Kindergarten Exemplar

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

By Eric Carle

Unit Two

Learning Objective:

The objective is to give kindergarten students an opportunity to explore complex text. Through teacher read aloud and scaffold discussion of text-dependent questions and vocabulary words, student will gain content information from close reading. Writing as a response to literature will assist with further understanding of what is read.

Reading Task:

The students will listen to the teacher read short, standalone pieces of the text aloud at least one time. The teacher will reread these portions of text to have students clarify the meaning of what they read. The teacher will ask questions and ask for student’s ideas and thoughts to guide them through purposeful interaction with the text.

Discussion/Language Task:

Through the use of a series of text-dependent questions, the students will be guided to look at text closely and engage in thinking that will deepen their understanding.

Writing Task:

Utilizing the structure of this nonfiction text and using the table of contents, assign students a section of text. Students will identify key details about their assigned section to write an informative piece. Students should name the topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.

Common Core State Standards that are addressed in this unit:

RL.K.1,RL.K.2, RL.K.3, RL.K.4, RL.K.5, RL.K.6, RL.K.7, RL.K.10

RI.K.1, RI.K.2, RI.K.4, RI.K.5, RI.K6, RI.K.7, RI.K.8, RI.K 10

RF.K.1, RF.K.2, RF.K.3, RF.K.4

W.K.2, W.K.3, W.K.5, W.K.8

SL.K.1a-b, SL.K.2, SL.K.3, SL.K.4, SL.K.5, SL.K.6

L.K.1a-f, L.K.2a-d, L.K.4a-b, L.K.5a-d, L.K.6

Formative Checkpoints:

Turn and Talk

Journal Entries

Exit Tickets

Literacy Structure/Components:

Interactive Read-Aloud, Small Group Instruction/Guided Reading and Independent Reading

Teacher Instructions

Preparing for Teaching

  1. Read the Big Ideas and Key Understandings and the Synopsis. 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

All living things go through life cycles.

Synopsis

A hungry caterpillar goes through the life cycle, eating different foods each day of the week, until it changes into a butterfly.

  1. Read the 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. Students read the entire main selection text independently.
  2. Teacher reads the main selection text aloud with students following along.

(Depending on how complex the text is and the amount of support needed by students, the teacher may choose to reverse the order of steps 1 and 2.)

  1. Students and teacher re-read the text while stopping to respond to and discuss 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, think-pair-share, independent written response, and group work.)

Text Dependent Questions

Text Dependent Questions / Answers
Where was the little egg? ( Page1) / The little egg was on the leaf.
When did the hungry caterpillar appear?
(Page 3) / The hungry caterpillar appeared in the morning.
How many fruits had the little caterpillar eaten through by Wednesday? (Page 5-10) / He had eaten through 5 fruits.
Why did the illustrator put holes in the foods that the caterpillar ate? (Page 6-17) / To show that caterpillar had eaten through the food and he was still hungry.
The title of the book is “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” How do you know the caterpillar is hungry? ( Page 12) / The caterpillar ate on apple, two pears, three plums four strawberries, and five oranges and he was still hungry.
List one food that gave the caterpillar a stomachache? List one food that didn’t give him a stomachache? (Page 15-16) / Possible answers (chocolate cake, one lollipop, one sausage, one cupcake). The green leaf didn’t give him a stomachache.
The author writes “He built a small house, called a cocoon around himself.” Explain in your own words what this sentence means. (Page 20) / The caterpillar wrapped itself up in a cocoon.
Who is telling the story, the narrator or the caterpillar? ( Page 17-21) / The narrator, since he used the words he and his.
How long did it take for the egg to hatch into a butterfly?
(Page 20) / More than three weeks (Since time is a difficult concept for young students it’s suggested that teachers use the calendar and felt shapes to help students count the days).

Tier II/Academic Vocabulary

KEY WORDS ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTANDING
Words addressed with a question or task / WORDS WORTH KNOWING
General teaching suggestions are provided in the Introduction
TEACHER PROVIDES DEFINITION
not enough contextual clues provided in the text / Page 18 – cocoon
Page 18 – nibbled
STUDENTS FIGURE OUT THE MEANING
sufficient context clues are provided in the text / Page 2 – caterpillar
Page 2 – tiny / Page 16 – stomachache

Culminating Task:

Re-Read, Think, Discuss, and Write. Students will use the notes in their journal to assist them in the culminating task.

Retell the story in order using details from the text and your notes.

Answer:

In the beginning of the story there was a small egg on a leaf that hatched into a caterpillar. The caterpillar was very hungry and searched for food. During the week he ate one apple, two pears, three plums, four strawberries, five oranges but he was still hungry. On Saturday night the caterpillar had a stomachache because of all the foods he ate. He felt better the next day after he ate a green leaf and grew into a big fat caterpillar. After many weeks of being in a cocoon the caterpillar had changed into a beautiful butterfly.

Additional Tasks:

  • Create a T chart of the foods the caterpillar ate from Monday to Friday.

Answer:

Day of the Week / Foods the caterpillar ate
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday / One apple
Two pears
Three plums
Four strawberries
Five oranges
  • Create an acrostic poem using the word CATERPILLAR or BUTTERFLY

Note to Teacher:

During the Read Aloud the teacher should create a Language Chart with the students of the foods that gave the caterpillar a stomachache and the foods that did not.

Foods that did not give the caterpillar a stomachache
/ Foods that gave the caterpillar a stomachache

Apples / Chocolate cake
Pears / Ice-cream cone
Plums / Swiss cheese
Strawberries / Salami
Oranges / Lollipop
Cherry pie
Sausage
Cupcake
Watermelon