my animal report - sunshine reading club · title my animal report about the text this outlines the...

203© 2011 Wendy Pye Publishing Ltd

titleMy Animal Report

About the textThis outlines the process a boy follows to research, write and present a report about a panda.

text Access FeaturesTable of contents, index, glossary, diagrams, drawings, labels, photographs, captions, supplemental text

GenreNon-fiction

running Words161

PhonicsWord endings (-ed)Predict textwr- beginning

VocabularyUse text access features.

high-Frequency Wordscould, out, some, put, did, about, then, not

reLAted reAd-ALoud BookS

Fireflies, Fireflies, Light My Way, Jonathan London. Viking, 1996.

Mammalabilia, Douglas Florian. Harcourt Children’s Books, 2000.

The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash, Trinka Hakes Noble. Dial Books for Young

Readers, 1980.

The House on East 88th Street, Bernard Waber. Houghton, 1962.

texts• My Animal Report

• The Kangaroo Who

Couldn’t Dance Rhyme,

Song and Play Book,

pp. 42–43

online• My Animal Report

Audio cds• My Animal Report

• The Kangaroo Who

Couldn’t Dance Rhyme,

Song and Play Book,

track 38

cards• content Word cards

• Literacy task cards 11,

12, 19, 28

• Guided reading

Procedure cards

Student Books• non-Fiction Activity

Book, pp 93–102

Related Sunshine Materialscontent-Specific Wordswrite, animal, report, panda, research, internet, DVD, diagram, headings, notes, sentences, printing, drawings, checked, spelling, capital letters, full stops

comprehensionAnswer questions from experience.Read supplemental text.

FluencyRead a play text

Shared WritingCreate expository texts.

reading StrategyShared Reading; Guided Reading Reread and try the word again.Read a play text.

AssessmentFinding and understanding information in a non-fiction text.

My Animal Report

© 2011 Wendy Pye Publishing Ltd204

Preview the Text

Shared Reading Use the Big Book or Online Textread a non-fiction text

Build Background• Ask the children if they have ever heard the word

report. Have them share what they know about reports and any experiences they have had with writing reports.

• Ask children what they think they would need to do if they wanted to write a report about an animal. Ask questions such as:

– Where would you go to find the information you need?– What would you do with the information?– how could you share what you learned?

• Together, explore and scan the book. Ask children to think about and comment on the steps the boy followed to write his report. Tell them that, as they read the book, they will be learning more about how the boy prepared his report.

• Preview the title of My Animal Report while the children follow along.

• Turn, first, to page 14 and ask children to describe what they see.

– What did the boy write a report about?– does this look like the beginning or the end of

his research?– how did he choose to share his report

with others?– What do you think he did before he put his report

up on the wall?

“Sometimes we can look at a final product and then think about what

steps must have come before, to reach that final product. I wonder

what the boy needed to do to create a report like that.”

thinkaloud

• Select a text to read aloud to the children – either from those suggested on page 203, or one of your own choosing.

• Pause at one or two appropriate places for the children to make a connection from the text to something in their lives.

• Talk about any personal connections children have made with the book.

Read aloud

Shared Learning

© 2011 Wendy Pye Publishing Ltd 205

First Read • Read the Big Book version to the children or project the online version onto a large screen for Shared

Reading. Click on read to hear the main text read. • Explore and enjoy the information in the illustrations and the supplementary text as you read each page.

Second Read • Click on Information to hear the supplementary text read. Talk about all the new information that is available

through the interactive sequences. As you go through the book again, talk about what information is

communicated through the photographs, diagrams and supplementary text.

– Would you learn as much if you read only the main text on each page?

• Talk about the table of contents, index and glossary, and how to use them to find information.

• Read the text again while the children follow along, and encourage them to join you in the reading of the text.

segment a word into separate sounds• Say the word report and ask children to repeat it. Then ask them to say the initial sound and pause

before saying the sound of the rest of the word (/r/–eport). – What sound did the word end with? What sounds were in the middle?• Continue with other words, such as panda, books, bear, food, box, notes, letters and write.

Phonemic Awareness Segment Words

use illustrations/the first letter(s) to read text• Display page 4 of the Big Book with the words books, internet and DVD covered. Read each

sentence and ask children to suggest words that could complete the sentence. Remind them to look carefully at the photographs on the page for clues. Record their predictions on a self-sticking note next to each word.

