right capitals to the states called.
Rationale:
Students will be very engaged in this activity because it is a fast pace game that makes them use their memory (knowledge based). Students will learn the name of all the state capitals that go along with a specific state, which is a standard for students to know. Since this activity only uses knowledge, you could tie this activity into a lesson about the history of each state and move into the analysis category having them compare and contrast different states. Since this review game can be used for any subject, for a primary source I included a couple cards using presidents and some famous quotes they have said.
            The teacher will be able to assess this activity by setting a timer to see how quickly students can identify the state capitals. Once they start to get better, their time will improve (having less pauses between cards). The teacher can also be able to pick out the students who are having more difficulty remembering state capitals and can get them extra help. The students will be able to assess themselves by seeing if they know their state capitals, this activity will also motivate children to study/ learn them so they can help their class improve their time record.  

Book List For Your Elementary Classroom Library

Title: No More Cookies!
Author: Paeony Lewis
Illustrator: Brita Granstrom
Year Published: 2005
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Asian
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Cookies
A young girl with her friend monkey want a cookie but her mother won’t let her so they try to think of ways to get one.

Title: The Family Book
Author: Todd Parr
Illustrator: Todd Parr
Year Published: 2003
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White, Black, Native American, Gender sexual orientation
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Families
This book covers that all families are different and that your family is special no matter what.

Title: It’s Okay To Be Different
Author: Todd Parr
Illustrator: Todd Parr
Year Published: 2009
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White, Black, Asian, Native American, Latino, Disabilities
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Everyone’s different
This book says no matter what you are, you are special and important.

Title: Me Hungry!
Author: Jeremy Tankard
Illustrator: Jeremy Tankard
Year Published: 2009
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: K-2
Topic: Friends and food
A boy is hungry so he goes hunting but can’t catch anything so he makes a friend who helps him get an apple.

Title: What Teachers Can’t Do
Author: Douglas Wood
Illustrator: Doug Cushman
Year Published: 2002
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Middle Class
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Teachers
This book tells what teachers can’t do in school but in the end it sends the message that teachers are best at what they do.


Title: Grumpy Bird
Author: Jeremy Tankard
Illustrator: Jeremy Tankard
Year Published: 2007
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Middle Class
Age/Grade Level: K-1
Topic: Friends
A grumpy bird walks through the woods when all his friends want to follow him.

Title: Elizabeth and Larry
Author: Marilyn Sadler
Illustrator: Roger Bollen
Year Published: 1992
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Friendship
This book is about a woman who was shipped an alligator in the mail by accident and become best friends.

Title: David Gets in Trouble
Author: David Shannon
Illustrator: David Shannon
Year Published: 2002
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Making excuses
This book is about a boy who is naughty and makes excuses to his mother.

Title: No, David!
Author: David Shannon
Illustrator: David Shannon
Year Published: 1998
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: 4-8 year olds
Topic: Trouble Maker
This book is about a boy who gets in trouble all the time with his mom but in the end she still loves him.

Title: Ocean Parade
Author: Patricia MacCarthy
Illustrator: Patricia MacCarthy
Year Published: 1990
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Middle Class
Age/Grade Level: 3-7 year olds
Topic: Counting
This book is about counting things that live in the ocean-goes up to 100. 

Recommended Children's Books

Title: Moonbear’s Shadow
Author: Frank Asch
Illustrator: Frank Asch
Year Published: 2000
Type: Picture Book/Series
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age Level: 5 to 8
Topic: Bears
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions:  Can you get away from your shadow? Why? Have you ever seen your shadow? Where?
When Little Bear's shadow gets in the way of his catching a fish, he decides to get rid of it. No matter what he does though, it won't go away!


Title: We're Going on a Bear Hunt
Illustrator: Helen Oxenbury
Year Published: 1997
Type: Picture Book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: K
Topic: Bear Hunt
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What was your favorite sound word in the book? Why? Have you ever seen a bear? Where?
Brave bear hunters go through grass, a river, mud, and other obstacles before the inevitable encounter with the bear forces a headlong retreat.


