Lessons & Units :: Setting Kindergarten Unit

Lesson 2: When (Seasons, Day, or Night)

Lesson Plan

Look! Snow!

Look! Snow!
Learning Goal
Identify when a story takes place.
Duration
Approximately 50 minutes
Necessary Materials
Provided: Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: Look! Snow! by Kathryn O. Galbraith and Gaspard at the Seashore by Anne Gutman
 

  • Teacher Modeling

    will review how to determine where a story takes place. I will explain that another part of the setting is when a story takes place. I will model using pictures and information in the text (up to page 10) to determine the season of Look! Snow! by Kathryn O. Galbraith. Because the characters in the book are wearing sweaters, hats, and warm clothes, it must be cold outside. I see that it is snowing. It only snows in the winter. This story must take place in winter. That is when it takes place.

    TIP: You may need to provide vocabulary support for some students. Examples include the names of the seasons and alternative times of day such as evening, noon, midnight, etc.

  • Think Check

    Ask: "How did I know that the story takes place in winter?" Students should respond that you looked at the pictures and read the text to give you clues to when the story takes place.

  • Guided Practice

    will use pictures and text to determine if the story takes place during the day or night. We will discuss what evidence from the book (pictures: wearing pajamas; text: announcement of school closings; these things happen in the morning) helps us determine the time of day for the remainder of the book.

  • Independent Practice

    will identify the season and time of day of the familiar book, Gaspard at the Seashore. You will explain orally or in writing how you determined this. (Independent Practice Worksheet is provided.)

Build Student Vocabulary closed

Tier 2 Word: closed
Contextualize the word as it is used in the story The following schools are closed for the day.
Explain the meaning student-friendly definition) Closed means shut or not open. If the school is closed it means that the building will not be open to the students.
Students repeat the word Say the word with me: closed
Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts I tried to make it to the grocery store before it closed, but it was closed when I got there. The box was closed when it arrived in the mail. Please close the door when you leave.
Students provide examples Have you ever gone to a place that was closed? Start by saying, “Once I tried going to _____________, but it was closed.”
Students repeat the word again. What word are we talking about? closed
Additional Vocabulary Words look, today

Build Student Background Knowledge

After identifying the season in Look! Snow!, explain that in some places, it does not snow during the winter, depending on how close the place is to the equator. Show a map of the world and point to the equator running through the center. For example, in South Florida, it will get colder in the wintertime, but it will probably not snow.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

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

User Comments

I like the way the lesson contects to real life when building background. This is information students can use and connect to other situations, literature and subjects.

Submitted by llemon_1371622 on 12/15/16

This is very helpful

Submitted by joycebdavis1_1144587 on 12/31/15