Kindergarten Interactive Read Aloud

Unit 1: My Five Senses

Table of Contents
Unit Overview
Essential Questions, Enduring Understandings, and Habits of Discussion
Focus Standards
Texts
Sequence of Objectives
Suggested Pacing Calendar
Putting It All Together Literacy Across the Day
Quizzes
Lesson Plans
Additional Resources Anchor Charts, Rubrics, Graphic Organizers
 Unit Overview
What happens during this unit?
In our youngest scholars first Reading unit, teachers will engage students with diverse texts
through the lens of our five senses. Initially, this unit will guide scholars through an inquiry of the
five senses and invite them to identify and use each of the senses. In reading non-fiction texts,
students will explore the nuances of their five senses.

Once scholars have demonstrated an understanding of each of their senses, they will consider
how authors use the five senses to describe key events in stories and poems. Students will read
a variety of literary texts which engage the reader through the five senses. Readers will
consider how characters in stories experience the plot through their senses; students will then
imagine how this might make the characters feel. They will study how illustrators engage their
audience through the sense of sight, with engaging illustrations. They will learn how authors
captivate their audience with a sense of sound, using rhyme and alliteration. Through this
reading, teachers will invite students to imagine how the contents of the book might be
experienced through all of the senses.

Essential Questions and Enduring Understandings

What will students learn about the world during this unit?
Essential Questions: Enduring Understandings:
What are the five senses? We all have five senses touch, smell,
How do we use our senses to sight, taste and sound.
experience the world around us? We use our senses to become aware of
How do our senses make us feel? the world.
Our emotions can be impacted by the
physical feelings we experience through
the five senses.

Essential Questions and Enduring Understandings

What will students learn about reading during this unit?
Essential Questions:
How can we use our senses to
help us understand a text?
How do authors use the senses to
explain what is happening in a
text?
How do the characters in this
text feel?
Enduring Understandings:
Great authors use the five senses to
explain what is happening and to help
readers understand what they mean.
Readers can use their imagination to
consider how everything in a book would
be experienced using the five senses.
Readers can use their sense of sight to
study the illustrations and the shapes of
words in writing. Readers consider why an
author or illustrator might have made
visual choices.
Readers can listen to the sounds of words
in books and songs. Readers might notice
interesting ways that words sound.
Readers can write about what they learn
in books.
 Habits of Discussion
How will students discuss this thinking?
Habits of Discussion:
Track the speaker We listen carefully by turning our eyes to look at the person
speaking. This helps us understand them and shows respect.
Hands down when someone is speaking A friend is saying something important! Lower
your hand so you can focus on understanding and show them you are listening.
Dont interrupt A friend is saying something important! Listen while they speak and
wait until they are done speaking to share your thinking.
Audible voice You are saying something important. Speak in a loud and proud voice
so everyone can hear your thinking.
Complete sentences Share your thinking clearly. Speak in a complete sentence, just as
if you were writing

Focus Standards
NY Standards NC Standards
RL/RI.K.1 - With prompting and support, ask RL/RI.K.1 - With prompting and support, ask
and answer questions about key details in a and answer questions about key details in a
text. text.
RL.K.2 - With prompting and support, retell RL.K.2 - With prompting and support, retell
familiar stories, including key details. familiar stories, including key details.
RI.K.2 - With prompting and support, identify RI.K.2 - With prompting and support, identify
the main topic and retell key details of a text. the main topic and retell key details of a text.
RL.K.7 - With prompting and support, describe RL.K.4 - With prompting and support, describe
the relationship between illustrations and the the relationship between illustrations and the
text in which they appear text in which they appear
RI.K.5 - Identify the front cover, back cover, RI.K.5 - Identify the front cover, back cover,
and title page of a book. and title page of a book.
RF.K.2A - Recognize and produce rhyming RF.K.2A - Recognize and produce rhyming
words. words.
RL.K.3 - With prompting and support, RL.K.3 - With prompting and support,
identify characters, settings, and major identify characters, settings, and major
events in a story. events in a story.

