Lessons & Units :: Stellaluna 1st Grade Unit

Read-Aloud Lesson: Stellaluna

Lesson Plan

Stellaluna | 550L

Stellaluna
Learning Goal
Compare Stellaluna’s experience of living like a bird with her experience of living like a bat in order to determine a theme of the story.
Necessary Materials
Provided:
  1. Detailed lesson plan
  2. Graphic organizer for guided practice
  3. Independent student worksheet

Not Provided:
Stellaluna
 
  1. This lesson is a close reading of the entire text. So it’s important to engage students often, to enhance their learning. Here are two tips:

    •   When you ask the more complex questions from the lesson, ask students to “turn-and-talk” or “buddy-talk” before answering.

    •   Once you are deep into the lesson, instead of asking students every question provided, ask them to share with you what questions they should be asking themselves at that point in the text. This is also a great opportunity to use "turn-and-talk."
       
  2. Suggested teacher language is included in the lesson.

  3. We recommend you read the book once to your students, either the day or morning before teaching the lesson.

  4. This research-based, read-aloud lesson may seem long. Why do students need the lesson to be this way?
 

Part 1: Teacher Modeling and Questioning

 

Write the student-friendly learning goal on the board, then read the learning goal out loud with the class:

We will compare two different ways a bat named Stellaluna lives.

 
Transition Students into the Text
 
Teacher says: Bats and birds are both animals that fly. But just because they have one thing in common does not mean they are exactly the same. The story we are about to read will reveal some of the differences between bats and birds.
 
Read page 2 out loud, then stop. Page 2 ends with, “...search for food.” Show students the illustration on page 1. If possible, always show students the illustrations accompanying the pages you read throughout the lesson.
1.
Teacher asks: We have just met two animals. What kind of animals are they?
 
Students answer: They are bats.
2.
Teacher asks: One of the bats is named Mother Bat. She has a baby. What is the name of the baby bat?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna is the name of the baby bat.
3.
Teacher asks (showing illustration on page 1): Look at this picture. Mother Bat is carrying Stellaluna as she flies out to search for food. When does Mother Bat fly out to search for food—during the day or at night?
 
Students answer: Mother Bat flies out to search for food at night.
4.
Teacher says: Let’s see where the search for food takes Mother Bat and Stellaluna.
 
Read page 3 out loud, then stop. Page 3 ends with, “...forest below.” As you read, define “swooped” as “flew quickly.”
5.
Teacher says (models thinking): We read that Mother Bat was following the heavy scent, or smell, of ripe fruit. We know that Mother Bat flies out at night to search for food. If she was following the smell of fruit, that probably means she wanted to eat it. Based on this information, we can conclude that bats like Mother Bat and Stellaluna like to eat fruit.
6.
Teacher asks: While Mother Bat is following the scent of fruit, what animal sees her?
 
Students answer: An owl sees her. (If students respond that “a bird sees her,” ask them what kind of bird.)
7.
Teacher asks: What does the owl do to Mother Bat and Stellaluna?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary but should reflect the text. Examples include the following:
  • The owl swoops down on Mother Bat and Stellaluna.
  • The owl strikes Mother Bat again and again.
  • The owl knocks Stellaluna into the air.
8.
Teacher asks: After the owl swoops down and attacks Mother Bat, Stellaluna gets knocked into the air. Where does she fall?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna falls into a forest.
Read more
 
Read pages 4-7 out loud, then stop. Page 7 ends with, “...hissed Pip.” As you read page 5, define “clutched” as “held tightly” and “trembling” as “shaking."
9.
Teacher asks: Where does Stellaluna land after she falls from the twig she is clutching?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna falls into a nest.
10.
Teacher asks: What is in the nest that Stellaluna falls into?
 
Students answer:
  • Birds are in the nest that Stellaluna falls into. (acceptable answer)
  • Three baby birds are in the nest that Stellaluna falls into. (strong answer)
11.
Teacher says: One of the baby birds in the nest says, “Shhh! Here comes Mama.” Let’s meet Mama now.
 
