Sample Lesson Plan Tie-In First Grade Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds TEACHING SCHOOL KIDS FUN, CREATIVE MOVES FOR BETTER HEALTH! Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds GRADE: 1 COURSE: Language Arts LESSON SUBJECT: Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds TIME: 30 minutes STANDARD(S): Phonological Awareness 1.3.3, 1.3.4; Phonics 1.3.5; Fluency 1.3.1; Listening 4.1.4; Speaking 4.2.2, 4.2.8 (This sample tie-in meets Connecticut standards.) Overview Drive home important facts and concepts with Recess Rocks™ lesson plan tie-ins! Students love to learn with fun, heart-healthy movement and music, and with Recess Rocks™, they embrace their lessons, boost their fitness and open their minds to your teaching objectives. In this class, students use their body to sequence events; recognize syllables; review vowels; distinguish between singular and plural words; rhyme words; and differentiate between words and nonsense words. Fully customizable to meet your needs, this lesson plan tie-in class reviews and reinforces ongoing studies while meeting state standards for phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, listening and speaking. We’ve provided you with a bounty of information for one comprehensive class, but feel free to select just one or two goals outlined below for an in-depth exploration of the underlying concepts and complimentary activities. Information presented here also assumes a teacher brings in a professional movement instructor to lead the Recess Rocks™ lesson plan tie-in class. But, teachers and movement instructors, please read everything so you know what to expect! Note that the format of this class follows the “Conducting the Class” guideline presented on pages 21–22 of the Recess Rocks™ Implementation Guide. Teachers Want to lead your own Recess Rocks lesson plan tie-in class? Details presented here help you do it yourself! If you prefer to sharpen your skills first, a Recess Rocks Workshop may be right for you. Contact Recess Rocks for more information. Movement Instructors Help teachers prepare and plan a smooth, rewarding lesson plan tie-in class! Study this outline and refer to the Recess Rocks™ Implementation Guide for more details. Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Page 1 of 7 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds Essential Question Students, how can you use your bodies to recognize and express letters, vowels, language sounds and words? Objectives Combine music and Students review and gain confidence with: movement with • Identifying vowels. important lesson • Identifying the difference between lower case and capital letters. plan objectives to • Deleting, adding and substituting letter sounds to make different words and build students’ nonsense words. love for learning, • Identifying the number of syllables in a spoken word. reinforce mind-body • Recognizing question marks, periods, commas and exclamation marks in connection and spoken sentences. spark interest in • Distinguishing between singular and plural words and words with common healthy habits! inflectional endings. Materials Chalk/white board, music and player (suggested music detailed in following pages). Interdisciplinary Connections • Recess Rocks™ lesson plan tie-in classes promote exercise—including balancing, strengthening sequences, stretching and brain gym movements— and help students keep time to musical rhythms for heart-healthy toning, agility and fitness. • Sequential counting; i.e., 1, 2, 3, 4. Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Page 2 of 7 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds Time for Recess Rocks™—30 minutes Teachers Let’s kick off your Recess Rocks™ lesson plan tie-in class! Begin by: • Ending regular classroom activities; e.g., “Class, please put your books away.” • Introducing the movement instructor and the Recess Rocks™ program; e.g., “Class, Miss Kim is here to lead a Recess Rocks™ class! She’ll help us get some heart-healthy exercise while we review our lessons about rhyming, syllables, punctuation, vowels and telling the difference between singular and plural words—all in a fun, new way!” Movement Instructor Here’s where you take over: Gather Together—up to 3 minutes • Set up equipment while teacher is making introductions. • Gather students at the front of the room or where there is ample space for them to move. • Ensure children have enough room—measure with their arms or elbows. Set the Stage—less than 1 minute • Quickly introduce yourself and write your name, Recess Rocks,™ and the lesson on the board. • Explain tie-in you are presenting; e.g.: “I’m Miss Kim and I’m with Recess Rocks™! Today, we’re going to move while discussing the alphabet, punctuation and sounds!” • Start music and movement. Explain “Class, we’ll be moving our hands, arms, legs, feet