Lesson Plans

DRTA

for

Frog and Toad Together: The Garden

Written by Arnold Lobel

HarperCollins Publisher, 1971

Opening Questions:

This story is called “The Garden”, based on this title what do you think this story will be about?

(Frog and Toad’s garden and what is growing in it.)

In this picture what does in look like Frog and Toad are doing? (19)

(It looks like Frog is gardening.)

What is Toad doing in this picture? (20)

(He is worried that there is nothing on the ground.)

What is Toad doing is this picture? (21)

(He is surprised that there is nothing on the ground and wondering where it went.)

What does Toad seem to be doing in this picture? (22)

(He is searching the ground for something he lost.)

What are Frog and Toad doing here? (23)

Frog has come to help Toad look for whatever he lost.)

What do you think Toad is doing n this picture? (25)

(He went camping and is reading a book before he goes to bed.)

What three activities is Toad doing on this page and why? (26)

(He is singing in the rain, reading poetry, and playing a violin because he was bored.)

Why do you think Toad fell asleep? (27)

(He got tired from doing all those activities.)

What are Frog and Toad doing in this picture? (28)

(They are looking for something again.)

What is Toad doing? (29)

(Toad is crying because he couldn’t find what he lost.)

Let’s read the story and find out what was really happening.

Stop 1, Pg 19:

Where you right when you said Frog was gardening?

(Yes, kind of.)

How long do you think it will take for the seeds to grow?

(1 week.)

Do you think Toad will be able to grow a garden just like Frog’s?

(Yes)

Why do you think that?

(Because he has the same seeds and Frog can help him.)

Stop 2, Pg 21:

Where you right about what Toad was doing in these pictures?

(No, he was actually planting seeds.)

Do you think Toad yelling at the seeds will help them grow faster?

(No)

What should he do to make the seeds grow?

(Water them.)

Stop 3, Pg 23:

Was your advice on how to help seeds grow correct?

(Yes)

What would have happened if Toad had kept trying to make the seeds grow by yelling at them?

(They would have stayed scared and never grow.)

Do you think they will sprout if he does what Frog said?

(Yes)

Stop 4, Pg 25

Why is Toad reading to his seeds?

(He is worried they are scared and thinks a bedtime story will help.)

Do you think the story and candles will help?

(Maybe.)

Stop 5, Pg 27:

What did Toad do to help his seeds?

(He sang to them, read poems to them, and played the violin for them.)

Does it make more sense that Toad did all of those activities now that we know why he was doing them?

(Yes but I don’t know if they are going to help the seeds grow.)

Why wouldn’t they work?

(Because plants need water and not to be sung to.)

That is a good reason, let’s read on and see what happens.

Stop 6, Pg 29:

Did the seeds grow?

(Yes.)

Was your first prediction at the beginning of the story right?

(Yes, Toad will have a garden just like Frog’s.)

If Frog hadn’t come to help Toad would Toad’s seeds have sprouted?

(No, because they would not have gotten the care they need.)

Did your prediction about the title come true?

(For the most part.)

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Text Talk Lesson

for

Goldilocks and The Three Bears

Retold and illustrated by James Marshall

Puffin Books, 1998

ISBN# 9780140563665

Summary:

Goldilocks is a sneaky little girl.  She intentionally defies instructions given to her.  Her mother asks Goldilocks to go to the village to buy muffins.  Goldilocks promises not to take the short cut but she does so anyways.  Goldilocks decides to stop in an empty home along the way, which a family of bears had just left to take a morning bike ride and let their porridge cool down.  Once inside she tests out all three bowls of porridge, all three chairs in the sitting area, and all three beds.  She had made an absolute mess of the home.  When the bears got home they were angry and went room to room looking at the mess Goldilocks had made.  Goldilocks had fallen asleep and did not hear the bears arrive home.  When the bears walked into the bedroom little bear saw Goldilocks.  Before the bears were able to talk to her, Goldilocks had woken up and was scrambling out the window, never to be seen again.

Focus:

One focus of the story is the decisions Goldilocks makes and the rules she chose not to follow and what will result from that.

Comments and Questions:

Cover

Show the over and read the title.  Ask the children what they think the story will be about.  Ask the students what they think Goldilocks is like based on the picture.

Page 1

Show the students the picture.

1. What do you think the neighbor means when she says “That’s what you think”? (She knows that Goldilocks is a trouble makers.)
2. What do you think about her facial expression? (She looks mad and mean.)
3. Instruct them to look closely at the picture and decide what Goldilocks is in the middle of doing. (She is jumping into water with all of her clothes on and trying to get the cats all wet.

Page 2

Show the students the picture and point out all the warning signs around the shortcut.

Page 5

Show the students the previous pictures

1. Can anybody tell me what scalding means? (yucky, etc.)
2. If you burn your tongue while eating than that means the food is too …. (Hot!)
3. So why are the bears going on a bike ride? (to let their porridge cool)

Page 6

1. What do you think will happen now that Goldilocks has gone in the house? (The bears will come home and find her.)

Page 8

1. What is Goldilocks doing to their kitchen? (making a mess.)
2. What do you think she’ll do next? (Make a bigger mess)

Page 9

1. Where did the fur really come from? (The bears!)
2. Do you know what the word “ coarse” means?

Page 13

Show all of the pictures of Goldilocks trying out the chairs and beds.

1. What do you think is going to happen? (The bears will come home!)

Page 17

Shoe previous illustrations.

1. How do you think the bears are feeling? (Mad!, Confused!)
2. What is about to happen to Goldilocks? (She’s going to get into trouble, She will get yelled at, receive a spanking, etc,)

Page 19

1. What should Goldilocks have done when they found her? (Said sorry, ran away, etc.)
2. Do you think Goldilocks and the 3 bears will ever see one another again? (yes, she’ll come back and apologize, No, Goldilocks will never take that path again.)