• Uncover the first letter of each word, say the sound together, and ask children which predictions could no longer fit. Cross them off the list.

• Continue uncovering one letter at a time, saying the sound, and crossing off predictions until there is only one prediction left for each word. Then uncover each word and confirm.

• Read the page together.

Phonics Predict Text

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Children could work with a partner to cover and predict words using an enlarged text.


List Research Sourcesorganise information in websChildren create a word web around the title “Where to Go for Information”. They begin with the title in the centre of the web and write research sources in circles around the outside. They may begin with those listed on page 4, then add others they can think of.

Read a Familiar Textreread for fluencyChildren read– My Animal Report in book form,

on audio or on the online version;– a favourite Read-Aloud book or little

book previously read.

Small Group/Guided ReadingSee Guided reading Procedure cards for additional ideas.

Arrange children in the class into three or four groups to explore the text with you throughout the week in small- group or Guided Reading sessions. This will enable you to work with at least two groups each day.

Before reading– What did the boy write a report about?– how did he get started?Use the table of contents as a summary of the steps he took:– First he chose an animal.

read the BookRead the text on each page and have children reread it with you. Talk together about the first captions, label and photos.

After readingRevisit each page.Turn to the table of contents and find Getting started. Turn to page 4. Find all the information about what the boy did to get started.

Observe the children in the group as you guide their reading. Which ones can use the books confidently? Select children to read the text to you, asking questions about text, diagrams and illustrations.

Play Animal CharadesimproviseChildren act out an animal from a given set (list or pictures on content Word cards) or one of their own choosing. Others in the group try to guess the animal.

Where to Go for Information

internet DVD

peoplebooks

Independent and Small Group Learning


Non-Fiction Activity BookChildren complete– page 94, to take notes for

their own animal report;– page 95, to do an Animal

Report quiz.

Encourage children to share and celebrate their learning each day with the whole class. They could– share their writing;– talk about something they learned while reading the book;– talk about a discovery on the computer;– read aloud a page of a book, using the book or the online version.

List Topics of Interestidentify a research topicChildren write a list of animals they would be interested in researching. They may include illustrations. Provide a variety of animal books to help children to generate ideas.They may be able to use a search engine to find information about one or more of the animals on their list.

Explore the online versionfollow optional paths on computer programs• Children work in pairs or small groups

to explore the online version of My Animal Report.

• Children click on explore to find out about how to use the table of contents, index and glossary.

Celebrate Literacy Learning


Daddy MamaWhere they work outside inside

in an office

read supplemental text• Write the word diagram on the board. Ask the children to go to the table of contents to see if they

can find a page of the book that tells about diagrams. Turn to a page 8 and scan the text for the word. Read the sentence together. Ask children if they can tell what a diagram is just from reading the sentence. Suggest that they look at the supplementary text, the illustrations, the glossary and the index to get more information about diagrams.

• Ask children to suggest answers to the question “What are diagrams?” Record their suggestions on the board. Add any missing ideas to the list.

• Ask questions about the diagram the boy used for his panda report.– What shape was his diagram?– What questions did the boy use in his diagram?– how do you think the questions helped the boy during his research?– does his information match each question?– did he keep the same questions as he wrote his report?

answer questions to which the answer is part of the experienceUse questions such as the following to guide a text discussion:– Which parts of the boy’s report-writing process have you done before?– Which parts were new to you?– how did the boy make sure that his report was easy for others to read?– how do you think the boy feels about his finished report?– do you think that you could write a report about something, in the same way as the boy?

Comprehension

Shared Reading Read a Play

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Children could– record the boy’s diagram on chart paper, to be filled in during the Shared Writing activity;– explore the relationship between the diagram and research questions by saying or writing an answer

to go along with each of the boy’s questions (e.g. What do pandas look like?).

Use Diagrams

Discuss Text Ideas

read a play text• Reread one or two selections from The Kangaroo Who Couldn’t Dance Rhyme, Song and Play Book

as a choral reading.• Introduce the play, “I’m Hungry, So Hungry” from pages 42–43. Read it the first time without

showing children the text. Pause as you get to each animal to allow children to predict what it might eat. After reading the alligator’s part, ask children what they think will happen next. Then read on to the end of the play.

