Preview Collins Big Cat Whole-class Reading Handbook - Blue to Turquoise

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Complete teaching and assessment support

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Whole-class Reading Handbook

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Series Editor: Gill Matthews

Top Dinosaurs Book Band: Blue This information book looks at five different dinosaurs and explores their contrasting characteristics.

Skills focus • Draw on knowledge of vocabulary to understand texts • Identify/explain key aspects of fiction and non-fiction texts, e.g. character, events, title

• Make inferences from texts • Check reading makes sense

Whole-class reading session You will need • Multiple copies of Collins Big Cat Top Dinosaurs • A tub of plastic dinosaurs for sorting (different colours and sizes)

Tune in Pour a tub of plastic dinosaurs on to the table. Can the children sort the dinosaurs in different ways (for example, by size, by colour)? Explain that there were lots of different types of dinosaurs. Tell the children that you are all going to read a book about some dinosaurs now. It is an information book.

Begin by looking at the back cover. Model reading the title. Read the blurb. Ask children to find and point to any high frequency words they know (‘some’, ‘were’, ‘out’). Look at the pictures on the back cover.

Ask the following questions: • Which dinosaur is tall?

• Which one is small?

• Which one do you think is scary?

Turn to the front cover.

Ask the following questions: • Does anyone know what type of dinosaur this is?

(Tyrannosaurus rex) • Can you describe the dinosaur? What does it look like?

• What do you think its skin would feel like?

• On what page can we find out about the Brachiosaurus? (page 6) Look at how to pronounce the dinosaur names at the top of each double-page spread.

Heads together Ask children to look at pages 2 and 3 together.

Ask the following questions: • Do you know any of the dinosaurs on these pages?

• Which dinosaur is the smallest? (Compsognathus) • Which dinosaur is the tallest? (Brachiosaurus) • Which dinosaur is the scariest? (Tyrannosaurus rex) Point out the labels as a feature of information books.

Model reading the text.

On pages 4 and 5, recap strategies they can use to help with their reading: segmenting and blending the words ‘sharp’ sh-ar-p, ‘teeth’ t-ee-th, ‘long’ l-o-ng, ‘short’ sh-or-t, high frequency words (‘these’, ‘they’, ‘had’, ‘but’, ‘why), using picture cues (ask children to point to the long, sharp teeth and the short arms) and checking for sense. Show the children the brackets on page 4 and explain that the segmented word inside the brackets tells us how to pronounce the name.

Give each pair of Reading Partners a dinosaur to find out about (Brachiosaurus, Compsognathus and Velociraptor).

Can the children use the contents to find which page they need? Can they describe their dinosaur? Remind them to use the different strategies to read the text.

Give the children an opportunity to share any knowledge about dinosaurs. Do they know any stories about dinosaurs?

Ask each pair to feed back to the rest of the group what they have learned about their dinosaur.

Look at the contents page. Explain that information books often have a contents page. It is a list of the headings in the book and what page they are on. A ‘heading’ is the title of the page. Read the contents together. Explain that they are names of dinosaurs.

Ask the following questions: • What do you think the Compsognathus would have been like?

• Would you have liked to meet one?

Ask the following questions: • On what page can we learn about Velociraptors? (page 10)

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Look at pages 8 and 9 together.

Wrap up Explore some of the similes in the book. Explain that a simile is a way of comparing something to something

© HarperCollinsPublishers 2018

Big Cat Whole-class Reading Handbook: Blue to Turquoise else. Look at page 11: ‘They could run as fast as cars’.

Ask children to make up their own similes: • They could run as fast as…

• They were as small as…

• They were as tall as…

and bullet points) Explain that bullet points are used to list main facts as they are quick and easy to read. Ask children to point to the heading. Can they point to the labels? Can they point to the bullet points?

Look at pages 14 and 15 together. Discuss the features of an information text. (contents page, heading, labels

Ask: What do you think it would have been like to meet a dinosaur?

Recap what the children learned about each dinosaur.

Vocabulary boost session You will need • Multiple copies of Collins Big Cat Top Dinosaurs

• A selection of information books with contents pages

Vocabulary table Focus word Child-friendly explanation

Example sentence

heading

A title for the page in an information book.

I wrote the heading in large Tell me what headings are used in letters. this book.

contents

A list of topics in the book.

I found ‘Tyrannosaurus rex’ Tell me which page tells us on the contents page. about the Stegosaurus. Use the contents to find the page number.

similes

A simile is a phrase that compares This is a simile about a Can you think of a simile? an item to something else. It says a green t-shirt: His t-shirt The dinosaur was as tall as... thing is like something else. was as green as the grass.

Tune in Explain that in this lesson the children are going to look in more detail at some words linked to the text.

Write the three focus words clearly for the children to see. Read the words together. Discuss and explain the child-friendly meaning of each word.

Reread the text. Revise the contents page together.

Ask: What is a contents page for?

Find and point to the heading on each page in the book.

Look at pages 6 and 7. Reread the text. Ask children to find and discuss the similes: ‘They were as tall as houses’ and ‘They were as heavy as 15 elephants’.

Tell me…

Name something that you know is from the book and ask children to find out what page it is on.

Ask children to make up some similes. Write their suggestions on the board, for example: • The teeth were as pointy as…

• The arms were as small as…

• The dinosaur was as scary as…

• The dinosaur was as tall as…

• The skin was as bumpy as…

• The claws were as sharp as…

Wrap up

Heads together

Recap the three focus words by discussing the questions in the ‘Tell me’ column of the table, above.

