Summary
Whether your students are just starting to read and write or can already do so, they will enjoy this lesson. It combines elements of science with reading and writing. It begins with a story, The Surprise Package, that could very well happen to them. Students work on an animal card toy sort. They will use adjectives to describe the toys (nouns) found in Carter’s toy box. One of the goals in this lesson is for the children to write, or dictate to the teacher, a personal letter to someone important to them. They also draw a picture to accompany the letter. This leads us to the “paper hunt” where they will participate in a science activity to help them find the types of paper that are best for writing and drawing.
Essential Question(s)
What are the observable properties of objects? How can knowing the properties of materials help us describe them? Why is it important to be able to communicate and share information with others?
Snapshot
Engage
Students listen to the story The Surprise Package. The story is then used to introduce the students to nouns and adjectives.
Explore
Using the story and card sort, students practice creating adjectives. The card sort is then used for a variety of partnered activities.
Explain
Students go on a paper hunt to discover the properties of different types of paper. They name the type of paper and discover that the label is an adjective that describes that kind of paper. They create a chart to keep track of their findings and use the data to determine the best papers for writing and drawing.
Extend
Students write or dictate letters and create a drawing that accompanies their letter.
Evaluate
Students write or tell about the properties of one kind of paper and how those properties determine the uses for that paper. Students go back to the original story about Carter and write or tell what Carter's room looked like making sure to use adjectives to describe.
Parent Guide and PreK Extension: This lesson has a parent guide attached for at home use for grades PreK-2nd. It also has an additional activity using a paper cut out of Boomer, the OU Mascot Horse, for storytelling and language development.
Materials
The Surprise Package story (attached; 1 per student)
Animal Toy Card Sort (attached; 1 per student)
Data Collection Table (attached; 1 per student)
Question Sheet (attached; 1 per student)
Properties Thinking Questions (attached; 1 per student)
Pencil, crayons, colored pencils, or markers, scissors
Assortment of papers (wax paper, paper grocery bag, tissue, paper towel, cardboard, toilet paper, notebook, colored, lined, construction)
Parent Guide with student handouts (attached; at least 1 per family)
Engage
Begin the lesson by reading the story, The Surprise Package, to your students.
Introduce the word noun by focusing on the title of the story, The Surprise Package, and asking students which of the three words names a person, place or thing. Circle the word package.
Continue this activity by working together as a whole class. Use a document camera or printed copies of the story to circle or highlight nouns found in the story. There are plenty of nouns in this story, so the class may not circle all of them. Focus on the following nouns: letters, animals, puff, toys, package, Carter, Grandma Gayle, tiger, bear, reindeer, cow, unicorns, elephant, dalmatian, clownfish, snake, T-rex, horse.
Next, introduce the word adjective by focusing students' attention on the title of the story again and asking students what word in the title describes the kind of package. They should tell you it is a surprise package. Tell students that words that describe a noun (person, place or thing) are called adjectives. For more practice, find the noun puff' in the story and discuss how the adjective giant tells us the size of the puff. Practice finding adjectives that describe a few more nouns. Suggested nouns: letters, print, animals, and note.
Explore
Say to students, "Carter didn't tell us what the stuffed toys looked like so let's make the story better by adding some words that describe the toys. Look at your picture page of toys. What word could we write to describe the cow? Spotted is one adjective we could write that describes the cow. Write adjectives that describe the other toys." Encourage students not to use the same adjective more than once.
After students finish writing, have them cut out the cards themselves if possible. This is a fine motor skill that young children need to practice, even if the cards don't come out perfectly. After the cards are cut out, follow the list of activities provided below or create activities of your own.
Explain
Say to students, "In the story, Carter wants to send a thank-you letter and a drawing to his grandma. The first thing he needs to do is find the right kind of paper to write and draw on. We are going to do something like Carter is doing. You are going to write a letter and draw a picture for someone you know. The first thing we need to do is find the right papers for writing and drawing!"
The next step depends on how you choose to facilitate the paper hunt: as a whole class, centers, or in pairs.
Students should write and draw on each kind of paper with their pencil and crayon. They record their results on the attached Data Collection Table handout.
Extend
Using data from their chart and class discussion, students should get two full sheets of the papers determined to be best for writing and drawing.
Discuss with students who they would like to write to and what they would like to tell them. The letters can be short, just a couple of sentences. Students should do as much of the writing as they can with the focus on writing rather than on spelling. First or second graders should spell some common words such as the, it, said, and done, then use inventive spelling for more complex words. Placing too much focus on spelling can overwhelm students alongside all of the processes involved in writing a letter.
Here is a simple format for a letter you can use.
After writing or dictating their letters, have students create a drawing that accompanies their letter. Consider sending the letters and drawings home for parents to mail or have an alternate plan for delivering the letters.
Returning to the Explain: Part II
Make a list of all of the papers that students explored or that you want to show them. Have them help you create a list like the one below.
Example of possible list:
construction paper
lined paper
thin paper
colored paper
wax paper
tissue paper
notebook paper
toilet paper
paper towel**
Using what students now know about how properties of the papers can describe the papers, have students identify the describing word (adjective) that tells something about the papers. **Paper towel is a challenge option because the word paper describes the word towel. This makes the word paper the adjective and towel the noun.
Evaluate
Option 1: Using an assortment of papers, give each student a small piece of one paper type. Have students write or dictate the properties for the type of paper. Next, have them write a describing word (adjective) that they would use for this paper and provide an example of what it is used for. Observe whether students can describe the properties of one kind of paper as well as how those properties determine its use.
Option 2: Students go back to the original story about Carter and draw what they think his room looked like after he opened the box. Some students can also tell or write 1-2 sentences describing Carter's room making sure to use adjectives in their writing.
Extensions for Gifted Students
Students compare a gift box they received to the box that Carter received. They should write and draw to show this comparison.
Students take the drawing of what the room looked like after Carter opened his box and compare it to what their room would like if they received the same box. Encourage students to focus on how they would organize, sort, or display the toys?