Handling the Challenges of Starting Over

A Third-Grade Themed Literature Unit

by Shannon Houghton, MITFA06

Learning Targets and Evidence of Learning/Assessment

Learning Targets	Corresponding GLEs	Evidence of Achievement
Students will understand that people want to be lifelong readers for a variety of reasons other than classwork such as reading for: Ø Pure enjoyment of hearing stories Ø Learning something new Ø Finding comfort or guidance in difficult situations Ø To stretch their minds Ø Practical reasons (reading recipes, picking a movie, etc.) (generalization)	Reading 3.1 and 3.2 Applies reading to learn new information or perform a task. Reading 3.4.1 Understands different perspectives of family, friendship, culture, and traditions found in literature. Writing 1.2.1 Produces a draft of multiple paragraphs over time. Writing 4.1.1 Analyzes and evaluates others’ writing.	Ø Students will keep a journal that will be evaluated to show their development as lifelong readers. It will be completed daily and will show thoughtfulness and reflection. Ø Periodical reading conferences will gauge student’s developing relationship with reading. The student will be assessed on increased understanding of why they read and what they gain from reading. Ø A chart for reading purposes will be developed throughout the unit, and anecdotal notes taken during the construction of the chart will indicate students’ understanding of reading purposes. Ø Post-assessment: Students will produce a guide for new students that will recommend books related to starting over, express their own experiences with starting over, or offer suggestions for starting over. Their participation indicates that they realize not all reading experiences relate to increasing reading levels or earing AR points. The piece they contribute will be interesting, readable, personally relevant, and show a developing understanding of writing conventions.
Students will understand the process of setting goals for reading and how to select appropriate texts for every situation. (skill)	Reading 4.1.2 Understands how to set grade-level appropriate reading goals.	During the reading conference, the student will also address his or her habits for choosing and reading books. If they move beyond selecting books for AR points, this will indicate a developing lifelong reader.
Students will understand the structure of and be able to be active participants in a Literature Circle book group discussion focusing on handling challenges.(skill)	Reading 2.4.2 Understands the author’s purpose for and style of writing in literary text. Reading 4.2.1 Evaluates authors and books to select favorites. Communication 2.1.1 Selects language that is respectful of others’ feelings and rights. Communication 4.1.1 Identifies a strength and an area needing improvement in one’s own communication using classroom criteria, with teacher guidance.	Students will complete self-evaluations of their social performance in group work. Anecdotal notes will be gathered during the conference and will be assessed based on ability to apply reading strategies and general insights into the theme and text.
Students will understand how to use reading strategies that help them have a better idea of what happens to characters who face challenges. These strategies include: Ø Making connections between the text and their life, other texts, and the world Ø Asking relevant questions to clarify understanding and develop meaning (skill)	Reading 2.1.4 and 2.1.6 Applies comprehension monitoring strategies before, during, and after reading using prior knowledge/schema, predicting, and generating and answering questions.	Students will appropriately apply making connection and questioning skills in their literature circles, and their performance will be recorded by the observing teacher. Using the strategies may also be noted in students’ journals or through observations in in-class discussions. Students will be evaluated based on whether they begin to consistently employ the strategies (i.e. once per class).
Students will understand that good writing is relevant and has the power to impact other people who are facing the challenges of starting over. (generalization)	Writing 1.3.1 Revises text by adding, deleting, substituting, and moving words and phrases. Writing 1.5.1 Publishes own writing. Writing 3.3 Knows and applies appropriate grade level writing conventions. Writing 4.1.1 Analyzes and evaluates own writing.	Post-assessment: (see above) In producing well-constructed and edited pieces of writing, students will indicate that they understand their work is being done for an authentic audience, not simply as a school task.

Unit Structure, Assessment Instruments, and Basic Procedures

Pre-Assessment: Students will participate in a class discussion about what students do when they handle challenges, and what challenges they face when they start over or start something new. I will record their responses on a T chart that will remain posted throughout the unit and will be added to as we uncover new challenges and solutions. Adding to the chart throughout the unit will allow me to watch the students’ developing understanding of the theme. I’ll also take anecdotal notes on student participation. (LT 1) (Note: Students will also meet with me for a baseline reading conference so I can place them on the reader’s and writer’s continuum and gauge how to frame their guided reading group sessions.)

