(I Gave You the Originals and Did Not Make Copies, So I Could Not Go Into Detail About

RE 5130 Cathy Marlow December 9, 2002 Dr. Linda Kucan

Reflections on Mini-Lesson - The Important Thing About a Leaf

The min-lesson went very well. After we read the book, the students discussed that they didn’t think the author chose the most important things about each object in the book. They did not feel that the most important thing about an apple was that it is round. The students were very eager to tell me what they thought was the most important thing. When we brainstormed the most important things about a leaf, my class became very scientific. We had just learned about what happens to trees in the fall, so this was a perfect opportunity for them to express their knowledge of leaves and learn how to use lots of description in their writing.

This activity showed me which children could follow the pattern of the poem and which children just wrote information in no particular pattern. There writing showed me which children could write complete sentences on their own and not just copy phrases from the board.

I feel this activity was a success because we had prior hands-on experiences with different types of leaves and read about how important they are to a tree. They had seen the veins and colors of the leaves up close. First graders do not have enough descriptions in their minds. They have to experience hand-on activities where they can see, feel, smell, etc. Then they are able to write using more description. The literacy model (The Important Book) gave them examples of how to use the information they had acquired and turn it into a poem. They were so excited to see that they could write just like a real author. This lesson could be used with any object, not just a leaf. I would keep it a 3-part lesson. 1. Hands-on experience with a real object brainstorming description words about that object. 2. Read The Important Book and then do the mini-lesson on the poem “The Important Thing About an Apple.” 3. Write their own poems.

I feel mini-lessons are worthwhile because they give the students something to focus on. Students will not always notice things on their own. They have to be pointed out to them and then they’ll have an “Oh yea, now I see” moment. Once they have this knowledge of what to look for, they will be able to find it in other literature. I feel that one mini-

1 RE 5130 Cathy Marlow December 9, 2002 Dr. Linda Kucan

lesson is not enough to teach a skill. Children need repeated exposures to have ownership of a skill. I also think that mini-lessons are worthwhile because they give students a pattern or sample to follow. This makes it easier for a student to understand what you are teaching. Some children need the structure in order to take a risk at writing. Writing tasks can be overwhelming to some students and mini-lessons with literacy models give them the boundaries they need to take the risks.