26 minute read
Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide
Research says...
“Knowledge about letters—their shapes, their names, and their linguistic functions—plays an important role in the development of reading and spelling ability” (Trieman et al., 2008).
Here’s an overview of the Letter Learning Lesson to use with the Student Letter Books.
Words to Watch
Use the categories of words to guide your planning and inform your in-the-moment instructional decisions. The words are listed in the order they appear in the book. • Target Words in the Text: Words that begin with or include the target letter sound. • Decodable Words: CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant), VC (vowel-consonant), and words with –s or –es suffixes, final double consonant sounds, and –ck endings. Encourage children to sound out these words if they are ready. • Sight Words: Irregularly spelled high-frequency words.
Children might be able to read some of these words. • Story Words: Non decodable and non-sight words that tie the language together. You should read these aloud. • Target Words in Picture: Illustrations in the book that start with the target sound. Use this list to see if children can find all the pictured words with target letter sounds.
Before Reading
• A quick phonemic awareness activity and introduction of the letter name, sound, and form will prime children for learning about the target letter and sound in the story. • Use the first four pages of the Student Letter Book to explicitly teach the target letter and introduce the story. • Use our digital resources or the Letter Formation chart in the back of the practice book for handwriting formation language. • Guide children to notice the target letter and sound in their names and the names of friends. Research shows that this identity-connection of letters in names supports children’s recognition of letters in words they encounter. • Setting a purpose will focus the children on their job as you read the story.
Cc
Letter Learning
BACKGROUND
Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Cc. Exemplar Word coconut Letter Chant capital C, lowercase c, /k/, coconut About This Book This story is about a girl named Cora, who tries to get a coconut so she can make a treat from it. This book includes a number of words that begin with Cc. About This Letter This book focuses on the hard sound for the letter c rather than soft c. When c is followed by e, i, or y, it usually has a soft sound: /s/. When c is followed by any other letter, it has a hard sound: /k/. Also note that most Cc words in the book are followed by a vowel; one exception is the word crack, which begins with a consonant blend.
WORDS TO WATCH
Target Words in the Text coconut, come, Cora, can, cat, car, cool, cut, cook, (with cr blend: crack) Decodable Words will, it, gets, can, cat, fell, cut, yum Sight Words a, the Story Words look, down Target Words in Pictures coconut, curls, can, cat, cart, carrots, corn, cassava, collards, car, camera, cane, cantaloupe, counter, cup, curtains, cookie
BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)
Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness
• Say the sound: /k/. Ask children to say it with you. • Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds. • Say: If you hear the /k/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: cat, monkey, goat, collards, cut.
Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter
• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version . • Have children find each capital C. Read the title, Cora and the
Coconut, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that C stands for the /k/ sound. • Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital C and lowercase c, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books. • Talk about names that start with C, like Cora. Note that some
C names begin with the /k/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /ch/ in Charlie.
Set the Purpose
• Go to p. 3. Point to the coconut picture. Remind children that a coconut is a fruit that grows on trees. • Have children say the word coconut with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word coconut, think of the /k/ sound that stands for c. • Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story.
The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.
ELL Scaffold
Multiple-Meaning Words: Prepare children for multiple-meaning words in the story: can, will, cool. Children may know that can means “be able to.” Point out that on p. 5, can means a kind of metal container. Talk about kinds of cans, such as a paint can and a can of soup.
Multimodal Learning
Speaking: Bring in objects or print pictures of words from the story that start with Cc: can, cat, car, cane, cup. Label each. Have children take turns asking and answering questions using these sentence frames: Do you have a ___? Yes, I have a ___.
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Before Reading If...
Children incorrectly identify the beginning sound in words in the quick phonemic awareness activity
Children are not recognizing the name of the letter, the letter’s sound, or the capital and lowercase form
Then...
