Lesson Plan

TITLE: Poems & Songs
GRADE LEVEL: Kindergarten
SUBJECT: Language & Literacy


Lesson Overview

This unit is designed to introduce children to a variety of poetry with strong rhyme and rhythm. Some rhymes may also be sung to familiar melodies. Rhymes that will be learned in this unit include: Mary Had A Little Lamb, The Three Little Kittens, Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, Little Boy Blue, Little Bo Peep, Three Blind Mice, Hickory Dickory Dock, Hey Diddle Diddle, and Old MacDonald Had A Farm.

This unit is designed for the kindergarten classroom. It is ongoing and designed to be used throughout the school year once introduced. The lessons focus on poetry and songs about animals through the use of technology and other materials. Major topics that will be addressed by this lesson include, but are not limited to: Listening and responding to rhymes read/sung aloud, identifying and producing rhyming words and distinguish rhyming words from non-rhyming words, dramatizing & retelling rhymes in sequential order, applying language skills and engaging in language activities that extend vocabulary and conceptual knowledge, applying social skills by working cooperatively and sharing song and rhymes in culminating activities, developing fine motor skills through various activities, and creating the classroom rules.


Goals and Objectives

The concept objectives of this unit are: students will develop an appreciation for rhymes in poetry and students will develop social skills by working cooperatively. The skill objectives are: listening and responding to rhymes read/sung aloud, identifying and producing rhyming words and distinguish rhyming words from non-rhyming words, dramatizing & retelling rhymes in sequential order, applying language skills and engaging in language activities that extend vocabulary and conceptual knowledge, applying social skills by working cooperatively and sharing song and rhymes in culminating activities, developing fine motor skills through various activities, and creating the classroom rules.


Audience

The audience will be a kindergarten classroom of 12-16 children who are between the ages of 5 and 6 yrs old.

Time Frame

This unit requires nine lessons spread over a school year. Some of the lessons require a one day session of 30-45 minutes, while others require a two day session of 30-45 minutes.


Prerequisite Skills

Students need to have been exposed to a variety of poetry and songs in the pre-kindergarten setting.

Students need to have been exposed to rhyming words.

Students need to know how to turn on the computer and launch the application.

Students need to know how to maneuver among the websites that will be used in the lessons.

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)

