The Giving Tree

Josephine Lutton

The Giving Tree:

Josephine Lutton

The Giving Tree Literature Focus Unit

1. Literature SelectionSilverstein, S. (1964). The giving tree. New York, NY. HarperCollins.

2. Theme The Giving Tree is an emotional story about a boy and a tree that selflessly provides him with

everything he wants. The story will be used to study the act of giving, and needs vs. wants, and preserving nature. This story will allow students to engage in activities allowing them to discover the true meaning of giving, along with the importance of elements of nature, specifically trees.

3. Additional texts Cherry, L. (1993). The great kapok tree. Orlando, FL: Harcourt.Luenn, N. (1992). Mother earth. New York, NY: Aladdin PaperbacksSeuss, Dr. (1971). The lorax. New York, NY: Random House, Inc.Udry, J. (1956). A tree is nice. New York, NY: HarperCollins.Waldman, N. (1997). The never-ending greenness. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

4. Unit Plan—Planning Stage

5. Now for each activity include the following:Activity 1: Read aloudGLE: L1A03: Listen for enjoyment, information, to distinguish fact from opinion, and for directions

to complete a two- or three-step task.

The Giving Tree

Writing

Reading

Listening

Speaking

Pair read A Tree Is Nice and compare and contrast it with The Giving TreeBrief summary of related text

Perform a skitPresent a speech on a gift you have and how you share it with others

Friendly letter Persuasive text

Read aloudIntroduction to giving and needs

Josephine Lutton

Objective: Students will be able to listen to a read aloud and record in their reading logs that they have received information, formed an opinion on, or enjoyed something from the text.

Activity: The students will listen to me read The Giving Tree aloud. I will give them directions for completing the questions on the Smart Board. When reading logs are all turned in, we will regroup to discuss what we enjoyed about the book.

Technology Resources: The questions “What book did we just read” and “What did you like most about it” will be projected on the Smart Board.

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the activity to monitor student behaviors during the read aloud. Students will receive a + or – in their reading logs for the completion of the questions from the Smart Board.

Plus or minus+ means= You followed the directions and completed the two questions in your reading log,

showing some knowledge of the text.- means= You did not follow directions and either did not turn in your reading log with answers

to the questions, or they showed no knowledge of the text.

Activity 2: Friendly LetterGLE: W3A03,b: Compose text emphasizing the format of diary/journal entries and friendly letters.Objective: Students will be able to compose a friendly letter after reading the text The Giving

Tree.Activity: The students will create a friendly letter for someone who has given them something.

They will use proper elements of a friendly letter including heading, greeting, body, closing, and signature. The students will have an example of a friendly letter that I have created, but they will be encouraged to be as creative as possible as long as their letter also contains the proper elements.

Technology Resources: A friendly letter will be on the Smartboard and students will be allowed to type their final copies on the computer.

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the activity to monitor student work. Students will complete their letters independently they will be assessed using a checklist to make sure each element is included.

Friendly Letter ChecklistLetter includes:_____Heading_____Greeting_____Body_____Closing_____Signature_____Proper Use of spelling and grammar

Comments:

(3pts each) Score out of 18 _____________________

Josephine Lutton

Activity 3: Compare and contrast The Giving Tree with A Tree is NiceGLE: R2C04,a-f: Use details from text to demonstrate comprehension skills previously

introduced, make inferences, compare and contrast, identify cause and effect, identify author’s purpose, identify setting, character traits, problems and solutions, and story events.

Objective: Students will be able to compare and contrast story elements by completing a graphic organizer after reading the text.

Activity: Students will pair read the text A Tree is Nice and then create a graphic organizer in their reading logs comparing and contrasting it with The Giving Tree.

Technology Resources: Templates of different graphic organizers will be projected on the Smart Board

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the activity to monitor student work and responses. Students will each complete their own graphic organizers in their reading logs and they will be graded using a checklist on the number of examples they provide, along with the accuracy of those examples.

