Grade One, Theme Three
Elementary English Language Arts Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Template
Grade 1 Comprehending and Composing*
Use this form to plan your comprehension instruction lessons within a unit (several lessons) around a core theme.
What is the theme?
What is the essential question I would like
students to engage at the end of the
theme?
Universal Theme: Growth and Change
First Grade Theme Three: Turning Corners
Essential Questions: How do things in your world grow and change?
How do we grow and change?
Writing Task:
BEFORE READING
Title of Reading Selection:
Genre:
What is the essential sub-question for each
lesson, as it relates to the theme?
Lesson Seven
“Little Red Hen Gets Help”
Fantasy
Lesson Eight
“Beth’s Job”
Realistic Fiction
Lesson Nine
“Plants Can’t Jump”
Nonfiction
Essential Sub-Question:
Essential Sub-Question:
Essential Sub-Question:
Focus Comprehension Skill:
Compare and Contrast
Focus Comprehension Skill
Details
Focus Comprehension Skill:
Beginning, Middle, Ending
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Answer Questions
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Use Graphic Organizers
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Summarize
Comprehension Objective:
To understand genre: fantasy
Comprehension Objective:
To understand the characteristics of
realistic fiction
Comprehension Objective:
To understand genre: nonfiction
Background knowledge: build or activate
students’ related knowledge to the theme
or topic.
DURING READING
What reading instruction is needed? (skills,
strategies, higher level questions)
What is the intended comprehension
objective of student learning?
AFTER READING
Sub-question: Writing Task
Create the writing task by turning the
question into a prompt. Discuss the
question and answer it orally before
students write.
* This template is for the teaching of comprehending and composing only within the core reading program. Teach other
components of the reading program as you normally would—including phonics and word work, fluency, spelling, writing
conventions, etc.
Grade One, Theme Three
Elementary English Language Arts Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Template
Grade 1 Comprehending and Composing*
Use this form to plan your comprehension instruction lessons within a unit (several lessons) around a core theme.
BEFORE READING
Lesson Ten
Lesson Eleven
Lesson Twelve
Title of Reading Selection:
“Soccer Song”
“Land of Ice”
“King Midas and His Gold”
Genre:
Realistic Fiction
Nonfiction
Myth
What is the essential sub-question for each
lesson, as it relates to the theme?
Essential Sub-Question:
Essential Sub-Question:
Essential Sub-Question
Focus Comprehension Skill:
Plot
Focus Comprehension Skill:
Compare and Contrast
Focus Comprehension Skill:
Setting
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Recognize Story Structure
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Monitor Comprehension: Make
Inferences
Focus Comprehension Strategy:
Ask Questions
Comprehension Objective:
To understand characteristics of
realistic fiction
Comprehension Objective:
To understand genre: nonfiction
Comprehension Objective:
To understand genre: myth
Background knowledge: build or activate
students’ related knowledge to the theme
or topic.
DURING READING
What reading instruction is needed? (skills,
strategies, higher level questions)
What is the intended comprehension
objective of student learning?
AFTER READING
Sub-question: Writing Task
Create the writing task by turning the
question into a prompt. Discuss the
question and answer it orally before
students write.
* This template is for the teaching of comprehending and composing only within the core reading program. Teach other
components of the reading program as you normally would—including phonics and word work, fluency, spelling, writing
conventions, etc.
Theme
Three

Lesson 7
Possible Theme Essential Questions
How do things in your world grow and change?
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Possible Main Selection Sub-Questions
Why does Little Red Hen say she will ask the ants first to help?
How do the characters change?
How do the animals change in order to help hen?

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How does Beth’s job make the classroom a better place?
How do responsibilities change as we age?
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What made Beth’s feelings about her job change?
How are plants like us? How are they different?

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What do plant’s roots do? What does a stem do?
How do plants change as they grow?
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
Lesson 10
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
Do you think Jill will keep playing soccer?
Why does Jill have trouble playing soccer at first?
How can our experiences change us?

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Lesson 11

How is the land different from what is under the water? How is
it the same?
Why does the fish likes the ice?
How do animals change to adapt to their environment?

Why is King Midas glad to lose his golden touch?
Do you think King Midas will be happy now? Tell why or why
not.
How do the events in the story change King Midas’s feelings

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Lesson 8
Lesson 9
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Lesson 12
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Possible Theme Essential Writing Tasks
Explain how things in your world grow and change. Use
examples from the story.
Possible Main Selection Sub-Question Writing Tasks
Explain why Little Red Hen says she will ask the ants first to
help?
Explain how the characters change
Describe what then animals could do next time to help Red Hen.
Explain how Beth’s job makes the classroom a better place.
Explain how responsibilities change as we age. Gives examples
from the story.
Explain how Beth’s feelings about her job change?
Explain how plants are like us and how they are different. Use
examples from the story.
Explain what plant’s roots do? Explain what a stem does.
Explain how plants change as they grow. Give examples from
the story
Explain why you think Jill will keep playing soccer.
Explain why Jill has trouble playing soccer at first.
Describe how our experiences can change us. Use examples
from the story.
Explain how the land is different from what is under the water.
Explain how it is the same.
Explain why the fish likes the ice.
Describe how animals change to adapt to their environment.
Give examples from the story.
Explain why King Midas is glad to lose his golden touch.
Explain why you think King Midas will be happy now. Use
examples from the story.
Describe how the events in the story change King Midas’s
feelings.