Weekly Activities:
Week 1:



Lesson 1: Students will participate in a whole-class mini lesson which introduces the characteristics of a Historical Fiction book.
Intro to Historical Fiction SmartBoard Lesson
o
Whole Class Activity: The teacher will read the book Stand Straight Ella Kate out loud to the class. The class will then examine the different elements of the book that contribute to its classification as
Historical Fiction.
o
Guided Reading Session 1: Students will be introduced to their guided reading books for the month. Students will examine the cover of their books, including the illustrations and the title and will make
predictions why the book is historical fiction. Students will then read an informational text that provides information about the time period their story takes place in so the student is better able to
understand the plot, setting and characters in the book. Students will complete a KWL chart before and after reading this book.
Lesson 2: The teacher will read the book Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt out loud to the class. The class will then examine the different elements of the book that contribute to its classification as Historical
Fiction (i.e. setting, dialogue, characters etc.) while filling in the graphic organizer found at the end of the Historical Fiction SmartBoard Lesson. Students will then use this graphic organizer as a means to chart
different characteristics of Historical Fiction found within their guided reading books throughout the month.
o
Guided Reading Session 2: Guided reading groups will begin reading their selected Historical Fiction text. Students will begin filling in the Historical Fiction Graphic Organizer as the encounter different
pieces of evidence that contribute to the different areas listed on the chart. This will be continued as they progress through their books.
o
Historical Fiction Graphic Organizer
Week 2:
Lesson 1: Students will participate in a whole-class mini lesson which introduces the concept of thick (inferential) and thin (literal) questions.

SmartBoard Lesson: Thick and Thin Questions
o
Guided Reading Session 1: Students will practice generating questions while they read their guided reading books. Groups will use the question dice on the SmartBoard to help them start their
questions. As they create their questions they will both determine whether that question is thick or thin and why and will also use information from the text to answer that question.

Lesson 2: The teacher will then read the book Cheyenne Again out loud to the class, while modeling how to generate and identify these types of questions. The students will then be asked to generate their own
questions while the teacher reads. These questions will then be placed on chart paper in a t-chart labeled Thick and Thin. As the questions are generated, the class will decide what type of question they are.
o
Guided Reading Session 2: Students will continue reading their guided reading books while generating and answering questions as they read. As they think of questions, the class will discuss what type
of questions were asked and will place them in a t-chart labeled thick and thin just like was modeled in the previous mini-lesson.
o
T-Chart
Week 3:



Lesson 1: Students will participate in a whole-class mini lesson which introduces the story element of setting. Students will learn that setting can be both when (time period, season, time of day) and where
(geographical location or structure) a story takes place. Students will also discuss how setting can affect the feeling or mood of a story.
Smart Board Lesson: Setting
Lesson 2: In this second lesson about setting the students will learn that authors help us visualize and make inferences about where and when a story takes place by describing the surroundings in the story. They
do this often by using their senses. Groups will then attempt to describe and make inferences about different settings provided in the above Smartboard lesson.
o
Guided Reading Sessions 1 & 2: As students continue to read their Guided Reading texts throughout the month they will look for various clue words that indicate where the story takes place, the
season, the duration of the story and the time period in which the story takes place (past, present or future). Students will then make inferences based on these clues and will place them in the provided
graphic organizer. Students will also be asked to use these clues to visualize the setting by drawing a picture.
o
Setting Graphic Organizer
Week 4:



Lesson 1: Students will begin this week by being introduced to the concepts of both sequencing and summarization as comprehension skills. Lesson 1 will focus mainly on sequencing. Students will learn that
sequencing involves selecting important story events and placing them in order from beginning to end. Students will also learn various temporal words such as first, second, third, next, then, last, before, and after.
Students will then practice these skills through various activities found within the provided SmartBoard Lesson. Students will learn that sequencing is a form of summarization.
Lesson 2: In the second lesson of the week, students will explore summarization. Students will learn that summarization involves retelling the most important parts of a story in your own words. Students will
practice giving the “gist” of various passages. This will become a skill that they will use often in guided reading as students will be asked to retell or summarize what happened in a page or passage of a book. The
teacher will be looking for the student to retell only the most important points found in that section. Students should be brief and to the point and should refrain from telling details. The students will also discuss
how sequencing and summarizing are similar and different (compare and contrast).
Smart Board Lesson: Summarization and Sequencing
o
Guided Reading Session 1: Guided reading groups will create comic strips for an assigned section of their guided reading books. The teacher will be looking for students to select only the most important
events of the section and will also expect that the students place them in chronological order based on when they occurred in the story. Students will depict the events through both writing and
illustrating.
o
o
o
o
o
Sequence Comic Strip
Comic Strip Rubric
Guided Reading Sessions 2: Students will create a “Book Bag” book report summarizing various aspects of their guided reading books. Students will be asked to select the main characters in the book,
summarize the main events found within the book and create depictions of items that represent the important events that happened within the book.
Summary Bag Book Report Outline
Summary Bag Book Report Rubric