English Language Arts and Reading, Kindergarten TEKS
(1) Listening/speaking/purposes. The student listens attentively and engages actively in a variety of oral language experiences. The student is expected to:
(A) determine the purpose(s) for listening such as to get information, to solve problems, and to enjoy and appreciate (K-3);
(B) respond appropriately and courteously to directions and questions (K-3);
(C) participate in rhymes, songs, conversations, and discussions (K-3);
(D) listen critically to interpret and evaluate (K-3);
(E) listen responsively to stories and other texts read aloud, including selections from classic and contemporary works (K-3); and
(F) identify the musical elements of literary language such as its rhymes or repeated sounds (K-1).
(3) Listening/speaking/audiences/oral grammar. The student speaks appropriately to different audiences for different purposes and occasions. The student is expected to:
(A) choose and adapt spoken language appropriate to the audience, purpose, and occasion, including use of appropriate volume and rate (K-3);
(B) use verbal and nonverbal communication in effective ways when making announcements, giving directions, or making introductions (K-3);
(C) ask and answer relevant questions and make contributions in small or large group discussions (K-3);
(D) present dramatic interpretations of experiences, stories, poems, or plays (K-3)
(5) Reading/print awareness. The student demonstrates knowledge of concepts of print. The student is expected to:
(A) recognize that print represents spoken language and conveys meaning such as his/her own name and signs such as Exit and Danger (K-1);
(B) know that print moves left-to-right across the page and top-to-bottom (K-1);
(C) understand that written words are separated by spaces (K-1);
(D) know the difference between individual letters and printed words (K-1);
(E) know the difference between capital and lowercase letters (K-1);
(F) recognize how readers use capitalization and punctuation to comprehend (K-1);
(G) understand that spoken words are represented in written language by specific sequences of letters (K-1); and
(H) recognize that different parts of a book such as cover, title page, and table of contents offer information (K-1).
(6) Reading/phonological awareness. The student orally demonstrates phonological awareness (an understanding that spoken language is composed of sequences of sounds). The student is expected to:
(A) demonstrate the concept of word by dividing spoken sentences into individual words
(K-1);
(B) identify, segment, and combine syllables within spoken words such as by clapping syllables and moving manipulatives to represent syllables in words (K-1);
(C) produce rhyming words and distinguish rhyming words from non-rhyming words (K-1) (D) identify and isolate the initial and final sound of a spoken word (K-1);
(E) blend sounds to make spoken words such as moving manipulatives to blend phonemes in a spoken word (K); and
(F) segment one-syllable spoken words into individual phonemes, clearly producing beginning, medial, and final sounds (K-1).
(7) Reading/letter-sound relationships. The student uses letter-sound knowledge to decode written language. The student is expected to:
(A) name and identify each letter of the alphabet (K-1);
(B) understand that written words are composed of letters that represent sounds (K-1)
(C) learn and apply letter-sound correspondences of a set of consonants and vowels to begin to read (K-1).
(8) Reading/vocabulary development. The student develops an extensive vocabulary. The student is expected to:
(A) discuss meanings of words and develop vocabulary through meaningful/concrete experiences (K-2);
(B) develop vocabulary by listening to and discussing both familiar and conceptually challenging selections read aloud (K-3); and
(C) identify words that name persons, places, or things and words that name actions (K-1).
(9) Reading/comprehension. The student uses a variety of strategies to comprehend selections read aloud. The student is expected to:
(A) use prior knowledge to anticipate meaning and make sense of texts (K-3);
(B) establish purposes for reading or listening such as to be informed, to follow directions, and to be entertained (K-3); and
(C) retell or act out the order of important events in stories (K-3).
(10) Reading/literary response. The student responds to various texts. The student is expected to:
(A) listen to stories being read aloud (K-1);
(B) participate actively (react, speculate, join in, read along) when predictable and patterned selections are read aloud (K-1)
(C) respond through talk, movement, music, art, drama, and writing to a variety of stories and poems in ways that reflect understanding and interpretation (K-1); and
(D) describe how illustrations contribute to the text (K-1).
(12) Reading/inquiry/research. The student generates questions and conducts research about topics introduced through selections read aloud and from a variety of other sources. The student is expected to:
(D) locate important areas of the library/media center (K-1).
(13) Reading/culture. The student reads or listens to increase knowledge of his/her own culture, the culture of others, and the common elements of cultures. The student is expected to:
(A) connect his/her own experiences with the life experiences, language, customs, and culture of others (K-3); and
(B) compare experiences of characters across cultures (K-3).
(14) Writing/spelling/penmanship. The student develops the foundations of writing. The student is expected to:
(A) write his/her own name and other important words (K-1);
(B) write each letter of the alphabet, both capital and lowercase (K)
(C) use phonological knowledge to map sounds to letters to write messages (K-1);
(D) write messages that move left-to-right and top-to-bottom on the page (K-1); and
(E) gain increasing control of penmanship such as pencil grip, paper position, and beginning stroke (K).
(15) Writing/composition. The student composes original texts. The student is expected to:
(A) dictate messages such as news and stories for others to write (K-1);
(B) write labels, notes, and captions for illustrations, possessions, charts, centers (K-1);
(C) write to record ideas and reflections (K-3);
(D) generate ideas before writing on self-selected topics (K-1);
(E) generate ideas before writing on assigned tasks (K-1); and
(F) use available technology to compose text (K-3).


Materials Needed

Lesson
Teacher Materials Needed
Student Materials Needed
1
1. Poetry/Music Card Mary Had A Little Lamb (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated). (See Appendix A)
2. Activity: Classroom rules (Brainstorm with students 3-5 classroom rules, chart& post in classroom).
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com


2
1. Poetry/Music Card The Three Little Kittens (See Appendix B)
2. Mitten activity – (Students color, cut and lace mitten, then draw pictures on smaller mittens of things they like to be rewarded with/Appendix C&D)
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

3
1. Poetry/music card Little Boy Blue (See Appendix E)
2. Activity (horn) 2-dimentional, recycle empty paper towel roll, color, cut & glue (Appendix F)
3. Story: Peter and the Wolf (What Your First Grader Needs to Know by E. D. Hirsch, Jr. & John Holdren)
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

4
1. Poetry/Music card/Little Bo Peep (See Appendix G)
2. Activity: Match the mother sheep w/ it’s baby lamb, (See Appendix H)
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

5
1. Poetry/music card Baa, Baa, Black Sheep (See Appendix I)
2. Activity: Students will hand tear black construction paper or lace sheep w/ black yarn
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

6
1. Poetry/music card The Three Blind Mice. (See Appendix L)
2. Activity: (Day 1) “Blind Mice” game, note: an even number or students are necessary, 2 players are partners, one has a paper and pencil on table/desk in front of them, their partner describes what he/she sees in the picture, never allowing partner to see, ( perhaps, have a divider between them), when the description is complete the students compare the two pictures & show them to 2004 Core Knowledge® National Conference, Kindergarten Poems and Songs 8 the teacher. Small group time is ideal for this activity, i.e. reading circles, journal writing group, etc. (See Appendix M)
3. Center Activity: (Day 2) Mouse & Cheese number match. (See Appendix N)
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16lY_FPscek