Read pages 8 and 9 out loud, then stop. Page 9 ends with, “...a big green grasshopper!”
12.
Teacher asks: What does Mama Bird bring for her babies to eat?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary but should reflect the text. Examples include the following:
  • Mama Bird brings crawly things.
  • Mama Bird brings grasshoppers.
  • Mama Bird brings insects.
13.
Teacher asks: According to the book, how does Stellaluna feel when Mama Bird returns to the nest with food for her babies?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Stellaluna feels hungry—but not for the crawly things Mama Bird brings.
14.
Teacher asks: What does Stellaluna do before she opens her mouth to eat the crawly things that Mama Bird brings?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna closes her eyes.
15.
Teacher asks: Does Stellaluna want to eat the crawly things Mama Bird brings? Explain how you know, using information from the book.
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, though all students should recognize that Stellaluna does not want to eat the crawly things. Examples of support include the following:
  • The books says that Stellaluna is hungry—but not for the crawly things Mama Bird brings.
  • Stellaluna closes her eyes before she opens her mouth to eat what Mama Bird has brought.
16.
Teacher asks: What kind of food might Stellaluna want to eat instead of bugs? Think back to the night when her mother flew out with her to search for food.
 
Students answer: Stellaluna might want to eat fruit.
 
Read pages 10 and 11 out loud, then stop. Page 11 ends with, “‘...break your necks!’”
17.
Teacher asks: How does Stellaluna like to sleep?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna likes to sleep hanging by her feet.
18.
Teacher asks: The baby birds decide to sleep hanging by their feet, just like Stellaluna. What does Mama Bird say when she comes home and sees them sleeping that way?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Mama Bird tells her babies to get back into the nest before they fall and break their necks.
19.
Teacher asks (models thinking): Sleeping while hanging by her feet is normal for Stellaluna. Is it normal for the birds she is living with? If it were, Mama Bird would not have gotten upset when she saw her babies doing it. Also, the baby birds had never tried sleeping while hanging by their feet until they saw Stellaluna doing it. This difference between Stellaluna and the baby birds shows me that not everything that is normal for a bat is normal for a bird.
 
Read pages 12 and 13 out loud, then stop. Page 13 ends with, “...a good bird should.”
20.
Teacher asks: Why might Mama Bird say that Stellaluna is teaching her children to do bad things?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Mama Bird’s children try hanging by their feet after they see Stellaluna doing it. Mama Bird thinks that hanging this way is a bad thing and says that Stellaluna is teaching her children to do bad things.
21.
Teacher asks: Stellaluna promises to do what Mama Bird wants and starts behaving like a bird in every way. What are some of the things she does?
 
Students answer (all of the following responses are acceptable):
  • Stellaluna eats bugs.
  • Stellaluna sleeps in the nest at night.
  • Stellaluna does not hang by her feet.
 
Read pages 14-19 out loud, then stop. Page 19 ends with, “How embarrassing!”
22.
Teacher says: “Embarrassing” is a word that means feeling bad when you make a fool of yourself in front of others. Let’s see if we can figure out why Stellaluna might be feeling embarrassed.
23.
Teacher says: (showing illustration on page 18): Look how gracefully, or neatly, the baby birds have landed on this tree branch. Now let’s all take a moment and pretend we are one of the birds that has just landed gracefully on the tree branch.
 
Lead students in striking graceful landing postures. Have fun with this activity.
24.
Teacher says (showing illustration on page 20): Now let’s look at how Stellaluna has landed on the branch. She has not landed gracefully. Let’s take a moment and pretend we are Stellaluna landing on the branch.
 
Lead students in imitating Stellaluna’s clumsy landing.
25.
Teacher asks: Why might Stellaluna have felt embarrassed after she landed?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna might have felt embarrassed because her landing was not graceful like the birds’.
 
