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Unit Title: Wonders of Nature: Plants, Bugs and Frogs
Kindergarten/Quarter 4/Unit 6
Conceptual Lens: In this sixth nine-week unit of Kindergarten, students enjoy reading emergent-reader informational texts and listening as picture books by Eric Carle and Robert McCloskey are readaloud.
Author: commoncore.org/adapted by Randolph County Schools
Unit Overview: They build on the phonological and phonemic work done all year in Kindergarten by reading with support of teachers and peers. Focusing on relationships among ideas in texts, students see growth and change through the lens of both fiction and informational texts. Learning about “cause and effect,” students recognize interactions in nature and note the role people can play in preserving nature.
Stage 1 - Learning Goals for the Unit
Reading / Writing/Language / Additional Literacy
Whole Group
o  Define characters, setting and major events.
o  Identify the author and/or illustrator of books presented during author studies. (ex. Eric Carle and Robert McCloskey)
o  Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding.
o  Retell a story using key details. (who, what, when, where, why and how)
o  Make connections between two individuals, events, ideas or pieces of information in a text.
o  Identify how two texts on the same topic are alike or different.
Guided Reading
o  Recognize and read common sight words in a text.
o  Use pictures in text to read unknown words and understand the story.
o  Retell the story. / o  Produce an informational/nonfiction piece about a topic with at least 3 facts.
o  Use/explore a variety of digital tools to produce an informational/nonfiction piece with teacher and peers.
o  Provide written retell about information gathered from research through digital tools, read alouds, guided reading and/or self selected texts. / o  Identify the 5 major vowel sounds. (short and long)
o  Add or change beginning, middle, or end sounds to create new words. (ex. hat, cat, cap, cup)
o  Blend letter sounds to produce a word.
o  Segment sounds to produce the letter sounds heard in a word. (Say it slowly, write what you hear.)
o  Break words into syllables by clapping, snapping or counting.
o  Decode unknown words using grade level phonics and word analysis.
o  Understand words have multiple meanings. (Ex. duck is a noun or verb.)
o  Identify opposite of a word. (Ex. night/day)
o  Recognize words have a similar meaning. (Ex. run/trot)
Stage 2 – Assessment
Performance Task and Scoring Rubric
G.R.A.S.P.S
Performance Task:
Goal: Use a combination of drawing and writing to compose informative/nonfiction writing in which they state their topic write three facts about the topic.
Role: You are a zookeeper at the NC Zoo.
Audience: A group of kindergarten students who are visiting the zoo.
Situation: You must share 3 facts about one of the following living things: plants, bees, ants, butterflies, or frogs.
Product: You will create an All About Poster or Question and Answer that tells at least 3 facts about one of the following living things: plants, bees, ants, butterflies, or frogs.
Standards: Your poster must include:
·  At least 3 facts.
·  A detailed picture to match each fact.
·  Kindergarten sight words are spelled correctly.
·  Each fact must be easily read by others.
Rubric: *** TEACHERS WILL USE THE RCS RUBRIC TO SCORE AND PLACE IN LITERACY FOLDER***
Students should score a minimum of 14/20 on this assessment.
