First Grade is Full of Characters!

Using various templates, the students traced cartoon heads, faces, bodies, and accessories to create their own cartoon characters.  This was just a fun mini lesson to let them draw and work on their fine motor tracing skills when they had completed other work early.

Comparing Stories by Eric Carle

As a part of our lessons on fiction story elements and our author study of Eric Carle, we compared the stories The Mixed-Up Chameleon and The Foolish Tortoise. Using a Double Bubble Map, we started with how the two stories are the same: author, problems, solutions, setting, animals, reptiles, etc. We then talked about how those things are the same, there are differences between them. We color coded the parts to show how although they have elements that are the same, the author used them differently to create two unique stories.

The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle

The students read The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle as a part of our author study and lessons on fiction story elements. After reading the book together, the students independently completed story maps to show their understanding of the characters, setting, problem, and solutions. While I worked with students in small groups, they painted a picture of The Mixed-Up Chameleon to display with their story maps.

The Foolish Tortoise by Eric Carle

Last week we conducted an author study of Eric Carle as a part of our unit on fiction texts and story elements. One of the books we read was The Foolish Tortoise. After reading, the students worked in small groups to retell the characters, setting, problem, and solution on a foldable. They also colored a tortoise inspired by Eric Carle's work to display with their foldables.

The Foolish Tortoise

As a part of our study on author and illustrator Eric Carle, we read The Foolish Tortoise. As we read, we discussed and charted the characters, setting, problem, and solution. The students then created their own Story Maps on construction paper to identify and write about the information.

The next day we read the story again but this time we focused on retelling the story from beginning, middle, and end. The students then created a three-flap foldable to retell the story.

The Mixed-Up Chameleon

As a part of our author study on Eric Carle, we read The Mixed-Up Chameleon. After reading, we discussed the characters, setting, problem, and solution. The students then created Story Maps about the book.

We then read the book again focusing on retelling. The students then created a foldable to retell the story from beginning, middle, and end.

To Make the Grinch Smile...

This is an idea that I got from Deanna Jump. In her Grinch Unit, she has several activities based off of the book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. This book goes perfectly with our character trait lessons. As we read, we stopped to talk about how the Grinch was acting and why he was acting that way. We also discussed how his character changed over time. Following our character trait lesson, the students created their own Grinch and then wrote about how they would make the Grinch smile.

It's Christmas, David!

Today we read It's Christmas, David! by David Shannon to discuss character traits. After reading and discussing David's behavior in the story, we created a class Story Elements Map to define the characters, setting, problem, and solution. The students then answered questions about David's character on a graphic organizer of a boy. The students wrote about what David looks like, how he acts, and what they would do if they were him. They then colored the template to look like David. (Fellow teachers, I do not have an electronic copy of this template because I received it from a former student intern. I love when the interns bring new and exciting things into the classroom!)

The Memory String

As a way to analyze character's feelings and make connections, we read The Memory String by Eve Bunting. The story is about a little girl whose mother had passed away and reflects on the relationship between a daughter and step-mother during a conflict. After reading, the students verbally identified the characters, setting, problem, and solution in the story and made connections to the story. They then wrote the story elements on a four-part chart. You can download this story elements chart for FREE at my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

Franklin's Bad Day

This week we are reading and learning about different types of emotions and feelings. We are also learning about characters and how they change. Yesterday we read Franklin's Bad Day to learn about how character's feelings can change in a story. As we read, we thought aloud about how Franklin was feeling. The students determined that at the beginning of the story Franklin felt mad but they were unsure why. We practiced using the picture clues to help us know how the character was feeling. As we continued reading, the students determined that Franklin was now feeling sad because his friend had moved. We discussed that this could be what was really upsetting him in the beginning of the book. At the end of the book the students determined that Franklin was feeling better. After discussing how and why his feelings changed, the students created a three part foldable to write and illustrate the changes.