About the Book 

Text Type: Nonfiction/Informational
Page Count: 10
Word Count: 18

Book Summary
In The School, students use photographs to identify the parts of a school. A simple map of the school is also included. The simple repetitive phrases, supportive photos, and use of the high-frequency word the make this book perfect for the beginning reader.

About the Lesson 

Targeted Reading Strategy

• Connect to prior knowledge

Objectives

• Use the reading strategy of connecting to prior knowledge to understand text
• Identify main idea and details
• Discriminate initial sound /l/
• Identify initial consonant Ll
• Identify capital letters at the beginning of sentences
• Locate compound words

Materials

• Book -- The School (copy for each student)
• Chalkboard or dry erase board
• Main idea and details, initial consonant Ll, capitalization worksheets

   Indicates an opportunity for student to mark in the book. (All activities may be completed with paper and pencil if books are reusable.)

Vocabulary

• High-frequency word: the
• Content words: art, classroom, gym, library, lunchroom, music, playground, room, school

Before Reading 

Build Background

• Write the word school on the board and point to the word as you read it aloud to students. Repeat the process and have students say the word aloud.
• Invite students to name parts of a school and to tell what they do in each part.

Book Walk

Introduce the Book

• Show students the front and back covers of the book and read the title with them. Ask what they think they might read about in a book called The School. (Accept all answers students can justify.)
• Show students the title page. Discuss the information on the page (title of book, author's name).
• Write the following repetitive phrase on the board: The ____ room. Read the phrase aloud, pointing to the words as you read them to students. Have students read them aloud. Explain to them that these words repeat throughout the book.

Introduce the Reading Strategy: Connect to prior knowledge

• Explain to students that good readers make connections between what they already know and new information they read. Remind them that thinking about what they already know about the topic of the book will help them understand what they read.
• Model connecting to prior knowledge using the information on the covers.
  Think-aloud: When I look at the front cover of The School, I see the front of a building. Since the title of the book is The School, the building is probably a school. I can see the front doors. I know that this is the part of the school where students enter the building each day. Many activities take place at school: students eat breakfast and lunch, they go to class and learn, and they check out books in the library. I know that the school has different parts for each of these activities. The information I already know about school and the activities that take place there will help me read and understand the information in the book.
• As students read, encourage them to use other reading strategies in addition to the targeted strategy presented in this section. For tips on additional reading strategies, click here.

Introduce the Comprehension Skill: Main idea and details

• Explain to students that every book has a big, or main, idea, which is what the book is mostly about. Read the title to students. Explain to them that the title often provides clues about the book's main idea. Invite students to share predictions about the main idea of this book.
• Explain to students that the main, or big, idea of this book is: There are many parts to a school. Write the following sentence on the board: There are many parts to a school. Point to each word as you read the sentence aloud with students.
• Model how to identify details.
  Think-aloud: I know that every book has details that help explain the big idea. I know that this book is about the many parts of a school. I see a picture of two boys on the title page. I also see a woman standing behind them. The boys have paper and crayons in front of them, and they look as if they are doing work on the paper. I think the woman behind them might be a teacher. I know that children do work with their teacher in a classroom. Since this type of room helps to explain the big idea, the classroom might be a detail in the book.
• Review the parts of a school and the things that take place in them that were discussed in the Build Background section. List these ideas on the board. Discuss whether any of these places might be details in the story.

Introduce the Vocabulary

• While previewing the book with students, reinforce the vocabulary words they will encounter. For example, while looking at the picture on page 4, you might say: The children are playing instruments and making music. This must be the music room.
• Remind students to look at the picture and the letters with which a word begins or ends to figure out a difficult word. For example, point to the word lunchroom on page 6 and say: I am going to check the picture and think about what would make sense to figure out this word. The picture shows the children getting their trays in the cafeteria. When I look at the first part of the word, it starts like /l/. However, the word cafeteria starts with the /k/ sound, so this can't be the word. I know that a cafeteria can also be called a lunchroom. The word lunchroom starts with the /l/ sound. The sentence makes sense with this word. The word must be lunchroom.
• For additional tips on teaching high-frequency words and word-attack strategies, click here.

Set the Purpose

• Have students use what they already know about the parts of a school to help them read the book. Remind them to think about the details that support the main idea as they read.

During Reading 

Student Reading

• Guide the reading: Give students their copy of the book. Have a volunteer point to the first word on page 3 (The). Point out to students where to begin reading on each page. Remind them to read the words from left to right.
• Ask students to place a finger on the page number in the bottom corner of the page. Have them read to the end of page 5, using their finger to point to each word as they read. Encourage students who finish before others to reread the text.
• Model connecting to prior knowledge.
  Think-aloud: On page 5, I see children painting pictures. The children are wearing shirts backwards. I know that paint can be very messy and can sometimes leave marks on your clothes that don't come off. Painters often wear something over their clothes to keep the paint from getting on them. This reminds me of the artwork I see created in the art room. This room must be the art room.
• Invite students to share how they connected with what they already knew as they read.
• Review the main idea of the book: There are many parts to a school. Ask students to explain whether the art room is a detail that supports the main idea of the book and why (yes; the art room is a part of a school).
• Introduce and explain the main idea and details worksheet. Write the words art room on the board. Have students write the word and draw a picture that represents the art room in one of the spaces on their worksheet.
• Check for understanding: Have students read to the end of page 8. Encourage them to share how they connected to prior knowledge as they read. (Accept all answers that show students understand how to connect to prior knowledge.)
• Ask students to think about other details they read that support the main idea There are many parts in a school. Have them choose one of the details to draw on their worksheet. Ask them to label their drawing using the word from the book. Have students share the detail they drew and wrote about.
• Have students read the remainder of the book. Remind them to use what they already know about the parts of a school to help them understand new information as they read.

