SINK OR SWIM
Written by Valerie Coulman
Illustrated by: Roge
This lesson plan provides younger readers with opportunities to explore a 3-event narrative story structure in a fiction text, as well as the writing technique of personification. This would be an ideal lesson plan for a small group or as a guided lesson experience focused on developing strengths in narrative story telling.
Lesson Objectives:
To be able to make sense of text in a 3-event, narrative story structure in a fiction text
To be able to explore the idea of personification used to tell a narrative fiction story
To be able to predict past the ending to stretch the story structure
Grade Level: 1 - 3
Common Core Connections:
Meaning: Multiple levels of meaning, implicit/explicit purpose
Structure: fantasy fiction structure, simple, repetitive text, picture book
Language Convention/Clarity: conventional structure, simple and repetitive language patterns
Knowledge Demands: multiple perspectives
Strategies:
Students will be able to make sense of text in a 3-event, narrative story structure in a fiction text.
Students will be able to explore the idea of personification used to tell a narrative fiction story.
Students will be able to predict past the ending to stretch/confirm understanding of the story structure.
Materials/Resources:
-SINK OR SWIM e-book on Tumblebooks
-SMARTboard or other interactive white board (or projector/laptop)
-Laptops/ipads
-Writing books/logs
Strategic Lesson Plan:
- Review with students the structure of this picture book (can ‘tell’ or do a brief picture walk on the Smartboard and support students with identifying this 3-EVENT narrative story structure (characters, setting, problem, 3 repetitive events, extendable solution)
- Explain to students this is a story where the animal characters have human qualities – a writing technique frequently used by writers called personification
- Discuss with the students the nature of this book – it has basically 3 similar events to help solve the problem, followed by an ending that has the potential to be extended by the reader
- Encourage students to be reflecting on the text as they read – why did the author write this story? (author intent) How does an ‘extendable ending’ make you feel as a reader? Why do you think the author chose this strategy for ending this particular story?
- Students will be reading the e-book SINK OR SWIM in pairs or triads on the laptops/Smartboard/ipads today
- Explain to the students they will be reading the story together and will be looking toreflect on the authors’ intentional use of personification and an extendable ending for this story
- Invite the students to begin listening/reading along to the e-book SINK OR SWIM on Tumblebooks in pairs or triads
- Circulate while students listen, offering support as needed and encouraging students to use their most useful reading and comprehension strategies
- When students are finished their first reading/listening experience, provide opportunities to share ideas and understandings from the story (3 – 5 minutes) using a ‘turn-and-talk’ format in pairs/triads
- Ask students to develop a brief ‘Reader’s Theatre’ from this story – practice fluency, intonation, expression – share with whole class
Additional Activities:
Developing ideas for a 3-Event, Stretched Ending story
Encourage students to brainstorm and plan ideas for a similar 3-event story that uses personification and a stretched ending (students can use illustrations, puppets, a web, etc. to capture their ideas)
Discuss how these techniques (personification and stretched endings) make reading more interesting as a whole group.
The Reader’s Theatre activity can be used as a formative assessment activity to assess awareness of story structure in 3-event narrative picture book.