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

7
1. Poetry/Music card Hickory, Dickory, Dock (See Appendix O).
2. Grandfather Clock Activity (See Appendix P).
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

8
1. Poetry/Music card Hey Diddle Diddle (Appendix Q)
2. Activity - Hey Diddle Diddle writing activity (Appendix R)
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com

9
1. Poetry/music card Old MacDonald Had A Farm (Appendix S)
2. Activity – Old MacDonald’s Farm; color and cut out all the animals.
Computer with following website:
www.nurseryrhymes4u.com

http://www.uptoten.net/kids/boowakwala-world-farms-farmsong.html?3-5

http://1stnurseryrhymes.com


Activities and Procedures
Lesson One: Mary Had A Little Lamb (1 day)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (Listening circle).
3. Teacher states, “This little girl is Mary, what /who does she have with her?” (a lamb)
4. Sing song with students showing them the picture as they sing.
5. Re-read and have children echo after each line
6. Identify rhyming words.
7. Identify vocabulary words. (fleece, follow, rules, rhyme, rhythm).
8. Inquire, “What’s happening in the song?”, “Why can’t Mary take her lamb to school?”, “What are rules?’
9. State: “Today we are going to discuss & make-up our classroom rules”.
10. Activity: Classroom rules, teacher will write rules discussed by students on chart tablet, (later transfer to poster board and display on classroom wall w/ signatures of each student.)

Lesson Two: The Three Little Kittens (2 days)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher states, “Why are the three little kittens crying?” (They lost their mittens!)
5. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
6. Identify rhyming words.
7. Identify vocabulary words. (little, lost, mittens, gloves, naughty, punish, consequence).
8. Teacher asks, “Why aren’t they getting any pie?” (Their mother is punishing them).
9. Discuss; punish & consequence.
10. Teacher states, “Today we are going to continue working on our classroom rules and discuss some consequences to add to our rules”.
11. Students will discuss some consequences for not following classroom rules while teacher scribes on chart tablet, (later transfer to poster board and display in classroom).
12. Activity/day 2, (Appendix C&D) Lace mittens & draw pictures of things that you like to be rewarded with. (Color & cut, place inside mitten).

Lesson Three: Little Boy Blue (2 days)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “Why does little boy Blue have a horn?” (call for help, the sheep may be in harm).
5. Teacher asks, “Why did the little boy fall asleep?” (he’s tired, he worked very hard).
6. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
7. Identify rhyming words.
8. Identify vocabulary words. (horn, meadow, corn, looks after, under, haystack, fast asleep).
9. Center Activity: The students will make a 2 dimensional horn. (see backline attached). These materials can be placed in the art center: Appendix F., empty paper towel roll, crayons, scissors, glue.
10. Day 2: sing rhyme Little Boy Blue then read the story Peter and the Wolf.
Discuss the responsibilities of Little Boy Blue,( to care of the sheep – should there be any danger, he will blow his horn for help.) Compare and contrast Peter with Little Boy Blue, discuss what happened when Peter truly needed help. Why didn’t anyone help him? What lesson did we learn? (What Your First Grader Needs To Know by E.D. Hirsch, Jr. & John Holdren)

Lesson Four: Little Bo Peep (1 day)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “Who was little Bo Peep?”(a little girl).
5. Teacher says, “How do you think little Bo Peep feels? (sad, because she lost her sheep).
6. Teacher says, “What advise is little Bo Peep given?” (to leave the sheep alone, don’t chase them and they’ll come home on their own.)
7. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
8. Identify rhyming words.
9. Identify vocabulary words (Bo Peep, lost, leave, alone, wagging).
10. Center Activity: Match the mother sheep with its baby lamb, (See Appendix H)

Lesson Five: Baa, Baa, Black Sheep (1 day)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “Why do you think the little boy said, “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep?”
(Baa is what the sheep says, so the little boy calls him or gets his attention by saying Baa, Baa.” (It’s like talking to the sheep.)
5. Teacher says, “What does the little boy ask the sheep?” (If it has any wool.)
6. Discuss (wool).
7. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
8. Identify rhyming words.
9. Identify vocabulary words. (Baa, sheep, wool, sir, master, dame, lane, bag, full).
10. Review vocabulary word (lamb).
11. Discuss “sheep”, ask “In what other rhyme or song did we learn about a sheep?”
(Mary Had a Little Lamb, Little Boy Blue, Little Bo Peep, & Baa, Baa, Black Sheep). Make a chart (Compare & Contrast the characters in these poems.)
12. Center Activity: Students will hand tear black construction paper or lace sheep with black yarn . This will assist with fine motor development. (Appendix J)

Lesson Six: Three Blind Mice (2 days)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “What happened to the three blind mice?” (they got their tails cut off by the butcher’s wife).
5. Teacher asks, “Why did she do that?” (she was mad, she was scared).
6. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
7. Identify rhyming words.
8. Identify vocabulary words (blind, butcher, carving knife, sight).
9. Blind Mice Game: (Day 1) To be played with a partner/see instructions above. (Appendix M)
10. Center Activity: (Day 2) Mouse & Cheese number match (Appendix N).