Ask children to explore and look at a selection of information books. Can they find the contents pages?

Challenge the children to think of a sentence using one of the focus words.

Follow-up independent sessions You will need • • • •

Resource sheet: My favourite dinosaur Resource sheet: Dinosaur facts A selection of non-fiction texts about dinosaurs Coloured pencils

Hand out a copy of Resource sheet: My favourite dinosaur, to each child. They choose their favourite © HarperCollinsPublishers 2018

dinosaur and draw and label a picture of it. They then write words or sentences to describe it.

Let the children explore a selection of non-fiction texts about dinosaurs. They choose one dinosaur to find out about. How many facts can they find? They record the facts on Resource sheet: Dinosaur facts and write two ‘Did you know?’ sentences to read to the group.

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Talk Talk Talk Book Band: Blue In this traditional story, Bill wants someone to talk to. When a giant bottom turns up, followed by giant legs, tummy, chest, arms and head, Bill finally gets a big new friend.

Skills focus • Draw on knowledge of vocabulary to understand texts • Identify/explain the sequence of events in texts

• Make inferences from texts • Read words accurately and fluently

Whole-class reading session You will need • Multiple copies of Collins Big Cat Talk Talk Talk • Flashcards of the high frequency words: ‘I’, ‘had’, ‘to’, ‘said’, ‘came’, ‘in’, ‘and’, ‘down’, ‘two’, ‘on’, ‘it’, ‘then’, ‘a’, ‘which’, ‘of’, ‘lot’, ‘the’, ‘there’, ‘after’, ‘that’, ‘was’, ‘all’, ‘day’

Tune in Begin the lesson by relating to the children’s own experiences.

Ask the following questions: • Who likes talking?

• What do you like talking about?

• Who do you like talking to?

• When do you like talking?

• Do you like talking to people on the phone, on the computer or in person?

• When can you not talk?

Introduce the book by exploring the front cover.

Ask the following questions: • Who do you think this character could be?

• Who might be coming through the door?

Look at the title page and discuss who the illustrator is and what they do. Consider what ‘retold’ the story means.

Turn over the book and read the blurb. Recap that a blurb tells us more about the book.

Ask the following questions: • Can you predict who might be coming in to talk to him?

• Why do you think the words ‘wish’ and ‘him’ are in capital letters? (to emphasise these words) • Look closely at the picture on the back – how do you think Bill is feeling? (bored, lonely) Play a matching game with two sets of the high frequency word flashcards (‘Snap!’ or pelmanism).

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Discuss strategies the children can use to help with their reading: picture cues, high frequency words, segmenting and blending, checking it makes sense.

Heads together Begin by reading pages 2 and 3 together. Model reading fluently.

Ask the following questions: • How do you think Bill is feeling? (fed up, bored, lonely) • Why does he want someone to talk to? (to play with him, cheer him up) Show the children how to split the compound word ‘some/one’ to make it easier to read.

Explore pages 4 and 5 together.

Ask: How do you think Bill felt when he saw the giant bottom?

Can the children predict what will come through the door next? Discuss body parts and write the words ‘legs’, ‘tummy’, ‘chest’, ‘arms’ and ‘head’ on the board for children to practise reading.

Ask children to continue reading the text to page 13.

Can they find out what happens next? How does Bill react? Listen to each child read and support where needed.

Wrap up Discuss what Bill and the giant might talk about. Ask children to imagine a conversation between Bill and the giant: what would they say?

Ask the following questions: • Do you think the giant is real?

• Where do you think he came from?

Consider the fact that he could be imaginary – can the children think of other books or TV characters that have imaginary friends?

Look closely at the flow chart on pages 14 and 15 to identify how the giant evolved, piece by piece.

© HarperCollinsPublishers 2018

Big Cat Whole-class Reading Handbook: Blue to Turquoise

Vocabulary boost session You will need • Multiple copies of Collins Big Cat Talk Talk Talk

• Resource sheet: The giant

Vocabulary table Focus word Child-friendly explanation

Example sentence

Tell me…

giant

If something is giant, it is very big.

I had a giant ice-cream Tell me some words that mean ‘giant’. for pudding.

discuss

If you discuss something, you talk about it.

We discussed the book.

body parts

Parts of your body, for Can you label the body Tell me what animal has the following example, legs, arms, tummy, parts? body parts: four legs, a tail, a head, ears chest, head and neck. and an extra-long neck.

Tell me some words that mean ‘discussed’.

Tune in

Look at the front cover. Ask children to read the title.

Explain that in this lesson the children are going to look in more detail at some words linked to the text.

Write the three focus words clearly for the children to see. Read the words together. Discuss and explain the child-friendly meaning of each word.

Ask: Can they think of any words that mean ‘talk’? (discuss, chat, dialogue, speak, have a conversation)

Reread the text.

Ask: What body parts are listed in the book? (bottom, legs, tummy, chest, arms, head) Challenge the children to find the word ‘giant’. (page 5)

Heads together Hand out copies of Resource sheet: The giant. Can the children name and label the body parts?

Wrap up Recap the three focus words by discussing the questions in the ‘Tell me’ column of the table, above.

Challenge children to think of a sentence using one of the focus words.

Follow-up independent sessions You will need • Resource sheet: Flow chart • Coloured pencils

© HarperCollinsPublishers 2018

Ask children to create their own giant/friend/creature/ character to talk to using Resource sheet: Flow chart.

Hot-seating: The children interview the giant or Bill. Encourage the children to think of interesting questions using ‘How?’, ‘What?’, ‘Why?’, ‘Where?’, ‘When?’.

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