Revised 7-7-12 by EG/DT
GRADE 3/GRADE4/GRADE 5
ELA CCGPS UNIT PLANNER: __1st_____ 9 WEEKS (1ST, 2ND, 3RD, OR 4TH)
Use your grade-level curriculum map to determine the reading and writing focuses of your unit and the numbers and types
of assessments
READING FOCUS: ___Literary_______________________________________ (literary or informational)
THEME: Our Country
EXTENDED TEXT: Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater
THEMATICALLY CONNECTED SHORT TEXTS (mixture of literary and informational):
1. Penguins! By Gail Gibbons (Lexile 910)
2. Magic Tree House – Ancient Greece & the Olympics by Mary Osborne (Lexile 590)
3. Magic Tree House – Hour of the Olympics by Mary Osborne (Lexile 380)
4. Turtle Bay (Harcourt pg. 156) by Savior Pirotta (Lexile 490)
5. Georgia, My State Habitats by Doraine Bennett (Atlantic Ocean, Coastal Plain, Marsh and Swamp, Piedmont, Mountains)
SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL:
1. Marshes and Swamps by Gail Gibbons (Lexile 740)
2. Sea Turtles by Gail Gibbons (Lexile 720)
3. Balto, the Dog Who Saved Nome by Margaret Davidson (Harcourt pg. 182)
4. Hoot, by Carl Hiaasen (Lexile 760)
5. Shark Lady by Ann McGovern (Lexile 750)
6. Charlotte’s Web by E.B White (Lexile 680)
WRITING FOCUS: ___2 Informative – 2 Narrative – 1 Opinion___________________(see curriculum map)
These writing prompts will serve as the assessments for this unit.
Assessment Prompt 1:
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In the book Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Mr. Popper created a habitat for his penguins in the cellar of his house. Pretend that you were sent an animal
and you had to create a habitat for that animal in your house. Research the habitat of the animal of your choice. Be sure to include everything that
your animal would need to survive, just as Mr. Popper did for his penguins. Write a descriptive paragraph describing the habitat that includes your
reasoning and opinion as to why you chose that particular habitat for your animal.
In the book, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Mr. Popper tried his best to create a habitat in his house that provided the penguins everything they needed to
survive. Mr. Popper had to decide whether it was best for him to send the penguins back to Antarctica with Admiral Drake, or take them with Mr.
Klein to Hollywood to become movie stars. Explain why you think Mr. Popper’s decision to send the penguins back to Antarctica was a good or
bad decision. Consider how the decision affected both him and the penguins.
Assessment Prompt 2:
Write a narrative paper that includes characters, setting, and events. The paper can include real or imaginative events with descriptive details and
a clear sequence of events. Develop the characters’ thoughts and feelings by using dialogue and descriptive language. Choose one of the Georgia
Habitats to use as your setting and relate your narrative to the theme “Where We Live.”
After reading the The Magic Tree House Ancient Greece and the Olympics, each student will write an informational report on Ancient Greece
from the data researched and collected. The report should include pictures that represent Greek architecture along with a compare/contrast
organizer of Athens as a direct democracy and the United States as a representative democracy.
ADDITIONAL WRITING:
Opinion Pieces:
1. After reading Ancient Greece Hour of the Olympics, students will work in groups of 3 to design and illustrate an original Olympic game using
resources and materials that were available in Ancient Greece. Each group must write an informative piece which explains how to play their game
and tells how the game would be a benefit to the Ancient Greece Olympic Games. (Informative)
2. After reading Ancient Greece and the Olympics, students will write an opinion piece which discusses three reasons they believe that women
should or should not have been allowed to participate in the Olympics in Ancient Greece.
Research Connections:
1.Students will use the internet, encyclopedias, and other books to research the different habitats in Georgia. They will identify different animals
that make their homes in the various habitats.
2. Students will use the internet, encyclopedias, and other books to research the author Gail Gibbons. They will identify common themes,
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illustrations, etc in her books. Students will choose two of her books to compare and contrast.
Websites used for research:
http://www.janbrett.com/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Brett
http://teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?title=Georgia_Habitats&video_id=152755 .
Piedmont
http://www.lilburnes.org/Students/Habitats/piedmont.htm
https://sites.google.com/a/whiteoakes.org/menright/georgia-regions/piedmont-region
http://www.freewebs.com/thompsonwhes/piedmont.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0213900/
Mountains
http://www.lilburnes.org/Students/Habitats/mountains.htm
https://sites.google.com/a/whiteoakes.org/menright/georgia-regions/mountain-region
http://www.freewebs.com/thompsonwhes/mountain.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0213900/
Swamp
http://www.lilburnes.org/Students/Habitats/okefenokee.htm
https://sites.google.com/a/whiteoakes.org/menright/georgia-regions/swamp-and-marsh-regions
http://www.wacona.com/okefenokee/okefenokee.html
http://www.freewebs.com/thompsonwhes/swampmarsh.htm
Coastal Plain
http://www.lilburnes.org/Students/Habitats/coast.htm
https://sites.google.com/a/whiteoakes.org/menright/georgia-regions/coastal-plains
http://www.freewebs.com/thompsonwhes/coast.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0213900/
Atlantic Ocean
http://www.lilburnes.org/Students/Habitats/ocean.htm
https://sites.google.com/a/whiteoakes.org/menright/georgia-regions/ocean
https://sites.google.com/site/georgiahabitats/atlanticocean
http://www.freewebs.com/thompsonwhes/atlanticocean.htm
Penguins
http://www.seaworld.org/just-for-teachers/guides/pdf/penguin-k-3.pdf
Narratives:
1. After reading Turtle Bay, students will write the story from the Yuko’s point of view. How would Yuko respond if she had discovered Jiro San
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waiting for his friend? Retell the story with Yuko and Jiro San as the main characters.
2. After reading Turtle Bay, students will write a narrative which changes the end of the story. Tell what would have happened if Jiro San had not
prepared the beach for the turtles to nest.
Routine Writing Opportunities:
1. After reading selected chapters in Mr. Popper’s Penguins students will write a chapter summary that should include the characters from the
chapter, setting, and events
2. After reading the book Penguins, students will write a narrative describing the life cycle and habitat of a penguin.
LANGUAGE, FOUNDATIONS, SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUSES:
(List the standards taught in this nine weeks; elaborate in task planner below)
ASSESSMENT #1: CONNECTING READING TO WRITING AT GRADE-APPROPRIATE LEVEL
PROMPT:
In the book, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Mr. Popper tried his best to create a habitat in his house that provided the penguins everything they needed to
survive. At the end of the book, Mr. Popper had to decide whether it was best for him to send the penguins back to Antarctica with Admiral
Drake, or take them with Mr. Klein to Hollywood to become movie stars. Explain why you think Mr. Popper’s decision to send the penguins back
to Antarctica was a good or bad decision. Consider how the decision affected both him and the penguins.
SKILL BUILDING TASKS (APPROXIMATELY 4 WEEKS)
Note: tasks may take more than a single day.
Include a task to teach EVERY skill students will need to succeed on the assessment prompt above. Language, Foundations, and Speaking/Listening
standards must be incorporated so that all standards are adequately addressed throughout the year.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does what we already know help us answer a question?
Task: ___Students will ask appropriate questions and use prior knowledge to answer a question.
Standards:
S3L1. Students will investigate the habitats of different organisms and the dependence of organisms on their habitat.
ELACC3W2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
a. Introduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.
ELACC3RI4. Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topics or subject
area.
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
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flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases.
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the
topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the
topics and texts under discussion).
c. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
d. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.
ELACC3SL3. Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail.
ELACC3SL6. Speak in complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification.
Instruction:
 Begin the unit by putting a picture of a penguin in an envelope. Tell the students that you are going to be studying about something very
special and its habitat.
 Tell them that there is a picture of the special item in your secret envelope and they have to be detectives determine what picture is in the
envelope.
 They are going to be given 20 questions to try to figure out the special object.
 The questions that they ask you have to be questions that you respond with a Yes or No.
 Let the questioning begin! If the students are struggling with asking appropriate questions, help them by guiding them in the right direction.
 Remind them of what they know already from their questioning and what they may want to try to figure out next. When the students guess
Penguin, show them the picture from the envelope and congratulate them on their excellent questioning.
 Show the cover of the book Penguins! By: Gail Gibbons.
 Take a picture walk through Penguins! Have them take about 30 seconds to talk to their neighbor about their predictions. Ask a few students
to share their predictions.
 After reading the book, talk about the genre and author’s purpose. Have the students share what they think and why. Tell them that it is a
non-fiction book that is written to inform us. We know because of all of the facts and information that it gives on penguins. Have them share
any other books they may have read with the same genre’ and author’s purpose.
 Play vocabulary charades. Divide the students into 7 groups. Give each group a word from the book (stately, dignified, frigid, rookeries,
incubating, regurgitates). Tell them that their job is to look up the definition of their word in the dictionary, find the sentence in the book
where the word was used, and come up with a short skit showing the meaning of the word (without talking). Give them time to rehearse.
 Call one group at a time to come up and act out their skit. After they act, the rest of the class should try to guess the word they are acting out.
Put a word bank on the board. After the class guesses the word have them read the definition and the sentence from the book that uses the
word. After all groups are finished have each student creates a new sentence using each of the words in the word bank.
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ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What happens to an animal if its habitat is changed?
Task: Students will research and identify characteristics of animal(s) that live in a chosen region of Georgia and describe what happens if the
habitat is changed. They will also explain what happens if the habitat of penguins is changed.
Standards:
S3L1.a Differentiate between habitats of Georgia (mountains, marsh/swamp, coast, Piedmont, Atlantic Ocean) and the organisms that live there.
S3L1.c Identify features of animals that allow them to live and thrive in different regions of Georgia.
S3L1.d Explain what will happen to an organism if the habitat is changed.
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.
b. Form and use regular and irregular verbs.
f. Form and use the simple (e.g., I walked; I walk; will walk) verb tenses.
i. Produce simple, compound, and complex sentences.
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Form and use possessives.
ELACC3RI1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the
topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the
topics and texts under discussion).