Read pages 20-23 out loud, then stop. Page 23 ends with, “...without her.”
26.
Teacher asks: The next day Stellaluna and the baby birds go flying. Then the sun begins to set. Flap, one of the birds, says that they should go home. Why does Flap say that they should go home?
 
Students answer: Flap says that they should go home so that they do not get lost in the dark.
27.
Teacher asks: Is it normal for birds like Flap to fly in the dark? Support your answer using evidence from the story.
 
Students answer: No, it is not normal for birds like Flap to fly in the dark. If they do, they will get lost.
28.
Teacher asks: Is it normal for bats like Stellaluna to fly in the dark? Support your answer with evidence from the story. Before you answer, think about the time when Stellalluna and her mother were out in search of food at the beginning of the story.
 
Students answer: Yes, it is normal for bats like Stellaluna to fly in the dark. If it were not normal, her mother would probably not have flown out with her at night.
 
Read pages 24-27 out loud, then stop. Page 27 ends with, “‘...for a bat.’”
29.
Teacher asks: What does a loud voice ask Stellaluna?
 
Students answer: A loud voice asks Stellaluna why she is hanging upside down.
30.
Teacher asks: What is Stellaluna’s answer?
 
Students answer (wording may vary but should resemble the following): “I’m not upside down, you are!”
31.
Teacher asks: Then the voice tells Stellaluna that she is upside down for a bat. What is the normal way for a bat to hang?
 
Students answer: The normal way for a bat to hang is by its feet.
32.
Teacher asks: How is Stellaluna hanging?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna is hanging by her thumbs.
33.
Teacher asks: Is Stellaluna upside down? Why or why not?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, but students should grasp that for a bat, Stellaluna is hanging upside down because she is hanging by her thumbs and not by her feet.
34.
Teacher asks (showing illustration on page 28): Think about what the voice speaking to Stellaluna has said. Now look at this picture. What kind of animal has been talking to Stellaluna?
 
Students answer: A bat has been talking to Stellaluna.
 
Read pages 28-31 out loud, then stop. Page 31 ends with, “‘...as long as you live.’”
35.
Teacher asks: What kind of food is Mother Bat going to show Stellaluna?
 
Students answer: Mother Bat is going to show Stellaluna fruit.
 
Read pages 32 and 33 out loud, then stop. Page 33 ends with, “...in her path.”
36.
Teacher asks: What does Stellaluna discover when she tries flying in the dark?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna discovers that she can see.
 
Read pages 34 and 35 out loud, then stop. Page 35 ends with, “‘Pip, Flitter, and Flap!’”
37.
Teacher asks: How much fruit does Stellaluna eat?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna eats as much fruit as she can hold.
38.
Teacher asks: What does Stellaluna say about eating bugs?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna says that she will never eat another bug as long as she lives.
39.
Teacher asks: What does Stellaluna like eating more, fruit or bugs? Support your answer with information from the story.
 
Students answer: All students should recognize that Stellaluna prefers eating fruit to bugs. Support may vary, as long as it comes from the story. Examples include the following:
  • Stellaluna eats as much fruit as she can.
  • Stellaluna says, “I’ll never eat another bug as long as I live.”
 
Read pages 36 and 37 out loud, then stop. Page 37 ends with, “‘...fly at night.’”
40.
Teacher asks: How does Flap feel when flying among the bats?
 
Students answer: Flap feels upside down.
41.
Teacher asks: Think back to the time when Stellaluna was living with the birds in the nest. Think about what is normal for birds and also what is normal for bats when they hang. Why might Flap feel upside down while flying among the bats?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Flap might feel upside down because the bats are hanging by their feet, but Flap’s head is above his (or her) feet.
 
Read pages 38 and 39 out loud, then stop. Page 39 ends with, “...above them.”
42.
Teacher asks: What problem do the birds have when they try to fly at night?
 
Students answer: The birds cannot see when they try to fly at night.
 