**Must be completed by May 17**
Stage 3 – Learning Experiences
Unit Progression
Week 1 / Week 2 / Week 3 / Week 4 / Week 5 / Week 6 / Week 7 / Week 8 / Week 9
Big Ideas / Apr 8-12
Living/
Non-living / Apr 15-19
Plants/Bees / Apr 22-26
Humans and Environment
*Earth Day* / Apr 29-May 3
Bugs / May 6-10
Ants and/or Butterflies / May 13-17
Life Cycle of Frogs / May 20-24
Frogs
of the Rainforest / May 28-31
Assessments / June 3-7
Assessments
Suggested read alouds to incorporate in classroom discussions and lessons:
Fiction
Picture Books
·  Days with Frog and Toad(Arnold Lobel) (EA)
·  The Carrot Seed (Ruth Krauss and Crockett Johnson)
·  The Tiny Seed (The World of Eric Carle) (Eric Carle)
·  A Tree is Nice (Janice May Udry and Marc Simont)
·  Time of Wonder (Robert McCloskey)
·  One Morning in Maine (Robert McCloskey)
·  Jack and the Beanstalk(Steven Kellogg)
·  Kate and the Beanstalk(Mary Pope Osborne and Giselle Potter)
·  There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly(Simms Taback)
·  Fireflies(Julie Brinckloe)
·  The Very Lonely Firefly(Eric Carle)
·  The Grouchy Ladybug (Eric Carle)
·  The Very Quiet Cricket (Eric Carle)
·  The Very Clumsy Click Beetle (Eric Carle)
·  It’s Earth Day(Mercer Mayer)
Poems
·  Two Tree Toads” in Orangutan Tongs: Poems to Tangle Your Tongue (Jon Agee) (E)
·  Selections from Insectlopedia (Douglas Florian)
·  “Little Black Bug” (Margaret Wise Brown)
·  “The Caterpillar” in Rossetti: Poems (Christina Rossetti) (EA)
·  “Trees” (Sarah Coleridge)
·  Over in the Meadow (John Langstaff and Feodor Rojankovsky) (E)
Nursery Rhymes
·  “Mary, Mary Quite Contrary”
·  “Ladybug, Ladybug”
Songs
·  “The Ants Go Marching One by One”
·  “Itsy Bitsy Spider” / ***Please feel free to use any other resources you feel will be appropriate for this unit. ***
Non –Fiction
Read Alouds
·  Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean(Arthur Dorros) (E)
·  “Our Good Earth” in National Geographic Young Explorer! (April 2009) (EA)
·  The Reasons for Seasons (Gail Gibbons) (EA)
·  The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree(Gail Gibbons) (EA)
·  Red-Eyed Tree Frog (Joy Cowley and Nic Bishop)
·  Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring the Earth to Life(Molly Bang and Penny Chisholm) (EA)
·  A Tree is a Plant(Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (Clyde Robert Bulla and Stacey Schuett) (E)
·  From Seed to Pumpkin(Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (Wendy Pfeffer and James Graham Hale) (E)
·  From Tadpole to Frog(Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (Wendy Pfeffer and Holly Keller) (E Series)
·  From Caterpillar to Butterfly (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (Deborah Heiligman and Bari Weissman) (E Series)
·  How a Seed Grows(Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (Helene J. Jordan and Loretta Krupinski) (E Series)
·  Frogs and Toads and Tadpoles, Too! (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  From Seed to Plant(Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Taking Root (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Inside an Ant Colony (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Maple Trees (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Pine Trees (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Cactuses (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  It Could Still Be a Flower (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Plants That Eat Animals (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  It’s a Good Thing There are Insects (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Spiders Are Not Insects (Rookie Read-About Science) (Allan Fowler)
·  Earth Day (Rookie Read-About Holidays) (Trudi Strain Trueit)
Art
·  Claude Monet, Water Lilies (The Clouds) (1903)
·  Claude Monet, Water Lilies (1906)
·  Claude Monet, Water Lilies (1916-1923)
Media/Technology
·  World Book Encyclopedia Online
·  Brainpopjr.com
·  Discovery Streaming
WEEK 1
Reading/
Whole Group Shared Reading / Comprehension Tool Kit Lessons
Activate and Connect
Lesson 5: Think about What You Know About Living/Nonliving Things / Standards
RL. K. 10
Actively engage in group activities with purpose and understanding. / “I Can” Statements
I can make a list of living and nonliving things.
Essential Questions
What are some examples of living and nonliving things?
Jan Richardson Strategies: To be used during guided reading but reinforced during whole group activities.
Suggested to work on:
·  Making Connections: Text to Self, Text to Text, and Text to World
·  Making Predictions
·  Fiction or Nonfiction
·  Facts vs. Opinion
·  Cause and Effect
·  Retell
·  Story Elements
**Use only one of the above per week during whole group activities** / Standards
RL.K.10/RI. K.10
Actively engage in group activities with purpose and understanding.
RI. K.3
With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text. / “I Can” Statements
I can state a fact.
I can make a text to self connection.
I can determine fiction or nonfiction.
I can make a logical prediction.
I can retell the story.
Essential Questions
Can I retell the story?
What do good readers do?
Phonics/Spelling/Word Work
Continue to teach and/or review word families.
Teach remaining 4th quarter spelling words while reviewing previous words.
Encourage students to use word wall words within their writing.
Teach capitalization of beginning of the sentence, the pronoun I, and special names.
Review punctuation of sentences. (Hold students accountable for ending marks)
Continue to teach short vowel sounds. (Words Their Way: Sort #34)
Students should be spelling unknown words by saying them slowly and writing the beginning, medial, and ending sounds. / Standards
L.K. 1
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
L.K. 2
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. / “I Can” Statements
I can capitalize the first word in the sentence, the pronoun I, and a special name.