Compare and Contrast ChecklistGraphic Organizer includes:

________ Provides 4 correct examples of comparing________________________________ Provides 5 correct examples of contrasting________ ________________________________________ Makes use of a graphic organizer template (Venn diagram, T chart, etc.)

Comments:

Total out of 10 points__________

Activity 4: Persuasive text GLE: W3A03: Compose narrative, descriptive, expository, and/or persuasive texts using

appropriate text features.Objective: Students will be able to compose a narrative text by listening to a read aloud of The

Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Josephine Lutton

Activity: The students will create a persuasive paragraph that provides an argument for or against chopping down trees. The paragraph must also include support for that argument with at least four reasons why they have formed this opinion.

Technology Resources: Definitions for argument and support will be projected on the Smart Board, along with examples of each.

Activity assessment: Students will complete a persuasive paragraph independently on whether or not they believe trees should be chopped down. The paragraphs will be graded on content and accuracy. I will use a rubric to assess whether or not students have formed an argument and provided the correct number of supporting details for that argument.

Persuasive Text Rubric

1 Try a little harder

2 You're on your way

3 Terrific Job

Creates an argument

Argument is not stated.

Argument is stated, but is either not correct or related to the topic.

Argument is stated and your stand on the issue is apparent.

Example of support #1

Example does not relate to the argument at all, or is not included.

Example somewhat relates to argument.

Example completely relates to the argument.













Uses correct grammar and spelling

Paragraph has multiple spelling and grammar errors

Paragraph has a few spelling and grammar errors.

Paragraph has no more than 2 spelling or grammar errors.

Comments:

Josephine Lutton

Total out of 18 points:_________

Activity 5: Summary of related textGLE: R1H03,i: Apply post reading skills to demonstrate comprehension of text: summarize.Objective: Students will pair read a related text and create a summary of the text.Activity: The students will work in small groups (4 students) to read a related text. Once the

group has finished reading, each student will write a summary of the text they read in their reading logs.

Technology Resources: A list of related texts and where they can be found in the classroom will be projected on the Smart Board

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the activity to monitor group progress on the reading of the book and responses in reading logs. Students will complete a summary independently on the related text and the summary will be assessed for completion and accuracy using a + or -.

Plus or minus+ means= You followed the directions and completed the summary in your reading log,

showing some knowledge of the text.- means= You did not follow directions and either did not turn in your reading log with a

summary of the text, or they showed no knowledge of the text.

Activity 6: Discussion on giving and needsGLE: L1A03: Demonstrates listening behaviors (e.g. prepares to listen, listens without

interruptions, maintains eye contact).Objective: Students will be able to demonstrate listening behaviors while listening to me and

their peers during a class discussion. Activity: I will introduce the topic of needs (physical, social, and emotional) as students listen I

want them to form opinions on needs they have. I will also ask them to think of ways we as a class can give back and help others that are less fortunate than us.

Technology Resources: A graphic organizer of the three different types of needs will be projected on the Smart Board during the discussion to help students see the difference in needs.

Activity assessment: As we discuss, I will monitor students to make sure that they are following along with what I am saying, staying quite, and keeping their hands to themselves. They will receive completion points for the discussion if they are quiet and manage to contribute or show interest in what others are saying.

Completion Points

Josephine Lutton

Received if student is focused, showing eye contact from time to time, remain quiet, and contribute or show some form of interest or awareness during the discussion.

Not received if student is clearly not focused, disruptive, or does not contribute or show any interest during the discussion.


Activity 7: Share a poem on trees or givingGLE: S2A03: Speak clearly, stay on topic, and use appropriate volume and pace when sharing

ideas.Objective: Students will be able to demonstrate proper speaking behaviors by sharing a poem

with the class.Activity: Students will go through resources in the classroom, or search the internet to find a

poem on trees or giving that they would like to share with the class. They will have a day to select their poems and we will present them during reading the next day. Poems will be saved in a folder on the computer and I will combine and bound them all to make a class poem book on giving and trees.