Finish reading the story.
43.
Teacher asks: What are some ways that Stellaluna and the birds are different?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary and should include the following:
  • Stellaluna can see at night, but the birds cannot (except for the owl).
  • The birds eat bugs, but Stellaluna prefers eating fruit.
  • It is normal for Stellaluna to sleep hanging by her feet, but it is not normal for the birds to sleep hanging by their feet.
44.
Teacher asks: What are some ways that Stellaluna and the birds are the same?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary and should include the following:
  • Stellaluna and the birds can all fly.
  • Stellaluna and the birds are all friends.
 
The “Bat Notes” following the story are a trove of facts about bats. You are welcome to read these pages to students, but doing so is not a requirement of the lesson.
 

Part 2: Guided Practice and Discussion

 
For this oral lesson, it is suggested to have the completed graphic organizer on the board with the answers concealed. After students provide a correct answer, reveal the corresponding answer on the graphic organizer.
1.
Teacher asks: What do the birds in the story like to eat?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): They like to eat bugs.
2.
Teacher asks: What do the bats in the story like to eat?
 
Students answer: They like to eat fruit.
 
You may wish to explain that some bats like to eat things beside fruit—even insects! However, because the story describes only fruit bats, the graphic organizer restricts its focus to fruit bats as well.
3.
Teacher asks: Describe how the birds in the story normally sleep, including when they sleep.
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should include the following):
  • The birds sleep in a nest.
  • Some of the birds sleep at night.
4.
Teacher asks: Describe how the bats in the story normally sleep.
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should include the following): The bats sleep hanging by their feet.
5.
Teacher asks: Describe how the birds in the story normally fly, including how they land.
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should include the following): The birds land gracefully on tree branches.
Read more
6.
Teacher asks: What is Stellaluna’s landing on the tree branch like?
 
Students answer: Stellaluna’s landing on the tree branch is clumsy.
7.
Teacher asks: Based on Stellaluna’s landing, how do other bats probably land on tree branches?
 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Other bats probably do not land gracefully on tree branches.
8.
Teacher asks: Can the birds in the story see at night?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary and should include the following:
  • Flap, Flitter, and Pip cannot see at night, but the owl can.
  • Some birds in the story cannot see at night.
9.
Teacher asks: Can the bats in the story see at night?
 
Students answer: Yes, the bats in the story can see at night.
 
After the answers for the graphic organizer have been completed and discussed with the class, ask the following two extension questions.
 
Teacher asks: An important idea in this story is what is normal for an animal. Is something that is normal for a bat normal for a bird? Explain why or why not, using information from the story.
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, as long as they are supported by the story. For example, students may respond that what is normal for a bat is not normal for a bird. Sleeping while hanging by its feet is normal for a bat but not for a bird. Eating bugs is normal for birds but not for fruit bats. On the other hand, some things, like the act of flying, are normal for a bird as well as a bat.
 
Teacher asks: What does it mean for something to be “normal”? Support your answer with one or more examples from the story.
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, as long as they are supported by the book. For example, students may respond that something “normal” means something natural for a particular animal or person. For example, it is normal for a bat to sleep hanging by its feet, just as it is normal for a bird to sleep in a nest. Both actions are natural for the respective animals.
 

Part 3: Student Independent Practice

 
Read each question out loud to your students and have each student complete the worksheet independently. For questions 5 A) and 6, you can have students draw their answers, answer orally, or write their answers depending on your students’ progress. If you have them write their answers, you may want to write the word(s) on the board for them to copy. Question 7 is a class discussion question.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

(To see all of the ReadWorks lessons aligned to your standards, click here.)

User Comments

great lesson, students love it.

Submitted by cloren_2248810 on 9/14/16

Great lesson to go with Ready Gen.

Submitted by Teddyfreckles on 9/11/16

I'm anxious to use this lesson it meets standards and will fit the lesson perfectly.

Submitted by solomta_1759008 on 7/12/16

My students with ASD loved it!!!!

Submitted by Loraine Ramirez on 10/29/15

Thank you... Nice lesson!!!

Submitted by maricelalangelier_1237979 on 2/10/15

My students loved this!!!

Submitted by joan moltz on 10/15/14