• Display the text and read the play again, with children chorally reading the parts of all the animals.

Read aloud

Shared Learning


recognise word endings• Turn to page 4 in My Animal Report and ask children to scan the text for words

that end in -ed. Ask them to read the words and record the words on the board.• Ask volunteers to underline the main (root) word in each of the words and to circle

the ending (suffix).• Ask children what letter of an -ed ending sometimes sounds like t. Discuss the meaning

of the -ed ending. (It tells about actions that were carried out in the past and are done.) – Why does it make sense for the boy to use -ed words when he tells about

writing his report?• Children go through the book to find other words with -ed endings (called, used,

checked, asked).

Phonics Recognise Meaning of Final -ed

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APPLY Children could– make a chart of words with -ed endings;– add any significant -ed words to their personal journal;– sort -ed words by “sounds like a d” and “sounds like a t”.

delete a sound and recognise a new wordSay the word called and ask children to repeat it. Then ask them to say it without the final /d/ sound. Repeat with played, cried, sneezed, phoned, used, snowed and rained.

Phonemic Awareness Isolate Final /d/ Sound


Make Wordsspell high-frequency words correctly• Provide magnetic letters, letter cards or

other manipulatives that children can use to construct words. Children work with a partner to spell high-frequency words. One partner says a word and the other makes it without looking at the printed word. They check the spelling of the word using the book.

• Children may tell or write sentences using the high-frequency words.

Read Bold-faced Wordsuse typographical cues to convey meaning• Read the last sentence on page 6 together

and discuss how the bold word not should be read with slightly more emphasis than the other words.

• Provide sentence strips with the sentence frame A _____ is not a _____. and the word cards panda and bear. Children work with a partner to place the sentence strip and word cards in a pocket chart and to read the sentence with appropriate emphasis on the word not.

• Children can come up with other possibilities for the sentence frame (e.g. A daddy longlegs is not a spider.) and write the words on cards. They put their words in the pocket chart and practise reading the new sentence together.

• Cards may be left at the pocket chart for others to use.


Arrange children in the class into three or four groups to explore the text with you throughout the week in small- group or Guided Reading sessions. This will enable you to work with at least two groups each day.

Before reading– What did the boy write a report about?– how did he get started?Use the table of contents as a summary of the steps he took:– First he chose an animal.

read the BookRead the text on each page and have children reread it with you. Talk together about the first captions, label and photos.

After readingRevisit each page.Turn to the table of contents and find Getting started. Turn to page 4. Find all the information about what the boy did to get started.

Continue to observe children, noting those that are confident. Listen to selected children read the text and discuss all the information, including that provided by the online version.

Read Independentlyengage in independent readingChildren browse through books in the classroom Library Corner and choose a book to read. Or they could use the online verion to read a favourite book.



Non-Fiction Activity BookChildren complete– page 96, to write the steps for writing

an Animal Report in the correct order;– page 97, to fill in the spaces with a word,

number or picture.

Children could– share a strategy for spelling high-frequency words;– read a sentence from a pocket chart;– share their writing.

Write Questionsidentify research questions• Children choose an animal they

might like to research. They may refer to the list of possible topics they wrote for the personal response activity on Day 1.

• They write questions about their chosen animal. They may refer to the book or online version for ideas.

• They could continue their internet search.

Have children take home a copy of My Animal Report to read with family members.

Explore the Interactive Aspects of the online versionuse index/glossary• Children continue to explore the

online version My Animal Report.• They focus on the interactive section

(explore) and find text using the table of contents, glossary and index.



Shared Writing Write a Report

Shared Reading Read a Playread a play text• Turn to pages 42–43 of The Kangaroo Who Couldn’t Dance Rhyme, Song and Play Book. Choose

a volunteer to read the part of the Storyteller in the play “I’m Hungry, So Hungry”, and divide the rest of the class into groups to read the parts of the animals. Read the play through several times, switching parts.

• Use the following questions to guide a text discussion:– how do the words an old carrot with mud show that rabbit is So hungry?– how do we know Squirrel (raccoon, Bear, Alligator) is So hungry?– What might you say you could eat to show that you are So hungry?