ELACC3W8. Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort
evidence into provided categories
Instruction:
 Review or introduce the different regions of Georgia and have students locate these places on a map. Allow students to choose and research
a region of Georgia and gather information about features of animals that live and thrive in their chosen region. Students must look for
information that explains the characteristic of the animal(s) as well as what will happen to an animal that lives in their chosen region if the
habitat is changed due to a tornado or a drought. Have students use a flow map to create a story which describes what happens to their
animal after a tornado or a drought hits the area.
 Write the following sentence from the book Penguins! On the board, “The penguin’s home is found in the Southern Hemisphere.” Draw a
penguin next to the sentence. Ask the students if the sentence talks about the penguin owning or having anything. Explain that the penguin
has a home and so penguin’s is a possessive noun.
 A possessive noun shows that something or someone owns or has something else. We show that a noun is possessive by adding an ‘s for
singular or s’ for plural. Ask someone to come up and circle the singular possessive noun in the sentence and then have someone else come
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
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up and draw the picture of the penguin home to show that the penguin owns the home.
Write a few more sentences on the board that includes possessive nouns. Ex: The penguin’s chick stays warm. In the Arctic, the chick’s fur
keeps it warm. Have students collaborate in groups of 2 or 3 and discuss other characteristics that penguins have due to their habitat. What
would happen if the Arctic became hot instead of cold?
Have the students write down the singular possessive nouns from the sentences. Then have them write down what the possessive noun has or
owns.
Get some old magazines or newspapers and have the students look through them for singular possessive nouns. They can cut out the
sentence that has the singular possessive noun and glue it to a sheet of paper. They can then go back and highlight the singular possessive
noun in each sentence. When everyone is done have them share the sentences with the class. As they share have the students write down
some of the singular possessive nouns that they heard. Ask the students if while they were looking through the newspapers and magazines if
they saw any possessive nouns with an s’ instead of ‘s. Tell them that those are called plural possessive nouns. Explain that plural possessive
nouns are plural nouns that have or own something.
Write the example on the board. The penguins’ rookery was a nice place to live. Draw a picture of 4 or 5 penguins next to the sentence.
Show them the difference between the penguin’s and the penguins’ is that ‘s is one penguin and s’ is more than one penguin.
Give each student a T-Chart with singular possessive on one side and plural possessive on the other side. Have them work with a partner to
come up with sentence to go on each side. Go around and check to be sure that they understand the difference between singular and plural
possessive.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What type of habitat do Penguins need to survive?
Task: Use clues from the book to create a penguin habitat.
Standards:
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the
topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the
topics and texts under discussion).
ELACC3RL4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from non-literal language.
ELACC3RL7. Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood,
emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.
ELACC3RI7. Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of a text
(e.g., when, where, why, and how key events occur).
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Instruction:
 Review the meaning of a fact. Re-read page 15 in Penguins! and create a class list of facts from the page.
 Then ask them to tell you as many facts about penguin homes as they can remember from the book. Record their facts on the board or chart
paper.
 Allow students to pretend they are going to write an information books on penguin like Gail Gibbons. Have them brainstorm other facts
about penguins that they would include that Gail Gibbons did not include. Have them explain why they would chose to include that
information.
 Now ask if they can recall what an opinion is. An opinion is what someone thinks or feels. Ask for a few opinions about penguin homes.
Record them on the board.
 Pass out O/F cards (cards with an O for opinion on one side and a F for fact on the other. Read facts and opinion sentences about penguins
and have them hold up the card that tells whether the sentence is a fact or opinion. Discuss each sentence and what makes it a fact or
opinion.
 Have students use any book they choose and find 7 facts and 7 opinions from the book.
 Let students read and discuss the Penguin facts found at http://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/~kpt/terraquest/va/science/penguins/penguins.html#A
 Re-read pages 4 and 5 in Penguins! that show what part of the globe penguins live. Show them on a globe or world map where the Southern
Hemisphere and Poles are located. Have them locate Antarctica on the globe.
 Have them recall what the climate is like in this part of the world. Have students draw a penguin in the middle of a piece of poster board.
They need to name what kind of penguin they drew and where it lives. Students will then write a word splash of adjectives all around the
picture that describes their penguin and its habitat.
 The different species of penguins live in varying habitats, on sheets of ice, in very cold areas, on beaches and on small islands. They are
always near a body of water. This body of water is key, as penguins feed on aquatic life such as fish, crustaceans and squid. Have the
students write a short piece on what type of penguin they would like to be and why. Information should include all about the penguins
habitat.
 Students can fill out a thinking map to show facts and opinions on penguins.
 Have students create a penguin and a model habitat for their penguin. Give them choices on how to make their penguin and habitat. They
can draw, paint, create on the computer, make a shoe box model, a mobile, etc.
 Identify external features of animals that allow them to live and thrive in different regions (cold, warm, wet, dry, etc.) Explain why certain
animals need to live in a certain region due to their life cycles. External features may include but are not limited to.
o Body covering
o Size and relative scale of body parts
o Movement
o Food gathering
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do changes in a habitat affect the organisms living there?
Task: Students will write a grammatically correct description of what happens to a penguin when its habitat is changed.
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________________________________
Standards:
S3L1d. Explain what will happen to an organism if the habitat is changed.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
b. Form and use regular and irregular plural nouns.
d. Form and use regular and irregular verbs.
e. Form and use the simple (e.g., I walked; I walk; I will walk) verb tenses.
i. Produce simple, compound, and complex sentences.
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
a. Capitalize appropriate words in titles.
e. Use conventional spelling for high-frequency and other studied words and for adding suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries,
happiness).
Instruction:
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Inform students that you will re-read the book Penguins! to them. As they listen to you read, they are to be thinking of some good questions
to ask about the penguins’ habitat and how any changes might affect the penguins.
Tell the students that they are going to become the teacher. They must listen closely as you re-read the book Penguins! to them. They are
going to have to write test questions about the habitat of penguins. The questions should be written to check for understanding of the book.
Have students work in small groups to create a 5 question test. Use Turtle Bay to model for the students how to formulate questions about
the text. Encourage them to create higher level questions. The test questions must come from the text and demonstrate that students
understand the meaning of the text.
Provide resources so that students can research to find the answers to their questions.
Discuss animal adaptations and the unique attributes penguins have for the environments in which they live. List words which help describe
penguins’ characteristics forming a word bank for future writing activities.
Have the students write a journal entry describing what happens to a penguin when a change occurs in their habitat. Allow students to
choose the change that occurs in the habitat.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What makes characters in a text similar and different?
Task: Students will compare and contrast Mr. Popper and Jiro San.
Standards:
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a.Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
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b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
ELACC3RL3. Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of
events.
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.
Instruction:
 Have students read Turtle Bay in small reading groups.
 Create a character chart for Jiro San. Draw his picture and put adjectives around him to describe his character.
 In Turtle Bay, Jiro San was patiently waiting for his friends to come to their habitat. Discuss the reasons why this was important to Jiro San.
Have students discuss how they would feel if they had to take Jiro San’s place and wait for the turtles to come and lay their eggs on the
beach. Compare as a class how Mr. Popper and Jiro San were similar and different.
 Draw a picture of Jiro San patiently waiting and preparing for the turtles to come in a cloud graphic organizer.
 Write a narrative about a character that had to wait patiently for something to happen. Be sure to include a setting, events in logical order,
and dialogue.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do I identify the elements of a compound word?
Task: Students will understand that compound words are formed when two words are joined to form a new word with a new meaning.
________________________________
Standards:
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
f. Use spelling patterns and generalizations (e.g., word families, position-based spellings, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts) in
writing words.
g. Consult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
d. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases.
ELACC3L5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
a. Distinguish the literal and non-literal meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).
b. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful).
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c. Distinguish shades of meaning among related words that describe states of mind or degrees of certainty (e.g., knew, believed, suspected, heard,
wondered).
ELACC3W1. Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
a. Introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.
b. Provide reasons that support the opinion.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.
d. Provide a concluding statement or section
Instruction:
 The title of chapter 1 is “Stillwater”. Ask someone to identify the 2 words that are put together to make the word Stillwater. The word still
and water are joined together to make the word Stillwater. Ask if anyone knows what we call words that are joined together to make a new
word. Compound words are when two words are joined together to make a new word. When the two words are joined together they make a
new word with a new meaning.
 Write the word still on the board and write the word water separately on the board.
 Draw a picture of “still” and “water”. Then write the word Stillwater on the board and draw a picture of Stillwater. Discuss with the students
that Stillwater is a town that Mr. Popper calls home and does not have the same meaning as still and water when used separately.
 Show them another example using football. Write the word foot and ball separately on the board and draw a picture of a foot and a ball.
Then write the word football and draw a picture of a football.
 *Have the students do the same activity with 4 compound words that they can choose from the following list. Butterfly, doghouse,
playground, Proudfoot, bathroom, postman, clothesline
 *Tell the students to think about Stillwater and Mr. Popper. Think about what we know so far about each of them. Write a few sentences
about why you think the author named the town where Mr. Popper lived Stillwater.
 Have students look for compound words in the book on pages 3, 16, 23, 69, and 102.
Chapter 1 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Draw a picture of Mr. Popper going home from work from the description on p. 3.
Why was Mr. Popper so absent-minded?
Above all, what did Mr. Popper which had been instead of a house painter?
How did Mr. Popper become an expert on Polar explorers?
Why did Mrs. Popper tell Mr. Popper to put his ladders away?
Why is this chapter called “Stillwater”?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a chapter 1 summary in their writing journal. They will describe the characters, setting, and main
events in the chapter. Their summary should be at least 4 sentences long.
http://www.learnquebec.ca/export/sites/learn/fr/content/curriculum/languages/fls/documents/MrPopperBooklet.pdf
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ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What are the parts that need to be included in a letter?
Task: Students will write a friendly letter.
Standards:
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Capitalize appropriate words in titles.
a. Use commas in addresses.
b. Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue.
ELACC3L3. Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
a. Choose words and phrases for effect.
b. Recognize and observe differences between the conventions of spoken and written standard English.