Breathing Life
What can we do to bring this unit to life in and beyond our classrooms?
This unit might come to life with extensions in the science block. Teachers might bring in
popcorn or an apple and ask students to observe the food using their five senses.
Teachers might lead students on a nature walk and ask them to discuss what they
noticed using the senses.
Classes might consider learning a five senses song to launch each lesson during this unit.
 Texts
Title Author Genre Notes
My Five Senses Margaret Miller Nonfiction
My Five Senses Aliki Nonfiction
Sounds All Around Wendy Pfeffer Nonfiction
In the Small, Small Pond Denise Fleming Poetic fiction

The Snowy Day Ezra Jack Keats Fiction

Too Much Noise Ann McGovern Fiction

Geraldine, the Music Leo Leonni Fiction

Mouse
Mouse Paint Ellen Stoll Walsh Fiction
Mouse Count Ellen Stoll Walsh Fiction
I Went Walking Sue Williams Poetic fiction 1 copy of big
book and
class set of
normal books
Brown Bear, Brown Bear Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Poetic fiction 1 copy of big
Carle book and
class set of
normal books
Chicka Chicka Boom Bill Martin Jr. and Lois Poetic fiction Class set
Boom! Ehlert
 Sequence of Objectives
Lesson Text Objective
1 My Five Senses Readers use the information they learn in books to help them think
by Aliki about the world around them.

Culminating discussion: Students will categorize illustrations by

using what they know about the 5 senses
2 My Five Senses Readers tell about the information that they learn in a teaching
by Aliki book.

Written response: Draw a picture of something you can see

and label your drawing
3 My Five Senses Readers can infer what a character is doing and how they are
By Margaret feeling by thinking about the words and illustrations in the story.
Miller
Culminating discussion: Students will look a picture cards and
discuss what is happening. What sense is your character using?
What is the character doing? What is the character feeling?
4 My Five Senses Readers tell about the information that they learn in a teaching
By Margaret book.
Miller
Written response: Draw a picture to show what you have learned
about the five senses.
5 Sounds All Readers tell about the information that they learn in a teaching
Around by book.
Wendy Pfeffer
Written response: Draw a picture of something you can hear
and label your drawing
6 Sounds All
Around by
Wendy Pfeffer Culminating discussion: Students will look at select pages from the
text and discuss what they learn from the page.
7 In the Small, Readers study the illustrations and use their imaginations to
Small Pond by explore how a books setting might feel using the five senses.
Denise Fleming
Written response: Draw a picture that shows what it looks and
sounds like in the small pond.
8 The Snowy Day Readers think carefully about what a character does during a
by Ezra Jack story. Readers use their imaginations to consider how a character
Keats might be feeling using the five senses.

Culminating discussion: How does the little boy use his five senses in
the story? How might he be feeling in each part of the story?

9 The Snowy Day Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand
by Ezra Jack what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
Keats story.
 Culminating discussion: Retell the story of the Snowy Day. Make
sure to tell about how Peter is feeling in each part of the story.
10 Too Much Noise Readers imagine how a character in a story might be feeling.
by Ann Readers think about how their senses affect their feelings.
McGovern
Written response: Draw a picture to show how Peter feels about
the sounds in his life.

11 Too Much Noise Readers think about the main character and the problem that they
by Ann have. Readers tell about the characters problem when they retell
McGovern the story.

Culminating discussion: What was the story mostly about? Who

was the main character? What was the old mans problem? How
did he solve the problem?
12 Geraldine the Readers think about the main character and the things that they
Music Mouse by do in the story. Readers remember these important events so that
Leo Leonni they can retell the story.

Culminating discussion: What was the story mostly about? Who

was the main character? What was Geraldines problem? How
did she solve the problem?
13 Geraldine the Readers think carefully about what a character learns during a
Music Mouse by story.
Leo Leonni
Culminating discussion: What does Geraldine learn about her five
senses in the story?
14 Mouse Count by Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand
Ellen Stoll Walsh what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
story.

Center: Act out mouse count using jars and cut out mice!
15 Mouse Paint by Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand
Ellen Stoll Walsh what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
story.