Read aloud

create expository texts• Review the steps the boy followed to write his report.• As a group, select an animal to research. Use the same

headings as in the book, or other relevant headings.• Divide the class into groups and assign to each group an

aspect to research. Have children use a variety of sources to research their topic.

• Draw a large diagram on chart paper, using the boy’s diagram on page 2 as a model. Groups may write, or cut and paste, their findings in the diagram.

• Collaboratively write the report using the notes in the diagram. Have students make drawings to go with the report.

• Read the report over, checking for correct spelling and punctuation.

• Display the report and all related work.

Children could– write their own animal report using the boy’s panda report

and the Shared Writing project as models. They may use their list of topics and the questions they have already written to help them begin;

– make a flow chart diagram outlining the steps in the report-writing process.

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Shared Learning


use text-access features to read non-fiction texts • Using another non-fiction book, ask children to locate features such as the

table of contents, index, glossary, headings, and boldface print. Discuss how each one can help the reader.

• Use questions to facilitate a non-fiction text feature hunt. Have the children name and locate each feature to answer the questions.

– What would you use to find out what a word means?– What can you look at to find out how the book is organised?– What does an author use to put emphasis on a certain word?– What can you use to find information about a certain topic?– What gives you the main idea of a section of information?

Vocabulary Use Text Access Features

break an unknown word into smaller parts• Display the cover of the Big Book and focus on the word animal. Ask children if they see any smaller

words they know in the word. Guide them to say the word an and then say the remaining letter sounds slowly to read the whole word.

• Read the word report by first identifying any known smaller words or word parts and then blending them with the remaining letter sounds.

• Ask volunteers to demonstrate the strategy using other words from the text. For example:– teacher, panda (page 2)– research, internet (page 4)– diagram (page 8)– capital (page 12)

Encourage children to think aloud as they model the strategy.

identify syllables in spoken wordsSay words from the text and have children repeat them, clapping or tapping for each syllable. They tell the number of syllables each word has. Use words such as animal, report, write, panda, research, internet, diagram, headings, sentences and capital.

Phonological Awareness Isolate the Syllables

Phonics Sound Out Words

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APPLY Children could– work with a partner to point to, name and describe various features of non-fiction text;– read other non-fiction texts, using the different features to gain meaning.

Children could read smaller copies of the book with a partner, using the strategy of breaking words into parts.


Edit a Sentencespell high-frequency words correctlyWrite the following sentence or another sentence on the You Be the editor task card (28): i fownd owt that a pandu iz nott a berChildren rewrite the sentence, correcting the spelling and punctuation. They can check their work using the text in My Animal Report.


Read a Familiar Textreread for fluency• Set out an “I Can Read” box with

appropriate books for each child. Include a copy of My Animal Report.

• Children choose a few of the books to reread in book form, on audio or online.

Work with the groups from Day 1 to explore the text further.

Before readingAsk children:– What is research?Use the table of contents to help children to find research and understand what it is.

read the BookChildren read the book themselves, returning to read the text on each page and all the additional words.– Why is it important to do research?– What did the boy find out about pandas?

After readingRevisit the labels and captions – can children read these, even if they appear to be difficult? Talk about context and how it helps reading. Talk about the other cues that help check that the context is giving the right signals.

Explore the Links between Online and Book search for information on the computer• Allow children to continue to explore

the online version of My Animal Report.• Provide opportunities to talk together

about the links between the book, the activity pages and the online version and how each adds to the store of knowledge about reports and pandas.




Children could– share a report;– share something interesting they learned from

their reading or research;– read a page of a book.

Write a Learning Log Entryexplain what was learnedChildren use the What I Learned task card (19) and the sentence beginning “I found out _____.” to describe something they learned about an animal researched in class or about pandas from reading My Animal Report. They write several sentences about the topic.

Non-Fiction Activity BookChildren complete– page 98, to find out more

about pandas;– page 99, to find facts about

their favourite animal.



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Fluency Read a Play

read a play text• Display the play “I’m Hungry, So Hungry” on pages 42–43 of The Kangaroo Who Couldn’t

Dance Rhyme, Song and Play Book. Ask children to identify and read words that have double letters in them.

• Listen to the audio CD (track 38) and then divide children into five groups and assign one of the animals to each group. Children draw and cut out a picture of what the animal suggests it could eat.