ELACC3W4. With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and
purpose. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
ELACC3W5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
ELACC3W6. With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to
interact and collaborate with others.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and
texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the
topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the
topics and texts under discussion).
c. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
d. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.
Instruction:
 Students will get into partners and partner read chapter 2. After reading have students identify the setting. Refer to clues such as Mr. Popper
listening to the radio, writing letters (as opposed to emails), Mr. Popper’s clothes, etc.
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Discuss how Mr. Popper wrote Admiral Drake a letter telling him how funny he thought the penguins were. Model on the board or on chart
paper what the letter Mr. Popper wrote might have looked like. Include a date, greeting, body, closing, and signature. Get input from the
students as to what may have been included in the letter.
*When Mr. Popper was at home, he liked to sit in his chair, read Antarctic Animals, smoke his pipe, look at his globe, and listen to the radio.
Have the students write a friendly letter to someone they know about things that they do while they are at home.
After writing the letter have students peer edit each other’s letters, using a kid-friendly rubric, and type it on the computer using a word
processing program.
*Have students address an envelope and mail the letter to the person.
Chapter 2 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Why was Mrs. Popper worried about winter?
Why wasn’t Mr. Popper worried about winter?
What does Mr. Popper say is the best part about Antarctica?
What did Mr. Popper say that proved penguins are smart birds?
How did Admiral Drake talk to Mr. Popper from the Antarctica?
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does making predictions help us understand what we are reading?
Task: Students will use clues from the story to predict and comprehend the events.
Standards:
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3R6. Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
b. Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Instruction:
 Read Chapter 3 of Mr. Popper’s Penguins aloud to the students. Stop at the end of page 17 and discuss what you think may be in the box that
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arrived at Mr. Popper’s house. List the clues from the reading that helps you predict. Finish the chapter. Have the students alternate reading
aloud Chapter 4.
Have the students get into groups and share some times when they have had something delivered to them at home and how they felt when it
arrived.
Provide a narrative graphic organizer, and have students go through the writing process for writing a narrative about a character that gets an item
marked “special delivery “ delivered to their home.
Chapter 3 and 4 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 3
Why didn’t Mrs. Popper want her house painted?
Who was ringing the doorbell when Mr. Popper answered it?
Who was making the “Ork!” sound from inside the box?
Draw a picture of the penguin described on page 18.
How did Mr. Popper keep the bird busy in the bathroom?
What was the penguin’s new game in the bathroom?
Why did they call the penguin Captain Cook?
Why is this chapter called “Out of the Antarctic”?
Chapter 4
Why was the explorer Captain Cook famous?
How long can a penguin go without food?
What did the penguin do with the bowl of goldfish?
Where will Captain Cook, the penguin, sleep at night?
Why will the repairman put holes in the door and a handle on the inside of the icebox?
Why is this chapter entitled “Captain Cook”?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a paragraph in their writing journal about a time that they got something delivered to their house
and how they felt when they opened it up.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: Why is it important to use information from the book and information that I already know to help us make inferences
and draw conclusions?
Task: Students will make inferences about why Mr. Popper was having trouble with the public.
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Standards:
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
8b. Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RL5. Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
ELACC3W1. Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
a. Introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.
b. Provide reasons that support the opinion.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.
d. Provide a concluding statement or section
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
Instruction:
 Have students get into small groups and take turns reading aloud chapters 5 and 6. Tell them after they read the 1st paragraph of chapter 5 to
stop and predict what they think the trouble may be with the serviceman and the license.
 After reading the two chapters have the students infer as to why they think Mr. Popper was having so much trouble with the serviceman and
the government.
 *Write a paragraph explaining your inferences. Be sure to include clues from the book along with information you may already have in your
head. After writing, have some students share their thoughts.
 Discuss how having a penguin is not a normal thing that you see every day and we have to think about how we would think if we saw
someone with a penguin. You also can discuss that you got clues from the story that the serviceman was scared of Captain Cook and the
government officials never really thought that he was talking about a penguin because it was so unimaginable.
 Ask the students to write about a time when something happened to them, or they did something that was not so normal. Have them include
how they felt and what kind of reaction they got from people.
Chapter 5 and 6 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 5
How did Mr. Popper finally get the service man to put a handle on the inside of the icebox?
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Why did the service man run out of the Popper house?
Why is this chapter called “Trouble with a Penguin”?
Chapter 6
Why did the policeman come to the Popper’s?
What kind of animal did the policeman think Mr. Popper was?
How did the policeman say Mr. Popper could find out the penguin needed a leash and license?
Why wasn’t it easy for Mr. Popper to find out if he needed a leash and license for Captain Cook?
When did Mr. Popper finally decide to hang up the telephone?
Tell why this chapter is called “More Troubles”?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write in their journal and explain why the service man thought that Mr. Popper “was not quite right in
the head”?
Use supporting details from the story.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do events in a story make the characters change?
Task: Students will discover how the arrival of Captain Cook has made Mr. Popper change.
Standards:
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RL4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression.
Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3RL7. Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood,
emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
ELACC3SL5. Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays
when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.
i. Produce simple, compound, and complex sentences.
ELACC3L5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
a. Distinguish the literal and non-literal meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).
Instruction:
 Put the students in partners to buddy read chapters 7 and 8. Remind students to read with expression and inflection. Model for them the
example on page 47 “Ork, ork,” he said with triumph. Mrs. Popper laughed and Mr. Popper gasped as they saw the results of Captain Cook’s
trips through the house. Walk around to listen for students using expression and inflection in their reading.
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Have students choose a page to read aloud to be recorded. Partners can use cassette tapes, flip cameras, or video recorders to record their
reading. After recording, students should listen to their reading and discuss with each other how fluently they read.
After reading, have the students look at the picture on page 53 and write some adjectives that describe Mr. Popper now that Captain Cook
has come to live with him. Have students work in groups using a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast Mr. Popper from Chapter 1 and
Mr. Popper now. After they finish their Venn Diagram, have them tell what events in the story caused Mr. Popper’s change. Have students
describe a time when something occurred in their household that caused their feelings or mood to change.
Chapters 7 and 8 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 7
Why was Captain Cook going in and out of the refrigerator a lot?
What is a rookery?
Why was Mr. Popper all dressed up?
Why is the Chapter called “Captain Cook Builds a Nest”?
Chapter 8
Why was it hard to take the penguin for a walk?
Why did Mr. Popper stop the first time on their walk?
Why did two men stop at the drugstore?
How did the clothesline leash get tangled in the cameraman’s stand?
Why did Mr. Popper and Captain Cook go in the barbershop?
Why is this chapter called “Penguin’s Promenade”?
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What elements are included in newspaper articles?
Task: Students will create a newspaper article.
Standards:
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
c . Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3SL4. Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking
clearly at an understandable pace.
ELACC3SL6. Speak in complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3W2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
a. Introduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.
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d. Provide a concluding statement or section.
ELACC3W5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
ELACC3W6. With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to
interact and collaborate with others.
ELACC3W8. Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort
evidence into provided categories.
Instruction:
 Have the students choral read chapters 9 and 10. After reading, refer back to the picture on page 55 of the newspaper photographer taking
pictures of Mr. Popper and Captain Cook while they were out on their walk. Then re-read aloud page 62 where it discusses an article about
them in the Stillwater Morning Chronicle.
 Tell the students that they are going to pretend that they are a journalist for their hometown newspaper and they must go out and find an
interesting story that is happening close to their home to write an article on. Show them a copy of your local newspaper and read off some of
the articles that were written about in the paper. Explain that the job of a newspaper is to report facts and information to the public about
what is going on in the town. The students must think of the name for their newspaper and then write an interesting article to be published in
the paper. Encourage them to choose to write about something that is actually going on in their town or school. .
 Have students peer edit for each other, using a kid friendly rubric. and type their final draft of the article on the computer. Have the students
share their articles with the class once they are completed.
Chapters 9 and 10 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
What did the author mean that “the barber was a good friend of Mr. Poppers up to this time”?
How did Captain Cook get up and down the stairs?
How did Mr. Popper look when he returned home from the walk?
Why is this chapter called “In the Barbershop”?
Chapter 10
How did the Popper penguin story end up in newspapers across the country?
How did the Poppers know there was something wrong with the penguin?
What did the vet say would happen to the penguin?
What was Mr. Popper’s idea to save the penguin?
What did the curator of the museum think the penguin was wrong?
How did Greta come to live with the Poppers?
Why is this chapter called “Shadows”?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a chapter 9 and 10 summary in their writing journal. They will describe the characters, setting, and
main events in the chapter. Their summary should be at least 4 sentences long.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does knowing the type of story that I am reading help me understand it?
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Task: Students will identify and explore the genre of Mr. Popper’s Penguins and support it with information from the text.
Standards:
ELACC3W1. Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
a. Introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.
b. Provide reasons that support the opinion.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RL6. Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about
the topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the
topics and texts under discussion).
c. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
d. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion
Instruction:
 Introduce the definition of genre and explain the characteristics of Fantasy and of Realistic Fiction. Discuss with the class that the genre’ of
Mr. Popper’s Penguins is realistic fiction. Ask them to give some evidence from the story that supports that fact that it is realistic fiction.
Record the supporting evidence on the board.
 Now read aloud chapter 11. There are some things in chapter 11 that may support the genre of the book being fantasy. Ask the students to
identify what events in this chapter may support it being fantasy. The fact that they opened all of the windows and let the snow pile up in
their house may be somewhat of a fantasy. Have them look at the picture on page 73 in the book and discuss what seems unrealistic about
what they see. Have the students share and defend with evidence from the text how their point of view may differ from that of the author.
 Have the students form an opinion about whether or not they think the genre should be realistic fiction, or if it should be changed to fantasy.
Split the class up according to their opinion and have them hold a mini debate supporting their opinion with evidence from the book.
Chapter 11 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
How did Mr. Popper say that Captain Cook showed that he was grateful for saving his life?
How will the Poppers tell the two penguins apart?
How will Mr. Popper keep the penguins comfortable if they move out of the icebox?
How did the Poppers get snow in their living room?
Why did Mr. Popper move the furniture to one side of the room?
Why is this chapter called “Greta”?
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ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do guide words help us locate words in a dictionary?
