Margaret Weber April 24, 2013

CHDV 150 Introduction to Curriculum Small Group Activity Form

Name of Activity: Feeding the Hungry Bear Curriculum Area: Language and Literacy Length of Activity: 15-20 minutes Learning Objectives (specify at least three): The child will be able to recognize the letter that the Hungry Bear asks for. (Measure 21: Letter and Word Knowledge). The child will be able to say at least one word that starts with the letter the Hungry Bear asks for. (Measure 21: Letter and Word Knowledge). The child will be able to work with peers to find the correct letters and think of at least one word that starts with that letter. (Measure 8:Cooperative Play with Peers). Material/Equipment Needed: Book The Very Hungry Bear by Nick Bland Plastic alphabet letters Teacher made bear with open mouth Preparation (What do you need to do beforehand?): Make the bear with an open mouth out of cardboard Set up a table with the bear and the letters in the language and literacy center. Create a paper river for the letters to be placed on. Set up the game in the language and literacy center. Procedures (step by step) Be Specific *Beginning (How will I introduce activity?) During circle time I will read the book The Very Hungry Bear. Next I will explain the Game to the children. I will explain that one child is the bear first. The one that is the bear says something like, I am hungry for the letter M. The other children look at the plastic letters and try to find the letter M. The first one to find the letter then tries to think of one word that starts with the letter and then they become the bear. The book and the game will be introduced to the children at the beginning of the week so that they will have plenty of opportunities to play the game. I will also explain that everyone will have a chance to be the hungry bear and that the group can work as a team to find the correct letter.

 To get the children interested in the game I will say something like, who would like to feed this bear. showing them the bear that goes with the game. I will then bring the rest of the game out and show the children the plastic alphabet letters, the bear and the river. I will explain and show the children how to set up the game. I will then ask the children to help place the letters in the river. As we do this we will say the letters as we place them in the river so the children have the chance to become familiar with the letters. I will also show the children that as the bear eats the letters, they are put into a basket and not returned to the river. The letters are only chosen once. To get the children started in the game, I will be the bear and ask for a letter in my best bear growl voice to model the bear for the children. The child who finds the correct letter will have the chance to think of one word that starts with the letter. Before the child hands the letter to the bear, I will instruct them to trace the letter with their fingers so that they can feel how writing the letter would be. The other children are encouraged to help think of a word that starts with the letter as well. The children will need to listen carefully to hear the letter that the bear asks for. They will also have to look for the correct letter in the river. The game has no winners or losers; it is an open-ended game where the children get to work as a group and individually identifying letters and their sounds. There are no real safety concerns. I will instruct the children to leave the letters in the river until the bear asks for one. *Middle: (How will I support/enhance/scaffold?) The person reading your lesson plan should be able to identify what you are saying or doing to support your stated learning objectives. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. I will support the children by staying close to the children and observing the game and the individual children. I want to see how the children work together and individually to find the letters. I am looking to see if the game will meet the needs and interests of the children. I can engage the children in the activity by asking open ended questions such as, Do you have that letter in your name? This would be directed at a child who is having trouble with finding a letter and I know that the letter is in their name. I can also ask, Are there other ways that the bear can ask for the letters? This can get the children thinking of different ways to extend the game and their learning experience. Also if the children are engaged and having fun with the activity, then maybe the game could be extended to asking for more than one letter. To get the children thinking about this I would ask, Do you think that the bear may be really hungry and need more than just one letter at a time to eat? This game is one that the children are encouraged to work together and help one another find the letters that the bear asks for. As I observe the children, if I see them having a hard time working together or helping their peers, I will say something like, Who can help Michael fin the letter K. I can also encourage the children to work together by asking, What would happen if you played the game in groups of three or four where you work as a team to find the letters? This gets the children thinking of different ways that they can play the game. To support individual children who may be having a hard time finding letters, I might put them in a group with another child that I know will help engage their peer in looking for and finding the correct letter. Also I plan to have the game set up in the language and literacy area for the rest of the week, so for individual children who are having difficulty finding the letters and coming up with words that start with that letter, I can spend individual one-to-one time with them playing the game so that they get the experience to recognize letters and letter sounds in order for them to reach their full learning potential. Some other materials that will be on hand to expand and enrich the learning experience will be picture cards that the bear can ask for and the children can try and guess what letter the word starts with. This will help expand on the learning experience of those children who are ready to move on from the letters and sounds. *End: (How will I bring this activity to a conclusion and transition to the next activity? Be very specific in how you will transition the children.) I will give the children playing the game a five minute warning that it is almost time to clean up. When the time is up I will begin to sing the clean-up song so that children will know that it is time to clean up the game and get ready to move on to the next part of our day.

 The children will put the plastic letters in the basket and any other materials in their containers as well. They will then take the supplies to the language and literacy center, since the game was started in the circle time area to begin with. The bear and the river will be set on the table for future use during the week. The children will place the baskets of supplies on the self close to the table so they are available to the children during the week to explore with the game more. After this activity the children will gather back in the circle time area. After I finish the clean up song, I will begin a song that explains to the children, Lets all gather together, together, together. Lets all gather together in the circle time area. Since I started the game in the circle time area for the first day, the children will be in that area already, as they put the game away and return to the circle time area. We will do a movement game such as a bear hunt as the children are dismissed in small groups to go wash their hands. Another teacher will be in the hand washing area to monitor the children and have them sit at the table after washing their hands for snack. If the children are involved in the game when it is time to clean up, I can suggest that we carefully transfer the game be placed on the table in language and literacy area and set it up on the table. That way the children who were still involved in the game have the chance to go back and finish the activity during a free choice period. Throughout the day/week, what opportunities will the children have to reflect back on this activity? During the week the children will have the opportunity to reflect back on what they have learned through dictating what they learned, what they liked about the game, what they might change about the game to the teacher as she writes the dictation in the childs journal. The children can have the chance to reflect on this activity by reading books in the language and literacy area and picking out letters that they recognize in the story. Children may reflect on this activity by creating their own game in the art area, or create a drawing or sculpture that shows what they have learned from this activity. Children may reflect on the activity through the math and science areas as well. We can discuss what letter the teddy bear counters starts with, what sound it makes. We can discuss the sound that bears make and what letter that starts with. Ready for your thematic unit 25/25