Technology Resources: Students can search for their poems on the internet and save a copy of the text in a folder on the server that will allow me to gather them to create our class poem book.

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the presentation of the poem, as well as a rubric that monitors the student’s to choose a poem related to the topic of tree or giving, speak clearly, use appropriate volume, pace, and eye contact.

Speaking rubric



3 Terrific Job

Stays on topic

Poem was in no way related to the topic of trees or giving.

Poem somewhat related to the topic of trees or giving.

Poem related to the topic of trees or giving.

Speaks clearly

Mumbled or mispronounced words throughout the majority of the presentation of the poem.

Mispronounced a few words during presentation of the poem.

Spoke clearly throughout the presentation and had less than 2 mispronunciations.

Uses appropriateVolume

Volume was projected too softly. We couldn’t hear you.

Volume was projected strong, but we had trouble hearing you in the back.

Volume was projected in a way that the class could all hear.

Pace You spoke much too fast or way too slow

You spoke at a normal speaking pace for

You spoke at a normal speaking pace throughout

Josephine Lutton

during most of your speech.

most of your speech, with a couple of slip-ups.

the speech.

Eye contact

Made no eye contact with the audience. Head was down throughout the presentation of the poem.

Made a few attempts at making eye contact with the audience.

Eye contact was frequent throughout presentation of the poem.

Comments:Total out of 15 points_________

Activity 8: Present speech on individual “gifts”GLE: S2A03: Speak clearly, stay on topic, and use appropriate volume and pace when sharing

ideas.Objective: Students will be able to effectively communicate an idea to the class using

appropriate speaking techniques.Activity: The students will present a brief speech they have created that explains to the class a

“gift” they believe they possess. They should also address how they are sharing that “gift”, or how they intend to.

Technology Resources: An example of a “gift” I believe that I posses along with how I share it will be projected on the Smart Board.

Activity assessment: Teacher observation will be used during the presentation of the speech, as well as a rubric that monitors the student’s ability to stay on topic, speak clearly, use appropriate volume, pace, and eye contact.

Speaking rubric



3 Terrific Job

Stays on topic

Presents “gift”, but rarely stays on topic.

Presents “gift” and briefly goes off topic.

Presents “gift” and stays on topic throughout the entire speech.

Speaks clearly

“Gift” or explanation of use was unclear.

Either your “gift” or you explanation was unclear.

Both your “gift” and explanation on use or intended use of it were clearly presented.

Uses appropriat

Volume was projected too softly. We couldn’t hear

Volume was projected strong, but we had

Volume was projected in a way that the class

Josephine Lutton

eVolume

you. trouble hearing you in the back.

could all hear.

Pace You spoke much too fast or way too slow during most of your speech.

You spoke at a normal speaking pace for most of your speech, with a couple of slip-ups.

You spoke at a normal speaking pace throughout the speech.

Eye contact

Made no eye contact with the audience. Head was down throughout the speech.

Made a few attempts at making eye contact with the audience.

Eye contact was frequent throughout speech.

Comments:


6. Groupings

Whole-classRead aloudDiscussion on to giving and needs

Small-groupCompare and contrast The Giving Tree and A Tree is NiceCreate/present a skit

IndividualWrite a friendly letterWrite a persuasive textPresent speech on a your gift

7. Schedule

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Introduction

to giving and needs

Read aloud and grand conversation on giving

Add to the Word Wall

Reading logs, graphic organizer of

Minilesson on friendly letters

Discussion on giving thanks

Reading logs, rough draft of friendly letter

Use computers to type final

Minilesson on compare and contrast

Paired reading of A Tree is Nice

Reading logs, compare and contrast A Tree is Nice to The Giving Tree

Minilesson on persuasive text

Read aloud of The Lorax and grand conversation on preserving nature

Reading logs, compose persuasive

Search internet or classroom texts to find a poem on trees or giving to share with the class.

Type poem in Word, or copy and

Josephine Lutton

needs and wants

copies of letters

text on why trees should or shouldn’t be chopped down

paste from the internet.