Title: Dinosaur Roar
Year Published: 1997
Type: Picture Book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level:
Topic: Dinosaurs
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What do you know about dinosaurs? What was your favorite page? Why?
Dinosaurs of every shape and size race, roar, and stomp through this colorful book of opposites. And where are all these silly-looking creatures off to? A dinosaur picnic, of course!


Title: Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Author: Mo Willems
Illustrator: Mo Willems
Year Published: 2003
Type: Picture Book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: K
Topic: Pigeon
Awards: Caldecott
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What do you know about pigeons? Do you think the pigeon got to drive the truck after? Why?
A pigeon is on a mission to drive a bus.


Title: Edward the Emu
Illustrator: Rod Clement
Year Published: 1998
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: 3 to 6
Topic: Zoo
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What do you know about emu’s? Have you ever seen one before? What part did you think was funniest and why?
Tired of being an emu, Edward decides to try being like other animals at the zoo, but he soon discovers that being himself is the best after all.

Title: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Author: Judi Barrett
Illustrator: Ron Barrett
Year Published: 1982
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White/Black
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 8
Topic: Weather
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Would you like it if it rained food? Why? Did you think this book is funny? Why?
Life is delicious in the town of Chewandswallow where it rains soup and juice, snows mashed potatoes, and blows storms of hamburgers--until the weather takes a turn for the worse.

Title: Feathers for Lunch
Author: Lois Ehlert
Illustrator: Lois Ehlert
Year Published: 1996
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: White/Black
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 7
Topic: Cats
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Have you ever seen a cat chase something? If so, what? Do you think a cat can catch a bird? Why?
An escaped housecat encounters twelve birds in the back yard but fails to catch any of them and has to eat feathers for lunch.


Title: Biscuit's Big Friend
Illustrator: Pat Schories
Year Published: 2003
Type:  Beginning chapter book series
Culture/Diversity: Animals/middle class
Age/Grade Level: K-1
Topic: Dog
Awards:
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Why do you think Biscuit wanted to be bigger? Do you like puppies or dogs better? Why?
Biscuit, a little puppy, and Sam, a big dog, play together despite their difference in size.

Title: Jamaica's Find
Illustrator: Anne Sibley O'Brien
Year Published: 1987
Type: Picture book     
Culture/Diversity: Black
Age/Grade Level:  5 to 8
Topic: Honesty
Awards:
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Why did Jamaica give the dog to the lost and found? How do you think the little girl felt to find her lost dog? Why?
There are happy endings all around when Jamaica finds an old stuffed animal and has the satisfaction of returning it to the grateful owner.


Title: Mice Are Nice:
Illustrator: Jon Goodell
Year Published: 1999
Type: Beginning chapter book series
Culture/Diversity: Animals/White
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 6
Topic: Mice
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What do you think is the best pet? Why? Do you like mice? Why or why not?
This book is funny and tells why mice are the best pet to have.


Title: Motorcycles!
Author: Susan E. Goodman, Michael Doolittle
Illustrator: Michael Doolittle
Year Published: 2007
Type: Beginning chapter book series
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: 6 to 8
Topic: Motorcycles
Awards:
Genre: Informational
Questions: Do you know anyone who has a motorcycle? Who? What is the most important job for a motorcycle to do? Why?
This book is about motorcycles and tells what they are used for.

Title: Stray Dog
Author: Marc Simont
Illustrator: Marc Simont
Year Published: 2003
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity:White
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 8
Topic: Dog
Awards: Caldecott
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Have you ever seen a stray animal? When? What would you have done in the children’s situation? Why?
This story is about a stray dog a family finds at a picnic and in the end rescues him from the pound.
Title: Make Way for Ducklings
Author: Robert McCloskey
Illustrator: Robert McCloskey
Year Published: 1941
Type: Beginning chapter book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 8
Topic: Ducks
Awards: Caldecott Medal
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Do you like ducks? Why or why not? What was your favorite part in this book? Why?
The quaint story of the mallard family's search for the perfect place to hatch ducklings. Once the ducklings learn to walk in a straight line, they stroll past famous Boston landmarks into the Public Garden.