Daily Response Journal: I will introduce the journal (see daily breakdown of lessons) and ask students to write about a time they were new or had to start over. They will be asked to write for 5-7 minutes straight (even if they say they’ve run out of ideas, they’ll write whatever comes into their head), and their responses will not be judged in an overly critical way; they’ll be used for my reference in determining a baseline in writing ability, phonemic awareness, and general knowledge of handling challenges. (LT 1, 5)

Guided Reading: Students are accustomed to this format of reading groups, so we will use these bi-weekly meetings to review skills and to address issues with decoding and vocabulary. I will keep anecdotal notes. (LT 4; anecdotal notes could apply to other LTs)

Reading Conferences: I plan to meet with 3-5 students throughout the day for short informal conferences. Using the reading conference worksheet from Classroom-Based Assessment as my guide . I will do short evaluations of student reading to see if the skills they are using in whole group, guided reading, and literature circle lessons are transfering to their independent reading. Depending on how streamlined this system winds up being, I may also include the reading and writing continuum on p. 326-327. Marking students’ capabilities on this continuum will help me later on when I need to evaluate the progress my students have made as readers. (LT 1, 2, 4)

Literature Circles: I will be present and taking anecdotal notes during each literature circle meeting (Note: I am doing this because this is my students’ first experience with literature circles and group discussions in general. In future units, I would not be present for the entire discussion). (LT 3; anecdotal notes could apply to other LTs)

Self-Evaluation: Students will fill out a communication/group work evaluation sheet that they will be familiar with because it will also be used in their social studies unit. Each assignment will also have a check list, such as the one included for the final assessment. (LT 3)

Final Assessment: Students will write pieces to contribute to a new student guidebook. The class will brainstorm ideas for topics, which could include ideas such as a review of a book that was particularly touching to a student who was in a similar situation of starting over, a journal entry about a student’s experience starting over in a new school, or a recommendation sheet for handling new situations at the school, such as navigating the playground or understanding how the lunchroom procedures work. This piece can be developed from a journal entry if the student desires. This will ease any anxiety of coming up with a completely new topic from scratch.

While working on refining their pieces, students will use the “No Excuses” word wall, which will contain developmentally appropriate common words such as “because” and “first.” (LT 1, 2, 5)

Thematic Book & Resource List

Guided Reading Selections

Altman, Linda Jacobs. Amelia’s Road (1995). New York: Lee & Low Books.

Amelia is a migrant farm worker who hates roads because they always take her to new places where she is never remembered and never finds a home. She finds a secret road of her own and finds a way to leave her mark.

Brenner, Barbara. Wagon Wheels (1993). New York: HarperTrophy.

A family of black sharecroppers move across the plain to find a new home. Daddy goes ahead to settle in, and the three boys must find the way on their own.

Clements, Andrew. Jake Drake: Bully Buster (2001). New York: Simon & Schuster.

Jake, a self-described bully-magnet, must decide what to do when Link Baxter, SuperBully, moves into the neighborhood. (This is part of a series)

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Matthew Jackson Meets the Wall (1991). New York: Yearling.

Matthew moves from New York to Ohio, and encounters “the Wall,” the scariest guy in the neighborhood. Will he be able to go forward with “The New Matthew Plan” of strength and lack of fear? (This is an offshoot of the Polk Street books)

Hendry, Diana. The Not-Anywhere House (1989). New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books.

Six-year-old Hannah loves her tree-sheltered cottage, but she must move to the city when her father gets a new job. This is a British novel and includes some English phrases that may be unfamiliar.

Holt, Kimerly Willis Holt. Mister and Me (1998). New York: Scholastic, Inc.

Jolene learns to adjust to life with her mother’s new boyfriend, Leroy, who she refers to as Mister.

O’Dell, Scott. Island of the Blue Dolphins (1960). New York: Yearling.

Karana is left behind when her family leaves their Alaskan island. She must learn to survive on her own with limited resources.

