Nonfiction Reading and Writing How To Unit

Transcription

1 Nonfiction Reading and Writing How To Unit The Writing to Teach a Skill Unit Authors are experts who can teach someone how-to Language Elements for Learners Taught in This Unit: oral language development vocabulary (e.g. number words, elapsed time words) sequence words and sequencing action words (verbs) adverbs verb tense voice (third person) pronouns and subject agreement imperative sentence structure periods and punctuation usage capitalization To prepare for this unit, you can

2 Learners should participate in a hands-on activity with real objects or realia. This can be an experiment, art project or activity. You can then create sample how to books from these activities as models for students to use as they begin their own projects. Have students cut apart written or pictorial steps and arrange them in order with special attention to sequencing words. Create shared writing and interactive writing charts that are practical for the classroom. These could be, How to Leave the Room or How to Have Our Snack. These charts can be started as early as September and then worked into this unit later in the year. o As you create these charts, use sequencing words: first, next, then, finally. Get your students exposed to these words from the very beginning so they can internalize them by the time they are ready to write their own How To books. Part of your management can be having students demonstrate how to do certain tasks in the class such as pushing in the chairs and lining up as you verbalize the steps. Create charts that show Things You Need for things such as art, lunch, packing up Create a set of traveling directions with the class that tell how to get to the gym, act out following the directions

3 together. Take note as a whole group of any revisions that may need to be added or changed in the original directions. Read a variety of nonfiction. Clarify and discuss if it is howto nonfiction or all about nonfiction. Create a basket of How-To books. (examples are included in this packet for different grade levels) Essential Question for Learners: What supplies and steps will a reader need to successfully complete a task? Kindergarten- you may choose to do this later towards the end of the year. *In kindergarten, this how-to unit can last one month. First Grade- This unit will last about three weeks. Second Grade- Second graders who have had this unit before in first grade may only need three weeks of how-to stories as a refresher unit. Otherwise, this unit can last three weeks.

4 Things to Emphasize in The How-To Read-Alouds for Kindergarten - the difference between how a fiction story sounds and a how-to story - identifying the skill that is being taught in the how-to - the purpose of a Things You Need page - real life purposes for how-to writing in kindergartners daily lives - the action words that start how-to steps - retelling the authors steps across their fingers

5 The main goals for kindergartners in this How-To unit of study are: to experience trying to explain how to do something they know about as a procedure and not a story. Many students may still be writing stories and you can help them see their topic as a how-to to create a Things We Need page with a picture next to each item they can draw it or cut and glue from a magazine/catalog/website to draw three sequenced and numbered steps prior to adding writing to tell their steps across their fingers as they touch each illustration box to change labels into a simple sentence next to the step. A chart of sequence words will be beneficial. Students can complete sentence frames and/or create captions for their illustrations. to listen for the beginning and final sounds in words and attempt to write them

6 Possible How-To Mentor Texts: Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert Snowballs by Lois Ehlert The Pumpkin Book by Lois Ehlert How to Make a Bird Feeder by Liyala Tuckfield (Rigby Literacy) Things to Emphasize in How-To Read-Alouds to First Graders - pointing out different punctuation and how it makes the text sound. You can do physical or visual cues to show how punctuation influences the voice

7 - stop during read alouds and ask students, Which word s spelling would you love to see? Students can then choose a word that you read (this encourages listening). Students can then predict how they think it is spelled while you record their spellings. Finally, you can reveal the word s spelling and discuss it. drawing attention to how punctuation is everywhere (the everywhere effect also influences adults in similar ways) - language in directions (such as carefully ) - use of language that describes number and/or size - acting out steps in stories and saying the steps across their fingers - discussing congratulatory endings in how-to stories Possible How-To Mentor Texts: Ready Freddy series by Abbey Klein How to Get Married by Sally Llyod Jones How to Be a Baby by Sally Llyod Jones

8 Scaredy Squirrel Goes to the Beach by Melanie Watts How to Make a Bird Feeder by Liyala Tuckfield Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Dot Meharry Max and Mo Series (final pages) by Patricia Lakin Main goals for first graders in this How-To unit of study: to use action words in their steps to identify features of how-to writing (e.g. Things You Need Page) and to create a Things You Need page with a picture next to each item they can draw it or cut and glue from a magazine/catalog/website to answer the question, How many? or How much? in their writing through the use of numbers

9 to use specific nouns instead of pronouns to develop vocabulary to zoom in on larger steps to be broken down into smaller ones, similar to the small moment zoom in strategy at least 3 sequenced steps rereading own writing to work with a partner to see what has been omitted or what details need to be added to make the writing clearer to create a caution or warning aspect of the story to create a congratulatory how-to ending to sketch the steps and plan steps prior to writing (saying them across their fingers, touching the boxes and planning)

10 Things to Emphasize in How-To Read-Alouds to Second Graders - the use of captions with illustrations - visual directions in illustrations (e.g. arrows, dashed line to demonstrate cutting) - sequencing words - use of verbs (action words)

11 - uses of measurement in how-to stories (cups, inches, minutes) - adverbs (quietly, gently) - introductions in some how-to books - highlighting one word with a capital from the story and the same one in lower case and have students compare and figure out why Possible How-To Mentor Texts: Ready Freddy series by Abbey Klein How to Get Married by Sally Llyod Jones How to Be a Baby by Sally Llyod Jones Scaredy Squirrel Goes to the Beach by Melanie Watts How to Make a Bird Feeder by Liyala Tuckfield How-to excerpts from articles in My Big Backyard magazines Making Minestrone by Stella Blackstone and Nan Books (this is a creative, poem like version of a how-to with a recipe at the end) Growing Radishes and Carrots by Faye Bolton and Diane Snowball (excellent for showing the use of time and measurement) How-to excerpts from articles in My Big Backyard magazines

12 to create clear steps with some details (size, color, time, measurement and number) to create illustrations that teach to use longer sentences to try to incorporate extended words such as adverbs naturally into the writing (e.g. slowly, carefully)

13 to see their story like a move in their mind to create a congratulatory ending to their story or an introduction that tells the reader why they should learn the skill being taught to work with a partner to revise and edit steps using verb tenses carefully throughout the story (editing stories that switch from present to past tense not intentionally)