El Deafo by Cece Bell

El Deafo

Written by Cece Bell, Illustrated by David Lasky

Amulet Books, New York, NY

2014

Reading Levels: Lexile- 420 L , Grade- 3

2015 Newbery Honor
2015 Eisner Award Winner for best publication for kids

“deaf, superpower, friendship, different, disability”

The Phonic Ear gives Cece the ability to hear—sometimes things she shouldn’t—but also isolates her from her classmates. She really just wants to fit in and find a true friend, someone who appreciates her as she is. After some trouble, she is finally able to harness the power of the Phonic Ear and become “El Deafo, Listener for All.” And more importantly, declare a place for herself in the world and find the friend she’s longed for.

Suggested Delivery: independent reading

Electronic Sources:

1. http://www.npr.org/2014/12/14/369599042/el-deafo-how-a-girl-turned-her-disability-into-a-superpower

This is a link to an interview with the author of El Deafo, Cece Bell on National Public Radio. The interview discusses how the book is loosely based on Cece Bell’s life and living with her disability as a young child. Presenting this interview to students before reading would aid in building prior knowledge about the author and living with a disability.

2. http://archive.adl.org/education/curriculum_connections/fall_2005/fall_lesson_1_2005.html?cc_section=lesson_1

This link to the Anti-Defamation League’s website for people with disabilities can be used as a resource for teachers to find articles, information, and lesson plans to teach students about living with disabilities and raising awareness about disabilities. The website also includes many resources for teaching about bullying, racism, sexism, and many other topics about diversity.

Teaching Suggestions:

1. Vocabulary:

• Meningitis: inflammation of the meninges caused by viral or bacterial infection and marked by intense headache and fever, sensitivity to light, and muscular rigidity, leading to convulsions, delirium, and death
• Audiology: the study of hearing
• Phonic: letter/ sound correspondence
• Disability: a reduced ability to meeting daily living needs
• Humiliation: something tht makes a person feel ashamed or foolish
• Foreign: strange and unfamiliar
• Persuasion: a kind of speaking or writing that is intended to influence people’s actions
• Gestural: indicate action and physical movement to convey a message
• Contextual: depends on surrounding words and gestures for meaning
• Bawling: crying or sobbing loudly

Before Reading:

The concept of having a disability or being deaf can be an unfamiliar topic to some students. Since this story is based on the author’s real life, introduce the book with a mini lesson about what deafness is to build prior knowledge and relate it to the story by presenting an interview with the author about her experiences with the disability.

During Reading:

Have the students create and monitor predictions about the story by using a Directed Reading-Thinking Activity. Have students begin by evaluating the title, cover, illustrations, and characteristics of the book to make predictions on what the book will be about. Have the students read a selection of the book up to the first stopping point and ask students to evaluate their predictions and change them if necessary. After reading the selection have students look back into the text to find support from the text that proves or disproves their predictions. Use prompting questions such as:

•             What do you think of you predictions now?
•             What did you find in the text to prove your predictions?
•             What did you read that made you change your predictions?

After Reading:

After finishing the story set up an activity in which the students write and illustrate the final chapter of the book. Ask students “What do you think will happen next in the story?” and “What other adventures do you think El Deafo could have?” to inspire ideas for their chapter. Have students draft, illustrate, revise, and publish their work.

Writing Activity:

The author makes the statement “Our differences are our superpowers.” Ask students to complete a brief writing assignment requiring them to respond to this quote and how it relates to text. Ask students what do you think the author means by this? How do differences equate to superpowers? If the author’s statement is true, what are some of your superpowers in the classroom? What is something that makes you different? How is this your superpower?

Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein

Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein

Written and illustrated by Don Brown

Houghton Mifflin Company

Boston, MA

2004

Reading Levels: Accelerated Reader level – 4.6, Grade – 3

Bcc Blue Ribbon Award for Non-Fiction

"Albert Eintstein, brilliant, childhood, biography, problem solving"

When he was born in 1879, Albert was a peculiarly fat baby with an unusually big and misshaped head. When he was older, he hit his sister, frustrated his teachers, and had few friends. But Albert’s strange childhood also included his brilliant capacity for puzzles and problem solving: the mystery of a compass’s swirling needle, the intricacies of Mozart’s music, the secrets of geometry—set his mind spinning with ideas. In fact, Albert Einstein’s ideas were destined to change the way we know and understand the world and our place in the universe.

