Reading Lesson Plans

Below is an outline of the general procedure of reading groups held during the week. Following the general procedure are the lessons for each book read: Groups A and C read Animal Champions by Teri Crawford Jones and Let's Build a Playground by Edward Myers, while Group B read two sections from The Search for Delicious by Natalie Babbitt.

General Procedure:

Two of the reading groups will meet once a week for approximately 40 minutes.

• At the beginning of each meeting the students will be given a new book and asked to make predictions about the book based on the cover or Table of Contents.
• Possible questions include: what do you think this book is about? What will happen? Who may the main character be?
• Ask similar questions after allowing the students to read the chapter names in the table of contents: have your predictions changed?
• Afterwards they will be asked to read the book silently while the teacher moves around the group and listen to children “whisper read” one at a time.
• Half-way through the reading period the teacher stops the group and a discussion about what was read begins.
• Although there are prepared discussion questions, they are not required for the lesson if the students’ comments lead in a different direction.
• After the discussion students receive a handout to work on when they are finished reading and should be turned in by the end of the week. They continue to read the book and the teacher finishes listening to them whisper read.

The students in the third reading group read from a chapter book and meets for 40 minutes one day each week.

• Due to the length of the book, this group has a brief discussion of what was read in the last section before reading the next assigned section.
• While they read the teacher moves around and listens to them whisper read.
• Halfway through the reading period the group pauses and discusses what they have read so far.
• The handout is distributed, which is due at the end of the week and the teacher continues listening to students whisper read.

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Below are the two shorter stories read by groups 1 and 2 as well as the two sections of the chapter book read by group 3 that were used in the lessons I taught.

Animal Champions (nonfiction)

Beginning Discussion – What do you think the book will be about based on the cover? Open to the Table of Contents – are your predictions the same or have the changed? If they have changed, what do you think you will read about in this book?

Halfway Discussion Questions – What have you learned about so far in the book? Did you know any of the facts about the animals? Do you know something you haven’t read about yet? If you could pick any talent/ability that one of the animals you read about has, what would it be? How would this ability help you and why would you want it?

Click here for the handout

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Let’s Build a Playground (nonfiction)

Beginning Discussion – What do you think the book will be about based on the cover? Open to the Table of Contents – are your predictions the same or have the changed? If they have changed, what do you think you will read about in this book?

Halfway Discussion Questions – What have you read about so far? The book talks about working as a community to build a playground. Have you ever worked as a community to do anything? Why do you think they are working together to build the playground? How would it be different to build a playground if the community wasn’t working together of if they didn’t have the resources or equipment they have in the book?

Click here for the handout

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The Search for Delicious (pages 90-126)

Beginning Discussion for pages 48-90 – Would anyone like to talk about what they read in the last section? Did anything stand out or intrigue you while you read? In this section we meet a singing minstrel. What is his job? Why do we not see singing minstrels anymore, or do we? What would a modern singing minstrel look like today? What might Hemlock want with Ardis?

Focus on the imagery and writing of the book:

Page 51 – the sound was splitting the woods like an axe

Page 54 – the sun bled orange and pink in the sky

Page 87 – the pebbles looked like coins in a wishing well

Halfway discussion – focus on what has been read so far as well as discussion from the beginning part of the lesson that was not covered.

Click here for the handout

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The Search for Delicious (pages 126-end)

Beginning Discussion Questions for pages 90-126 – In the last section we learned that Gaylen’s whistle that Canto gave him belonged to Ardis. How did you react when you read this in the book? What are your predictions for the rest of the book? What role will this whistle that Galyen now has play in the story? What will happen? Gaylen says twice that he wishes he could just stay and live with the Woldwellers. Why does he say this? What is causing him to feel this way?

Focus on the imagery and writing of the book:

Page 91 – the brooding clouds hunched in the sky

Page 92 – the raindrops spilled down his cheeks like tears

Halfway discussion – focus on what has been read so far as well as discussion from the beginning part of the lesson that was not covered. Additionally, ask what they believe will happen in the last few pages of the book now that they are almost finished. How will the conflict be resolved?

Click here for the handout

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