Task: Students will match words up with the appropriate guide words.
Standards:
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RL7. Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood,
emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
a. Capitalize appropriate words in titles.
c. Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue.
d. Form and use possessives.
e. Use conventional spelling for high-frequency and other studied words and for adding suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries,
happiness).
f. Use spelling patterns and generalizations (e.g., word families, position-based spellings, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts) in
writing . g. Consult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
Instruction:
 Read chapters 12 and 13 with a partner.
 After reading draw a picture of what the cellar “the penguin’s new home” looks like now that the Poppers have redone it for the penguins. In
the cellar include a picture of all of the penguins in alphabetical order by their names.
 Write a few sentences on the bottom or back of your picture explaining why the Poppers did all those things to the cellar.
 Review with the students the purpose of using a dictionary and how guide words help us to locate our words in the dictionary quickly. Have
students get the dictionaries and have them look up a few words from the vocabulary list for chapters 12 and 13. Have them locate the guide
words at the top of the page. Show them that the guide words are the first and last words on the page and the vocabulary word must come
alphabetically in the middle of the guide words to be found on that page. Show the three words in order on the board, so that they see that
the vocabulary word comes in the middle of the guide words. Look up a few more words together and encourage them to use the guide
words to determine if the vocabulary word can be found on that page.
 Play the guide word game. Directions: Students are put into groups of 3 or 4 and given a stack of cards written on note cards. The guide
words are
written on colored note cards and the vocabulary words are written on white cards. Students are to figure out which of the vocabulary words
will go on the same dictionary page as the guide words. Once they complete one set of cards, you can check it and give them a new set of
cards.
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*Primary Writing Focus-In the book Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Mr. Popper created a habitat for his penguins in the cellar of his house. Pretend that
you were sent an animal and you had to create a habitat for that animal in your house. Research the habitat of the animal of your choice. Be sure to
include everything that your animal would need to survive, just as Mr. Popper did for his penguins. Write a descriptive paragraph describing the
habitat that includes your reasoning and opinion as to why you chose that particular habitat for your animal.
Chapter 12 and 13 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
What changes did the engineer make to the Popper house?
Why was Mr. Popper surprised that Greta laid 10 eggs?
Where did Mr. Popper get the names for the baby penguins?
How did Mr. Popper use the ice blocks?
Why didn’t the penguins always eat canned shrimp?
How did the penguins use the ice rink?
Why is “More Mouths to Feed” a good name for this chapter?
Chapter 13
Why did Mrs. Popper say that she was worried?
What was Mrs. Popper’s solution to the problem?
What was Mr. Popper’s solution to the problem?
Why did Mrs. Popper play three different kinds of music?
Why is this chapter called “Money Worries”?
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do I determine the meaning of words or phrases that have more than one meaning?
Task: Students will use context clues to find the meaning of words that have more than one meaning.
Standards:
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
d. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
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d. Provide a sense of closure.
Instruction:
 Put a few words on the board from Chapters 12 and 13. (bills, train, mean, plant, drag) Ask students to raise their hand and tell what the
words mean. You will get different answers because the words have more than one meaning.
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Explain to the students that these are called multiple-meaning words. Tell them that the words that look the same sound the same, but have
different meanings. Explain that you must use the clues in the sentence to determine the meaning of the word. Show them examples for the
words. You must train the penguins. Tell how you know this is the train that means to act a certain way and not the mode of transportation.
Explain that it is necessary to use clues to understand what the sentence is talking about.
*After reading chapters 14 and 15 with a partner have them locate multiple-meaning words from the chapters that you list on the board. (String pg.
85, fare pg. 88, case pg. 89, drill pg. 94, act pg. 97, rose pg. 97) Have them write the word and the 2 different definitions of the words along with a
sentence for each definition. Then have them create their own list of multiple-meaning words. Make a class list of multiple-meaning words on chart
paper.
Chapter 14 and 15 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 14
Why does Mr. Popper think that he should see Mr. Greenbaum?
How did the Popper family and the 12 penguins get to the theatre?
Why did the passengers on the bus complain about the Popper’s?
What did Mr. Popper call his act?
Why wouldn’t Mr. Popper let Mr. Greenbaum call the act “Popper’s Pink-toed Penguins”?
Why is this chapter called “Mr. Greenbaum”?
Chapter 15
What was Mr. Popper’s idea so Mr. Greenbaum wouldn’t lose money?
Which bird won the fighting part of the act?
When Mrs. Popper played “By the Brook”, what did the penguins do?
Why did the audience laugh at the penguins?
What does Mr. Greenbaum think of the act?
What are the terms of the Popper’s contract with Mr. Greenbaum?
Why is “Popper’s Performing Penguins” a good name for this chapter?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a narrative in their journal using multiple-meaning words found in Chapters 14 and 15. They will
use the words to describe the characters, setting, and/or main events in the story.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How can I use dialogue in narrative writing?
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Task: Students will write a narrative paper using dialogue.
Standards:
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
ELACC3W5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
ELACC3W6. With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to
interact and collaborate with others.
ELACC3W10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a
day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
ELACC3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
a. Capitalize appropriate words in titles.
c. Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue.
g. Consult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
Instruction:
 Get into groups and read chapters 16 and 17. Discuss the fact that the family has been away from home for 10 weeks and are staying in
hotels all over the United States.
 Put up a big map of the United States. Have students recall all of the places that the Popper’s and the penguins have traveled over the past
10 weeks. Allow various students to place a star/sticker on each place where the characters have visited.
 Tell the students to imagine that they had to leave their home for 10 weeks. They can discuss with a partner how they would feel. Have
students share their opinions and supporting reasons about being away from home for 10 weeks. As students share their opinions with the
whole group, write what they say on the board using quotation marks (example: “I would get homesick if I was away from home for 10
weeks,” said Tyler.) Explain to the students that you are using dialogue by recording the exact words that they speak.
 Look back through the chapters and find examples of dialogue. Have the students brainstorm why they think the author chose to use
dialogue.
 *Have the students us a graphic organizer to help them plan to write a narrative paper about someone who had to leave their home for 10
weeks. Be sure the students use dialogue in their papers.
 Have students peer edit, using a kid friendly rubric, and type their final draft on the computer.
Chapter 16 and 17 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 16
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What was the first thing the Popper’s did with the $5,000 advance money?
How did the Popper’s and their penguins travel to Seattle?
Why did the penguins want to stop in the sleeping (Pullman) cars?
Why was Mrs. Popper worried about the children Janie and Bill?
Why did the tight-rope walker lose his balance?
What does the title “On the Road” mean?
Chapter 17
Even though the penguins were in the basement, how did they bother the opera singer?
When Mrs. Popper, Janie, and Bill tried to catch the penguins where did they hide?
Why were hotels glad to have the penguins as guests?
Why didn’t the penguins walk back and forth from the hotels to the theaters?
Why was feeding the penguins shrimp free?
Why was Mr. Popper glad that after New York their 10-week contract was over?
How did “Fame” affect the Poppers?
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do I write a logical conclusion?
Task: Students will write a conclusion to go at the end of Mr. Popper’s Penguins.
Standards:
ELACC3W1. Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
a. Introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.
b. Provide reasons that support the opinion.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.
d. Provide a concluding statement or section.
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to
situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
Provide a sense of closure.
ELACC3RL10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 2–3 text
complexity band independently and proficiently.
Instruction:
 Read aloud chapters 18, 19, and 20.
 After finishing the book, discuss some events that you think could possibly happen next. Ask for students to explain why those events would
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make sense to happen next.
Have them brainstorm some events that would not logically happen next and why they would or could not happen next.
*Explain to the students that they have been hired to write a Chapter 21 to be added to the book Mr. Popper’s Penguins. They are to include
events with character dialogue that would be a logical conclusion to chapter 20. Be sure to include whether or not the penguins were happy
to be back in their natural habitat, how Mr. Popper felt now that he finally got to go to Antarctica, and if he was happier in Antarctica or in
Stillwater.
Have students edit each other’s chapter. They can type their finished chapter on the computer.
Chapters 18, 19, and 20 comprehension questions-Ask orally or use as a written assessment.
Chapter 18
How did Mr. Popper make his “great mistake” talking to the taxi driver?
What did Mr. Swen Swenson say that his seals would do to Mr. Popper’s penguins?
Why couldn’t Mr. Popper let his penguins drive around in the taxi until it was their turn to perform?
When the policemen found the penguins, what were they doing with the seals?
When Mr. Popper and Mr. Swenson finally opened the door, what were the penguins and seals doing?
Why did the theatre manager want to have Mr. Popper arrested?
What is the title of this chapter?
Chapter 19
How much money did Mr. Popper need to get the penguins and him out of jail?
If it wasn't Mr. Greenbaum that bailed Mr. Popper out of jail, who did?
How did Admiral Drake plan to use Mr. Popper's penguins?
How does Mr. Klein want to use Mr. Popper's penguins?
What decision do you think Mr. Popper should make about the future of his penguins?
Chapter 20
Why didn't Mrs. Popper try to help Mr. Popper make the decision?
What did Mr. Popper decide to do with the penguins?
Why did Mr. Popper say he made that decision?
Why will Mr. Klein give Mr. Popper $25,000?
How do you know Mr. Popper was sad when he said goodbye to the penguins?
Why did Admiral Drake say he couldn't say goodbye to Mr. Popper?
Why is this chapter titled "Farewell Mr. Popper"?
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a chapter 18, 19, and 20 summary in their writing journal. They will describe the characters,
setting, and main events in the chapter. Their summary should be at least 4 sentences long.
*Give the final assessment writing prompt: In the book, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Mr. Popper tried his best to create a habitat in his house that
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provided the penguins everything they needed to survive. At the end of the book, Mr. Popper had to decide whether it was best for him to send the
penguins back to Antarctica with Admiral Drake, or take them with Mr. Klein to Hollywood to become movie stars. Explain why you think Mr.
Popper’s decision to send the penguins back to Antarctica was a good or bad decision. Consider how the decision affected both him and the
penguins.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do you find the main idea and details of a piece of literature?
Task: Students will determine the main idea and details after reading a poem.