Take note of which children are not yet hearing sounds so you can group them for extra support. • Use the Phonological Awareness and Phonics activity for continued practice hearing not only phonemes but also syllables and onset-rime. • Use the exemplar word as a reminder of the target sound. • Use the practice book to monitor progress on identifying pictures for sounds.
Take note of which children are not yet recognizing or forming letters to group them for more support. • Use the Letter Formation chart in the back of the practice book and model, with Handwriting Without
Tears formation language. • Use labels for objects around the room, and encourage children to search for letters and say their names and sounds.
Research says...
“Alphabetical knowledge is multifaceted and involves names, sounds, and physical formations of letters. All are important to early reading development” (Reed, 2021).
During Reading
• Read aloud first for children to hear and enjoy the story. • Read a second time as an interactive read-aloud or a shared reading, depending on the readiness of the group. On this read, focus on the target letter sound. • Use prompts for Emerging and Developing Readers to differentiate letter, sound, and word observations in the book with a focus on the alphabet, as well as phonological and phonemic awareness. To determine how to group students, refer to Differentiated Instruction on p. 20.
After Reading
• Use the last page of the Student Letter Book to guide a letter hunt and discussion about target words. This prepares children for independent work in the practice book.
Phonological Awareness & Phonics
• Extend children’s learning by using words from the book, along with other words with the target letter sound, to practice differentiated phonological and phonemic awareness skills. Letter Learning Cc
DURING READING (5–7 minutes)
First Read: Read Aloud
• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Cora wants a coconut. • Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page. • Ask: Why does Cora want a coconut? (to eat it; to make coconut cookies)
Second Read: Read Along
• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book. • Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Cc. Emerging Readers • Have children listen and follow as you read. • Children can make a C shape with their left hand when they hear or see a Cc word. Stop to find words that begin with Cc. • Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 6: I notice a word with lowercase c on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with man. Read it with me. (can) o p. 10: There are two Cc words on this page.
One has a lowercase c and one has a capital C. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Cool, coconut) o pp. 13–14: Find two words that start with c on these pages. Point to them. Say them with me. (cut, cook) Developing Readers • Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own. • Children can search for words that begin with capital C and lowercase c as they read. Invite volunteers to read Cc words they know. • Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 4: How many times do you hear the /k/ sound in coconut? (two) Have children find c twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds. o p. 6: A word on this page starts with /k/ and ends with an. What is it? (can) o pp. 13–14: There are two things that the characters do with the coconut. Both start with /k/. What are they? (cut, cook)
AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)
Oral Language: Review Alphabet
• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 15 of the student book. Invite children to answer them. • Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Cc in the story and the pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak. • Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Cc on their own. Turn to p. 48 to prepare children for using the practice book.
PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS
Emerging Readers Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Cora, can, cantaloupe, cookie, car, carrot, cane, camera. Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: can: /k/-/an/, cat: /k/-/at/, cap: /k/-/ap/.
Developing Readers Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: cat, cut, cot, cap, cab, can, cub, cup, cut.
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During Reading
After Reading
Phonological Awareness and Phonics If...
Children are ready to read some words on their own
Children are still learning left-to-right directionality or voice-print-match
Then...
• Encourage them to read with you—chorally, whispering, or echoing your model reading. • Read partial sentences and stop at decodable and sight words to ask children to read them. • Offer decoding support by having children identify initial, medial, and final sounds that they blend.
• Model and think aloud to demonstrate concepts about print. • Watch for proper book handling and tracking. Point to the words as you read them.
Children are uncomfortable or not yet ready to discuss their observations about letters in a group • Pair children for more personal conversations as they revisit the book. • Provide and model sentence frames to build confidence in oral language.
Children are not breaking words into parts, or segmenting by syllables, onsets and rimes, or phonemes
Children are not yet decoding words with the target sound • Have children try more actions, such as stomping, to “feel” the syllables, or beats, in the words. • Look at objects around the room and name them by just the onset, having children say the rime. • Say children’s names that start or end with the target sound, and have children practice isolating that sound.
