5 Week Unit Plan on
“Reading Across the Cultures”
I teach the Green Level Reading Group. The following unit is directed
towards the struggling readers.
Week 1 – Suki’s Kimono
Materials Needed:
Student Editions of Reading Street 3.2
Teacher Edition of Reading Street Week 5
Time in the Computer Lab
Reading Street CD collection
Find Your Match Game
Human Bingo Cards
Venn Diagram
Leveled Reader
Test
Objectives:
3.LA.2.2.1 Compare and Contrast
3.LA.2.2.2 Prediction
3.LA.2.2.3 Generalization
3.LA.1.6.1 Context Clues
Day 1:
Vocabulary: Introduce Vocabulary through a “Guess the Meaning Activity.” I place a large
piece of butcher paper on the board listing all vocab terms for the week. Students have
the same chart cut into strips of paper. I will say a word and they write what they think
that word means, or they may draw a picture. After about a minute, the students tape
their definitions on the board. We then talk about the correct definition and remove any
that don’t fit.
Reading: Picture Walk through Suki’s Kimono. Listen to Suki’s Kimono on CD. Talk about
the students’ predictions.
Day 2:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Do a Picture and Definition Match. Students sit on the
floor in front of the word wall and tell me where to place the pictures. Afterwards, the
students receive the same pictures and match them to the definitions on their page.
Reading: Review Suki’s Kimono. Break into Ability Partners and Read Assigned Selection or
leveled reader.
Day 3:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Go to Computer Lab to type vocab words in context. Look
in Clip Art to find a picture to match. Play Vocab Charades.
Reading: Read leveled reader, East Meets West for Fluency.
Day 4:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Play Human Bingo – A Game where students have to ask
other students for the definition of a word. If they can answer, they get to sign their
names. The first person with a Blackout wins.
Reading: Review Compare and Contrast. Talk about how Suki differs from other
characters in the story as well as how she differs from kids today. Do a Venn Diagram on
the characters in the story.
Day 5:
Vocabulary: Play Find Your Match. Each student gets a card, either a word or definition.
They need to walk around and find their match. Sometimes I take the game farther and
place pictures around the room. After they find their partner, the pair walks around the
room and finds the picture that goes with their term.
Reading: Have students listen to Suki’s Kimono once more. Partner up and retell the story
with their partner.
Assessment: At the end of the week the students take a test on the Vocabulary and
Comprehension in the story. Many times it is a cloze activity or a word scavenger hunt. As
the year progresses, the students write answers to short essay questions from the story.
Week 2 – How My Family Lives In America
Materials Needed:
Student Editions of Reading Street 3.2
Teacher Edition of Reading Street Week 5
Time in the Computer Lab
Reading Street CD collection
Find Your Match Game
Human Bingo Cards
Fact and Opinion Cards
Leveled Readers
Test
Objectives:
3.LA.2.2.3 Fact and Opinion
3.LA.1.2.1 Text Structure
3.LA.2.2.1 Compare and Contrast
3.LA.1.6.1 Context Clues
Day 1:
Vocabulary: Introduce Vocabulary through a “Guess the Meaning Activity.” I place a large
piece of butcher paper on the board listing all vocab terms for the week. Students have
the same chart cut into strips of paper. I will say a word and they write what they think
that word means, or they may draw a picture. After about a minute, the students tape
their definitions on the board. We then talk about the correct definition and remove any
that don’t fit.
Reading: Picture Walk through My Family. Listen to My Family on CD. Talk about the
students’ predictions.
Day 2:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Do a Picture and Definition Match. Students sit on the
floor in front of the word wall and tell me where to place the pictures. Afterwards, the
students receive the same pictures and match them to the definitions on their page.
Reading: Review My Family. Break into Ability Partners and Read Assigned Selection or
leveled reader.
Day 3:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Go to Computer Lab to type vocab words in context. Look
in Clip Art to find a picture to match. Play Vocab Charades.
Reading: Talk about Homophones. Look through My Family and find examples. Have
students work in groups to make a Homophone List of their own. They may use books to
find examples. Read leveled reader, Coming to America for fluency.
