LESSON TWO: Using Keywords
GRADE-LEVEL EXPECTATIONS
IL1B Locate information on keywords in provided resources.
IL1A The learner will formulate keywords and questions to investigate topics.
R3C The learner will be able to read nonfiction text, retell main ideas and important details to answer questions and organize a sequence of events and identify author’s purpose.
LESSON MATERIALS
§ Sources of literature
§ Supplies
o Books from the If You series
o Paper or poster board or chart paper
§ Handouts provided
o None
§ Words to Know
o keywords
o author’s purpose
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Students take one of their key words (formulated previously) from their organizer, review information in text, and then formulate one question based on their key word. Students switch the question with a member of the group so that students find the answer to the question in the text. Students orally give the author’s purpose for writing the text.
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
1. Display charts from previous lesson. Link to prior activity by asking students questions they will answer using information from reading the charts (modeling for later practice). Display all books from the “If You” series that will be used and discuss that the authors have written them to inform or give us information about a particular time period. (Identify author’s purpose) (Make sure author’s purposes are covered: To entertain, To inform the reader, To persuade) (see questions for students below). Students get to choose a time period to investigate. Explain that they will be looking for information from their time period that would fit into the categories on charts.
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Questions for Students |
What is one thing people did? Why did people wear _________? What did people do then that was like________ that we do today? What is another book that we have read that the author’s purpose was to inform you? What other reason would an author have for writing? Why do you think these authors wrote about the past? Why did they write so many books? What time period would you like to live in? Why? |
2. Review Table of Contents in one of the books. Practice finding the key words in each heading. Make students aware that key words are what each heading is mostly about. Guide students into formulating their own key words.
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Questions for Students |
Do you see any words in the Table of Contents that we used on our charts about daily life? How do your choices represent the category you chose? |
3. Set up heterogeneous cooperative groups. Divide “If You” books among the groups. Each group picks out one book to focus on. They work with their group to fill out a four-part organizer, labeling each part with a key word (category) and filling in the information they find for those categories in the organizer. Guide students into formulating questions about their key words. (See examples under Suggestions for Guided Practice.) Use these questions to show students how to find the answers to their questions using their books.
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Suggestions |
If students are having trouble coming up with categories, refer them to the charts. The organizer can be as simple as a “foldable” type using paper, a larger chart on poster board or chart paper, or a worksheet with spaces provided. |