Alphabet Animals

Name: Heather Stone    Age Group: Kindergarten      Subject area: Language Arts

List the Web site you found your lesson on: http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/animalAlphabet/

“Big Idea” this lesson plan supports:  The big idea of this lesson is for the students to identify the letters/letter sounds in the alphabet and to understand that written language represents spoken language.

Lesson Plan Component	Criteria
Name of Lesson:	Animal Alphabet
Common Core/ISTE Standards:	Kindergarten Print Concepts: 1.  Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print.               - Recognize that spoken words are represented in written language by                  specific sequences of letters.               - Recognize and name all upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet Kindergarten Phonics and Word Recognition: 3.  Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.               -  Demonstrate basic knowledge of one-to-one letter-sound correspondences by producing                   the primary sound or many of the most frequent sounds for each consonant. 1. Creativity and innovation: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.                   b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression 2. Communication and collaboration: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.                   a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of                         digital environments and media                   d. Contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems
Lesson Objective(s):	Students will: Recognize and recite the alphabet and identify the sounds each letter makes. Understand that printed letters represent spoken language. Identify the names of animals that begin with particular letter sounds and create digital models to represent these living creatures.
Materials:	Animal Alphabet video Alphabet letter cards iPads (1 per group of students) Crayons Pencils and erasers Construction paper, glue, pipe cleaners, pom poms and other assorted arts and crafts materials Dry erase board and marker (1 per group of students) Print resources with pictures of different animals
Anticipatory Set:	To hook the students into the lesson I will have them watch a video called “Animal Alphabet” that goes through each letter of the alphabet and the name of an animal that starts with each letter.
Procedures:	Review the alphabet with the class, letter by letter. What sounds does each letter make? Have the class watch Animal Alphabet to identify the letters, their sounds, and animals whose names begin with each letter. Tell the class that they will be using iPad’s to explore the alphabet, letter sounds and animals that start with each letter.  Divide the class into groups of 2 to 4, depending on how many adults (student teachers, parent volunteers, instructional assistants, classroom helpers) can help in the classroom. Have each adult ask a group to recite the alphabet and review the sounds of each letter. Have the adults help each group of students get onto the Albert Alphabetimals iPad app.  This app is an interactive alphabet story where the students will be able to go through each letter of the alphabet and some animals that start with each letter. Next, the adults will go over the letter sounds again and each child in the group will have a chance to practice tracing the letters using an app called Alphabet Tracing.  For the students in the group who are not tracing the letter on the iPad they can be practicing using a white board and marker. Then, the teacher will assign each group a letter of the alphabet.  The students will have to work together to construct an animals that starts with the letter they were assigned.  They will be given numerous arts and crafts materials to construct their animals.  They can choose an animal that they saw in the video, at the beginning of the lesson, or they can come up with their own.   Once the students have finished constructing their animals they will use the iPad to spell out the name if their animal and the name of each student in the group.  They will have the choice of using an app called Magnetic Letters or Kids Doodle.  The adults should help each group find these apps.  Each child will have the chance to pick one of the of the apps and spell out their name and/or the name of the animal they made.  The adults will then help each child take a screenshot of what they spelled out and the teacher will take each screenshot and print them out, in color, for the students to put with their animal project.   Once the groups are finished with their projects they will get up as a group and tell the class what letter they had, the sound it makes and what animal they chose to create.
Closure:	As a class we will talk about the letters and letter sounds again.  Then, I will have each group of students talk about what letter they had, the sound it makes and explain their animal creation.
Assessment:	Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students' work during this lesson. Three points: Students were highly engaged in class and group discussions; clearly identified all the letters of the alphabet and their sounds; and created colorful and unique drawings that demonstrated a solid understanding of a particular letter and its sounds. Two points: Students participated in class and group discussions; adequately identified most of the letters of the alphabet and their sounds; and created somewhat colorful and unique drawings that demonstrated a basic understanding of a particular letter and its sounds. One point: Students participated minimally in class and group discussions; were unable to identify most of the letters of the alphabet and their sounds; and created incomplete drawings that did not demonstrate a basic understanding of a particular letter and its sounds.
Modifications/Accommodations:	- Students who need it will be given additional time to finish their project.   - Present new concepts as concretely and visually as possible for those students who need it. - Provide organizational tools and visual supports as needed. - Allow breaks if needed.

Student Artifacts: