Lessons & Units :: Whoever You Are Kindergarten Unit

Read-Aloud Lesson: Whoever You Are

Lesson Plan

Whoever You Are | 280L

Whoever You Are
Learning Goal
Identify similarities among people around the world in order to determine the theme of the story.
Necessary Materials
Provided:
  1. Detailed lesson plan
  2. Graphic organizer for guided practice
  3. Independent student worksheet

Not Provided:
Whoever You Are
 
  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 following student-friendly learning goal on the board, then read the learning goal out loud with the class:

We will learn what is the same about people all over the world.

 
Read pages 1-3 out loud, then stop. Page 3 ends with, “...all over the world.” Show students the accompanying illustrations. If possible, always show students the illustrations on the pages you read throughout the lesson.
1.
Teacher says (models thinking): The author begins this book with the words “little one.” Who could “little one” be? Looking at the pictures gives me an idea. There are drawings of little children on the pages we just read. That makes me think that when the author writes “little one,” the author means a little child.
 
Read page 4. Page 4 ends with, “...homes may be different from yours.”
2.
Teacher asks: There are little ones like you all over the world, but they are not exactly the same as you. We just read two ways they can be different. How can other children be different from you?
 

Students answer (both of the following responses should be given):

  • Their skin may be different from mine.

  • Their homes may be different from mine.

 
Read pages 5-9. Page 9 ends with, “...lands may be different from yours.”
3.
Teacher asks: We just read two more ways other children can be different from you. What are they?
 

Students answer (both of the following responses should be given):

  • Their schools may be different from mine.

  • Their lands may be different from mine.

 
Read pages 10 and 11. Page 11 ends with, “...very different from yours.”
4.
Teacher asks: How else can other children around the world be different from you?
 

Students answer (both of the following responses should be given):

  • Their lives may be different from mine.

  • Their words may be different from mine.

Read more
5.
Teacher asks (displaying illustration on page 11): Look at the words on the signs in this picture. Are they different from the words you use? If so, explain how they are different. If not, explain where you have used or seen these words before.
 

Students answer: Responses may vary. For example, students may respond that the shapes of the words are different from the words they use. On the other hand, students who know Chinese may respond that they have seen and spoken these words before.

 
Read pages 12 and 13. Page 13 ends with, “...all over the world.”
6.
Teacher asks: Now we have learned one way that you and other children are alike. How are other children all over the world the same as you?
 
Students answer: Their hearts are just like mine.
7.
Teacher says: Your heart is a part of your body inside your chest. It helps blood move through your body. People also use the word “heart” when talking about how they feel. When the author writes that other children’s hearts are just like yours, she could mean two things. She could mean that all children have hearts that help blood move through their bodies. She could also mean that other children have feelings, just like you.
 
Read pages 14 and 15. Page 15 ends with, “...laugh just like you.”
8.
Teacher asks: We just read two more ways that you and other children are alike. What are they?
 
Students answer (both of the following responses should be given):
  • Their smiles are like mine.
  • They laugh like me.
 
Read pages 16 and 17. Page 17 ends with, “...all over the world.”
9.
Teacher asks: How else are you and other children alike, according to the book?
 
Students answer (both of the following responses should be given):
  • Their hurts are like mine.
  • They cry like me.
 
Read pages 18-20. Page 20 ends with, “...wide world.”
10.
Teacher asks: The author writes that when you grow, you may be different from other people around the world. Based on what we have read, how might you be different from other people when you grow up?
 
Students respond: Responses may vary. Students may repeat points of difference previously mentioned in the book. For example: “When I grow up, I might have a different life and a different kind of home from other people.” Students may also use the differences mentioned earlier as the basis for inferences here, such as: “When I grow up, I might have a different job from other people.”
 
Finish reading the story.
11.
Teacher asks: The end of the book mentions several things that are the same for children and adults, wherever they are. What are some things the book says are the same for everyone?
 
Students answer: All of the following responses are acceptable. Make sure students give at least three.
  • Joys are the same for everyone.
  • Love is the same for everyone.
  • Pain is the same for everyone.
  • Blood is the same for everyone.
  • Smiles are the same for everyone.
  • Hearts are the same for everyone.
 

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.
 
Teacher says: We are going to go over some of the things the book described as being the same or different among children around the world.
1.
Teacher asks: The first thing is skin. Is everyone’s skin the same as yours, or is the skin of some people different?
 
Students answer: The skin of some people is different.
2.
Teacher asks: The next thing is a home. Is everyone’s home the same as yours, or are the homes of some people different?
 
Students answer: The homes of some people are different.
3.
Teacher asks: What about words? Does everybody use the same words to speak and write, or do some people use different kinds of words?
 
Students answer: Some people use different kinds of words.
4.
Teacher asks: What about hearts? Are other people’s hearts the same as yours or different?
 
Students answer: Other people’s hearts are the same as mine.
Read more
5.
Teacher asks: What about smiles? Are other people’s smiles the same as yours or different?
 
Students answer: Other people’s smiles are the same as mine.
6.
Teacher asks: What about pain? Do other people feel pain the same way you do, or not?
 
Students answer: Other people feel pain the same way I do.
 
After the answers for the graphic organizer have been completed and discussed with the class, ask the following three extension questions.
 

Teacher asks: Let’s think about the main idea of Whoever You Are. The main idea of a book is a statement that tells us what the book is mostly about. A lot of Whoever You Are is about the differences among people, but those differences are only part of the main idea. A lot of the book is about something else. What is Whoever You Are about besides the differences among people?

 
Students answer (responses may vary but should resemble the following): Whoever You Are is also about how people are the same.
 
Teacher asks: What is the main idea of Whoever You Are?
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, but students should get the gist of the author’s point: Although people may differ in their appearance and environment, they all experience the same feelings.
 
Teacher asks: What matters more, the ways people are the same or the ways they are different? Support your answer with information from the story.
 
Students answer: Responses may vary, as long as they are supported by the story. For example, students may respond that the ways people are the same matter more. How a person feels and acts has more to do with who that person really is than where he or she lives and goes to school. On the other hand, students may respond that the ways people are different matter more. If people live in different lands and speak different languages, they might never find out that they laugh the same way or have the same feelings as other people far away.
 

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.

Texts & Materials

Standards Alignment

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User Comments

Thanks for including the standards. It makes life much easier

Submitted by user380546_2330062 on 10/14/16

This is a wonderful lesson. It is very helpful for teachers everywhere.
Thank you so much. Keep up the good work!

Submitted by user380546_2330062 on 10/14/16

Modeling and guiding students to ask questions are great ways that lead to improved comprehension.

Submitted by fdlee_1921667 on 9/20/16

This is a great lesson for teaching students we are all the same and have equal rights. It is hard to great 5yr olds to understand this concept, but this is very easy to understand. Thank you!

Submitted by dmcka1_1893794 on 2/7/16

Nice job, although I have to translate it in Dutch for the kids in my class!

Submitted by caryn.huppertz on 2/3/16

excellent job

Submitted by mazed72_1476695 on 7/3/15