Standards:
S3L1c. Identify features of animals that allow them to live and thrive in different regions of Georgia.
ELACC3RI1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RI2. Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
ELACC3RI4. Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to 3rd grade topic or subject
area.
ELACC3RL10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the
high end of the grades 2–3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Instruction:
 Read aloud the poem Animals’ Homes by Reeves James. When you read it do not reveal the poem title.
Animals’ Houses
Of animals’ houses
Two sorts are foundThose which are square ones
And those which are round
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Square is a hen-house,
A kennel, a sty;
Cows have square houses
And so have I.
S snail’s shell is curly.
A bird’s nest is round;
Rabbits have twisty burrows
Underground.
But the fish in the bowl
And the fish at seaTheir houses are round
As a house can be.
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Refer back to the poem and have students identify the meaning of the word “sty” re-read the first stanza and have students use the clues to
help determine the meaning.
Refer back to the four stanzas to ask comprehension questions to check for understanding of the poem. What two types of animal houses are
they comparing? What type of square houses did they mention in stanza 2? What type of round houses did they mention in stanzas 3 and 4?
What were the rhyming words in stanza 1?
Have students get into partners and discuss what they think the main idea of the poem is. Have them find evidence in the poem to support
their answer.
*Write the main idea, “Animal Homes”, on the board and have them talk with their partner to find one detail that supports that main idea of
animal homes. Have them come up and add their detail to the board on a post it note.
*Ask each student to write on a note card what they think a good title for this poem would be. Have them have a competition to see who can
get the closest to the real title.
Using the information from the story “Turtle Bay”, as background knowledge, lead the students tin a discussion on the life cycle of sea
turtles. Brainstorm questions they have about the turtle’s life cycle and if possible allow them to search the internet for more information
and answers to their questions. Using a student created graphic organizer, have students use what they learned to illustrate the life cycle of
the sea turtle in the correct order. Help them label each picture with an appropriate caption.
Have students create their own poem about a turtle. Create a rubric for students to use which would include how many stanza’s the poem
has to include. Students can create and illustrate their poem by use of a computer program available to them at their school.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do print and digital sources help us find information?
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Task: Students will research Georgia Habitats using a variety of sources.
Standards:
S3L.a Differentiate between habitats of Georgia (mountains, marsh/swamp, coast, Piedmont, Atlantic Ocean) and the organisms that live there.
S3L1.d Explain what will happen to an organism if the habitat is changed.
ELACC3W7. Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
ELACC3W8. Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort
evidence into provided categories.
ELACC3RI5. Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.
ELACC3SL4. Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive, details, speaking
clearly at an understandable pace.
S3L1. Student will investigate the habitats of different organisms and the dependence of organisms on their habitat.
a. Differentiate between habitats of Georgia (mountains, marsh/swamp, coast, Piedmont, Atlantic Ocean) and the organisms that live there.
b. Identify features of green plants that allow them to live and thrive in different regions of Georgia.
c. Identify features of animals that allow them to live and thrive in different regions of Georgia.
d. Explain what will happen to an organism if the habitat is changed.
Instruction:
 Set up 5 different centers. One for each of the Georgia Habitats. At each center there will be access to a computer, encyclopedias, and a book
from the series Georgia, My State Habitats pertaining to the specific habitat.
 Each student will get a Georgia Habitat booklet to record the information that they learn about at each center. The booklet will contain a
page for each of the 5 Georgia Habitats.
 The students will spend a day at each center researching each of the Georgia Habitats. They will be responsible for finding out what to types
of plants and animals are found in each habitat, what the land and soil are like and what type of habitat it provides.
 At each center, the students will read together as a group the book, Georgia, My State Habitats. They will then research their habitat using
the links listed in the “Websites Used for Research section.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does research help you write an informational paper?
Task: Students write an informational paper on one of the Georgia Habitats that they researched.
Standards:
S3L.a Differentiate between habitats of Georgia (mountains, marsh/swamp, coast, Piedmont, Atlantic Ocean) and the organisms that live there.
S3L.b Identify features of green plants that allow them to live and thrive in different regions of Georgia.
ELACC3W4. With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and
purpose. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
ELACC3W5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
ELACC3W6. With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to
interact and collaborate with others.
ELACC3RI9. Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
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Instruction:
 After they have completely researched each of the five Georgia Habitats, students will choose two habitats to compare and contrast using a
Venn Diagram.
 Encourage students to use important key details in creating their Venn Diagram
 Model for the students on chart paper how to write an informational paragraph.
 Primary Writing Focus-After reading the Georgia, My State Habitat series, choose one of the five habitats in Georgia (Atlantic Ocean,
Coastal Plain, Marsh and Swamp, Piedmont, and Mountains). Write an informational paper describing the animals that live in that habitat
and why they chose that particular habitat for their home. Be sure to explain all of the things that the animal needs to survive and how the
habitat meets their needs.
 Students should also include information about the plants that thrive in the different regions of Georgia and how they thrive in their habitat.
 Students will peer edit and type their papers using computer.
ASSESSMENT #2: CONNECTING READING TO WRITING AT GRADE-APPROPRIATE LEVEL
PROMPT: Write a narrative paper that includes characters, setting, events, and teaches a lesson or has a moral. The paper can include real or
imaginative events with descriptive details and a clear sequence of events. Develop the characters thoughts and feelings by using dialogue and
descriptive language. using the Hour of the Olympics as your setting and relate your narrative to the theme “Our Country”
SKILL BUILDING TASKS (APPROXIMATELY 4 WEEKS)
Note: tasks may take more than a single day.
Include a task to teach EVERY skill students will need to succeed on the assessment prompt above. Language, Foundations, and Speaking/Listening
standards must be incorporated so that all standards are adequately addressed throughout the year.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do key details in informational text convey a sense of character and personality?
Task: Unit Introduction
ELACC3RI7: Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text
(e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
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ELACC3SL2: Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats,
including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
b. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful).
ELACC3L4: b. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful)
ELACC3L.1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
b. Form and use regular and irregular plural nouns
c. Use abstract nouns (e.g., childhood)
f. Ensure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement.
SS3G1: The student will locate major topographical features
e. Locate Greece on a world map
Ongoing:
a. Explain the function of nouns (review), pronouns (review), and verbs (review).
i. Produces simple, compound (introduced in second grade) and complex sentences.
j.
Writes legibly in cursive
Additional resources:
This kid friendly site offers simple summaries, interactive activities, fun facts, and quizzes for children all about Ancient Greece.
With this website, children can learn about the Ancient Greek influence on the English language as they "Go for the Gold" in the Olympic Games.
This site presents teachers with a mini-unit on the Olympics in Ancient Greece. Each day is planned out as students meet the Olympians, prepare for
various Olympic games, experience the traditional "Opening and Closing Procession" and so much more!
Instruction:
 http://youtu.be/iZAF50ooF2 Open lesson with this video, it plays Greece is the Word and shows pictures of Greece. It is 3 minutes so you can
cut it short.
 Show students the book cover for Ancient Greece & the Olympics by Mary Osborne and take a picture walk. Students will observe all
illustrations and you will ask the students what type of book they think this is, informational, fictional, etc.
 Discuss the genre of historical fiction, the characteristics and common traits.
 Read Prologue and Chapter 1 – Just One More. Students should be taking notes and writing down facts they are learning about Ancient Greek.
 Next you will introduce students to Greece, its location. Using a map or a globe, locate Greece and explain that our modern Olympics started
with the ancient Greeks almost 3000 years ago as a festival to honor the Greek god, Zeus. Create a timeline showing the geographic location of
the winter and summer Olympic Games for the last five years. Note where and when the next games will be held. Explain that students are
about to learn a great deal more about these games and the culture of the people who started them in this. Using a political map, via SmartBoard
etc. also give students a hard copy of one, locate with the class Greece in relation to the United States. Ask questions about the location. For
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example: What continent is Greece located on? (Europe) What countries border the United States? (Canada and Mexico) What direction is
Greece in relation to the United States? (East) What kind of landform is the country, Greece? (peninsula – water on three sides) Which
country is closer to the equator? Prime Meridian? How is Greece affected by how close it is to the equator? What hemisphere(s) is the United
States located in? (Northern and Western) What hemisphere(s) is Greece located in? (Northern and Eastern) Which country U.S. or Greece is
closer to the equator? (U.S.). Which country has a warmer climate? (U.S.) Why? (Because it is closer to the equator and the closer you are to
the equator, the hotter it gets)
Routine Writing Opportunity:
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How can I distinguish between fact and fiction?
Task: Students will distinguish between fact and fiction from within a text.
STANDARDS:
ELACC3RI1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3SL4 Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at
an understandable pace.
ELACC3RL4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from non-literal language.
ELACC3L4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
ELACC3RI2: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
ELACC3RF4: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read on-level text with purpose and understanding.
ELACC3W8: Recall information from experience or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence
into provided categories.
Instruction:
 The teacher will display a sign stating that a delicious, nutritious snack will be provided during class. Then present a large bowl of
cauliflower cut into bite-size pieces and say, “I’m sure cauliflower is your favorite snack because it is so nutritious! I’m going to give
EVERYONE a bite to eat.” The teacher will distribute a small piece of cauliflower to the students and observe their reactions. Ask
students if there is a problem. Then you will lead the students to understand that the statement made may not be a true fact. Allow students
who like cauliflower to eat the sample. Students who do not like cauliflower may dispose of or return their samples to the teacher
 Now tell the students that you are going to review the meanings of fact and opinion. A fact is something that can be proven true by
checking resources. An opinion is what someone thinks or feels that cannot be proven.”You will write these definitions on the board and
students will copy them into their journals or teacher’s preference. To save instructional time you can do this ahead of time on the smart
board.
 Now say “An opinion states one’s point of view. Before assuming all students like cauliflower, maybe I should have asked the question,
“Who likes cauliflower?” If all students raised their hands, then I would have proof and the statement would be a fact. A fact can be
proven and is a certainty. It doesn’t change from person to person or place to place. Therefore, if all of you did not raise your hands the
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statement would not be a fact.”