Title: Are You Ready to Play Outside?
Author: Mo Willems
Illustrator: Mo Willems
Year Published: 2008
Type: Beginning chapter book/Series
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: 6 to 8
Topic: Friends
Awards: Theodor Seuss Geisel
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What was your favorite part of the story? Why? Can you relate to the main character? If so, how?
Piggie can't wait to go play in the sunshine with her friends  but will a rainy day ruin all the fun? 


Title:  Just in Case
Author: Yuyi Morales
Illustrator: Yuyi Morales
Year Published: 2008
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Latino
Age/Grade Level:  4 to 8
Topic: Alphabet
Awards: Pura Belpre
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: What’s your favorite letter of the alphabet, why? Do you like Halloween with skeletons? Why or why not?
Senor Calvera, a skeleton can’t figure out what to get his grandma for her birthday so he gets one gift for every letter of the alphabet.

Title: When You Reach Me
Author: Rebecca Stead
Illustrator: Rebecca Stead
Year Published: 2009
Type:  Beginning chapter book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level:  9 to 12
Topic: Mystery
Awards: Newbery Medal
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: What did you like about this book? Why? Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
Four mysterious letters change Miranda’s world forever.

Title: Louise, the Adventures of  a Chicken
Author: Kate DiCamillo
Illustrator: Harry Bliss
Year Published: 2008
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 8
Topic: Adventure
Awards: Odyssey Award
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Do you like chickens? Why or why not? Did you think any parts were funny? Which one?
A chicken endures many adventures.


Title: The Graveyard Book
Author: Neil Gaiman
Illustrator: Dave Mckean
Year Published:2008
Type: Beginner chapter book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level:  9 to 12
Topic: Graveyard
Awards: Newbery Medal
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Did any parts scare you? Which one? Would you recommend this book to your friends? Why or why not?
A child marked for death by an ancient league of assassins escapes into an aboandoned graveyard, where he is reared and protected by its spirit denizens.

Title: First The Egg
Author:  Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Illustrator: Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Year Published:2007
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 6
Topic: Transformations
Awards: Caldecott and Theodore Seuss Geisel Honor
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Do you like chickens? Why or why not? Did you learn anything? If so, what?
This is a book about transformations...from egg to chicken, seed to flower, and caterpillar to butterfly.

Title: An Extraordinary Egg
Author: Leo Lionni
Illustrator: Leo Lionni
Year Published: 1998
Type: Picture book
Culture/Diversity: Animals
Age/Grade Level: K-2
Topic: Animals
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions:
Jessica the frog befriends the animal that hatches from an egg she brought home, thinking it is a chicken.

Chapter Books

Title: Because of Winn-Dixie
Illustrator: Kate DiCamillo
Year Published: 2009
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level:  9
Topic: Dogs
Awards: Newbery
Genre: Realistic fiction
Questions: Do you like this book why or why not? Have you ever had a pet dog? When?
Why this section: I chose this section to do a read aloud to because I thought it was a great introduction about the dog and it is humorous for the students.

Ten-year-old India Opal Buloni describes her first summer in the town of Naomi, Florida, and all the good things that happen to her because of her big ugly dog Winn-Dixie.

Title: Ramona Quimby, Age 8
Illustrator: Tracy Dockray
Year Published: 1992
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity:White
Age/Grade Level:  8 to 11
Topic: School
Awards: Newbery
Genre: Realistic fiction
Questions: What was your favorite part and why? Can you relate to Ramona in any way? How?
Why this section: I chose this section for a read aloud because it is humorous and students always like those kinds of books. It is also written very visual so that students can picture in their mind exactly what is happening. 

The further adventures of the Quimby family as Ramona enters the third grade.

Title: Beast in Ms. Rooney's Room (The Kids of Polk Street School)
Illustrator: Blanche Sims
Year Published: 1984
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity:White
Age/Grade Level: 7 to 9
Topic: School
Awards:
Genre: Realistic fiction
Questions: What was your favorite part? Why? Did you think any parts were funny? When?
Why this section: I chose this section for a read aloud because I thought students could relate to having a new student come into their classroom. At the end it is very funny also so I thought the students would get a kick out of it.

