Directed Reading Thinking Activity

Pearl and Wagner, Five Days Till Summer

Standards:

ELA Standard 2.4a: Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of the word
or phrase.

ELA Standard 5.4a: Distinguish real-life connections between words and their use.

Objective: Students will be able to read the book “Pearl and Wagner: Five Days Till
Summer” and discuss their thoughts with their classmates to develop predictions and
comprehension of the concepts of assumptions using a graphic organizer and their
writing journal.

I. Preparation for Reading

A. Activate/Build Prior Knowledge

Develop a discussion about school and summer. Add to the discussion how every
year when you come back to school you enter a new class with a new teacher.
Discuss how you cannot always make assumptions based on what you think you
know. Explain you need evidence to back up your assumptions. Encourage
students to talk about consequences and how lying may impact you or your friends,
so they can better understand the situation with Pearl, Wagner, and Ms. Bean.
Students will start a K-W-L chart. They will start the “K” (know) part of the chart
and they will write one thing about what they already know about the book.

B. Preview Text and Make Predictions

Now show the book to the students and conduct a picture walk. Guide the students
through the book in order for them to be able to look at the pictures. Ask the
students to try and predict what will happen next in the story based on the pictures
of Pearl and Wagner. Keep the final pages a secret to motivate the students to want
to read the story to find out the ending for themselves. Students will fill out the
“W” (want) part of the K-W-L chart based off what they predict will happen in the
coming chapters of the book.

C. C. Develop Vocabulary Knowledge

The function students will be able to perform is distinguishing and explaining

wondering about someone or something and making an assumption. Provide a
 Directed Reading Thinking Activity

direct instruction plan on the definitions as the picture walk is being conducted:
stupendous, astonishing, peeked, consequences, assumptions, wondering,
evidence. Discuss how these words relate to story and how they affect Pearl.

D. D. Set a Purpose for Reading

Encourage the students to begin reading. Remind the students that Pearl makes
an assumption about Ms. Bean. Ask the students to find out what caused Pearl to
make that assumption.

II. Read Silently

Instruct students to read until they find out why Pearl made the assumption about
Ms. Bean. Then have the students stop at that point for discussion. Observe around
the classroom to notice any struggles and intervene when necessary. Instruct
students to write in their journal what they think will happen in the story next when
they reach that point of the story based on the picture walk and what they know so
far.

III. Respond to Reading to Develop Comprehension

A. Revisit Purpose Setting Question

Ask the students what they think caused Pearl to assume what she did about Ms.
Bean based off what they have read in chapter 1.

B. Clarify Concepts and Vocabulary

Discuss with the students how there are consequences when you make an
assumption about someone or something. Explain what an assumption is as well
as what a consequence is. Discuss how assumptions and consequences fit into
Pearl and Wagner’s day at school. Encourage students to make connection after
reading chapter 1 students will read-pair-share with their neighbors an instance
where they had to suffer a consequence for an assumption or action they made
without getting all the details or maybe how they switched teachers when they
graduated to the next grade.
 Directed Reading Thinking Activity

C. Supporting Comprehension
Students will participate in a reader’s theatre with teacher assistance to help
support their comprehension and understanding of the book.

1. Reader’s Theatre-after reading chapter 1 silently students

will participate in reader’s theatre where a few students will
become the characters, one student for each of these characters:
Pearl, Wagner, Henry, Ms. Star, LuLu, Bud, and one to be the
narrator. They students will read aloud chapter 2 like they are the
characters to help the class understand the tones of the characters
voice and bring life to the story.

D. Refer to additional resources

During science students will research what animals live on a farm and what the
lifestyles of those animals. Inspire students to read “A Day at the Beach” by Ed
Briant from our classroom library to begin learning about other animals that may
not be found on a farm but may be found in a zoo.

E. Additional Purpose Setting Questions

Present the following questions as the students continuing reading: What was the
main reason that Pearl had her thoughts about Ms. Bean? What evidence did she
have to back up her assumption? What was her consequence?

IV. Exploring

A. Vocabulary and using context clues to understand words and

what they mean if they already do not know the meaning of some of the
words. Understanding context clues and meanings of words will help
with the students’ reading comprehension and fluency. While students
make connections and participate in readers theatre this will also help
with the students reading comprehension.

B. Students will be split into their reading groups to re-read using

the round robin reading and any place while reading if they have
questions they can ask their group members for clarification.

V. Integrated Thematic Task

 Directed Reading Thinking Activity

A task that students can do that relates to the different animals in the book would
be to research animals that live on a farm. They can look up the lifestyles of the
different animals as well as what these animals eat. They will make a foldable
which will explain the differences between farms and zoos. Depending on the
school they could write a letter to the principal asking for a trip to a farm. They
could also follow an animal that has been recused and placed on a farm for
rehabilitation. They can use their journals to keep a learning log on the progress
of the animal. This incorporates the characters of the book based off what kind of
animal the character is in the book. This will also help the kids to understand the
meaning of wondering because they will learn something new about the
rehabilitation of the animal on the farm they are following but only once a week,
so they will wonder about that animal and be able to make predictions on what
they think is happening with the animals’ recovery.