Before Reading

Lesson Plans for MAGNETISIM level P

Before Reading

Introducing the Book
Review the idea of cause and effect. Say: We are going to be reading a book about a scientific principle called Magnetism. Scientists discover things. They want to know "if we do this what happens and why does it happen." This is called cause and effect. We already know something about this idea. For example: What happens if I put my hand on a hot pan? What happens if forget to water my plant? What happens if I drop my pencil? Today we are going to learn about what would happen if there were no magnetism.

Bring (or have children bring) a variety of refrigerator magnets from home. Explain to children that they will be reading a book about magnetism. But before the reading begins, the class will talk about what they already know and conduct a short experiment.
Hold up several of the magnets so that they can see the magnet side. Ask: What is this called? What does it do? Have children wander around the classroom (outside if weather permits) trying to stick the magnets on various surfaces or to pick up small objects. Have children compare the strengths of different magnets by seeing how many paper clips a magnet will hold. Allow them to feel the force required to remove a weak magnet versus a strong magnet from a position. Once they have finished, make a list on the blackboard with two headings: Will stick to/ Will not stick to. Ask children to give suggestions for the list based on what they discovered.
Ask: What other uses do magnets have besides sticking things to the refrigerator? What happened when you put the magnet against wood?

Initiate a KWL chart. In the K section of the chart, entitled What We Know, write down all the uses for magnets that children know about and what they discovered during the experiment with refrigerator magnets. Include any incidental and correct information that children know about the topic.

In the W section of the chart, entitled What We Would Like to Know, list several questions that came up during the discover session. For example: Why does the magnet stick to some kinds of metal surfaces and not to others? What causes some magnets to be stronger than others? Why won’t the magnet stick to wood or glass? How are magnets made? What are they made of? What uses do they have besides sticking things to refrigerators? What can we do with magnets? What would happen if there were no magnetism? Encourage children to generate their own questions.

Before handing out the book, show the front and back covers, and the title page. Ask: What do you see on the front and back covers? What do you think the book will be about? What do you think we will learn?

Book Walk
Handout the book and let children follow along.

Table of contents. Ask: If we wanted information about Using Magnetism which page would we turn to?
Section headings. Ask: How many section headings are there?
Try this experiment page 9. Ask: What is this boy doing?
Glossary. Ask: How can the glossary help us to understand the book? Have children turn to the glossary and look at page 20. Ask: What is the definition of magnetism?

Reading Strategies
There are some new words in this text. Pronounce them and write them on the board before children begin reading. Instruct children to watch for key words as they read—magnet, attract, and lines of force—and instruct children that they will see variations such as magnetism or magnetic. If you are not reusing the books for other classes, have children underline these keywords with a highlighter.

Ask: How will the pictures help you understand the text? Instruct children to summarize what they see in the picture as they read to themselves.
Ask: What can you do if you see a new word that you don’t understand?

Think Aloud
Sometimes we see new words when we read. Today we will try one method, which is to write down the unfamiliar word and check the dictionary or ask someone later.

Have children write down any new and unfamiliar words on a sheet of paper, or have them start a small notebook containing new vocabulary words that they can use for future reading assignments.

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