8. Literature Focus Unit Checklist

Text- The Giving TreeRequired:_____1. Compare and contrast The Giving Tree and A Tree is Nice._____2. Summarize related text_____3. Write a persuasive text_____4. Write a friendly letter_____5. Share poem on trees or giving_____6. Present speech on your “gift”_____7. Participate in read aloud_____8. Participate in discussion on giving and needs

Optional (Choose at least 3):______ Create a Family Tree______ Complete a Character Map for one of the characters from one of the texts you read.______ Create your own poem on trees or giving.______ Draw a picture from of something you visualized while reading one of the texts. ______ Read a related text and state the beginning, middle, and end.______ Create a poster in which you try to persuade others to read the book.______ Compare and contrast a character from a story you read and you. How are you alike? Different?

Date completed

Josephine Lutton

Summarizing MinilessonName: Josie LuttonGrade Level: 3rd Content: Summarizing Lesson: Summarizing The Giving Tree to help comprehension

Content Objective(s): After reading the book, students will be able to create summary using information they have gathered from the text.

GLE: R1H3iApply post-readings skills to demonstrate comprehension of the text: summarize.

Modifications: Students will get to communicate with a partner.

Materials/Media/Resources: Silverstein, S. (1964). The giving tree. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Anticipatory Set: Has anyone ever given a gift to someone? What did you give them? Why did you give them that? Today we are going to read a story called The Giving Tree.

Instructional Input: Today we are going to be talking about summarizing. A summary is a brief recap of piece of text you have read. We will use the words and the pictures to help us come up with a clear summary of what we have read. Summarizing is important because it helps you remember and understand what you have read.

Modeling/Demonstrating: Begin reading the story to the class, pointing out the characters (the tree and the boy) as I read. From reading this much of the text, I have been able to identify a couple of main characters I am going to write them on the board so that I can remember to include them in my summary. Write the two main characters on the board. Continue reading the book. Pause after the boy tells the tree he would like to make a boat. After reading this far, quite a few things have happened in the text. I am asking myself why the tree keeps giving the boy all these things. Can someone tell me some of the things the tree has given to the boy? Continue reading to the end of the book. If I were going to create a summary of this text, there is a very simple sentence I can use to plug in the important information from the text I just read. Write Somebody wanted but so on the board.

Guided Practice: Point to the sentence on the board. From the text we have just do you think you can come up with information from the text to complete this sentence? Turn to your shoulder partner and discuss things like the main character, the problem in the text, and how it was resolved in the end. Walk around while they are discussing and listen to the information students are sharing. Choose a student to share their thoughts with the class. Will you share some of your ideas about the text with the class? “We decided that the main characters were the tree and the boy and that the tree gives a lot in the story, but she runs out of things to give eventually.” That is a very good. I like the way you used details from the text. Choose another student to share. Does anyone else have anything that they could add to that? The boy asks too much of the tree but we liked at the end how the boy came back in the end and didn’t want anything from the tree. That is a very true. Now, I want you to go back to your seats and use what we have discussed to write out a summary of the book in your reading journals. Make sure you write clearly and use details from the text.

Checking for Understanding: I will listen and watch closely as students brainstorm and talk about things they could include in their summaries with their shoulder partners and again as we are wrapping things up. They should be able to form an idea for a summary that makes sense and uses information included in the text.

Josephine Lutton

Independent Practice: Students will go back to their desks and get out their reading journals. You should be using the sentence I wrote on the board: Somebody wanted but so. Circulate around the room as they work. When everyone is close to be done allow them to share what they wrote with their shoulder partner. Ok, now help your shoulder partner out- discuss what you wrote and why. Do your summaries use details from the text? Do they make sense?

Closure: Today we learned how to create a summary of a story, based on what we have read and the illustrations. Then, we compared our summaries with the text to make sure they made sense. Creating summaries is a very important reading skill that helps us use the text we have already read to create a shorter recap of the text. Creating summaries causes us, as readers, to understand the text we are reading better and to remember the important pieces of information.

