Kindergarten Teaching Center | Weekly Reader: Curriculum-Rich Resources for Teachers

Kindergarten Teaching Center

Timely, theme-based content for critical thinking

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December/January
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Here is everything you need to teach each week's issue.

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Teach students about the many things penguins can do.

Goal
Students will learn about emperor penguins and the things they do.

Objective
Students will be able to use a diagram to identify parts of a penguin’s body.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Sequence is the order of events or steps in a text. Cut out the four pictures of the egg hatching on page 4 of an extra issue. Laminate the pieces for durability. Place the pieces in a learning center. Invite students to place the pieces in the correct order.

Link
Introduce inquiry-based learning with a penguin-themed WebQuest.

Literature Connection
• If You Were a Penguin, by Wendell and Florence Minor
• Little Penguin: The Emperor of Antarctica, by Jonathan London
• Polar Opposites, by Erik Brooks
• Solo, by Paul Geraghty
• Tacky the Penguin, by Helen Lester

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

National Standard
Science (NSES)
Characteristics of organisms

Before Reading
Think Critically: Display the cover. Encourage children to describe the photo. Ask questions such as: What are these penguins doing? How can you tell?

Background Information
• The emperor penguin is the largest penguin. Adults can grow to be about 4 feet tall.
• Emperor penguins eat mainly fish, squid, and crustaceans, which they catch in deep water.
• Emperor penguins can dive as deep as 700 feet and remain there for up to 18 minutes.
• Emperor penguins do not build nests. They use their bodies to protect and warm their eggs and their young. They live in Antarctica. In May or June, which is midwinter in the Southern Hemisphere, the female lays a single egg. While the mother goes off in search of food, the male keeps the egg warm by placing it on top of his feet and covering it with a warm layer of feathered skin. He does not eat for nine weeks, until the mother returns.
• After the egg hatches, the mother penguin returns from feeding. The male then makes a long journey across ice to the sea to find food.

During Reading
Compare and Contrast: Point out that the parts of a penguin’s body help it survive in the harsh environment of Antarctica. Ask: How might you feel about living in a cold, windy, snowy place? How would your body help you do things?

After Reading
Make Connections: Explain that the male penguin holds the egg on its feet to keep it warm. Ask: What are some ways other animals take care of their eggs or their babies?

Science Extension: Demonstrate how penguins use blubber to stay warm. Fill a large bucket with ice and water. Invite children to put their hands in the water. Ask: How does that feel? Then coat the outside of a large ziplock bag with solid vegetable shortening, and put that inside another plastic bag. Seal the opening between the two bags with tape. Help one child put a hand inside the “mitten.” Encourage the child to put his or her hand in the water again. Ask: How does the water feel now? Explain that animals such as penguins have layers of fat like the fat inside the bag. That fat helps the animals stay warm. Note: Be aware of allergies.

Language Arts Extension: Model a tongue twister about penguins, such as, “Perky penguins in pretty pink pajamas.” Write it on an easel pad, and draw a picture to illustrate. Invite children to read the tongue twister aloud after you, and then to read it faster. Guide them in writing a tongue twister together.

Adaptation: Ask students to think about what it might be like to have a pet penguin. Provide this sentence frame: “My penguin and I would _____ together.” Invite children to complete the sentence. Students can draw corresponding pictures.

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Expose students to different holidays and cultural practices.

Goal
Students will learn about four different holidays celebrated during and around December.

Objective
Students will answer reading comprehension questions based on a holiday-themed poem.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Main Idea is the big idea in a text. It tells you what the text is mostly about. Ask students to think about what the “big idea” of the issue is. If needed, give them the following choices.

A. Christmas is a holiday.
B. People light candles during Kwanzaa.
C. People celebrate different holidays.
D. Kwanzaa candles are red, black, and green.

Link
Get more information about the holidays.

Literature Connection
• Grace at Christmas, by Mary Hoffman
• Hanukkah Lights: Holiday Poetry, selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins
• Li’l Rabbit’s Kwanzaa, by Donna L. Washington
• The Lonesome Dreidel, by Arthur Feinglass
• My First Kwanzaa, by Karen Katz
• Strega Nona’s Gift, by Tomie dePaola
• Uno, Dos, Tres, Posada! by Virginia Kroll

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
With prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.

National Standard
Social Studies (NCSS)
Culture

Before Reading
Tap Prior Knowledge: Ask: What holidays or celebrations, if any, do you celebrate?

Background Information
• Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrated on December 25. Many people decorate Christmas trees with lights and other decorations, go to church, and sing carols.
• Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that is celebrated for eight days. Each night, people light candles on a menorah, which is a candleholder with nine candles. This year, Hanukkah begins at sundown on December 20.
• Kwanzaa is a holiday celebrated by many African Americans from December 26 to January 1. Each night people light candles on a kinara—a candleholder that includes seven candles: three red, three green, and one black.
• Las Posadas is a Mexican celebration that lasts nine days from December 16 to December 24. People act out the story of Joseph and Mary searching for an inn by walking through neighborhoods carrying lights and knocking on doors. At the last house, they celebrate.

During Reading
Compare and Contrast: Point out two photos in the issue. Ask: How are the two family celebrations similar? How are they different?

After Reading
Think Critically: Discuss some of the things or events that are shared by several holidays.

Science Extension: Display holiday items, such as an evergreen branch, candles, and cookies. Ask children to describe how each item can be enjoyed using the senses. Invite children to draw pictures of the items and to list which senses a person would use to enjoy them.

Social Studies Extension: Display page 4 on a bulletin board. Invite each child to illustrate one wish he or she has for another person or for an animal. Encourage each child to write or to dictate a sentence to accompany the picture. Display the pictures on the bulletin board surrounding the poem.

