Unit Three: All About Us Unit Three: Table of Contents All About Us I. Unit Snapshot ................................................................................................2 II. Introduction ...................................................................................................5 Interdisciplinary Unit of Study III. Unit Framework .............................................................................................7 NYC DOE IV. Ideas for Learning Centers ............................................................................ 11 V. Foundational and Supporting Texts .............................................................28 VI. Inquiry and Critical Thinking Questions for Foundational Texts ................... 31 VII. Sample Weekly Plan ..................................................................................... 33 VIII. Student Work Samples.................................................................................38 IX. Supporting Resources ................................................................................. 40 X. Foundational Learning Experiences: Lesson Plans .....................................442 XI. Appendices .................................................................................................. 60 The enclosed curriculum units may be used for educational, non- profit purposes only. If you are not a Pre-K for All provider, send an email to [email protected] to request permission to use this curriculum or any portion thereof. Please indicate the name and location of your school or program and describe which units you would like to use and how you intend to use them. I. Unit Snapshot Student Outcomes Unit Topic: Connected Academic Vocabulary Enduring understandings that the student should All About Us This list should be adapted to best fit the needs of have by the end of the unit: individual programs and classrooms. Essential Question I am unique; there is no one who looks, feels, adopted grumpy self-portrait Who am I and who are the people in my life? thinks and acts exactly like I do. afraid grandfather share I feel different ways at different times for alike grandmother short Focus Questions different reasons. angry happy shy What makes me important and unique? I am part of a family and a classroom audition hopeful siblings What feelings do I have and why? community. aunt important silly What makes my class important and unique? My family is important and unique. big individual sister My classroom is a community. All of the people What makes my family important and unique? bored interest small in my class are important and unique. brave kind special I can help make my classroom a fun, safe and brother last name straight exciting place. comfortable love strength community mad strong confused manners tall creative melody teamwork cousin mother thoughts culture nervous together curly older uncle dance patka unique different peace wavy ecstatic playful worry excited polite younger family portrait father prefer favorite relaxed feelings respect first name rhythm friends sad frustrated same gloomy scared 2 Focus Standards From the New York State Domain 1: Approaches to Learning Domain 4: Communication, Language Prekindergarten Learning PK.AL.5. Demonstrates persistence and Literacy Standards (NYSPLS) Domain 2: Physical Development and Approaches to Communication Health PK.AC.1. Demonstrates motivation to communicate PK.PDH.6. Engages in a variety of physical fitness Reading Foundations activities PK.ELAL.1. [PKRF.1.] Demonstrates understanding Domain 3: Social and Emotional of the organization and basic features of print Development PK.ELAL.4. [PKRF.4.] Displays emergent reading behaviors with purpose and understanding PK.SEL.2. Recognizes self as an individual having Reading unique abilities, characteristics, feelings and interests PK.ELAL.7 [PKR.3] Develops and answers questions about characters, major events, and pieces of PK.SEL.4. Develops positive relationships with their information in a text peers Writing PK.SEL.5. Demonstrates pro-social problem-solving skills in social interactions PK.ELAL.14. [PKW.2] Uses a combination of drawing, dictating, oral expression, and/or emergent writing to name a familiar topic and supply information in child-centered, authentic, play-based learning Language PK.ELAL.29 [PKL.6] Uses words and phrases acquired through language rich experiences, conversations, reading and being read to, responding to texts, and child-centered, play-based experiences 3 Domain 5: Cognition and Knowledge of Social Studies the World PK.SOC.1. Develops a basic awareness of self as an individual, self within the context of group, and self Mathematics within the context of community PK.MATH.2. [NY-PK.CC.2.] Represents a number of PK.SOC.3. Demonstrates an understanding of roles, objects (0-5), with a written numeral 0-5 (with 0 rights, and responsibilities representing a count of no objects) PK.SOC.6. Develops an understanding of how PK.MATH.4a. [NY-PK.CC.4a.] Answers counting people and things change over time and how to questions using as many as 10 objects arranged in a relate past events to their present and future line, a rectangular array, and a circle. Answers activities counting questions using as many as 5 objects in a scattered configuration (e.g., how many ____ are The Arts there?”) PK.ARTS.9. [MU:Pr4-6.PK] Performs Music PK.MATH.11. [NY-PK.MD.2.] Sorts objects and PK.ARTS.16. [VA:Cr1-3.PK] Creates Visual Arts shapes into categories; counts the objects in each category. Note: Limit category counts to be less than or equal to 10 PK.MATH.12. [NY-PK.G.1.] Describes objects in the environment using names of shapes and describes the relative positions of these objects using terms such as top, bottom, up, down, above, below, in front of, behind, over, under, next to PK.MATH.13. [NY-PK.G.2.] Names shapes regardless of size. Science PK.SCI.5. [P-LS1-2.] Participates in investigations to determine how familiar plants and/or animals use their external parts to help them survive in the environment II. Introduction Welcome to the New York City Pre-K for All third In addition to helping them develop a strong self- various materials throughout the day to support Interdisciplinary Unit of Study: All About Us. Now concept, activities around children’s names those areas of need. As always, continue to that your children have done an in-depth encourage children’s development of writing skills. encourage any mark that children make. Note exploration of their senses and learned to explore While every child is different and no two develop in where each child is in the prewriting progression and the world around them, they are ready to learn exactly the same way, there are some skills that then consider how to move him/her to the next more about themselves and the people around tend to develop in sequence. The development of level. This careful observation helps in setting them. Pre-K for All enables children from all writing skills is one skill set that does typically follow realistic expectations and engaging in responsive backgrounds and communities across the five a progression. Early in the pre-K year, children’s instruction. The child whose scribbling looks random boroughs to gain a solid foundation for future familiarity and skills with letters and writing their will likely be producing horizontal lines next and will success. The All About Us unit supports that names will vary based on their previous experiences. still need to move through the third stage objective by providing opportunities for children to The teaching staff’s role is to understand where (producing “letterlike” forms) before they are explore, learn about, and embrace what makes each child falls in this progression and to support capable of writing their own name. Children are not them important and unique. their continued growth. The development of expected to have mastered writing their name by writing, including name writing, typically happens in the end of this unit. The progression is included here During the pre-K year, children develop a concept the following stages: to guide the supports you provide throughout the and awareness of themselves as unique individuals. year. In addition to the daily sign in, you can build on A strong sense of self supports children’s success in 1. Scribbles or marks children’s natural curiosity about their own name by pre-K and lays the groundwork for realizing their 2. Controlled linear scribbles encouraging them to sign their artwork and explore potential throughout their school and life their names (and those of their friends) in the experiences. In the New York State Prekindergarten 3. Mock letters or letter-like forms writing center and throughout the classroom. Learning Standards (NYSPLS), these ideas are 4. Letter strings represented in Domain 3 (PK.SEL.2): Recognizes self Emotion plays a significant role in developing self- as an individual having unique abilities, 5. Partially accurate name (early invented spelling concept and self-awareness and thriving in group characteristics, feelings and interests. Unit activities for other words) settings. In this unit, children build on activities and such as self-portraits and like/dislike activities invite skills that were addressed in Unit 1: Welcome to Pre- 6. Accurate name (late invented spelling for other children to think about and express their ideas about K, and are provided with opportunities to further words) who they are. Throughout the unit there