ALEX Classroom Resources

   View Standards     Standard(s): [ELA2015] (0) 4 :

4 ) Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text. [RL.K.4]

[ELA2015] (0) 19 :

19 ) Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding. [RI.K.10]

[ELA2015] (1) 23 :

23 ) Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension. [RF.1.4]

a. Read on-level text with purpose and understanding. [RF.1.4a]

b. Read on-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings. [RF.1.4b]

c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary. [RF.1.4c]

[ELA2015] (1) 31 :

31 ) Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about Grade 1 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups. [SL.1.1]

a. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). [SL.1.1a]

b. Build on others' talk in conversations by responding to the comments of others through multiple exchanges. [SL.1.1b]

c. Ask questions to clear up any confusion about the topics and texts under discussion. [SL.1.1c]

[ELA2015] (1) 32 :

32 ) Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. [SL.1.2]

[ELA2015] (1) 39 :

39 ) Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on Grade 1 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies. [L.1.4]

a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. [L.1.4a]

b. Use frequently occurring affixes as a clue to the meaning of a word. [L.1.4b]

c. Identify frequently occurring root words (e.g., look) and their inflectional forms (e.g., looks, looked, looking). [L.1.4c]

d. Apply alphabetical order to the first letter of words to access information. (Alabama)

This lesson uses music and art in a vocabulary study of unfamiliar words from the song "America the Beautiful," increasing students' vocabulary while also increasing their knowledge of U.S. geography. A discussion to activate students' prior knowledge about sights and scenery throughout the United States is followed by a read-aloud and introduction to the song "America the Beautiful," which is then sung in each session of the lesson. Students learn the meanings of the song's words through shared reading and the use of context clues and images. Students then use photographs, illustrations, and descriptive language to create a mural shaped like the United States. Finally, through pictures and words, students reflect on what they have learned. This lesson is appropriate and adaptable for any patriotic event or holiday, and many of the vocabulary strategies are adaptable for other texts or word lists, as well.