I can use punctuation at the end of my sentence.
I can spell words by matching sounds to letters.
I can write sentences that can be easily by others.
Essential Questions
Does my writing have a capital letter at the beginning and a punctuation mark at the end?
Do the words in my story have a beginning, middle, and ending sound?
Writer’s Workshop / Suggested Activities:
Shared Interactive Writing: How do we know something is living or nonliving?
Students make a list of living and nonliving things.
Students compare a living and nonliving thing.
**Continue to have students write one small moment story each week.**
Refer to the language standards found in Phonics/Spelling/Word Work section as it describes which conventions students should use during daily writing. / Standards
W.K.5
With guidance and support from adults, responds to questions and suggestions from peers and add details to strengthen writing as needed.
W.K. 6
With guidance and support from adults, explore a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers. / “I Can” Statements
I can listen to ideas from teachers and peers about my writing and add details to make it better.
I can learn about using digital tools to publish my writing.
Essential Questions
What can I do to make my story better?
What other tools can I use to “write” my story?
Social Studies/Science
Content Integration / Suggested Lessons:
*Integrated throughout the day
KWL Chart
Read a book about living and nonliving things. Some suggested books are:
·  What is a living thing? (Science of Living Things) by Bobbie Kalman
·  Living and Nonliving (My World of Science) by Angela Royston
·  What’s alive? (Read and Find out Science) by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
Make a list of living and nonliving things
Sorting activity: living and nonliving
Appropriate Scholastic News/Weekly Readers/Time for Kids Magazines / Standards
K. L. 1.2
Compare characteristics of living and nonliving things in terms of their:
• Structure
• Growth
• Changes
• Movement
• Basic needs
K.H.1
Understand change over time. / “I Can” Statements
I can name a nonliving thing.
I can name a living thing.
I can compare a living and nonliving thing?
Essential Questions
What is the difference between living and nonliving?
WEEK 2
Reading/
Whole Group Shared Reading / Comprehension Tool Kit Lessons
Monitor Comprehension
Lesson 2: Notice and Think about Nonfiction Features
Resource:
Explorations in Non-fiction Writing
Tony Stead and Linda Hoyt
Crickets pgs. 2-7 / Standards
RL. K. 10
Actively engage in group activities with purpose and understanding. / “I Can” Statements
I can identify a nonfiction feature.
Essential Questions
What is a nonfiction feature?
Jan Richardson Strategies: To be used during guided reading but reinforced during whole group activities.
Suggested to work on:
·  Making Connections: Text to Self, Text to Text, and Text to World
·  Making Predictions
·  Fiction or Nonfiction
·  Facts vs. Opinion
·  Cause and Effect
·  Retell
·  Story Elements
**Use only one of the above per week during whole group activities** / Standards
RL.K.10/RI. K.10
Actively engage in group activities with purpose and understanding.
RI. K.3
With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text. / “I Can” Statements
I can state a fact.
I can make a text to self connection.
I can determine fiction or nonfiction.
I can make a logical prediction.
I can retell the story.
Essential Questions
Can I retell the story?
What do good readers do?
Phonics/Spelling/Word Work
Continue to teach and review word families.
Teach remaining 4th quarter spelling words while reviewing previous words.
Encourage students to use word wall words within their writing.
Teach capitalization of beginning of the sentence, the pronoun I, and special names.
Review punctuation of sentences. (Hold students accountable for ending marks)
Continue to teach short vowel sounds. (Words Their Way: Sort #35)
Students should be spelling unknown words by saying them slowly and writing the beginning, medial, and ending sounds. / Standards
L.K. 1
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
L.K. 2
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. / “I Can” Statements
I can capitalize the first word in the sentence, the pronoun I, and a special name.
I can use punctuation at the end of my sentence.
I can spell words by matching sounds to letters.
I can write sentences that can be easily read by others.
Essential Questions
Does my writing have a capital letter at the beginning and a punctuation mark at the end?
Do the words in my story have a beginning, middle, and ending sound?
Writer’s Workshop / Suggested Activities:
Students label the parts of a plant and what plants need.
All About Poster: Plants and/or Bees
Shared Interactive Writing: How do plants and bees help one another?
Sequence the life of a plant with a matching sentence.
**Continue to have students write one small moment story each week.**