and whole bodies to the beat of the music!” • Step in and leave distractions behind. Begin movement. Warm-Up—3 minutes The warm-up song prepares students’ joints, muscles and connective tissue for vigorous movement. Note that movement instructor uses simple transition movements between each song to keep students’ heart rate strong. Goal #1 • Follow simple two-step directions. Suggested Music • Move It Like This by Baha Men; 3.26 minutes Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Page 3 of 7 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds Activity • During refrains: Dance shoulders, then dance hands alternately. • During first vocal: Bend left arm at elbow; put hand up then hand down. Alternate. First series slow, second series fast. Alternate pace. • During second vocal: Balance on one leg; bend other leg at knee and swing in front of, then behind balanced leg. Tap the foot with your hand. Alternate. • During vocal bridge: Put hands on knees and bring knees together; switch hands and open knees. Repeat. Bend left arm at elbow; put hand up then hand down. Alternate. First series slow, second series fast. Alternate pace. Ready, Set, Go!—15 minutes The next four songs bring continuous movement and give the heart and lungs, plus intrinsic and extrinsic muscle groups, conditioning needed for healthy bodies. The movement instructor continues to highlight and explore the lesson plan objectives as he or she keeps students moving to beat of the music. Goal #2 • Review vowels by singing vowel and make the vowel’s capital letter shape. • Use vowels to play with elements of diction, inflection, volume and pace. Suggested Music • Jogando Capoeira by Beatfanatic; 6.20 minutes Activity • Introduction instrumental: Stretch arms to ceiling 8 times, out to side 8 times and to floor 8 times. Repeat. While stretching ask “Class, do you know your vowels?” • During first vocal/instrumental: Create an “A” then an “E” with body. Alternate sides. Play with pace and volume; e.g., whisper, opera or deep voice. • During second vocal/instrumental: Create an “I” then an “O” with body. Alternate sides. Create “A”, “E”, “I” and “O” with body. Play with pace and volume. • During third vocal/instrumental: Create a “U” then a “Y” with body. Alternate sides. Create “A”, “E”, “I”, “O”, “U” and “Y” with body. Play with pace and volume. • During refrains: Get into sumo stance: bend knees and keep head over chest and back straight. Use tae kwon do blocking arms: bend right arm at elbow and place fist in front of you, above head level, facing out. Bend left arm at elbow; place fist facing up, at hip. In one swift motion, cross arms in front of chest and switch arm positions OR punch forward. Continue to switch arm positions. At same time sing “A,E,I,O,U”, then spin while singing “sometimes Y”. • During instrumental: Spin body; “freeze” and spin the other way. At end of song spin body while drumming hands; “freeze” and spin other way while drumming hands. • At song end: Bring equilibrium back to body by jumping up and down while patting belly. Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Page 4 of 7 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds Goal #3 • Decode words with common inflectional endings—“s”, “ed” and “ing”—by using locomotor skills and sequencing. Suggested Music • Alhambra Pt. 1 by Natacha Atlas; 1.21 minutes Activity • Write “s = snake”, “ed = stomp” and “ing = jump” on the board. • Tell class “When you hear a singular word ‘freeze.’ When you hear a word with one of the endings on the board, do that action!” • Call out a variety of words: run, runs, running; jump, jumps, jumped, jumping; girl, girls; boy, boys; etc. Goal #4 • Delete and add substitute letter sounds to make different words and nonsense words. Suggested Music • Axel F by Crazy Frog; 2.49 minutes Activity • Write “frog” on board. Move like a frog and ask “What rhymes with frog?” Write answers on the board. Ask “Class, {move like the rhymed word}; e.g., ‘spin like a log’, ‘bark like a dog’, ‘move slow and snort like a hog’.” When you see nonsense words, ask “Is this a word?” Cross out nonsense words. • Write “sing” on the board. Repeat process above. Encourage words like ring (“ring the bell”), fling (“fling fingers high, middle and low”) and king (“use your hands and crown yourself like a king”). • Write “hop” on the board. Repeat process above. Encourage words like top (“spin your body like a top”), drop (“drop to the floor in a squat”), pop (“pop like popcorn in a pot”). • Explain: “Class, say the word as you do the action.” Let’s Move Kids to Health | A PROGRAM OF THE | www.recessrocks.com | 860-852-0830 Page 5 of 7 Recess Rocks Review of Alphabet, Punctuation and Sounds Goal #5 • Recognize the difference between a question, the excitement of an exclamation, the pause of a comma and the stop of a sentence.