Suggested delivery: independent

Electronic Resources:

1. http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/scientists/alberteinstein.html

This site provides students with a lot of background information regarding the life of Albert Einstein. The language used on this site is meant for elementary students, so the information is very easy for students to read and understand. Teachers can use this as a way to build prior knowledge of Albert Einstein or as a resource for extension research activities

2. http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/walking-classroom/7626

This is a link to an alternative lesson plan that provides classroom activities for elementary students to use to learn about Albert Einstein. This lesson does not include “Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein” but it does provide some meaningful ideas for extension activities.

Teaching Suggestions

1. Vocabulary:

• Babble: talk rapidly or foolishly in an incomprehensible way
• Clever: quick to understand, learn, and devise or apply ideas
• Displeased: to feel annoyed or dissatisfied
• Brooding: showing deep unhappiness of though
• Captivate: to attract and hold the interest and attention of
• Astonish: to surprise or impress someone greatly
• Independence: to be independent, to be able to do thing by one’s self
• Linger: to stay in a place longer than necessary
• Solitude: the state of being alone

2. Before, During, and After Reading Strategies

Before Reading

Students may be familiar with who Albert Einstein is, but may not have the prior knowledge to understand his significant role in history and physics. Present the attached video to student before reading the book to build schema about Albert Einstein and his accomplishments and triumphs.

http://www.biography.com/people/albert-einstein-9285408

Ask students to jot down interesting or significant facts from the video and hold a class discussion to assess prior knowledge before reading.

During Reading:

A few events that occur in the story during Einstein’s childhood require some inferential comprehension for reader’s to understand what the author means by saying that Einstein was “different.” Select a few pages from the section of the book describing Einstein’s childhood and model inferential comprehension. Demonstrate to students to use what they already know about the setting, character, and events, with what the author is saying to infer the true meaning of the text.

After Reading:

Albert Einstein is noted for making a number of famous remarks and inspirational quotes. After completing “Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein,” present students with a selection of some of his famous quotes (such as the examples below). Hold a whole class discussion where the quotes are read aloud and have the students respond to what Einstein’s remarks mean and how they relate to his own childhood and life. 

• Life is like riding a bicycle.  To keep your balance you must keep moving.
• The only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once.
• Joy in looking and comprehending is nature’s most beautiful gift.
• Imagination is more important that knowledge.  Knowledge is limited.  Imagination encircles the world.
• The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.  It is the source of all true art and all science.  He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead:  his eyes are closed.

Writing Activity:

Review some of the main events that occurred throughout Einstein’s lifetime with the class. Ask the students to choose an event that they find interesting from his childhood, adulthood, or career as a physicist. Have the students further research the event and write a Newspaper article about the major event and its significance. The article should demonstrate literal comprehension of the event (who, what, where, when, and why) and include specific details from Einstein’s life, and explain the significance of the event.

Butterflies by Seymour Simon

Butterflies

Written By Seymour Simon

Published by Collins

2011

Reading Levels Grade Level 4-5

“butterflies, science, caterpillar, insect, garden”

Butterflies are beautiful, inspiring, amazing insects. Did you know that butterflies . . .have eyes that can look in all directions—up, down, forward, backward, left, and right—all at the same time? taste with their feet? can migrate 3,000 miles every year? Award-winning science writer Seymour Simon invites readers to explore the world of butterflies and moths with fascinating facts and stunning full-color photographs.

Suggested Delivery: independent reader to be paired with science lesson

Electronic Resources:

http://www.seymoursimon.com

This is Seymour Simon’s personal website which show cases all of his books and provides information on the author, his books, links to his blog, and resources for children. This website can be useful to teacher, students, and parents who are looking for further information about and from the popular children’s non-fiction author.

http://www.thebutterflysite.com

This site is completely dedicated to information and facts about butterflies. The site provides articles on any topic ranging from the life cycle of a butterfly, to pictures of different species of butterflies, to how to raise butterflies in a farm. Students could use this research to further investigate butterflies or build schema.

Teaching Suggestions:

1. Vocabulary:

• Monarch: a large migratory orange and black butterfly that lives mainly in North America
• Migration: seasonal movement of animals from one region to another.
• Pollinate: to collect or deposit pollen on a flower or plant to allow for fertilization
• Antennae: either of a pair of long, thin sensory appendages on the heads of insects
• Pulverize: to defeat utterly
• Chrysalis: a moth or butterfly pupa that is enclosed in a hardened protective case
• Imago: an adult butterfly
• Thorax: the middle section of an insect
• Abdomen:
• Probiscus: the posterior section of and insect
• Mimic: to copy or imitate
• Pheromone: a chemical produced and released into the environment by an animal that affects the behavior or physiology of others in its species

2. Before, During, and After Reading Strategies

Before Reading:

Since much of the vocabulary in the text is content related vocabulary and most students will be unfamiliar with it, have the class create vocabulary flashcards of all the words listed above. Ask students to write the term on the front of the index card, and the definition and any synonyms or visual representation on the back of the card. This activity will pre-teach the academic vocabulary from the text and give students a reference for vocabulary during reading.