Wrap-up:

What do you think about what Goldilocks did? (Let the students considered the dangers Goldilocks put herself in and how many rules and directions she did not follow.)

Vocabulary:

Scalding

Coarse

Scalding:

In the story when the bears sat down for breakfast and tasted their porridges Papa Bear spit out his bite and said it was scalding.  Scalding means “a feeling of being burned from a hot substance.”  Say the word scalding.

• I am going to name some things to see if you think they can scald you.  If you think they can, say, “That could scald me.”  If you think it cannot scald you, say, “No way.”

-Hot chocolate (Scalding)

-Corn flakes (No way)

-Water boiling on the stove (Scalding)

-Ice water (No way)

-A pan from the oven (Scalding)

What’s our word? Scalding

Coarse:

In the story Goldilocks finds a lock of fur in the hallway of the bears home. Goldilocks picks up coarse brown fur from the bears hallway and wonders if the people who live in the house have a cat.  Coarse means “rough to the touch.”  Say the word coarse.

• I am going to name some things to see if you think they can be coarse.  If you think they can, say, “This is coarse.”  If you think it is not coarse, say, “No way.”

-Sand paper (Coarse)

-Silk (No Way)

-Grass (No Way)

-Hay (Coarse)

What’s our word? Coarse

We talked about two words: Scalding and Coarse.  Let’s think about them some more.

• Which would most likely scald you- a glass of milk or a cup of hot chocolate?
• If you were petting a bunny rabbit would it feel- coarse or smooth?

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Text Talk Lesson Plan Part 3

For

Stellaluna

Author and Illustrator: Janell Cannon

Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993

ISBN # 978-0152015404

Summary:

Stellaluna is a young bat who gets separated from her mother by an owl attack.  She lands in a bird nest and tries to fit in with the 3 young birds inside.  She begins eating bugs and stops hanging upside down to sleep.  When Stellaluna and the birds learn to fly Stellaluna goes to far ahead and ends up getting tired and spending the night alone.  A group of bats cross her path and ask what she is doing.  Stellaluna’s mother was in the group and after hearing Stellaluna’s story she knows without a doubt that it is her baby.  Stellaluna will continue to live with these bats but she wants to introduce Flitter, Flap, and Pip (her bird friends) to her new way of life.  Stellaluna takes the birds flying at night and ends up having to save them.  The birds and Stellaluna realize their differences but they also realize what great friends they are in spite of them.

Focus:

The focus of this story id that it is okay to be different from others and that we should celebrate one another’s differences.  Additionally it is a good example showing children that hey can be friends with people who are different than them.

Comments and Questions:

Cover

Show the students the cover and ask them what they think the story will be about based on the image they see. (Bats and birds?, Flying?, etc.)

Page 4:

What do you think will happen when the mama bird gets back? (She will kick Stellaluna out of the nest.)

Page 8:

Do you think that all animals that can fly are alike?

Page 12:

What do you think will happen to Stellaluna? (She will get lost, She will not be able to fly, etc.)

Page 18:

What differences do you already see in Stellaluna’s life compared to Pip, Flitter, and Flap? (She can fly at night, She doesn’t eat bugs, She hangs upside down.)

Page 19:

What do you think will happen if the birds fly at night? (They will not be able to see, They will run into things, etc.)

Page 21:

Although Stellaluna and the birds differed from one another, what made it possible for them to be friends? (They all liked to fly, they cared about each other, etc.)

Wrap-up:

Do you think that Stellaluna, Flap, Flitter, and Pip will be able to continue being friends? What kinds of activities can they do together?

Vocabulary:

Clutched

Gracefully

Peculiar

Gasped

Escaped

Clutched: In the story Stellaluna’s mom clutched her baby when the owl began to attack them. Clutched means to “hold tightly.” Say the word clutched.

I am going to name some things and you tell me if you think you can clutch them.  If you do say “Yes, I can”, if not say “No way.”

-An elephant (No)

-A pillow (Yes)

-A person’s hand (Yes)

-A house (No)

Gracefully: In the story Pip, Flitter, and Flap all landed gracefully on a branch while learning how to fly.  Gracefully means to do something with ease and poise.  Say the word gracefully.

I am going to name some things and you tell me if you think you can do them gracefully.  If you do say “Yes, I can”, if not say “No way.”

-Dance (Yes)

-Scream (No)

-Play kick ball (No)

-Sing (Yes)

Peculiar: In the story Stellaluna saw the most peculiar face of an upside down owl.  Peculiar means “not ordinary”.  Say the word peculiar.

I am going to name some things and you tell me if you think they are peculiar.  If yes say “Yes, they are”, if not say “No way.”

-An elephant sitting on top of the school (Yes)

-Your parent telling you to go to bed (No)

-Getting homework (No)

-Being allowed to eat candy all day (Yes)

Gasped: In the story a bat gasped at the fact that Stellaluna had been sleeping at night.  Gasped means “to draw in air sharply when one is shocked.”  Say the word gasped.

I am going to name some things and you tell me if you would gasp at them. If yes then say “Yes, I would” if no then say “No way.”

-If someone says something mean (Yes)

-If you get told you do not have to go to school because you get to go on vacation instead (Yes)

-If you have to do silent reading (No)

Escaped: In the story Stellaluna was excited to find out that her mother had escaped the owl.  Escaped means “to get away from something.”  Say the word escaped.

I am going to name some things and you tell me if you think you would need to escape from them.  If yes say “Yes” if no say “No way.”

-A shark (Yes)

-A kitten (No)

-A stranger (Yes)

-Your brother or sister (No)

Go over all five words again and ask the students to come up with their own examples.

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