HMH Storytown 2009Grade 1

Themes 1 and 2 /Lesson3

Title of Read Aloud: “Can You Hear a Rainbow?”

Suggested Time:2-3 days (30 minutes per day)

Common Core ELA Standards: RI.1.1,RI.1.4,RL.1.5,RF.1.1,SL.1.1,SL.1.2, L.1.1,L.1.2,L.1.4,L.1.5, W.1.2, W.1.5

Teacher Instructions

Refer to the Introduction forfurther details.

Before Teaching

  1. Read the Big Ideas and Key Understandings and theSynopsis. Please do not read this to the students. This is a description for teachers, about the big ideas and key understanding that students should take away after completing this task.

Big Ideas and Key Understandings

This story tells about the life of a deaf boy named Chriswho overcomes a disability to live a normal life.

Synopsis

“Can You Hear a Rainbow” is nonfiction. This story is about people and things that could happen in real life. It tells about a boy named Chris who is deaf. The author has written the story as if Chris is telling it. This story gives lots of information about what it’s like for a person to be deaf and how deaf children learn to communicate.

  1. Read entire main selection text, keeping in mind the Big Ideas and Key Understandings.
  2. Re-read the main selection text while noting the stopping points for the Text Dependent Questions and teaching Vocabulary.

During Teaching

  1. Teacher reads the main selection text aloud.

2. Teacher re-reads the selection aloud while stopping to engage students in responding to and discussing the questions and returning to the text. A variety of methods can be used to structure the reading and discussion (i.e.: whole class discussion, shoulder/face partner talk, think-pair-share, group work, etc.)

Text Dependent Questions

Text Dependent Questions / Answers
Listen to the first two sentences. Characters are people and animals in a story. Who is the main character in this story?
In this story, what words let the reader know who is telling the story?
Listen as I read (P.12) “Hi my…deaf.” Chris’ parents sensed that he was different from his brother and sister. Sensed means you have a feeling about something. How did Chris state that his parents sensed he was different?
Deaf means unable to hear.
Let’s re-read this part. (P.12) “He said…deaf.” Locate the (sentence/part/words) that tells us what Chris’ problem was.
Teacher Note: Have story on Smartboard and highlight the part you are reading. Point to the words as you go so the “part” you are looking for may be identified more easily.
(P.12) “Because I…softer.” We know from the story that Chris can’t hear like other children, but why doesn’t he sound like other children when he speaks?
An audiologist is someone who helps deaf people. Listen while I read the next part. Let’s see how she helps Chris. (P.12) “When I…aids.” How did the audiologisthelp Chris?

Communicate means to make someone understand you by talking, writing or using sign language. Listen to this next part. (P.13) “Even…sign.” According to the story, how does Chris communicate? Let’s find another way Chriscommunicates.(P.13)“With the…eyes.”What’s the other way the speechtherapist helpsChriscommunicate?