• Read the play in parts and have children hold up their picture as they read about it.

Visual Literacy Connect Pictures and Textstate how visuals support the author’s message• Display page 13 of My Animal Report using the Big Book or the online version. Ask children to describe

what they notice about the presentation version of the panda report.• Discuss the connection between the text and the visuals.– What is the topic of the report? – Are all the pictures connected to the topic?– What can you learn from the pictures that you can’t learn from the words?– do you think it is important to include both visuals and text in a report?• Discuss the effectiveness of this author’s visuals.– do you think this author did a good job of including visuals in the report?– Which of the drawings do you like the best? Why?– Is there something you might have done differently?• Have children brainstorm strategies for developing visuals for their own projects (e.g. drawings,

tracings, diagrams, photographs, computer print-outs, collage). Make sure children understand that they don’t need to be professional artists; they just need to do their best.

Children could– generate a list of criteria for effective visuals in a report;– create expository text with visuals;– share writing with visuals in a small group and discuss the effectiveness of the visuals.

Read aloud

Shared Learning


Phonemic Awareness Isolate Individual Sounds

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Phonics Guess wr- Words

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recognise individual phonemes in wordsSay the word write and have children repeat the initial sound (/r/). Continue with other words such as panda, books, bear, food, report, notes and capital.

recognise consonant sounds• Write the word write on the board and ask children what they notice about its

spelling. Focus on the wr making the /r/ sound and ask children if they know any other words that start with wr-. Record them.

• Give clues to help children to generate other wr- words. For example:– It is a joint between the hand and the arm. (wrist)– It’s when you cover a present. (wrap)– It’s the opposite of right. (wrong)– It’s a tool that can be used to turn nuts or bolts. (wrench)– It means to squirm like a worm might do. (wriggle)– It means to ruin. (wreck)– It’s when you get a crease in something. (wrinkle)• Have children choose one wr- word and write a sentence with the word.

They illustrate their sentence.

Children could– write words of personal significance with wr- in the word section of

their personal journal;– make an illustrated list of wr- words;– give clues to a partner about one of the wr- words and have the partner guess it.



Work with the groups from Day 2 to explore the text further.

Before readingAsk children:– What is research?Use the table of contents to help children to find research and understand what it is.

read the BookChildren read the book themselves, returning to read the text on each page and all the additional words.– Why is it important to do research?– What did the boy find out about pandas?

After readingRevisit the labels and captions – can children read these, even if they appear to be difficult? Talk about context and how it helps reading. Talk about the other cues that help check that the context is giving the right signals.


Read Independentlyengage in independent readingProvide time for the children to browse through books in the classroom Library Corner and choose a book to read alone or with a friend. Include non-fiction books about animals.

Sort Animal Wordssort words into categories of their choosing• Provide sets of word cards with animal

names and/or pictures on them. Children use Word Sort task card (12) to sort the cards into groups and write a label for each group.

• Children could ask a partner to guess their sorting rule.

Research on the Internetsearch for information by key word and subject• Provide time for children to search

the internet using key words suggested in the My Animal Report activity pages.

• Children search the websites for pictures and information about pandas.

• Children could work with an assistant to find information about their favourite animal on the internet.

Panda ChinaBamboo



Children could– say a wr- word riddle and have the class guess the word;– share an interesting fact about an animal;– explain how they sorted animal words;– present the technological devices.

Non-Fiction Activity BookChildren complete– page 100, to make an Amazing

Facts! diagram using the facts they gathered on page 99;

– page 101, to check the animalreport for spelling mistakes.

Read a Playfluently read aloud a passageChildren read the play “I’m Hungry, So Hungry” in a group of six. They make up actions to accompany their reading.


Find Technological Devicesidentify technological devices and animations and explain how they contribute to meaningChildren work in pairs or groups of three to note all the technological devices used in My Animal Report (search engine, putting in the full stop, correcting the spelling mistake, animations, etc). They present their findings to the class using the online version.


Extend the Learning Through Investigation and Inquiry

The book lends itself to further research and investigation on the topics of animals, pandas or other ideas that you and the children might have. Use or adapt some of these ideas to extend the learning as a class, in groups or pairs, and individually. These activities are also intended to act as models for children of the behaviour of scientists and other researchers. They generally start with a question or something that they are curious or wonder about. They seek to find answers in many ways through such activities as first-hand observation, talking to people who know, reading and using the internet.