    Have students make a small question mark in their book beside any word they do not understand or cannot pronounce. These can be addressed in the discussion that follows.

After Reading 

Reflect on the Reading Strategy

• Ask students what words, if any, they marked in their book. Use this opportunity to model how they can read these words using decoding strategies and context clues.
• Think-aloud: When I read page 9, I thought about the parts of a school and what people do in each part. The picture shows a place where children are playing in the sand and climbing a ladder. I also see a slide and some swings. I know when children play outside, they are usually at recess. Recess takes place on a playground, so this must be the playground. I used what I already knew to read this page and better understand the story.
• Have students draw a picture on a separate piece of paper showing how they connected to prior knowledge when reading about one of the parts of the school in the book. Invite them to explain their picture to the rest of the class.
• Ask students to explain how thinking about what they already knew helped them to understand and remember the information in the book.

Reflect on the Comprehension Skill

• Discussion: Read the main idea on the board with students. Review the details students drew on their worksheet. Invite them to explain why each of the details on their worksheet matches the main idea of the story.
• Independent practice: Have students complete the main idea and details worksheet.
• Enduring understanding: In this story, you learned about the many parts of a school and what students do in each part. Now that you know this information, why are different kinds of learning activities important in a school?

Build Skills 

Phonological Awareness: Discriminate initial sound /l/

• Say the word library aloud to students, emphasizing the initial /l/ sound. Have students say the word aloud and then say the initial /l/ sound.
• Read pages 6 and 7 aloud to students. Have them clap their hands when they hear a word that begins with the /l/ sound.
• Check for understanding: Say the following words aloud one at a time and have students give the thumbs-up signal if the word begins with the /l/ sound: ladder, boy, like, mail, truck, lizard.

Phonics: Identify initial consonant Ll

• Write the word library on the board and say the word aloud with students.
• Have students say the /l/ sound aloud. Then run your finger under the letters in the word as students say the word aloud. Ask students what letter stands for the /l/ sound in the word library.
• Have students practice writing the letter Ll on a separate piece of paper as they say the sound of the letter.
• Check for understanding: Write the following words that begin with the letter Ll on the board, leaving off the initial consonant: log, let, lap, like. Say each word and have volunteers come to the board to add the initial consonant Ll to the words.
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the initial consonant Ll worksheet. If time allows, discuss their responses.

Grammar and Mechanics: Capitalization

• Write the following sentence on the board: The classroom is big. Read the sentence aloud with students. Explain to them that every sentence has a signal at the beginning so readers will know where to start reading. Underline the capital letter in the word The and explain that the capital letter is a signal that a new sentence is beginning. Emphasize to students that all sentences begin with capital letters.
• Ask volunteers to tell something about a part of the school. Write their sentences on the board, leaving off the initial capital letters. Have volunteers come to the board and add the capital letters to the beginning of the sentences.

    Check for understanding: Have students reread the book and highlight the initial capital letters.

• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the capitalization worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.

Word Work: Closed compound words

• Write the word classroom on the board. Read the word aloud with students. Ask them to identify two words they know within the word classroom. Underline the word class and the word room.
• Explain to students that some words are made by combining two words to make one new word. Explain to them that these words are called compound words. Have students say the word classroom aloud. Draw a line to segment classroom into class/room.
• Explain to students that the meaning of each smaller word helps to explain the meaning of the whole word. Discuss with students the meaning of the word classroom using the meanings of the smaller words (a room for a class).
• Check for understanding: Write the words lunchroom and playground on separate index cards. Read the words aloud with students. Then cut the compound word on each card into its two individual words. Have students use what they know about each smaller word to tell the meaning of each compound word.

Build Fluency 

Independent Reading

• Allow students to read their book independently. Additionally, partners can take turns reading parts of the book to each other.

Home Connection

• Give students their book to take home to read with parents, caregivers, siblings, or friends. Have them share with someone at home how they connected with what they already knew as they read the book together.

Extend the Reading 

Expository Writing and Art Connection
Have students draw a room in their school on a separate piece of paper. Have them write a sentence to tell what room they drew. Combine the pages into a class book. Reinforce capital letters and the high-frequency word the.

Social Studies Connection
Take a tour of the school building and keep a list of the rooms visited. Return to the classroom and make a map of the school building. Label the rooms and discuss how the map is like the map on page 10 in the book.

Assessment 

Monitor students to determine if they can:

• consistently connect to prior knowledge to understand text
• accurately identify the main idea and details during discussion and on a worksheet
• correctly discriminate between words that begin with the /l/ sound
• accurately identify and write the letter symbol that stands for the /l/ sound during discussion and on a worksheet
• correctly identify capital letters at the beginning of sentences during discussion and on a worksheet
• correctly identify the two words joined together in compound words during discussion

Comprehension Check

• Retelling Rubric

Go to "The School" main page