Lessons & Units :: Genre Studies: Poetry 1st Grade Unit

Lesson 2: Rhyme

Lesson Plan

In the Swim | NP

In the Swim
Learning Goal
Explain that poems have rhyme.
Identify the rhyme of a poem.
Duration
Approximately 50 minutes
Necessary Materials
Provided: Unit Example Chart, Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: In the Swim by Douglas Florian, chart paper, markers

  • Teacher Modeling

    will explain to students that another characteristic of poems is that they often have words that rhyme. I will add this to my Characteristics of Poetry Chart (Example Chart is provided in Unit Teacher and Student Materials). Rhyme is when two words sound the same at the end of the word, but are different at the beginning, like “later” and “gator”. To identify rhyming words, readers have to listen carefully to the poem for words that sound the same, especially the words at the end of a line. Once a reader has identified words that they think rhyme, they need to look at the words in the text. Even if words do not have the same endings (like “later” and “gator”), they still sound the same. I will model identifying the rhymes in “The Anglerfish” from In the Swim and circle the rhyming words. For example, I will circle “floor” and “carnivore” to indicate a rhyme. Even though the ending of the words looks different (“oor “and “ore”), they make the same sound. I will reflect that this poem shows that one characteristic of poetry is that it has rhyming words, and I will add the title of the poem to my chart.

  • Think Check

    Ask: "How did I identify a rhyme in the poem?" Students should explain that you read the poem aloud and listened for words that sounded the same. Then, you looked at the words and read them aloud again to make sure that even if the endings of the rhyming words look different, they make the same sound.

  • Guided Practice

    will read the poem, “The Sharks” from In the Swim by Douglas Florian aloud listening for rhyming words. We will then look at the words together, circle the rhyming words, even if the ending looks a little bit different. We will repeat the pairs of words aloud to make sure that they rhyme. We will use this example to explain how poems have rhyming words. We will add the title of the poem of to our Characteristics of Poetry Chart.

  • Independent Practice

    will listen to “The Ray” from In the Swim. You will circle the rhyming words on your own copy of the poem. You will use the rhyming words to explain aloud how you know that the text is an example of a poem because it has rhyming words. (Independent Practice Worksheet is provided.) The teacher will add the title of the poem to the Characteristics of Poetry Chart.

Build Student Vocabulary crafty

Tier 2 Word: crafty
Contextualize the word as it is used in the story “Lurking on the ocean floor There works a crafty carnivore.”
Explain the meaning student-friendly definition) Crafty means sneaky and tricky. Someone who is crafty sets a good trap for someone or something else. The anglerfish is crafty because it tricks other little fish, so that it can eat them.
Students repeat the word Say the word crafty with me. crafty.
Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts The students thought they were being crafty when they changed the time on the clock, but I always carry my own watch. My sneaky brother was being crafty when he set a trap for the mouse in our house, but the mouse was craftier. It ate all of the cheese before my brother could put it in the trap!
Students provide examples Can you think of someone (a real person or a person from stories, games, or TV) who is crafty? Tell me about this person by saying. “One person who is crafty is _________________because ______________________.”
Students repeat the word again. What word are we talking about? crafty
Additional Vocabulary Words lurking, dangling

Build Student Background Knowledge

After reading the poem, “The Shark” from In the Swim, explain to your students that sharks have the most powerful jaws on the planet. Ask students to move their jaw. Explain that humans can only move their lower jaw. Sharks can move both their upper and lower jaws. Each type of shark has its own shape of teeth, depending on what it eats. When one tooth falls out, another tooth takes its place. One shark may grow thousands of teeth in its life!

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

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