 Now say, “Certain words signal an opinion. I’ll write words on the board that can signal that a statement is an opinion, and you can copy
them in your journal. When I see these words in a sentence, then I know that the sentence is an opinion.”
Signal Words for Opinion: In my opinion, I feel, I think, My favorite, I like
To check students understanding, put two columns on the board. A and B. Then you have sentences written on sentence strips beforehand. For
example one strip might say Pizza is the Best food and another might say the sun is yellow. You have about 8 opinion sentences and 8 fact
sentences. Then you start the game by saying this is an A and put it in the A column. Then you have them try and figure out where the others
will go based on the first one. After about 3 or 4 they will begin to realize that all the things in the A column are true and all the things in the B
column are how you might feel about something but it doesn’t have to be true for everyone. Then you have the students each write a sentence on
an index card that would fit in either the A or B column and come up front and place it in the right one.
Discuss with students a preferred method of note-taking and demonstrate (outline method, double-sided journal, etc.)
View: Goofy – The Olympic Champ (video) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JasCEfT-ZCo
Engage students in summarizing the facts of the film and have them suggest facts that should go into their notes.
Read aloud chapter 2 of Ancient Greece & The Olympics, stopping to scaffold comprehension and note-taking
Put students with partners for a paired reading of the next chapter (3)
Have students put sticky notes under 3 facts (decided along with their partner) that they think are most important in chapter 3.
Share the facts chosen by students and engage in a discussion of which facts truly are the best choices and why; these can go in students’ notes
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How can I compare and contrast the Olympics of Ancient Greece to today’s Olympics?
TASK: Students will make a Venn diagram by choosing a topic below to compare and contrast.
Standards:
SS3H1a. Identify the influence of the Greek Olympic Games on the present.
ELACC3RL1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RL9: Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters (e.g., in
books from a series)
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ELACC3SL1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about
the topic to explore ideas under discussion
b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about
the topics and texts under discussion) .
ELACC3RI4: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
ELACC3L1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English Grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.
Instruction:
http://youtu.be/66molzUEkWI Show this 3.40 minute video. It is a music video showing Olympic athletes.
 Ask students the following questions:
 How many of you have watched the Olympics on television?
 What kinds of sports do you see in the Olympics today?
 Do you know where the first Olympic games were held?
 Do you think that sports that are played today are the same sports that were played in the very first Olympics?
 Read aloud chapters 4-8.
 As a class, you will list on the board some of the information students find out about the Greek Olympics. You will also list any information
found about ancient Greece that could have influenced the Olympics. The students will then work in pairs using resource materials provided by
the teacher and the Internet to find out more information relevant to the material in chapters 4 thru 8 of the book. As a class, students will
compare the information they found in the book to information from other sources to see how accurate the book is.
 Put students into groups of about 4.
 Give each group one copy of the grid (best enlarged) and one set of cards (either precut or for the pupils to cut up.
 Students sort out which cards belong in which boxes on the grid.
 Hand out the answers to check.
 Using the same cards now sort the cards onto the Venn Diagram (best enlarged) to see which features are the same and different.
 http://www.collaborativelearning.org/ancientmodernolympics.pdf (A comparison chart Ancient Olympics vs. Modern Olympics, Answer sheet,
Venn Diagram to compare the two, and cards for the game above.
 Ahead of time teacher types chapter two on the smartboard and inserts a text box to place all the nouns and pronouns in. Students are going to
move those around later.
 Have students open their book to page 16 in The Hour of the Olympics. Pull up on the smartboard the first paragraph (Jack opened his eyes. It
was so dark he couldn’t see anything. He felt his clothes. He was wearing his T-shirt and jeans again. The leather bag had turned back into his
backpack.)
 Have all nouns and pronouns highlighted in a different color.
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Ask students if they know what type of words the highlighted words are.
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Explain to the students the differences between a noun and pronoun. Teacher can use different resources.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do I distinguish the literal and non-literal meaning of words and phrases in context?
Task: Students will be able to distinguish the literal and non-literal meaning of words and phrases in context.
Standards:
ELACC3RI9: Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
ELACC3RL4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from non-literal language.
ELACC3RL5: Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
ELACC3L5:a. Distinguish the literal and non-literal meaning of words and phrases in context
Instruction:
Write on the board “Being happy is like ________________________” and guide students in brainstorming similes for happiness (being happy is like
riding a roller coaster); follow up with a metaphor “Happiness is __________________” (happiness is sunshine in my heart) noting the progression
from “it is like” to “it is” (it is not important for students in grade 3 to learn the terms “simile” or “metaphor”; only to recognize non-literal language)
Ask students to think about and discuss the concept of expressing a thought in this way; how do similes and metaphors help us make our thoughts
clearer to people?
Non-literal language is a concept new to grade 3
 Introduce the word “literal” and have students put it in their notebooks; explain that literal means something “really is,” using the metaphors
introduced by the students to show that these are expressions (non-literal); you don’t really have actual sunshine in your heart, that is only a way
of expressing how happiness feels
 Introduce the poem “Paul Revere’s Ride” by viewing selected portions of the Paul Revere virtual museum again
 Ask students: Did you know that one of the prizes awarded to a victorious Olympic athlete was a poem? You mean you haven’t seen athletes
getting a poem during the Olympics? That’s because modern-day Olympic athletes only receive medals.
http://www.voicesnet.org/displayonepoem.aspx?poemid=160013
Pull up The Olympic Runner (hyperbole) poem
Stanzas are a concept new to grade 3
Begin with a paraphrase of each stanza (place emphasis on the vocabulary word: stanza, explaining meaning) to scaffold understanding of this rather
long poem (the language is also somewhat dense and dated)
Conduct at least one read-aloud, demonstrating the reading of the poem with expression (or use the website above for a reading); repeating a simplified
paraphrase afterwards
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Provide students in small groups with selected stanzas of the poem to review (choose only the ones that feature some type of non-literal language; this
is most of them, but not all)
Ask each group of students to find an example of something “not really real” (non-literal) in the language and to be prepared to share with their peers
what they found and what it really means
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How can I identify the Equator, Prime Meridian, and Lines of latitude and longitude by using a globe?
Task: Students will locate the Equator, Prime Meridian, and lines of latitude and longitude on a globe.
Standards:
SS3G1c.: Locate the Equator, Prime Meridian, and lines of latitude and longitude on a globe.
ELACC3SL1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and texts, building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about
the topic to explore ideas under discussion.
b. Follow agreed upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about
the topics and texts under discussion).
ELACC3L1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
i. Produce simple, compound, and complex sentence.
ELACC3RI6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of the text.
Instruction:
 Give each student or pair of students an outline map of the world and an outline map of the United States that you have printed. Ask them to
look at the maps and contribute words in a class discussion that describe the things they know or notice about the maps. For example, they
might say that they know the shape of the United States or that they can point out their home state.
 Ask students to look at the U.S. map and find the lines running across and up and down the page. Tell them that the lines across the page are
lines of latitude, and the lines up and down the page are lines of longitude. Ask students to contribute their ideas as to why these lines might
have been drawn on the map. Make sure they understand that they are not real lines on the ground, they were added to the map to help people
locate places on the map more easily.
 Have students look at the world outline map, and go over the general climate patterns that occur as latitude increases. Also discuss the seasonal
temperature variations.
The main thing they should know is that areas further away from the equator tend to be cooler and that, except in places close to the equator,
temperatures are cooler in the winter and warmer in the summer.
Introduce vocabulary terms (Equator, Prime Meridian, and lines of latitude and longitude). Have students work in groups to locate these on a
globe.
 Extending the lesson: Have students draw pictures of themselves at the different latitudes in the United States. The pictures should show them
wearing clothing and doing activities that they think would be appropriate for the weather in these places. You may want to tape or tack their
pictures to appropriate locations on a large United States wall map.
 Show students this 4 minute video introducing students to simple, compound and complex sentences. http://youtu.be/hsq2n4VOdzI
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Pull up the following website and follow the lesson to teach students simple, compound and complex sentences. http://eslbee.com/sentences.htm
To check for understanding, have students write two simple, two compound, and two complex sentences from Chapter 8 in Ancient Greece &
the Olympics. Students need to write what page and paragraph they found their sentences on.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What are transition words? (Introducing The Magic Tree House The Hour of the Olympics)
Task: Students will use transition words to sequence the events in Magic Tree House Hour of the Olympics
Standards:
ELACC3L3. Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
a. Choose words and phrases for effect.
b. Recognize and observe differences between the conventions of spoken and written standard English.
ELACC3W4. With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and purpose.
(Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
ELACC3W5. With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.
ELACC3W6. With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to interact
and collaborate with others.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3RF4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3SL1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3
topics and
texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Instruction:
 http://youtu.be/ZEWitdYB6_Y Open with this sequence of events video 3 minutes
 Have student volunteers come up and explain the steps to different everyday tasks such as brushing their teeth, hitting a baseball, making a bed,
etc. As the students explain the steps start a list on the board of transition words. Students can create personal word banks using file folders,
continually adding words and using the word banks as resources when writing. Add any additional transition words that were not used. Explain
to the students that the words you are writing are transition words which help us tell the order that things come.
 Students will begin to read aloud in small groups, The Hour of the Olympics. As they read they can use sticky notes or teacher choice and
identify transition words found in the texts.
 As students read they can also create a time line.
 Discuss the timeline in the book. Have students work in partners to use their timelines to discuss the sequence of events in the story. Students
can use sentence strips using transition words from the list you created, to put them in order.
 After they have sequenced the story have them go back and using transition words, let them brainstorm on how they can change the sequence of
events in the story and the cause and effect the changes could make to the story and or history.
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Have students get into partners and partner read chapter 2 of Magic Tree House Hour of the Olympics. After reading have students identify the
major event in the chapter. Refer to clues found in the chapter.
Have students write a letter to Morgan telling her what Annie and Jack discovered. Model on the board or on chart paper what the letter might
look like. Include a date, greeting, body, closing, and signature. Get input from the students as to what may have been included in the letter.
http://crml.k12.la.us/3rd/homework/write/3_writ.htm is a helpful site to help students learn to write a letter.
After writing the letter have students peer edit each other’s letters, using a kid-friendly rubric, and type it on the computer using a word
processing program.