• Challenge them to spell the words either on paper or orally. • Encourage them to tap out each sound as they say and spell the word.
Research says...
“After all, reading, as a language process, focuses on meaning. Humans—young and old—consistently approach language interactions—oral and written—with the expectation that there will be meaning” (Hiebert, 2017).
This is what you can expect from each Meaning Making lesson.
Before Reading
• Each story builds knowledge about a place, a topic, or a concept.
The Build Knowledge section of the lesson highlights potentially challenging topics in the text. Use this information to prepare for discussion. Choose which facts to share with children before reading to ensure understanding of the story. • Watch for the note Handle with Care in a few lessons for sensitive topics about characters’ cultural identities. These are ideas to deepen understanding about individual differences. Depending on your community and class population, you can choose whether or not to discuss. • Each lesson focuses on a story element integral to the book: characters, setting, or events. Giving a purpose helps children know which story element they should be listening and looking for.
During Reading
• Prompts model questioning focused on meaning and on the story element for each book (character, event, or setting).
ELL Scaffolds
• Find suggestions for overcoming potential roadblocks English language learners (ELLs) may face in each story.
Multimodal Learning
• Add play and variety with tips for different modes of learning that engage young learners and encourage creative interaction with the text. • See p. 21 of this teacher’s guide for more information about these supports.
Cc Meaning Making
BACKGROUND
Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.
BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)
Review
Ask children to recall the gist of the story. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Cora) What is Cora trying to get? (a coconut)
Build Knowledge
Consider sharing these facts to help children better understand the story. • This story is set in a tropical location, like Puerto Rico, where coconut palm trees grow. • Cora can be a nickname for “Corazon,” which means heart in Spanish. • In this story, a child wants to get a coconut from a tree. She’s eager to have it, and she’s a bit impatient because she wants to make her favorite dessert, besitos de coco (coconut kisses). • In communities where coconuts grow, local people typically wait for fallen coconuts rather than risk climbing up to get coconuts from trees or standing under trees where coconuts may fall. • Ripe coconuts turn brown, and this is a sign that they’re ready to eat.
ELL Scaffold
Visual and Sensory Models: Show a photograph of a coconut, or if possible, bring in a real coconut that children can touch and taste, as they practice saying the word coconut.
Multimodal Learning
Partner Reading: Pair up children to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.
Set the Purpose
• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Cora wants to do and what happens. • Say: As we read, listen for what happens to Cora at the beginning, middle, and end of the story. • Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What is the first event in the story? (Cora sees a coconut.) • Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.
DURING READING (5–7 minutes)
Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say: • p. 4: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Cora sees a coconut.) • p. 5: Raise your hand if you think the coconut will come down. Do you think Cora will wait until the coconut falls down? Stomp your feet if you think she won’t wait. • p. 7: What things does Cora use to get the coconut? (a can and a cat) • p. 8: What is Cora excited to see? (a car) What do you see in the pictures so far that tells us that the place is warm? (Cora and friends have on clothes for a hot day. The top is down on the car.) • p. 10: The picture and words on this page tell us that Cora has the coconut. Yay! Cheer with me! Now let’s talk about how Cora got it. Was it with a can? (No.) Was it with a cat? (No.) How did the coconut come down? (It fell out of the tree.) • p. 15: How do you think Cora feels now? (Cora feels happy to be with her family, making cookies.)
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Before Reading
After Reading If...
Children don’t yet have the knowledge or vocabulary to understand a portion of or the entire story • Go over some or all of the suggested Build Knowledge facts with children before reading.
Encourage discussion. • Show visuals, act out, or listen to music that relates to the topic.
Children have trouble answering questions about what happens in the story • Use the prompts as a model to ask more questions. Lead children to the answer rather than giving it to them. • Look back for evidence. For example, if you ask about why the character feels a certain way, follow up by saying, “Let’s look back in the book. What do you notice about these words? What do you see in this picture? What do these clues tell about how the character feels?”
Then...
Research says...