Held back for a year in second grade, Richard can't seem to help getting into trouble, until he gets really interested in reading and helps his class in a special way.


Title: Tooth Trouble (Ready, Freddy!)
Author: Abby Klein
Illustrator: John McKinley
Year Published: 2004
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity:White
Age/Grade Level: 4 to 8
Topic: Teeth
Awards:
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Have you lost any teeth? When? Can you relate to Freddy in the story? When and how?
Why this section: I chose this section for a read aloud because I thought the students could really relate to the main character of losing a tooth. It is also very humorous which I thought students would enjoy.

Unhappy to be the only one in his class who still has not lost a tooth, first-grader Freddy tries to find a way to expedite matters but then is faced with another problem.

Title: From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Illustrator: E. L. Konigsburg
Year Published: 2002
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity:
Age/Grade Level: 10 to 12
Topic: Adventure
Awards: John Newbery Medal
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: What was your favorite part of the book? Why? Would you recommend this book to your friends? Why or why not?0
Why this section: I chose this section for a read aloud because it is very visual and you want to know what is going to happen next. I thought the risk of the students getting caught would interest my students to listen closely.

Having run away with her younger brother to live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, twelve-year-old Claudia strives to keep things in order in their new home and to become a changed person and a heroine to herself.

Title: Stuart Little
Author: E. B. White
Illustrator: Garth Williams
Year Published: 1974
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity: Animals/White
Age/Grade Level: 5 to 12
Topic: Mouse
Awards:
Genre: Modern Fantasy
Questions: Do you like mice? Why or why not? Did you like this book why or why not?
Why this section: I chose this section for a read aloud because it is an intense couple pages about the mouse almost drowning. This would keep the students interested to see what happens and it would keep their focus.

The adventures of the debonair mouse Stuart Little as he sets out in the world to seek out his dearest friend, a little bird that stayed for a few days in his family's garden.

Title: The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby
Illustrator: Dav Pilkey
Year Published: 2002
Type: Chapter book series
Culture/Diversity: White/Black
Age/Grade Level: 7 to 10
Topic: Superpowers
Awards:
Genre: Modern fantasy
Questions: Did you like this book why or why not? What was the funniest part in the book to you? Why?
Why this section: I chose this section of the book for a read aloud because it was the funniest part, in my opinion of the book. Students attention span lasts longer when there is humor involved so I thought it’d be the perfect section to share.

Irrepressible friends George and Harold create a new comic book superhero, Super Diaper Baby.

Title: Fish Face
Illustrator: Blanche Sims
Year Published:1984
Type: Chapter book series
Culture/Diversity: White
Age/Grade Level: 6-8
Topic: School
Awards:
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Questions: Did you like this book? Why or why not? Could you relate to Emily in school at all? How?
Why this section: I chose this section to read aloud because I thought students could relate to going to their school nurse. I also thought the way it was written was very visual for the students to see.

Making friends with the new girl in her class is hard for Emily after she replaces Emily as the fastest runner and steals her lucky unicorn.

Title: The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963
Year Published: 1997
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity: Black
Age/Grade Level: 9 to 12
Topic: Prejudice
Awards: Newbery and Coretta Scott King
Genre: Historical fiction
Questions: How did you feel towards the end of the book? Why? Would you recommend this book to your friends why or why not?
Why this section: I chose this section to read aloud because it was the most visual part of the book, in my opinion. I think students could relate to the character involved in playing with something they weren’t supposed to.

The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American family living in Flint, Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963.

Title: Frindle
Illustrator: Brian Selznick
Year Published: 1998
Type: Chapter book
Culture/Diversity:White
Age/Grade Level: 8 to 12
Topic: School
Awards:
Genre: Realistic fiction
Questions: Have you ever made up your own word? What was it? Did you like this book why or why not?
Why this section: I chose this section to read aloud because it was a good introduction to the main character of the book. It is very visual and humorous for the students to hear so I thought it’d be perfect for them.

When he decides to turn his fifth grade teacher's love of the dictionary around on her, clever Nick Allen invents a new word and begins a chain of events that quickly moves beyond his control.