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| Title: A Lesson: Alphabet Instruction - The Letter R for Grade K |
| Unit: Alphabet |
| Topic: Letter R |
| Standard Level: Elementary |
| Grade: Kindergarten |
| Start - End Date: 12/10/01 12/14/01 |
| This LEO was created by: Elaine Anderson |
| Connected Rubric: |
Learning Context: |
| ELA 1, 2, 4 Throughout the school year in Kindergarten, the children are introduced to all of the alphabet letters. This provides a foundation for reading and writing activities throughout their lives. The time for this unit varies from year to year depending on the connection we are trying to achieve. In this year's case, it is connected with reindeer and the Christmas holiday season. The children will need a foundation of letters and sounds to become successful with this unit. Each letter is a building block toward early literacy. |
| Associated New York State Learning Standards: |
| Standard Area: English Language Arts |
| Standard: Language for Information and Understanding Students will read, write, listen and speak for information and understanding. |
| Standard Area: The Arts |
| Standard: Creating, Performing, and Participating in the Arts Students will actively engage in the processes that constitute creation and performance in the arts (dance, music, theatre, and visual arts) and participate in various roles in the arts. |
| Standard Area: Math, Science, and Technology |
| Standard: Information Systems Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technologies. |
Assessment Plan: |
| Assessment will be done on an ongoing basis. Students will show understanding of the letter and the sound that it makes through various activities throughout the week. The students will need to show the ability to identify the letter and its sound through a more formal assessment at the end of the ten week marking period. |
Student Work: |
| There is no content for student work. |
Procedure: |
| Teacher Directions: 1. The brainstorm activity will be done whole group with the teacher acting as the scribe. The teacher may want to include the children by interactively writing some of the words. Trying to interactively write all of the brainstorm list may lose the children's attention. 2. The children can be using their finger to write the letter r on the rug as they recite the formation poem. 3. Have the brainstormed words accessible for the students to copy after they have practiced their handwriting. 4. Using magnetic letters on a cookie sheet, each student will sort the letters into their respective column. This will help their visual discrimination of the formation of lower case and capital R. 5. Have a large capital R with a clear inside on a worksheet, the students can attach small pieces of multicolored ribbon with glue to the formation. This will remind the students of something that starts with the letter R. 6. Alphabet Express is a CD that allows the children to participate in a variety of activities that reinforce the individual letter that is being studied with little adult intervention. Student Directions: 1. Brainstorm a list of words that start with the letter R or have that R sound. 2. Repeat the R formation poem after me, while you make it on the rug with your finger. "Line down, around, out, R and line down, hook r." 3. At one center you will be writing the letter R without an adult to help you. If you finish, you may copy R words from the easel or from the word wall. 4. At one center, you will sort the letter R's into capital and lower case. 5. The next center will be an art activity. You can use ribbon to fill the inside of the capital letter R on this worksheet. 6. The computer center will have Alphabet Express. You need to explore R. |
Resources/Materials Needed: |
| Teacher will need - shared reading material that will provide an anticipatory set or introduction for the learner. My school uses Dominie Press alphabet books, Reading Matters alphabet books and Ray's Readers. - Dry erase easel and markers - R writing practice sheet - large outline of letter R - various pieces of ribbon - magnetic letter R, r - magnetic boards or cookie sheets - glue - rice in a low-sided box - pencils |
| No graphic resources |
| No URL resources |
Instructional/Environmental Modifications: |
| The children with disabilities may have assistance in brainstorming R words. When creating the letter R with ribbons, the children with disabilities will have a smaller R with the gluing already done for them. The students with disabilities will be given more tactile experiences with the letter R. They will feel the letter R on sandpaper, make the letter R in rice rather than writing the letter r which may be difficult if there are fine motor difficulties. |
Time Required: |
| Approximately one hour and 15 minutes to allow proper explanation and shared reading before centers start. Assessment is ongoing throughout the school year. |
Reflection: |
| This lesson was chosen to introduce the letter R due to the need for exposure to all alphabet letters in a systematic method. The students are forming a basis for all literary interaction later in life through a thorough understanding of letters, their formation and letter sounds. I learned that the students do need multiple modes to learn the letters. One single method will not reach all of the learners. Through conversation, art, use of computers, writing, movement between centers and organizing letters in a logical way I am more likely to reach more learners. My co teacher suggested providing the opportunity for the students to make the letter R with their bodies. This may reach some of the learners that rely more on bodily kinesthetic means to retain information. |
(this will remove all of the AccelerateU imagery and text).