Johnston, Tony. The Worm Family (2004). New York: Harcourt, Inc.

The worms travel from town to town because they encounter neighbors who do not want them in their community. Finally, Dad puts his foot down and the family settles despite others’ animosity.

Smith, Robert Kimmel. The War With Grandpa (1984). New York: Yearling.

When Peter finds out his grandpa is moving in, he goes to war to defend his first-floor bedroom.

Literature Circle Selections

Abercrombie, Barbara. Charlie Anderson (1995). London: Aladdin.

Elizabeth and Sarah adopt a cat they only see in the evenings. They later realize the cat, Charlie Anderson, is living in two houses with two beds and two families, just like both of them.

Aliki. Painted Words and Spoken Memories: Marianthe’s Story (1998). New York: Greenwillow Books.

Marianthe moves to the United States and struggles with both the language and culture of her new home. After she becomes more comfortable, she presents her Spoken Memories, a description of why she came to America.

Bunting, Eve. So Far From the Sea (1998). New York: Clarion.

Nine-year-old Laura travels with her family to visit the relocation camp where her parents were sent during World War II. Will be used to address the fact that even when people start over, they still bring the past with them.

Hesse, Karen. The Music of Dolphins (1996). New York: Scholastic Inc.

Mila, a girl who has been raised by dolphins, is discovered on a deserted island. She must learn to adjust to life with humans, and her language and narrative (and even the typeface of the novel) change with her experiences.

Estes, Eleanor. The Hundred Dresses (1974). New York: Voyager Books.

Maggie watches and joins in as her classmates insult Wanda Petronski, a poor immigrant girl, because she doesn’t speak much and instead draws the hundred dresses she says she has at home. When Wanda leaves the school, Maggie realizes the impact of their tormenting her.

Possible Read-Aloud Choices

Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts (2004). New York: Scholastic Inc.

Moose and his family move to Alcatraz so his autistic sister can attend a special school in nearby San Francisco. What will it take for him to fit in?

Codell, Esme Raji. Sahara Special (2003). New York: Scholastic Inc.

In order to avoid entering the special education system, Sahara repeats 5^th grade with a new class and an unconventional new teacher.

Hopkinson, Deborah & Nancy Carpenter. Apples to Oregon (2004). New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

A tall tale based on a true story featuring Delicious and her family, who take apple trees across the Great Plains and to Oregon on the back of a wagon.

Konigsburg, E.L. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenweiler (1967). New York: Simon Pulse (reprint).

Claudia, tired with her normal life, runs away from home with her brother Jamie. Together they live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, uncover a mystery, and take care of themselves without getting caught.

Mead, Alice. Crossing the Starlight Bridge (1994). New York: Aladdin.

Rayanne struggles to fit in at a new mainland school while retaining her native culture and traditions.

Patneaude, David. Colder than Ice (2005). Morton Grove: Albert Whitman & Company.

When Josh, an overall “okay” kind of guy, starts 6^th grade at a new school, he unexpectedly receives some attention from a popular 7^th grader. He also befriends a classmate with Aspergers, and must find out who his friends really are.

Additional In-Class Books

Amato, Mary. The Word Eater. (2005) New York: Holiday House.

Sixth-grader Lerner Chase, who has recently moved from Wisconsin to Washington, D.C., struggles to find her place in a new school. Meanwhile, a newborn worm named Fip is shunned because he prefers eating words to dirt. The two find each other and Lerner discovers her responsibility over Fip’s powers.

Haddix, Margaret Peterson. Among the Imposters (2002).

Living life as an illegal third child proved impossible for Luke, who has escaped to the refuge of a boys’ boarding school. Luke tries to fit in and not give himself away by making the foau pax of one unfamiliar with social life.

Prelutsky, Jack. The New Kid on the Block (1984). New York: Greenwillow.

This book of great poetry features a work about a new kid in the neighborhood.

Wilson, Jacqueline. The Suitcase Kid (1992). New York: Doubleday.

Andrea feels lost and without a home when her parents split. It takes a new baby sister to help her start to find her place again.

I hope you found this helpful! If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at any time at houghton@seattleu.edu.

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