Language Arts Extension: Pair up students, and have each child think of one holiday he or she observes. Encourage children to explain to their partners how they celebrate. Ask the pairs to find things that are similar and things that are different in how each partner celebrates his or her holiday.

Adaptation: Invite students to draw pictures of items used in their family holiday celebrations. Guide each child in describing how the item is used and why it is so
important to the family. Then encourage the other children to ask questions about the item.

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Engage students in a lesson about the changes that occur in winter.

Goal
Children will learn about some of the things that happen in the winter.

Objective
Children will be able to identify outdoor clothing for winter and write the first letter of each article of clothing.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Setting tells you where and when a story takes place. Explain that winter is cold in many places, but not in all places. Ask students to think about where the children and animals in the issue might live. Ask: Do you think the children live in the hot desert? Might the animals live in the rain forest?

Link
Get more winter-themed teaching resources.

Literature Connection
• One Winter’s Day, by Christina Butler
• Peter and the Winter Sleepers, by Rick de Haas
• Snow, by Cynthia Rylant
• Snowbots, by Aaron Reynolds
• Winter Woes, by Marty Kelley

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear.

National Standard
Science (NSES)
Changes in Earth and sky

Before Reading
Make Predictions: Display the cover. Invite children to describe what they see in the photo. Ask: What might this issue be about? What clues in the picture make
you think that?

Background Information
• Winter in the Northern Hemisphere begins around December 21 and lasts until about March 21. It occurs after autumn and before spring.
• In some parts of the country, winter weather can be cold, snowy, and icy. In the winter, some changes occur in the environment.
• In other parts of the country, the weather may still be warm during the winter months.
• Winter days have fewer hours of sunlight.
• Many plants and animals become dormant and rest. Some animals hibernate, while others adapt or migrate to warmer places.
• Snow or ice can make traveling by car difficult, causing schools and businesses to close.
• Some people stay indoors to avoid the cold temperatures.
• Some people enjoy outdoor winter sports such as ice-skating, skiing, and sledding.
• Many doctors recommend that children wear helmets when engaging in winter activities such as sledding and ice-skating.

During Reading
Compare and Contrast: Remind students of the things in the issue that happen during the winter. Ask: Is our winter weather like the weather in the issue?

After Reading
Think Critically: Explain that people wear many layers of clothing to keep warm when the weather is cold. Ask: What pieces of clothing might you need on a very cold day?

Science/Art Extension: Review that some animals move to warmer places during the winter. Help your students make paper birds, which they can fly. Fold pieces of construction paper as you would to make paper airplanes. Ask children to draw beaks and eyes on their “birds.” Then invite them to glue craft feathers to the birds. Finally, help each child attach a large paper clip to the bottom of the bird, behind the beak. Take the children outside and have them face south. Lead them in sending their birds south.

Adaptation: On an easel pad, make a simple drawing of a child. Then cut the following shapes out of construction paper: coat, hat, boots, mittens, scarf, earmuffs, and so on. Invite one child at a time to go to the easel and tape a piece of clothing to the child. Encourage the children to say the name of the piece of clothing in a sentence, such as “This boy needs to wear a hat.”

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Teach students about the importance of showing kindness and caring.

Goal
Students will learn about a few of the values that Martin Luther King Jr. wanted all people to have.

Objective
Students will be able to choose the best way for characters in a situation to solve a problem.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Character refers to the looks, traits, thoughts, actions, and relationships of a person or an animal in a text. Talk about what traits make a good friend. Create a word web on an easel pad. Write the word friend in the center. Then write the characteristics of a friend on the outer circles of the web.

Link
Get more information and learning resources about Martin Luther King Jr.

Literature Connection
• The Colors of Us, by Karen Katz
• Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., by Doreen Rappaport
• Martin Luther King, Jr., by Marion Dane Bauer
• My Uncle Martin’s Words for America: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Niece Tells How He Made a Difference, by Angela Farris Watkins

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

National Standard
Social Studies (NCSS)
Civic ideals and practices

Before Reading
Think Critically: Have children imagine that a new student was introduced to the class today. Ask: What might you think about this child? What would you say to make this child feel comfortable?

Background Information
• On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, in January, we celebrate the birthday of a special leader.
• A long time ago, some people were treated unfairly. Martin Luther King Jr. wanted people to learn to treat one another fairly.
• King worked to teach people to solve problems without fighting, to help one another, and to share.
• In 1963, King gave a speech to many people in Washington, D.C. The title of his speech was “I Have a Dream.” He spoke of his hope for a world of fairness
for all people.
• This year, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated on January 16.

During Reading
Make Connections: Invite students to think of examples of how people can show that they care. Make a class list.

After Reading
After Reading: Invite children to think of ways they can help people they know.

Language Arts Extension: Remind children that Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream that all people would get along. Explain that a dream is a hope or a wish. Cut several cloud shapes from white paper and laminate them. On one cloud, write the rime -eam. On the other shapes, write the following onsets: b-, cr-, dr-, scr-, st-, str-, t-. Draw a picture on each onset cloud showing what the word will be when it is combined with the rime. For example, on the str- cloud, draw a small stream.

Mathematics/Fine Motor Skills Extension: Find a photo of children helping each other, and mount it onto poster board. Cut it into pieces to create a puzzle. Place the puzzle in a learning center. Invite pairs of students to work together to assemble the puzzle.

Adaptation: Invite children to bring in pictures from magazines or newspapers of people being kind to one another. Encourage each child to explain what is happening in his or her picture.

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