Grade Level: 2, 3, 4

Subject(s):

• Language Arts/Literature/Children's Literature
• Language Arts/Reading
• Language Arts/Phonics
• Language Arts/Vocabulary

Duration: 8-10 months

Description: A collection of phonics, reading comprehension, and vocabulary activities to be used throughout the year with the following trade books: Chalk Box Kid , Flat Stanley , The Boxcar Children , Stone Fox , Lily and Miss Liberty , Helen Keller , The Tree That Would Not Die , and Little House in the Big Woods .

Goals: To provide a literature based reading curriculum for primary students.

Objectives:

1. Students will be able to read chapter books with understanding and enjoyment, using a phonics approach to learn new and unfamiliar words.
2. Students will be able to re-tell and summarize events from chapter books.

Materials:

• Chalk Box Kid by Clyde Robert Bulla
• Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown
• The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner
• Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
• Lily and Miss Liberty by Carla Stevens
• Helen Keller by Stewart Graff
• The Tree That Would Not Die by Ellen Levine
• Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• Word Study pages from http://gardenofpraise.com/lesson.htm

Procedure (for each trade book):
Before students begin reading the book, download the corresponding Word Study and/or Comprehension pages. There is one Word Study page for each chapter. Before students read the first chapter, have them complete the corresponding Word Study page. At the top of each page is a list of phonograms (some sheets also have prefixes or suffixes). Have the children say these sounds out loud. Underneath the list of phonograms are rows of words containing the phonograms. [You may want to have students circle or mark the phonograms in each row of words.] The right hand side of the page has words from the story, which may be unfamiliar to the students. Students should work across the rows from left to right, using the phonograms to "unlock" the unfamiliar story words. [Either individually or in unison, you can have the students read the first three words in each row. Then call on a student to unlock the new word at the end of the row. Discuss the meaning of each story word.]

Along with Word Study pages, some books have corresponding Comprehension pages. These pages can be passed out before students begin reading, so they will know what to look for when reading the chapter. Students may read silently, with a partner, or in groups. Afterwards, students will discuss the main events in the chapter. Record students' comments on the board. Students should then complete the Comprehension page for the chapter. Continue with one chapter a day until the book is finished (depending on your class schedule).