Have students address an envelope and “mail” the letter to Morgan.
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a narrative piece, using transition words, sequencing how they used a map to locate the equator,
prime meridian, and lines of latitude and longitude on a globe from a previous lesson.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do suffixes change the tense of verbs?
Task: Students will use verbs from the story and explain the differences between root words and words with -ed
Standards:
ELACC3L2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
d. Form and use possessives
e. Use conventional spelling for high frequency and other studied words and for adding suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries, happiness)
ELACC3SL5. Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when
appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.
ELACC3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
e. Form and use the simple (e.g., I walked; I walk; I will walk) verb tenses.
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known affix is added to a known word (e.g., agreeable/disagreeable,
comfortable/uncomfortable, care/careless, heat/preheat).
c. Use a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., company, companion).
ELACC3RF3. Know and apply grade level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
a, Identify and know the meaning of the most common prefixes and derivational suffixes.
Instruction:
 When a variety of verbs (past, present, and future) have been listed on the board, ask the students to point out the verbs that tell that something
happened in the past, the ones that tell that something is happening in the present, and those that tell something will happen in the future.
 Point out that the verb(s) in a sentence tell, not only what happens, but also when.
 Ask the students to consider the verb run. Today I run around the field. Yesterday, I ran around the field. Tomorrow, I will run around the field.
 Point out that past, present, and future are not the only verb tenses. For example, if players want to let the coach know that they have been
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following his advice about running around the field each day, they can say: We have been running around the field every day for a month.
Explain that the verb (have been running) indicates an on-going process. The words have and been are parts of the verb that help to make the
meaning clear. There are many other tenses. For today, focus on past, present, and future.

Explain that, writers sometimes confuse their readers by changing verb tenses when they should be consistent (keep the same verb tense). For
example, write the following sentence on the board:
I work on my math homework as I talked on the phone.

o Ask the students whether the verb work is past, present, or future. (Present)
o Ask the student whether the verb talked is past, present, or future.(Past)
o Point out the fact that the verb tenses in this sentence are not consistent (the same), and readers will likely become confused. Did the
writer do his/her homework while they were on the phone, before they got on the phone, or after they got off the phone?
Show students two versions of the above sentence with consistent verb tense:
I worked on my math homework as I talked on the phone.
I work on my math homework as I talk on the phone.


Discuss how the different verb tenses change the meaning of the sentence
Consider this paragraph:
The dog saw the cat, and he will bark. Down the driveway he runs and jumped on the cat’s back. The cat howls and slapped at the dog. Poor old
dog! He gets a big scratch on his nose and will race back home.

Ask the students what is the trouble with this paragraph. Ask them to look at all the verbs in this paragraph. (List the verbs on the board.)
Saw, will bark, runs, jumped, howls, slapped, gets, will race
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Read through page 14 in Magic Tree House The Hour of the Olympics. As you read the page, stop and have students share some verbs that they
heard on the page and discuss what the verb describes. Make a list of the verbs on the board.
After you make your list, go through and identify the verbs that have prefixes and the words that have suffixes. Have the students use a T-Chart
to separate the two. For each of the words underline to identify the base/root words. Discuss how the different prefixes and suffixes change the
meaning of the word. Use a few of the words as examples. Sounded-the ed makes it a verb in the past tense-Sound is the present tenseGo through each of the verbs and have the students identify them as verbs of the past, present, and future tense.
Have students choose 1 page from the book to practice reading for fluency practice. After practicing a few times, have partners tape each other
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reading aloud.
Have students listen to their reading with their partner and discuss strengths and weaknesses of each other’s reading.
Using a three columned Past, Present, Future chart displayed on the Smart Board, ask the students to place the following events in the correct
column. Write the events on the chart or have students come to the board and move the item into the correct column. Students may suggest that
some of the events may belong in more than one column (e.g., baseball season):
o My birth
o December of 2008
o George W. Bush’s presidency
o First manned space flight to Venus
o George Washington’s presidency
o First woman president
o Baseball season
o Discovery of electricity
o The force of gravity
o Class in session
o First man on the moon
When the students have placed all the events on the chart, ask the students to choose one of the events from one of the columns and compose a
sentence about it on the paper you have asked them to place on their desks. Allow time for the students to choose an event and compose a
sentence. Ask students to share some of their sentences. As the students read their sentences, write the verbs from the sentences on the board.
Routine Writing opportunity: Point out that some of the verbs are present, some past, and some future. Ask the students to work in pairs or small
groups to re-write the paragraph so that all the verbs are in the same tense. (Have one student in each group take the role of scribe.) Assign some
groups to write paragraphs in the past tense, some present, and some future. Allow about 5 minutes for students to complete the task.

Allow students to share what they have written. Note the differences in how the paragraphs sound in the past, the present, and the future.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How are books by the same author similar and different?
Task: Students will read two books by the same author and find similarities and differences between the books.
Standards:
ELACC3L1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Explain the function of adjectives in general and their functions in particular sentences.
ELACC3SL6. Speak in complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification.
ELACC3SL3. Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail.
ELACC3RI5 Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.
ELACC3RI8 Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in
a sequence).
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ELACC3W7 Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
Instruction:
 Research the author Mary Pope Osborne using the internet and her website http://marypopeosborne.com/biography/ . Take notes on note cards
about the types of books she typically writes, the theme of her books, the type of illustrations she uses, or anything else unique about her.
 Use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the two Magic Tree House books used in this unit. Ancient Greece and the Olympics, and The
Hour of the Olympics.
 Ask students to look at their Venn Diagram and highlight any and all adjectives. Discuss why they used the adjectives they did as they
compared and contrasted the two books.
 Divide students up into teams of 5 or 6 to put on an interview panel. In each group there should be a panel of interviewers and “Mary Pope
Osborne” the author being interviewed. The students will practice asking and answering appropriate questions using evidence from the texts and
their research to inform the audience about Mary Pope Osborne. Have the students perform their interviews for the rest of the class.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do print and digital sources help us find information?
Task: Students will research facts about the Olympics using a variety of sources including the Magic Tree House –Ancient Greece & the Olympics
Standards:
ELACC3L1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Form and use regular and irregular plural nouns.
b. Use abstract nouns (e.g., childhood)
ELACC3W7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic
ELACC3W8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence
into provided categories.
ELACC3RI5: Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.
ELACC3SL4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at
an understandable pace.
SS3H1a: Identify the influence of the Olympic Games on the present.
Instruction:
 Set up 5 different centers. At each center there will be access to a computer, encyclopedia, and the book MagicTree House – Ancient Greece &
the Olympics.
 Each student will get a booklet to record answers to questions that they can use resources available to answer. Questions can include:
1. What did the Ancient Greeks wear? If anything?
2. Where did they compete?
3. Did women compete?
4. What events did women compete in?
5. What did the victor receive?
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6. What would it be like to an athlete in Ancient Greece?
 Students will go back to whole group and share with the class the answers they found and report from what source.
 Discuss with the children what they have learned about the Ancient Olympics thus far. What would it be like to be an athlete in Ancient Greece?
Discuss that we
are going to investigate the story of an ancient Greek athlete and the origin of the marathon, which is an event in the Modern Olympics. Watch th
power-point
 presentation of Phidippides and the origin of the Marathon.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=phidippides%20and%20the%20origin%20of%20the%20marathon%20powerpoint.%20&source=web&
=3&ved=
0CFQQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fislington.lgfl.digitalbrain.com%2Flgfl%2Fleas%2Fislington%2Fschools%2Fchina%2Fweb%2Fliteracy%2F
acy_
resources%2FNon-Fiction%2520Unit%2520
%2520Olympics%2FPhidippides.ppt%3Fverb%3Ddownload&ei=sAzxT5ycKIXO9QSj2PCLAg&usg=AFQjCNF4QnJq
_IASf7Fk_uqd2nMk9eVeKQ&sig2=prDpJF-E2b3uCsAZ_rHbvg
 Pull up the Rules of Regular and Irregular Plurals from - http://www.firstschoolyears.com/literacy/word/other/plurals/resources/rules.htm Discus
with students the rules.
 You can print this and have for students to keep in their notebooks as a reference.
 After discussion, pull up a BrainPop video on Regular and Irregular Plurals.
http://www.firstschoolyears.com/literacy/word/other/plurals/worksheets/plurals%20practice%20sheet.pdf Pull this up and have printed one out for each stude
This is a plurals
Practice sheet.
Routine Writing Opportunity The children are to plan a narrative about an athlete in Ancient Greece and their experience at the Olympics. The children are to
discuss the events that took place at the Ancient Olympics. They are to think about the setting, the name of their athlete, his event, any villains (there was lots
cheating in the Ancient Olympics) and the result of the competition. The children are to form a ‘sharing circle’. Each child is to share their ideas for their
narrative. The teacher is to model writing the setting and introducing the main character. The teacher is to write down the events that could be included in the
narrative and any key words that the children suggest
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do I identify the major topographical features on a map?
Task: Students will locate and identify major topographical features on a map.
Standards:
SS3G1 The student will locate major topographical features.
a. Identify major rivers of the United States of America: Appalachian, Rocky
b. Identify major mountain ranges of the United States of America: Appalachian, Rocky
ELACC3RL5: Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds one earlier sections.
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ELACC3L6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
ELACC3L6. Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those
that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
ELACC3L1 Students will demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
g. Form and use comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified.
Instruction:
Students can review with teacher the Regions and Rivers of Georgia online book created by the students in Mrs. Ballard’s 2nd grade class and discuss.
Site is found at http://www.mixbook.com/photo-books/education/the-regions-and-rivers-of-georgia-4145701
 Teachers will provide each student with a copy of a topographical map. As a class, teacher will go though the directions, the scales and the way
that elevations are shown on these maps. Students should then work in groups to identify and locate various features on the maps that they have
been given. Teachers who wish to create a fun atmosphere can turn this into a game for groups of students. Some examples of game or review
questions might include finding the highest point in a specific country or regions, or finding the lowest valley that is nearest to where they live.
Going through the maps as a class and having students answer questions in groups will help students to become familiar with topographical
maps.