Day 4:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Play Human Bingo – A Game where students have to ask
other students for the definition of a word. If they can answer, they get to sign their
names. The first person with a Blackout wins.
Reading: Review Fact and Opinion. Have the students hold up a Fact or Opinion Card that
goes with your statement.
Day 5:
Vocabulary: Play Find Your Match. Each student gets a card, either a word or definition.
They need to walk around and find their match. Sometimes I take the game farther and
place pictures around the room. After they find their partner, the pair walks around the
room and finds the picture that goes with their term.
Reading: Have students listen to My Family once more. Partner up and summarize the
story with their partner.
Assessment: At the end of the week the students take a test on the Vocabulary and
Comprehension in the story. Many times it is a cloze activity or a word scavenger hunt. In
this case, there would be some Fact and Opinion questions on the test. As the year
progresses, the students write answers to short essay questions from the story.
Week 3 – Good-Bye, 382 Shin Dang Dong
Materials Needed:
Student Editions of Reading Street 3.2
Teacher Edition of Reading Street Week 5
Time in the Computer Lab
Reading Street CD collection
Find Your Match Game
Human Bingo Cards
Questions for a Gallery Walk
Leveled Readers
Test
Objectives:
Monitor and Fix Up
3.LA.2.2.3 Sequence of Events
3.LA.2.2.1 Compare and Contrast
3.LA.1.2.1 Word Structure
Day 1:
Vocabulary: Introduce Vocabulary through a “Guess the Meaning Activity.” I place a large
piece of butcher paper on the board listing all vocab terms for the week. Students have
the same chart cut into strips of paper. I will say a word and they write what they think
that word means, or they may draw a picture. After about a minute, the students tape
their definitions on the board. We then talk about the correct definition and remove any
that don’t fit.
Reading: Picture Walk through Good-Bye 382. Listen to Good-Bye 382 on CD. Talk about
the students’ predictions.
Day 2:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Do a Picture and Definition Match. Students sit on the
floor in front of the word wall and tell me where to place the pictures. Afterwards, the
students receive the same pictures and match them to the definitions on their page.
Reading: Review Good-Bye 382. Break into Ability Partners and Read Assigned Selection
or leveled reader.
Day 3:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Go to Computer Lab to type vocab words in context. Look
in Clip Art to find a picture to match. Play Vocab Charades.
Reading: Talk about Sequencing. Read leveled reader, A Child’s Life in Korea for
sequencing activity and fluency.
Day 4:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Play Human Bingo – A Game where students have to ask
other students for the definition of a word. If they can answer, they get to sign their
names. The first person with a Blackout wins.
Reading: Review Good-Bye 382. Have students participate in a Gallery Walk that posts
comprehension questions around the room. They answer them in groups.
Day 5:
Vocabulary: Play Find Your Match. Each student gets a card, either a word or definition.
They need to walk around and find their match. Sometimes I take the game farther and
place pictures around the room. After they find their partner, the pair walks around the
room and finds the picture that goes with their term.
Reading: Have students listen to Good-Bye 382 once more. Partner up and retell the story
with their partner.
Assessment: At the end of the week the students take a test on the Vocabulary and
Comprehension in the story. Many times it is a cloze activity or a word scavenger hunt. In
this case, there would be questions about sequencing on the test. As the year progresses,
the students write answers to short essay questions from the story.
Week 4 – Jalapeno Bagels
Materials Needed:
Student Editions of Reading Street 3.2
Teacher Edition of Reading Street Week 5
Time in the Computer Lab
Reading Street CD collection
Find Your Match Game
Human Bingo Cards
Leveled Readers
Objectives:
3LA.2.1.3 Draw Conclusions
3.LA.2.2.3 Summarize
3.LA.2.2.3 Fact and Opinion
3.LA.1.6.1 Context Clues
Day 1:
Vocabulary: Introduce Vocabulary through a “Guess the Meaning Activity.” I place a large
piece of butcher paper on the board listing all vocab terms for the week. Students have
the same chart cut into strips of paper. I will say a word and they write what they think
that word means, or they may draw a picture. After about a minute, the students tape
their definitions on the board. We then talk about the correct definition and remove any
that don’t fit.
