Katie Swartzwelder
EDHD 313: Whole Group Lesson Plan
March 17, 2004
The Rainbow Fish Lesson Plan
Description of the group: 12 preschoolers (4 years old)
Expected duration of lesson: about 25 minutes
Objectives:
1. The students will attend to a storytelling of The Rainbow Fish
2. The students will discuss some of the characters, setting, and plot.
3. The students will connect ideas from the story to their lives.
4. The students will use their own ideas and feelings when creating artwork.
Materials:
 The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
 Stapler
 Strips of construction paper cut into 12x3 inch strips.
 Crayons/Markers
Warm-up:
Start out by singing “Make New Friends, but Keep the Old” (a song that they learned a few
weeks ago). After singing, review the importance of the song and tell them that we are going to
read a story about friendship.
Procedure for the activity:
(steps 1-2 will be done as whole group, step 3 will be done in small groups during free play when
they typically are pulled out in groups of 3 for a “special project”)
1. Read the story to students and discuss friendship and what it takes to be a friend—in
reference to both the story and our own lives.
2. Tell students that we will be making a friendship chain (many do not know what that is, so
they are quite impressed as it takes shape). Also, discuss the meaning of the friendship chain.
3. Each student gets a strip of construction paper to decorate and put his/her name on. If there
was not a lot of discussion with the whole group, then have a discussion once separated into
the small group, prior to decorating their strip.
4. As they finish, I will begin to make the chain by stapling each strip of paper into a circle
shape and linking them together as I staple.
5. The chain will be displayed in the classroom throughout the rest of the year.
Closure:
After the chain is complete, we will work together to find the best place in the classroom to
display our product. The book will also be left in the classroom for the children to look at
independently.
Assessment:
Were the children able to recall the plot?
Did the children understand the message?
Were the children able to write there names correctly?
Were the children able to complete the artwork?
Were the children able to connect the story to the real world?