There is nothing more fun than to grab a great children’s book and use it as the basis of a thematic unit. Literature offers such a wide range of opportunities to help connect with students. If you have never created a unit using children’s literature, check out the tips below. They offer easy strategies that you can use to incorporate some of your favorite children’s books into your lesson plans.
How to Create a Literature a Unit Study
Selecting the Book
There are a couple of ways that you can select a book for your unit. If you are studying a particular time period, try finding a children’s story about that era. Have a baseball theme in your classroom? Why not use a children’s book about baseball to help your students. There are so many wonderful children’s books that are not used in the classroom, because teachers simply do not know about them. Do not hesitate to ask your school librarian for suggestions of books on a particular subject. Chances are that she will be able to help you find the perfect book.
If you would rather your book’s subject be unrelated to the other things you are studying in class, pick one of your favorites. You may have a children’s book that you have loved since childhood or one that you found during your time in teacher training. Bring that book into your lessons and introduce your students to something you enjoy.
Getting Started
After you have decided on a book, re-read it a few times. The first time, read it just for pleasure. The second time, read it to gain ideas for main concepts that you can touch upon with your class. The third time, read it and take notes about vocabulary words, the story structure and other details that you would like to point out to your class. From the notes that you have taken, you can begin to structure a series of lessons surrounding the book. Keep in mind that your unit can take anywhere from an hour to complete with your students to a few weeks. It all depends on how much time you have available and want to devote to the unit.
How and Where to Use the Lessons
Depending on the book you select, there may be opportunities to incorporate math, language, science and social studies lessons. Use the illustrations in the book to help reinforce the concepts you are teaching, as well. You can teach the lessons during circle time, small group time, or even create a separate center that deals directly with the book itself. If you do choose to create a center for the lessons, it is usually a good idea to read the story aloud to your class first. You may even want to record the story on tape or on a digital file, so that all of your students, even your below-grade level readers, have equal access to the material.
Ideas for a Unit Using Just a Snowman by Mercer Mayer
Here are some ideas for a unit based on Just a Snowman by Mercer Mayer. There are many different lesson ideas that could be incorporated, but these are good examples of activities that could be easily implemented in your class.
Author Video
Mercer Mayer reads Just a Snowman.
Making Hot Chocolate
Discuss the idea of sequencing and the importance of following directions for making hot chocolate. Have students write down the step-by-step directions on a recipe card to practice. If possible, bring some hot chocolate in from home and serve it at the end of the day.
Snowman Craft
This toilet paper roll snowman craft is perfect for classroom use. It encourages students to be creative and gives you a great project to display. The best part? It is inexpensive enough to do no matter how many students are in your class!
Science
Check out what happens with different crystals. This clever science experiment is perfect for elementary students. It encourages exploration and investigation.
How do you use children’s literature in your classroom? Are there books that you use year after year? What are some of your favorite activities related to children’s literature? Leave a comment below and share with us!
E Crawford says
I love Little Critter! The very first books my daughter ever read were All By Myself and Just Go To Bed.
I use all my daughters Little Critter Books in my classroom. The students really like reading stories from their childhood. I taught 5th grade last year and 4th grade this year. They are great for teaching students about connections especially text-to-self connections.
Rachee says
I work in a public library so I am using books as the base of my programs. I like Bill Martin Jr and Eric Carle’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear What do you see. With this book I can teach Animal sounds, prediction, colors, sign language (animal sounds, colors).
Plus I can use puppets with my smaller ones that I am reading to.
-r
Tina says
I love the author Leo Lionni. Our K class reads several of his books every year. Some of my favorites are: It’s Mine, Swimmy and Alexander and the Wind up Mouse. We also have a video in our media center that shows how he creates his illustrations and I let the children try this method to illustrate one of their own stories.