The Matzo Ball Boy Read Aloud Teacher Candidate: Robert Gilchrist School: Ninety Six Primary Date

and Time of Lesson: 4/7/14 Subject/Grade Level: ELA/2nd Grade

Description of Lesson: In this lesson, students will hear a read aloud from The Matzo Ball Boy written by Lisa Shulman and will learn about a holiday to write and define on the SmartBoard. Lesson Title: The Matzo Ball Boy Read Aloud Curriculum Standards Addressed: Common Core Standards: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges. Cross Curricular Connections: This lesson will be integrated with their learning of Fairy Tales, Tall Tales, and Fables. This lesson will also be integrated with visual art because students will look at the pictures and words in the book to gain meaning about the story. Instructional Objective(s) Criteria: When given literary texts, 85% of students will be able to correctly identify character traits that the Matzo Ball Boy displays and be able to identify major events that the Matzo Ball Boy experienced and how he handled them. Assessment(s) of the Objectives: Before the lesson, I will ask students what are some of the things they have been looking for in other Fairy Tales, Tall Tales, and Fables that we could also look for in The Matzo Ball Boy. During the lesson, I will have students answer critical thinking questions about parts in the book. After the lesson, I will ask students how the Matzo Ball Boy and a few of the other characters in the book were a part of the holiday Passover. I will also have students tell me how the Matzo Ball Boy responded to major events in the book and for an activity they can draw a picture and write a paragraph about their own boy/girl made of their favorite food.

Materials/Resources:

The Matzo Ball Boy

SmartBoard

(Prior Knowledge):

Social: Students should be able to sit quietly in their spots on the carpet during the read aloud. They should participate with the Critical Thinking Questions as we read The Matzo Ball Boy. Cognitive: Students should be able to recall what we have been looking at it in the book to apply to the read aloud (how our character acts to others, what is different about our character from beginning to end, interesting things about our character). Physical: Students should be able to sit on the carpet for at least thirty minutes during the read aloud. Students should raise their hands when they have questions or comments. While doing the critical thinking questions, students should sit facing the speaker, with their legs crossed, and eyes on the speaker. Emotional: Students should be able to receive constructive criticism from the teacher and classmates when answering questions or making statements. Students should also respect other classmates and the teacher. References: Shulman, Lisa (2005). The Matzo Ball Boy. New York, New York: Picture Puffin Books. Procedures: Connection: 1. Probing Question: What do you think of when you hear the word Passover? 2. We have been talking about Fairy Tales, Tall Tales, and Fables and reading stories that are different versions and examples of those three types of books. Teach: 3. To begin the lesson, I will first introduce the book by asking which students have read or heard of the book. I will then explain that The Matzo Ball Boy is a retelling of the popular story The Gingerbread Boy. It is about a boy that is made from Matzo Ball soup. The story tells about how the Matzo Ball Boy was trying to escape from people that were trying to catch him. Lets see what happens to the Matzo Ball Boy in this story. 4. As I am reading, I will stop at various points during the read aloud and explain vocabulary that students may not understand, such as: boychik, bubbe, matzo/matzo ball, schlemiel, schnieder, seder, and yenta. 5. On page one of the book, I will talk about the following question: What do you first notice about the old grandmother?

Active Engagement: 6. I will ask the students a couple of critical questions, such as: a. Why do you think the Matzo Ball Boy wanted to run away from everyone? b. Why did everyone want to catch the Matzo Ball Boy? 7. On page five of the book, I will ask the following question: What do you first think about the Matzo Ball Boy? 8. I will continue reading until page twelve and will ask the following turn and talk question: Why do you think the Fox wanted to try to trick the Matzo Ball Boy? After students have responded, I will continue reading. 9. I will stop on page seventeen and ask the following turn and talk question: Why was the Matzo Ball Boy scared? Students will raise their hand and answer, I will ask them why they think that he is scared and then I will continue reading. 10. I will continue reading until I get to page twenty-six. I will then have students turn and talk about the following question: What do you think will happen to the Matzo Ball Boy? Students will be given thirty seconds each to answer and give me their opinion. 11. Once students have responded, I will ask them What have we learned about the Matzo Ball Boy? What does this story tell you about how people celebrate Passover? Link: 12. I will then say that Passover is a special holiday and we will talk about how the characters celebrated the traditions that go along with the holiday during the book. 13. I will then write the word Passover on the board and have students sound out the word as they help me spell it. I will also include the definition we discussed as a class. 14. I will then ask the students to sit at their desks and draw a picture of their own boy/girl made of their favorite food (Ex: Pizza, Cookies, Candy, etc.). Accommodations: To accommodate for students that cannot see, I will allow them to move closer so that they can see the pictures. If students do not understand a word, I will describe the word so that they understand what the word means. For students that need help staying focused, I will provide several critical thinking questions and pull sticks so that students are ready to answer questions and give comments about the reading. For the IEP students in the classroom, I will make sure to point out pictures in the word that match the vocabulary in the book.