Reading: Picture Walk through Jalapeno Bagels. Listen to Jalapeno Bagels on CD. Talk
about the students’ predictions.
Day 2:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Do a Picture and Definition Match. Students sit on the
floor in front of the word wall and tell me where to place the pictures. Afterwards, the
students receive the same pictures and match them to the definitions on their page.
Reading: Review Jalapeno Bagels. Break into Ability Partners and Read Assigned Selection
or Leveled Reader.
Day 3:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Go to Computer Lab to type vocab words in context. Look
in Clip Art to find a picture to match. Play Vocab Charades.
Reading: Read the World of Bread leveled reader for Fluency.
Day 4:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Play Human Bingo – A Game where students have to ask
other students for the definition of a word. If they can answer, they get to sign their
names. The first person with a Blackout wins.
Reading: Review Drawing Conclusions. Talk about the Facts in the story and have students
draw conclusions from it.
Day 5:
Vocabulary: Play Find Your Match. Each student gets a card, either a word or definition.
They need to walk around and find their match. Sometimes I take the game farther and
place pictures around the room. After they find their partner, the pair walks around the
room and finds the picture that goes with their term.
Reading: Have students listen to Jalapeno Bagels once more. Partner up and retell the
story with their partner.
Assessment: At the end of the week the students take a test on the Vocabulary and
Comprehension in the story. Many times it is a cloze activity or a word scavenger hunt. As
the year progresses, the students write answers to short essay questions from the story.
Week 5 – Me and Uncle Romie
Materials Needed:
Student Editions of Reading Street 3.2
Teacher Edition of Reading Street Week 5
Time in the Computer Lab
Reading Street CD collection
Find Your Match Game
Human Bingo Cards
Leveled Readers
Test
Objectives:
Prior Knowledge
3.LA.2.1.1 Author’s Purpose
3.LA.2.2.3 Fact and Opinion
3.LA.1.6.1 Context Clues
Day 1:
Vocabulary: Introduce Vocabulary through a “Guess the Meaning Activity.” I place a large
piece of butcher paper on the board listing all vocab terms for the week. Students have
the same chart cut into strips of paper. I will say a word and they write what they think
that word means, or they may draw a picture. After about a minute, the students tape
their definitions on the board. We then talk about the correct definition and remove any
that don’t fit.
Reading: Picture Walk through Uncle Romie. Listen to Uncle Romie on CD. Talk about the
students’ predictions.
Day 2:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Do a Picture and Definition Match. Students sit on the
floor in front of the word wall and tell me where to place the pictures. Afterwards, the
students receive the same pictures and match them to the definitions on their page.
Reading: Review Uncle Romie. Break into Ability Partners and Read Assigned Selection or
Leveled Reader.
Day 3:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Go to Computer Lab to type vocab words in context. Look
in Clip Art to find a picture to match.
Reading: Read leveled reader, A Walk Around the City for fluency.
Day 4:
Vocabulary: Review Vocabulary. Play Human Bingo – A Game where students have to ask
other students for the definition of a word. If they can answer, they get to sign their
names. The first person with a Blackout wins.
Reading: Review Author’s Purpose. Talk about the different reasons an author may write
a story. Talk about Uncle Romie.
Day 5:
Vocabulary: Play Find Your Match. Each student gets a card, either a word or definition.
They need to walk around and find their match. Sometimes I take the game farther and
place pictures around the room. After they find their partner, the pair walks around the
room and finds the picture that goes with their term.
Reading: Have students listen to Uncle Romie once more. Partner up and retell the story
with their partner.
Assessment: At the end of the week the students take a test on the Vocabulary and
Comprehension in the story. Many times it is a cloze activity or a word scavenger hunt. As
the year progresses, the students write answers to short essay questions from the story.