Lessons & Units :: Vocabulary in Context 1st Grade Unit

Lesson 3: Strategies for Determining the Meaning of a Word

Lesson Plan

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf | 680L

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
Learning Goal
Use visual, meaning, and structure clues together to determine the meaning of a word.
Duration
Approximately 50 minutes
Necessary Materials
Provided: Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert

  • Teacher Modeling

    will explain that sometimes when I am reading, I can read a word by sounding it out, but I don’t understand what it means. I will explain that I can stop and think about which word would make sense in the sentence, based on the pictures and text. Then I can guess about what the word in the sentence means. I will use Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert to model this strategy. I will stop at page 8 and think aloud about the words “nursery workers”. I will think aloud about what the words might mean based on the sentence. Say: "The sentence says that these types of workers came to the woods to collect tree sprouts. The picture shows hands with gloves holding tree limbs. So a nursery must have something to do with trees. Nursery workers must be people who work with trees." I will explain that thinking about the meaning of the sentence and looking at the pictures helped me understand the meaning of the word.

  • Think Check

    Ask: "How did I figure out the meaning of the word "nursery" in the text?" Students should respond that you read the sentence and thought about what the word might mean. You also looked at the pictures to get more information about the meaning of the word.

  • Guided Practice

    will turn and talk with a partner about what the word “transplanted” (page 10) means. We will then discuss as a group the meaning of this word and how we determined the meaning. We will repeat this strategy with the word “uprooted” (page 11).

  • Independent Practice

    will think about what the words “crown of leaves” (page 24) might mean and what makes sense in the sentence. You will explain how you determined the meaning of the phrase. (Independent Practice Worksheet is provided.) Note: The overall objective for first grade is for students to independently use all three cueing systems (visual, structural, and meaning). These lessons will need to be taught repeatedly throughout the year.

    TIP: Pay close attention to which cueing system your students are using and ignoring when making an error. For example the text read, “He is going for a walk,” but the student read “He is going for a run.” This would tell you that the student is using structure and meaning cues because it sounds right and makes sense. However, the use of visual cue is being ignored since all the letters in “walk” and “run” are different as well as the shape of the words and their length. This may tell you that the student is over relying on certain cues or needs more practice with another.

Build Student Vocabulary woods

Tier 2 Word: woods
Contextualize the word as it is used in the story When the child is talking about the leaf from the sugar maple tree and how the tree was born, the child says, “The wind blew seeds from the big maple trees in the woods.”
Explain the meaning student-friendly definition) Woods are an area of land where many trees grow close together.
Students repeat the word Say the word woods with me: woods.
Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts I had a picnic in the woods. Little Red Riding Hood walked through the woods to her grandmother’s house.
Students provide examples What is something that someone can do in the woods? What could someone see in the woods? Start by saying, “Someone can ___________________ in the woods. They could see __________ in the woods.”
Students repeat the word again. What word are we talking about? woods
Additional Vocabulary Words twirled, tended

Build Student Background Knowledge

Pause at page 8. Explain to students how the roots of a tree work. Draw or show a picture of tree roots, and explain that the roots suck up the nutrients and water from the soil and carry them into the plant, so it can grow and flourish.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

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

User Comments

I will use this with my below level third grade class. Thanks

Submitted by sheril.barnett on 10/8/16

very informative.

Submitted by rabeya6915_1604004 on 12/4/15

I teach students in the middle school setting, but their reading ability is on 1st grade level. The passages are interesting to middle school and enticing enough to keep their attention.

Submitted by frances.sapp_1514006 on 8/29/15

I plan to use these lessons with my WRF intervention group.

Submitted by Penny on 8/16/15

This is good.

Submitted by Nivethaa on 4/21/15