Written response: Draw a picture to show what happened in the

book.
16 Mouse Paint by Readers think about what characters are doing when they read.
Ellen Stoll Walsh Readers think about why characters make the choices that they
do.

Culminating discussion: What was the story mostly about? Who

were the characters? What was their problem? How did they
solve the problem? How did the characters use their senses?
17 I Went Walking Readers listen carefully to the way that the words sound in a
by Sue Williams book. They notice interesting repetition or rhyme.

Interactive writing: Create a class version of the book using the

structure: I went walking, what did you see? I saw a _________
looking at me.

18 I Went Walking Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand

by Sue Williams what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
story.

Culminating activity: Use the illustrations and the texts pattern to

help you retell the story.
19 Brown Bear, Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand
Brown Bear What what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
do You see? by story.
Bill Martin Jr.
and Eric Carle Written response: What happened in the story? Draw the animals
that you saw!
20 Brown Bear, Readers listen carefully to the way that the words sound in a
Brown Bear What book. They notice interesting repetition or rhyme.
do You see? by
Bill Martin Jr. Culminating discussion: Use the illustrations and the texts pattern
and Eric Carle to help you retell the story.
21 Chicka Chicka Readers look carefully at the illustrations in a book to understand
Boom Boom! by what is happening in the story. Readers retell the key events in a
Bill Martin Jr. and story.
Lois Ehlert
Center: Retell the story using a copy of the text. Give students
magnetic letters and palm trees to help them retell the text.

22 Chicka Chicka Readers listen carefully to the way that the words sound in a
Boom Boom! by book. They notice interesting repetition or rhyme.
Bill Martin Jr. and
Lois Ehlert Culminating discussion: What rhyming words did we hear in the
text?
 Suggested Pacing Calendar
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
8/28 8/29 8/30 8/31 9/1

No School Flex day - Flex day - Flex day - Flex day -

Week 1 Red is Best The Colors of Us The Tortoise and Eating the
Kathy Stinson Karen Katz the Hare Jerry Alphabet Lois
Pinkney Ehlert
9/4 9/5 9/6 9/7 9/8

Week 2 Labor Day no My Five Senses My Five Senses by My Five Senses My Five Senses
school by Aliki Aliki By Margaret By Margaret
Miller Miller
9/11 9/12 9/13 9/14 9/15

Sounds All Sounds All Quiz 1 (NF focus) Flex day - In the Small, Small
Week 3 Around by Around by Chubbos Pool by Pond by Denise
Wendy Pfeffer Wendy Pfeffer Betsy Lewin Fleming

9/18 9/19 9/20 9/21 9/22

Flex day - The Snowy Day The Snowy Day by Flex day - RH - Rosh
Week 4 Blueberries for by Ezra Jack Ezra Jack Keats Red Rubber Boot HaShana no
Sal by Robert Keats Day by Mary Lyn school
McCloskey Ray and Lauren
Stringer SE Flex day
9/25 9/26 9/27 9/28 9/29

Week 5 Too Much Noise Too Much Noise Geraldine the Geraldine the Mouse Count by
by Ann by Ann Music Mouse by Music Mouse by Ellen Stoll Walsh
McGovern McGovern Leo Leonni Leo Leonni
10/2 10/3 10/4 10/5 10/6

Mouse Paint by Mouse Paint by Flex day - Quiz 2 (F focus) Flex day
Week 6 Ellen Stoll Ellen Stoll Walsh Shortcut by
Walsh Donald Crews Roller Coaster by
Marla Frazee

10/9 10/10 10/11 10/12 10/13

Fall Break no Flex day - I Went Walking I Went Walking Brown Bear,
school My Mama Had a by Sue Williams by Sue Williams Brown Bear What
Week 7 Dancing Heart do you See? by
by Libba Grey Bill Martin Jr. and
Eric Carle

10/16 10/17 10/18 10/19 10/20

Brown Bear, Chicka Chicka Chicka Chicka Flex day Flex day
Brown Bear Boom Boom! by Boom Boom! by
Week 8 What do you Bill Martin Jr. Bill Martin Jr. and
See? by Bill and Lois Ehlert Lois Ehlert
Martin Jr. and
Eric Carle