“Children who are better able to simultaneously consider letter sound and semantic (meaning) information about words are better comprehenders both in the short and long term” (Duke & Block, 2012).
After Reading
• Discuss a targeted story element (events, characters, or setting) and prepare children to respond to what they read on their own in the practice book.
Social-Emotional Learning
• Use the Figuring Out Feelings questions and additional prompts here to focus on one of the five SEL habits. This feature broadens understanding of the characters in the story, while deepening children’s connections to SEL skills. • Reproducible graphic organizers for each habit can be found on pp. 196–200 of Appendix. Use the graphic organizers as a tool to extend conversations around a habit.
Digital Learning
• Remember that you can access the digital version of the book along with a variety of other digital learning resources to extend and enhance children’s learning at the A–Z for
Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool. Meaning Making
Cc
AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)
Oral Language: Review Story Elements
• Talk about the events in the story and what happens to Cora. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say: o In the beginning of the story, Cora wants a coconut, but she can’t reach it. How do you think she feels? (Possible answers: mad, angry, sad, disappointed, frustrated) o In the middle of the story, Cora tries different things to get the coconut. What is one thing she tries? (Possible answers: tries to catch it with a big can, uses a cat, stands on a food cart) o At the end of the story, what does Cora do? (cook and eat the coconut) • Now that you’ve talked about the events, prepare children to practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 49 to prepare children for using the practice book.
SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING
• Review the habit of Persistence. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition. • Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions on p. 16 of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Cora feels. Ask: o Cora wants something, but it is hard. How does she show she won’t give up? (She keeps trying different ways to get the coconut. She uses a can and a cat. She also tries to get family members and friends to help her.) How does Cora feel when she finally gets the coconut? (happy, excited) o Can you think of a time when you worked hard to get something you wanted? • Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Cora showed persistence. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.
There’s More . . . Digital Learning!
• Use the digital version of Cora and the Coconut found in the A–Z for Mat
Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Cc, sounding out words that start with /k/, and identifying words children know. • Invite children to reread Cora and the Coconut in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member.
The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.
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After Reading
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) If...
Children are not yet ready to answer questions about story elements in the book
Children have trouble with the vocabulary and expressions • Refer to the social-emotional learning in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me on p. 23 for child-friendly definitions of each habit. • Use the graphic organizers on pp. 196–200 for more SEL extensions.
Then...
• Provide a sentence frame such as: Ikiaq lives in a place with ___ weather. I know this because I see ___ in the pictures. • Use the practice book to give more opportunities for written response.
Research says...
“Young learners must develop an awareness of the symbols that constitute the alphabet, learn the names of these letters and master the motoric requirements of letter transcription, including several complex configurations using the distinctive critical features of letters” (Reutzel et al., 2019).
Look at how each lesson connects to practice in centers and the practice book.
Formative Assessment
• Finish each lesson by giving children the chance to apply what they learned. After you’ve led children through the
Student Letter Book with the Letter Learning lesson, set them up for independent practice. • Use the Letter Learning practice page as a form of formative assessment to guide your grouping and reteaching.
Practice for Emerging Readers
• For Early Emerging Readers who are not yet ready for paper and pencil activities, go to p. 20 of this teacher’s guide for hands-on ideas for practicing letter learning. • The top of every page includes letter formation practice.
See p. 27 of this teacher’s guide for details on
Handwriting Without Tears® letter formation. The rest of the page provides practice with identification of the letter form and sound through pictures. Take time to make sure children know what each picture represents so they can successfully complete the practice tasks.
Practice for Developing Readers
• The top of every page includes letter formation practice, but this handwriting activity is for more developmentally advanced children. For Developing Readers, the rest of the page includes activities that require children to recognize the target sound within a written word, with picture support. • Take time to make sure children know what each picture represents so they can successfully complete the activities.
Children also have opportunities to identify pictures or words in the world around them that include the target sound.
Cc Letter Learning Practice
Formative Assessment
Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Cc, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /k/ sound.