Especially means very. Our story says Chris’ eyes are especially important to play sports. How does Chris describe the importance of using his eyes?(P.14) “My eyes…blows.”
According to the story, what does Chris use to wake up for school? (P.14) “Like…school.” How is Chris’ alarm clock the same as his sister’s/brother’s alarm clock? How is it different? / Chris is the main character in this story. (Note: Teacher may make a list of the other characters as the children name them.) I know Chris is telling the story because in the first sentence it says, “Hi, my name is Chris.”
Chris was different because he didn’t wake up when the dog barked and he didn’t jump when the door slammed.
The part that shows us what Chris’ problem was is, “I was deaf.”
Chris can’t hear sounds so sometimes he talks too loudly because he can’t hear his own voice.
The audiologist helped Chris by giving him some hearing aids.
Chris communicates by using sign language. He can “talk” to other people who know how to sign.
(Teacher Note: Reading the entire page and asking for the two ways he communicates together may “lose” the students.)
(P. 13) “I saw a…lip read.”Chris uses his eyes to read lips. This is the way he communicates with people who can’t use sign language. The speech therapist taught him to lip read so he could communicate with people who couldn’t sign.
Chris can’t hear the coach’s voice or the referee’s whistle so he has to watch his mom telling him what is going on and what to do from her signing to him or giving him signals.
Chris uses a special alarm clock that he puts inside his pillow that shakes his pillow to wake him up. The clocks are all the same because they all wake someone up. His brother’s and sister’s alarm clocks are different because they both make sounds to wake them up instead of vibrating.
In this story, there are several ways Chris was able to understand what was going on in his life without using his hearing and by using his other senses. Instead of using his hearing, he used his vision, his sense of smell and the sense of touch. Give at least one example of how Chris used his sight, his sense of smell and his sense of touch to know what was going on in his life. / Chris smelled food cooking and he knew it was time for dinner. He saw the hockey equipment and knew there was a hockey game that day. The alarm clock shook his pillow and he knew it was time to get up for school.
KEY WORDS ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTANDING
BIG IDEAS OF TEXT
Words addressed with a question or task / WORDS WORTH KNOWING
Words to be part of systematic vocabulary instruction, not essential for understanding the big ideas of the text
TEACHER PROVIDES DEFINITION
not enough contextual clues provided in the text / Page 12–sensed
Page 13- communicate
Page14–especially
Page 15-memorize / Page12 - vibrations
Page13 – communicate, special language
STUDENTS FIGURE OUT THE MEANING
sufficient context clues are provided in the text / Page12–deaf,
Page13–sign language, hearing aid
Page14-interpreter / Page13- lip read
Page14– sidelines, alarm
Page 15- sign

Culminating Task

  • Re-Read, Think, Discuss, and Write.
  • Class discussion of all the ways Chris overcame his disability to function normally in life.

Make a list of the ways, if desired, for the class to see. For example:

  • Eyesight to watch mom give signals for soccer
  • Eyesight to read lips
  • Sense of smell lets him know dinner is ready
  • Vibrating alarm clock under pillow to wake him up

Draw a picture of one way in the story that Chris overcame his disability to get along in real life and write a story about your picture. Write at least three sentences for your story.

Additional Tasks

  • Higher students: Use a double bubble map for Chris and Dominic, writing all the ways they are different and alike. Have students choose one way they are alike and write a sentence about it.

(Teacher Note: Use the read-aloud, “Effie” Lesson 2 for the next activity.)

Turn to your shoulder/face partner for this activity.

  • Tell how the story, “Effie” and the story, “Can You Hear a Rainbow?” are different from each other. (Note: The teacher is looking for differences such as “real” and “make-believe” or that one tells a story and the other gives information.)
  • Describe how Effie and Chris are the same.
  • Pair students (shoulder/face partners). Be sure to pair children who have different characteristics. Ex. hair/eye color, height, boy/girl, etc. Look at your partner. Think about how you are different from your partner. (Give wait time) Use a sentence (aloud) to tell how your partner is different from you. Ex. My partner has _(color)_ hair. My hair is __(color)__. Students are still paired together. Each student has his/her own paper. Write a sentence telling one way Chris and Dominic are different. Use this opportunity to call attention to capital letters, end marks, and spacing.
  • Effie and Chris were each unique/special/different. Effie was different from all the ants in her anthill because of her booming voice. Chris was different from regular hearing children because he couldn’t speak or hear like everyone else.
  • Describe to your partner(s) how Effie and Chris were different from each other.Write a sentence to tell how these characters are different.

Effie was an insect, she lived in an anthill, (accept reasonable answers). Chris was a boy, he lived in a

house, he went to school, etc.

Note to Teacher

  • (Teacher may need to briefly discuss hearing aids, microscope, and vibrations of loud/high-pitched sounds.
  • Engagement strategies, such as partner talk, choral responses, and signaled responses will help keep students on task and improve time efficiency. For example, the teacher may direct students to identify a partner and then direct students to find and whisper the answer to a partner before eliciting a choral response from the whole group. Teachers could direct students to point to an answer on the Smartboard, thumbs up for yes and thumbs down for no, etc.
  • There are several Tier III vocabulary words that may need to be addressed by the teacher (microscope, audiologist, speech therapy)
  • Expect students to respond with complete sentences. Model and scaffold responses with sentence starters as needed. Also, expand on student responses (when responses are short and easily expanded) and have students repeat the expanded answer.

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