During Reading:

To enhance comprehension during reading, set up a Directed Note-Taking Activity for students to use while teaching. Have students split a piece of paper into two columns, and label the left column “Topics,” and the right column “Notes.” Ask students to keep track of main topics and points being made in the text (ie. The life cycle, different species of butterflies, moths etc.) and use the right hand column to write down any interesting facts or details that belong to the topic. Students can also use the right column to write down any questions they have from the reading or things they’re interested in learning more about.

After Reading:

Using one of the after reading ideas Simon suggests in the last couple pages of his books, a fun and meaningful extension activity from the reading would be to raise butterflies in the classroom. It’s fairly inexpensive and easy to order a butterfly garden kits online which typically includes a netted enclosure, larva, and food. Using a kit like these can bring an interactive and real world scenario of the butterfly life cycle into the classroom for students to observe. Ask the students to use what they learned from the text to write brief observation reports on what stages the butterflies are in during their life cycle, what type of butterflies they are, etc.

Writing Activity:

The text mentions a number of rare, interesting species of butterflies from all over the world. Ask students to choose a butterfly that they think is interesting and have them choose 5 topics to research further about them (ie. Habitat, diet, appearance, etc.) Once the students have researched more information about their butterfly and organized it into the appropriate sub-topics, student can assemble their own butterfly book. Students can create a page for each subtopic that includes a paragraph about the subtopic for their butterfly as well as illustrations, or photos found online. Encourage students to publish their work and share with the rest of the class or their family.

Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust

Hidden: A child’s Story of the Holocaust

Written by Loic Dauvillier, Illustrated by Marc Lizano and Greg Salsedo

Published By First Second, New York, NY

2012

Reading Level: Lexile- 300, Grade- 3

Winner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award 2015

“Holocaust, hiding, France, separated, concentration camp”

Suggested Delivery: independent reading paired with whole class discussion and social studies lesson 

Electronic Resources:

1.   https://kidskonnect.com/history/holocaust/

This resource provides a kid-friendly version of information about the holocaust. The language is simplified and focuses on how the Nazi’s came to power and how the Jewish were discriminated against and forced out of their homes. This resource reflects a lot of the main events that the book covers and would be a great way to have students read about the holocaust before reading to build comprehension.

2.  http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/collection/holocaust-collection-teaching-resources

This site provides tons of useful and interesting teaching suggestions for teachers. The site contains ideas for classroom activities, teaching resources, lesson plans across the disciplines and much more for teachers to use to help teach the holocaust.

Teaching Suggestions:

1. Vocabulary:

• Holocaust: destruction or slaughter on a mass scale
• Victory: an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in battle or competition
• Display: to show something in a place where it can be easily seen
• Protect: to keep safe from harm or injury
• Sulk: to be silent or bad tempered out of annoyance or disappointment
• Humiliating: causing someone to feel ashamed and foolish by injuring their dignity and self-respect
• Traitor: a person who betrays a friend, country, principle, etc.
• Pleasant: giving a sense of happy satisfaction or enjoyment

2. Before, During, and After Reading Strategies:

Before Reading

Since the subject of the Holocaust may be a little unfamiliar to some third grade students, introduce the book by asking students to create a KWL chart as a class. Ask the students what the Holocaust is and to jot down on sticky notes what they know about it. Then, ask the students to write down what they would like to learn from the book or lesson about the Holocaust. By creating the KWL chart the students will gain a sense of purpose in reading and build some background knowledge before reading.

During Reading:

The book is told from a narrator’s point of view who leaves a lot of events and feelings open for inference from the reader. Create and inferential comprehension anchor chart that reminds students how to make inferences in the story. Since this is a graphic novel, the illustrations can be very helpful in making inferences as well. Use lines from the text that require comprehension ad in a whole class discussion, have the students make inferences on what the text truly means and record their responses on the anchor chart.

After Reading:

Using this page which provides many short biographies of children from the holocaust, (https://www.graceproducts.com/fmnc/main.htm) . Encourage students to red about other stories that may be similar to Douina’s experiences. Ask the students to write a letter to one of the children they read about and how their biography affected them. The letter should contain specific details from the time period as well as the child’s biogrpaphy

 Writing Activity:

Have students further explore graphic novels by having them create their own graphic novel. Give students the opportunity to brainstorm ideas, create storyboards with illustrations that help to tell the story, and add dialogue and narration. Once students complete their graphic novel, encourage them to publish their work.