Lesson Seven: Hickory, Dickory, Dock (1 day)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Discuss; grandfather clock, ask, “Why did the mouse run?” (because the clock made a loud sound and it scared/startled the mouse).
5. Teacher says, “What do you do when you’re startled, scared, or surprised?” (children respond). Create a pictograph using the responses of the students. Allow the students to choose which choice they would make.
6. Re-read the rhyme and have children echo after each line.
7. Identify rhyming words.
8. Identify vocabulary words. (Hickory, Dickory, Dock, clock, struck).
9. Center Activity: Mouse with grandfather clock. (See Appendix P).

Lesson Eight: Hey Diddle Diddle (1 day)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “Do you think this rhyme could really happen?” (nonsense, imagination).
5. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
6. Identify rhyming words.
7. Identify vocabulary words. (Hey, Diddle Diddle, fiddle, over, laughed, sport, dish, spoon).
8. Discuss activity; directions: “Color the picture, then draw something else that is nonsense/silly and have it happen in your picture.” (ie. Cereal popped into the dish, which became a bowl full of milk and the Moon ate it up). (Appendix R)

Lesson Nine: Old MacDonald Had a Farm (2 days)
Procedures/Activities
1. Poetry/Music card, directions: (manila folder cut in half, colored, glued and laminated).
2. Students arranged facing teacher. (listening circle).
3. Sing song with students showing them the picture card as they sing.
4. Teacher asks, “What is a farm?” (where animals live, where the farmer lives).
5. Teacher says, “Isn’t an elephant an animal, does it live on a farm?” (no, an elephant lives in the zoo).
6. Discuss the kinds of animals that live on a farm. (Most produce foods for us to eat, some are eaten, and some produce and are eaten.) Include the McDonald’s hamburgers & chicken nuggets they love so much!)
7. Re-read and have children echo after each line.
8. Identify rhyming words.
9. Identify vocabulary words. (dog, cat, duck, hen, rooster, pig, sheep, goat, cow, horse).
10. Activity: Old MacDonald’s Farm. (Appendix T)

Evaluation

Lesson
Assessment/Evaluation
1
1. The student will sing or recite the rhyme. (Assessment can be done in small groups, possibly while students are at centers. The degree of accuracy will depend on the student, ie, . Special needs, speech. The child should be able to
recite/sing the entire rhyme
2. The student will state 3 out of 5 rules that are necessary in the classroom.
2
1. The student will sing the rhyme. (Teacher can assess students in small groups, during reading time or center time. The student should be able to recite entire poem; accommodations may be necessary for special needs students).
2. The student will work cooperatively with classmates & act out the rhyme as teacher narrates.
3. The student will state 3 out of 5 rules that are necessary in our classroom.
3
1. The student will sing the rhyme. (Teacher can assess this in small group, making
accommodations for students with special needs.)
4
1. The student will sing the rhyme. (Teacher will assess students in small groups, possibly during center time, or transition time. The student should be able to recite the entire song, however, accommodations may be necessary for students with special needs.)
5
1. The student will sing the rhyme. (Teacher will assess students in small groups, degree of accuracy will depend on the student, ie. Special needs, speech, etc.)
2. Teacher Checklist, fill in the rhyming words you wish to assess, include some words that don’t rhyme. (See Appendix K)
6
1. The student will sing the rhyme. (Teacher assessment may be done in small groups during reading or possibly during centers).
2. Apply social skills by working cooperatively.
3. Teacher checklist. (See Appendix K)
7
1. The students will sing the rhyme. (Teacher can assess this is small groups.)
2. Teacher checklist. (See Appendix K)
8
1. The student will sing/recite the rhyme. (Teacher will assess in small group, the degree of accuracy will depend on the student, ie. Special needs, speech, etc.)
2. Teacher checklist. (See Appendix K)
9
1. The children will sing the song. (Teacher will assess in small groups, accuracy will depend on the student, ie. Special needs, speech, etc.)
2. The children will identify the animals that live on a farm. (Appendix T)
3. Teacher checklist. (Appendix K)