Evaluation/Assessment:

Student’s summaries of the text will be graded using a rubric to see if their summaries were clear and related to details from the text.

Students will use details from the text including character and plot to create a summary of the text they just read.

Summarizing

Basic 1 pts

Proficient2 pts

Advanced3 pts

Clarifying Able to make a clear summary of what happened in the story.

Basic Is not able to give a clear summary of what happened in the text.

Proficient Is able to give a summary of what happened in the

text.

Advanced Is able to give a clear and well-written summary of what happened in the text.

Summary Can make a summary based on details from the text.

Basic Student did not make a summary or summary was not based on details from the passage. The prediction is off topic.

Proficient Summary is acceptable, but there are not details from the passage to support the summary.

Advanced Summary is acceptable and based on details from the passage. Summary is based on characters and the plot of the text.

575537 formDE http://w w w .rcam 0 %26%2D%5B%3

rubricgradepostf_ 0 0 rubricgradeeditf.c rubricshow c.cfm

NO NO no

465775 465776 465777

2857238

Basic

1

2857239

Proficient

2

2857240

Advanced

3

2857241

Is not able to give

2857242

Is able to give a p

2857243

Is able to give a c

2857244

Student did not m2857245

2857246

Prediction is acce

http://www.irubric.com/

Josephine Lutton

Prediction is acce

Josephine Lutton

Minilesson Reflection

Through the process of writing minilessons this semester I have learned a great

deal about the components of teaching reading to students. Coming into this class, I

was extremely nervous about teaching reading and honestly unsure of what it would

entail. As we began discussing techniques, I became more comfortable with the idea of

teaching reading and was happy to see there are so many options as to how it can be

presented as well. By spending more time looking at the GLE’s for the Communication

Arts portion of curriculum, I also became more familiar with what is going to be expected

of me and my students as far as reading and writing goes.

Word walls are a great tool that we learned a lot about this semester and they

can easily be included when minilessons are presented to teach and aid in a multitude

of skills. They are a great tool to use to get students familiar with high frequency words,

and to use word identification and recognition skills. Word walls can also be organized

in many different ways so you could use phonics sorting skills, prefixes and suffixes,

words that rhyme, or just include words that need to be known in order to understand

the curriculum you are teaching.

As we discussed the five components of reading, I had something to base the

foundation of teaching reading on. I know now that in order to be good readers students

need to possess skills including: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary,

and reading comprehension strategies. I now believe that it is important to introduce at

least one of these components in the minilessons I teach. Students need to have a

great base in phonics in order to become successful readers in the future. We also

discussed basal readers and how they do a successful job in including the majority of

Josephine Lutton

the skills students need to acquire, so they are extremely convenient. They also have

and downfall though and that is the fact that the text in each book is set a grade level,

so students who are struggling or excelling end up either struggling even more, or not

being challenged enough.

I am now also aware of the multiple ways that student’s can read, and that texts

that are above grade level should be included in classroom libraries. Also, that

rereading is something that should definitely be included in classroom lessons because

it is that familiarity with the text that allows students to work on building up their fluency.

A great way to do this is with familiar poems, especially those that are repetitive or

include words that rhyme. Reader’s Theatre and Shared Reading are also techniques

that I hope to use in my classroom, so that I can have all students engaged in the same

text at the same time and be able to informally observe where each of them is at with

their reading at the same time.

I also have learned the many ways in which a students’ reading can be

assessed. First, from the time we spent discussing running records and formal

assessment like DRA testing. And second with the discussion of rubrics and checklists,

I was able to gain a better understanding of how to accurately assess everyday reading

projects in the classroom as well.

Overall, with the completion of this course and the multiple minilessons we wrote

I am now more knowledgeable and comfortable with the expectations that will be

required of me as I begin teaching reading. I know techniques to base my teaching

around, and ways in which they can be presented and assessed in my future

Josephine Lutton

classroom. I also now have plans for a wealth of activities that can be introduced to

present a wide range of topics.

Documents

The Giving Tree