1. establish a personal investigation question with the children• Encourage children to think about something related to the book that they would like to

know more about. It could be about animals or other ideas they have. Children may wish to go back to the questions they wrote in the writing on Day 2 to see if there are any questions of particular interest. Have them record their questions in a notebook or learning log. Children can refer to the web of information sources they made during the letters and words activity on Day 1 to help them think about how they could find out the information. Schedule times for the children to report.

2. observing and viewing investigations• Children can watch a video or DVD or a video clip on the internet about an animal

and write down answers to their questions and other interesting facts.• Children can look at a photograph of an animal in a book or magazine, or on a website.

They write down any facts they learn from looking at the photo. They can also write things they wonder about to guide further research.

• Children can observe a classroom pet or other familiar animal in their environment and record its appearance and activities using drawings, photographs, charts, graphs and/or video. Children may also collect data to answer specific questions such as how much food the animal eats or how many minutes it engages in a particular activity.

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Celebrate Learning

3. Speaking and listening investigations• Invite a veterinarian, naturalist or pet owner into the classroom to talk about animals.

Children can prepare questions ahead of time and organise them under appropriate headings. After the presentation, they can write answers to the questions and use the notes to write a report. A copy of the report can be sent to the presenter, along with a thank-you note.

• Children listen to recordings of animal sounds. They can draw pictures of the animals that make the sounds and compile them into a book. The book can be placed along with the tape at a listening centre.

4. reading and researching investigations• Add books, magazines and other reading material about animals to the Library Corner for

children to browse through and read during their independent reading time. Encourage children to take notes and make drawings that answer their questions, and to use the notes to write a report, make a poster or present the information in another way.

• Reports on any topic can be typed into a computer slide-show program and integratedwith digital photographs found on the internet. Slide shows could be presented to another class or to a parent audience.

5. Writing and representing investigations• Children could paint pictures or take photographs of an animal for a display. They could write

captions to go with each picture and display the pictures like an art gallery.• Children can write a report on any topic following the procedure presented in the book and

using any reference materials developed in class.

• Schedule time for children to share the results of their investigations. Ask them to think about how their research project went and whether or not they met their goals.

• Observe and talk to children about their learning to encourage investigation as a lifetime skill. Ask:– Was your question answered?– What sources did you use?– What did you do well during your research project?– What do you think you need to improve on next time?– do you think others learned from your presentation?

Animal Observations

Link to Curriculum Content

Shared Learning


Read a Familiar Textreread for fluency• Set out an “I Can Read” box with

appropriate books for each child. Include a copy of My Animal Report.

• Children choose a few of the books to reread in book form, on audio, or onthe online version.

Match Headings and Notesorganise ideas under a headingProvide sentence strips with headings from the text, or others you create, and notes that belong under each heading. Children work alone or with a partner to organise the notes under the correct heading.

Choose a few children to bring a copy of the book to read to you.Observe to assess their approach to reading a non-fiction text. Do they:– use text-access features;– explain what was learned?

Observe and talk to children about learning.– What did you learn?– how did you learn it?– Is there anything more you are

wondering about this topic?– how could you find out?

Present a Playperform a reader’s theatre script• Children work in small groups to practise

the play “I’m Hungry, So Hungry”. They develop any actions or props they need.

• Groups present their play to the class or to another class.

Observe a Photoidentify main ideas and relevant details in visual representationsChildren use the observe a Picture task card (11) and observe a photograph from My Animal Report or another animal text. They record their observations and something they wonder about.



Non-Fiction Activity Book Children could work on the activity pages for My Animal Report.

Children could– talk about what went well during their investigation

and what they might do differently;– share the results of their investigation;– present a play;– say how they can use an internet search engine.

Have children take home a copy of the non-Fiction Activity Book to complete activity pages for My Animal Report.

Share a Presentationmove backwards and forwards between pagesChildren click on the Information button and share a presentation of the online version of My Animal Report. They take turns to use the mouse and move about each page.


my animal report - sunshine reading club · title my animal report about the text this outlines the...

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