Early Emerging Readers Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.
Emerging Readers Go to p. 10 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. In the middle, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Cc. On the bottom of the page, say what each picture is. Then have children work independently.
Developing Readers Go to p. 10 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Cc, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.
Cc
Cora and the Cocont
Practice the Letter Cc
cocont
Say the letter name and the sond it stands for. Then, trace and write capital C and lowercase c.
a \Ca Ca • c c •
• c
Circle every capital C and lowercase c yo see. The first one is done for you.
Liam sees a cat. Liam calls Chloe. Chloe pets the cat. Chloe sees the cat. Chloe pets the cat. The cat is cte!
Circle the pictres that start with the same beinnin sond as cocont.
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Cc
Cora and the Cocont
Practice the Letter Cc
cocont
Say the letter name and the sond it stands for. Then, trace and write capital C and lowercase c.
a aa Ca C a CC C c c c c c c c
Say the name of each pictre. Write the letter that stands for the beinnin sond to complete the word.
cat fox cup car bed ips l
Look arond. Find names that start with capital C and thins that start with lowercase c. Write the words.
Sample answers: Callie Carlos Colin Curtis Clair cup crayon coat cookie cat
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Double Lines for Writing Practice
• The Practice for Emerging Readers pages have extra wide double lines. This matches the extra wide double lines used in the letter formation pages of HWT Letters and Numbers for Me. • The Practice for Developing Readers pages have regular double.
This matches the regular double lines used in the Writing Activity pages of HWT My Printing Book.
Research says...
“The challenge is that ultimately children need access both to code-focused and to meaning-focused skills, and that instructional approaches that prioritize the code for low-scoring readers (who are likely to come from less advantaged households) may inadvertently reduce their access to activities that support meaning making” (Snow, 2017).
Formative Assessment
• You can conclude each Meaning Making lesson with a discussion about the Student Letter Book. This discussion can lead into independent practice, where you invite children to transfer their knowledge. • Use the Meaning Making practice page as a form of formative assessment, related to a specific story element, to guide your grouping and reteaching.
Preview the practice pages ahead, paying close attention to the sample responses. This will help you determine the level of support to provide for each group as you prepare students for practice.
Practice for Emerging Readers
• For Early Emerging Readers who are not yet ready for paper and pencil activities, guide children to talk about the story elements, using their words and bodies. • Each practice page focuses on a specific story element, aligned with the instruction from the Meaning Making lesson.
Children draw pictures about events, characters, or setting in each story, using a variety of graphic organizers.
Practice for Developing Readers
• Like the practice for Emerging Readers, each Developing
Readers practice page focuses on a specific story element, aligned with the instruction from the Meaning Making lesson. • Children write words and draw pictures about events, characters, or setting in each story, using a variety of graphic organizers. • Children use regular double lines to assist with size and placement of letters and words on the line. • At this developmental level, children may attempt to write one or two words on the double lines as labels for their drawings. Advanced students may be ready to write sentences.
Meaning Making Practice
Cc
Formative Assessment
Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Cora and the Coconut, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.
Early Emerging Readers Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.
Emerging Readers Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.
Developing Readers Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event that happens in the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them. Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.
Understandin the Story: Events
Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle.
Cora and the Cocont Cc
einnin
Draw what happens at the end of the story.
End iddle
Sample answer: drawin of Cora eatin. t may also show Cora’s randfather and friends at a table with cocont cookies or in the kitchen cookin.
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Cora and the Cocont Cc
Understanding the Story: Events
Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end.
Beinnin
Sample answer: drawin of Cora lookin or pointin at a cocont in a tree. t may also show other people lookin or pointin at the cocont. Cora sees a coconut.
iddle
End
Sample answer: drawin of Cora eatin a cocont cookie. t may also show her randfather or other people, at a table, eatin a cookie with her. Cora holds up a cat.
Cora eats the coconut.
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A–Z for Mat Man and Me Teacher’s Guide 49
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