 Students will watch a safari montage clip identifying the major rivers of the United States of America and the major mountain ranges.
 Students will create a poster or powerpoint presentation in small groups that will identify each major river and mountain range
 Students will research by choosing a country of their choice and find out the topographical features of that country and compare it to that of
Greece.
As a class, have students discuss the words they used to describe the topographical features of Greece. Ask students what part of speech those words are
(adjectives) and let students watch the following clip on comparative and superlative adjectives: http://youtu.be/S6JRbiWQp9A
 Discuss as a class the meaning and use of comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does direct democracy differ from representative democracy?
Task: Students will understand why the Athenians’ idea that a community should choose its own leaders, and understand how direct democracy differs from a
representative democracy.
Standards:
SS3H1b.
b.
Explain the ancient Athenians’ idea that a community should choose its own leaders.
c. Compare and contrast Athens as a direct democracy with the United States as a representative democracy.
ELACC3W3: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thought, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
ELACC3RL1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
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ELACC3RL6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
ELACC3RF4: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
a. Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
b. Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression.
c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
ELACC3SL1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one on one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and
building on others’
ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the to
to explore ideas
b. under discussion.
c. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topi
and texts under
discussion).
d. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
e. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.


Explain to students that the ancient Athenians thought it was important for its community to choose its own leaders
Have students use their reference skills to locate where they would find information about the Athenian government in Magic Tree House – Ancient
Greece and the Olympics.
 . Before class: Staple the following handouts together in this order found at this site:
http://www.jeffcityschools.org/Elementary/pdf%20files/constitution%20day/formsdemocracyes_eng_ver3[1].pdf
 Representative Democracy in Action!
 Official Classroom Representative Ballot
 Optional- Attach the Ballot Box sign to a box for students to deposit their ballots.
 Pass out the Direct Democracy in Action! sheet for students to complete. After all students have read the scenario and made their choices, use
the overhead Vote Tally
to tally the results.
 4.Debrief: Lead students to discover that our government is not set up as a direct democracy by asking the following questions.
a. Raise your hand if your choice won.
b. How do you feel?
c. Raise your hand if your choice didn't win.
d. How do you feel?
e. Since you didn’t get what you wanted, what will you do?
f. Winners, do you feel that it’s fair that the others have to go along with the
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vote?
g. What should they do?
h. Can you think of other times that something like this has happened? (Other
classroom voting experiences. i.e. Kids given free time and have to choose
between kickball and a movie.)
i. The activity you just took part in is a form of voting. When you get older, you
will have the responsibility of voting. Do you think it will work like this,
where every person votes on individual decisions and the majority wins?
 Does the United States use a direct democracy?
j. If they say yes, ask for examples. If they say no, ask, “Why not?”
k. If the United States has approximately 300 million citizens, can we have a direct democracy? (Our country is too big for a direct democracy)
l. Would it be possible to be a direct democracy? Why not?
m. Is there a better way for our country to be organized? (Students may offer suggestions that sound like a representative democracy. If so, affirm them
andgive them this background information.) Yes, a representative democracy. The writers of the Constitution also believed that citizens would usually
choose the most talented, wise, and honest individuals to represent them.
 5. Write a number 1 and number 2 on the board underneath the definition of democracy.
 Write the word democracy on the board. Define democracy as a form of government where the people make decisions. Write this definition on
the board.
After a short discussion about the Athenians’ ideas behind direct democracy, present the following resources to students to help familiarize students w
direct democracy
and representative democracy. Students should create a Venn Diagram which compares and contrasts the two types of democracy.
 Tell students that there are two types of democracy.
 Write direct democracy beside the number 1 on the board.
 Remind students that direct democracy occurs when the people make decisions directly.
 Tell students that we have a representative form of government. Write the words representative democracy beside number 2 on the board. Tell
students that the next voting activity is a form of representative democracy.
 9. Pass out handout Representative Democracy in Action! Explain the directions to the students. Explain that instead of voting on the individual
issues, they will be voting for representatives that will vote on these issues for them. Because of this, students need to choose a candidate that
best represents their beliefs.
 10. Give students plenty of time to complete the handout, Representative Democracy in Action! Be sure that students tally the circles in each
column and write total number of circles under each column. They should write the number of the candidate they will vote for in the space
provided.
 After students finish, reveal the identity of each candidate. If actual students from the class were not chosen to be the candidates, use the
Pictures of Classroom Candidates and the Nametags for Candidates. Post the pictures on the board along with the corresponding nametags.
 12. Tell students to flip to the Official Classroom Representative Ballot. Students should darken the oval of the candidate they choose and also
write the name of the candidate on the line.
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 13. Gather ballots. If you choose to use a ballot box a sign for the box is provided.
 14. Tally votes using the Classroom Candidate Vote Tally overhead and share results.
 15. Debrief: Ask the following questions.
a. How did this voting experience differ from the first experience?
b. Who did you vote for? Why? How did you make this decision?
c. Is it more important to base voting decisions on the candidate’s personality or the candidate’s views about the issues that are important to you?
Extensions:
1. Word Work: Use the Root Work handout to explore the original meaning of the word democracy.
2. Venn Diagram: Compare and contrast the differences between direct and representative democracy using the handout, How Alike? How Different?.
Routine Writing Opportunity: Write an opinion piece designed to convince the reader that one type of democracy is better than the other.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How can I identify the influence of Greek architecture, Law, and the Olympic Games has had on the present?
Task: Students will be able to identify how Greek architecture, Law and the Olympic Games influenced the present time.
Standards:
SS3H1a Identify the influence of Greek architecture (columns on the Parthenon, U.S. Supreme Court building), law, and the Olympic Games on the present.
ELACC3RL5. Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections
ELACC3L1a. Explain the function of adjectives in general and their functions in particular sentences.
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known affix is added to a known word (e.g., agreeable/disagreeable,
comfortable/uncomfortable, care/careless, heat/preheat).
c. Use a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., company, companion).
d. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases.
ELACC3L5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
a. Distinguish the literal and non-literal meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).
b. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful).
c. Distinguish shades of meaning among related words that describe states of mind or degrees of certainty (e.g., knew, believed, suspected, heard,
wondered).
ELACC3L6. Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those
that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
Instruction:
Glynn County School System
Grade 3 – 1st 9-weeks
June 2012  Page 45
Adapted for use from the Georgia Dept. of Education - All Rights Reserved
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*Divide the class into groups of 3. Give each group a large piece of chart paper. Have them draw a picture of Jack, Annie, or Morgan and list as
many words describing the character as they can around the picture. After each group is finished have them come and write 3 of their words on
the board or chart paper. Read off all of the words from the board and ask them if they know what kind of words those are. Tell them that they
are all adjectives. They are used to describe nouns. Explain that their chosen character is a proper noun and we can use adjectives to describe
nouns.
*Have the students choose a partner and draw a picture of each other. Then write at least 5 adjectives around the picture that they drew to
describe their partner.
Have the students explore facts about Greek architecture using Magic Tree House – Ancient Greece and the Olympics, and other resources or
web links. Students will create a flip book using pictures/drawings to show examples of how Ancient Greek architecture has influenced modern
day architecture locally and nationally (U.S. Supreme Court Building). Show students pictures of the Parthenon in Greece and the U.S. Supreme
Court Building. Ask students to compare the 2 buildings and write their responses on a chart. (The main focus of this discussion will center on
columns. Students do not need to know the exact type of columns or the names of the different types of columns.) Students will then conduct
some research at home or at school and bring in pictures of other buildings that have columns from buildings they find in Washington, D.C.,
Atlanta, or their community to glue into their flip book. On the last page of the flip book, students will write a short paragraph that describes
what we borrowed from the ancient Greeks that we see in many important buildings today.
A computer lab is the ideal setting for this lesson; however, it can also be conducted as a center in your classroom or library.
Suggested Resource: We blink – http://fayettevilleintermediate.org/greek_architecture.htm
Modifications:
o Provide illustrations and/or photographs for students to cut out and paste to the flip book
o Assist students with cutting
o Create a display chart with picture examples and labels for visual reference of the architectural elements of Ancient Greek architecture
o Assign a peer helper to assist with flip book construction and organization
o Tour the school building to locate examples of particular architectural elements
o To help students connect, have students bring in existing photographs of the fronts of their own homes or homes of family members to
include in the examples of architectural elements. They only need to bring photos if they can.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do we identify the meaning of homonyms?
Task: Students will use context clues to find the meaning of words that have more than one meaning.
Standards:
ELACC3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
d. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases.
ELACC3RL1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
ELACC3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
Glynn County School System
Grade 3 – 1st 9-weeks
June 2012  Page 46
Adapted for use from the Georgia Dept. of Education - All Rights Reserved
sequences.
a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
d. Provide a sense of closure.
Instruction:
 Put a few words on the board from Chapters 12 0and 13. (led – lead, knew-new, not-knot ) Ask students to raise their hand and tell what the
words mean. You will get different answers because the words have more than one meaning.
 Explain to the students that these are called homonyms. Tell them that homonyms are words sound exactly alike but are spelled differently. Son
and sun are an example of a homophone. Show them examples for the words. “It’s not a joke!” Jack shouted. Using context clues and
understanding of text, the work not here is talking about in no way, to no degree. Used to express negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition. Knot
means a fastening made by tying together lengths of material, such as rope, in a prescribed way like a bow. Explain that it is necessary to use
clues to understand what the sentence is talking about.
 After reading chapters 5 & 6 with a partner have them locate homonyms from the chapters that you list on the board. Have them write the word
and the 2 different definitions of the words along with a sentence for each definition. Then have them come up with their own list homonyms.
Make a class list of homonyms on chart paper.
 Have them write about a character that had to move to a new home. They should use at least 3 sets of homonyms in their paper.
Routine Writing Opportunity: Students will write a chapter 5 and 6 summary in their writing journal. They will describe the characters, setting, and main e
in the chapter. Their summary should be at least 4 sentences long.
Glynn County School System
Grade 3 – 1st 9-weeks
June 2012  Page 47
Adapted for use from the Georgia Dept. of Education - All Rights Reserved