Student Thinking About The Polar Express

December Book of the Month, The Polar Express

The reindeer were excited. They pranced and paced, ringing the silver sleigh bells that hung from their harnesses. It was a magical sound, like nothing I’d ever heard.
Imagine…listening for sleigh bells and hearing the “sounds of hissing steam and squeaking metal” instead as you embark on an unforgettable journey to the North Pole on a magical train. A young boy makes this train trip amidst breath-taking descriptions of the wilderness, mountain peaks, valleys, snow-covered plains, and the Great Polar Ice Cap while struggling with his belief in Santa. Once he arrives at the North Pole, the young boy rejoices as he hears the sound that a friend told him he’d never hear – the sound of the ringing bells on Santa’s sleigh. He chooses the gift of a sleigh bell to keep as a reminder of that magical night and the sound of the bell that “still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe.”

I chose The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg to celebrate a special quality of childhood symbolized in this story by the sleigh bell – truly believing. From believing in the magic of the holiday season to believing in the possibilities that can be uncovered inside each child, we can all share in the joy that comes when we truly believe!


INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES:

K/1 (Reading Standard 2: Comprehension – create artwork or a written response that shows comprehension of the story that was read making Text-to-Self connections)

While reading aloud The Polar Express, pause periodically to think aloud about your Text-to-Self connections (____reminds me of____) while you are reading. Think aloud about how your connection helps you understand the The Polar Express better. Reread the story and ask students to raise their hand when they have a Text-to-Self connection to share (You may need to prompt them with ______reminds me of______). On one side of a class T-chart, record the part of the story the student is thinking about and on the other side record the student’s Text-to-Self connection. Write the student’s name next to their connection so that they can refer back to it during the work period. Next, demonstrate how you drew a picture of the part of the story where you made a Text-to-Self connection and how you wrote about your connection to that part of the story (_____reminds me of_____). During the work period, students will demonstrate comprehension of the text by drawing a picture of a part of the story and then writing their Text-to-Self connection.

2-5 (Reading Standard 2: Comprehension – discuss or write about the themes of a book; E1b … evaluates writing strategies and elements of the author’s craft.

Before reading The Polar Express, explain to the class that the author uses a concrete object, a sleigh bell, to share a significant theme with readers. Display quotes from the book that reference the sleigh bell to demonstrate how it continues to be important throughout the story. Ask students to think about what the significance or meaning of the sleigh bell might be while you read the story aloud. Pause and wonder aloud about the significance of the sleigh bell each time it is referenced in the story. When you are finished, lead a class discussion about what students think the significance of the sleigh bell is in the story (4th & 5th only: and why the author chose to use a sleigh bell to convey this message). Encourage divergent thinking asking students to justify their thinking using details from the text. To demonstrate comprehension, students will write a letter to the author, Chris Van Allsburg, explaining what they think is the significance of the sleigh bell in the story (4th & 5th only: and why they think the author chose to use the sleigh bell as a symbol).

Wordle Duck Surprise!

I am always up for a good challenge and I received one right in time for the new year. This particular challenge came as I was reading the blog of a fellow principal, Susan Phillips. Innocent and unsuspecting, I read with curiousity her description of casting her first Wordle. As I approached the bottom of Susan's post, she announced that she was now "tagging" colleagues to Wordle their blogs...maybe even once a month as a new year's resolution. "Great idea!" I think to myself. Moments later, my name appears as the second innocent and unsuspecting colleague on Susan's Wordle challenge list! Well, now that changes my entire blog-reading experience. I cannot just passively read and ponder the wonderful work of Susan Phillips, I have to DO something in response.

Here goes another fun and adventurous Web 2.0 interactive discovery. I followed the Wordle directions (they are very simple unless you have firewall issues or need to take a minute to update JAVA - as I did). I was eager to see what words would dominate my Wordle cloud. Would they define my work, my focus, my principles, and my leadership? Duck, no! The biggest word in my cloud was D-U-C-K. Is there anything redeeming about a duck that can offer me comfort or support as I waddle through my first year as a principal? You decide...

K-5 Students Respond to our November Book of the Month!

Students were extremely engaged in responding to this Book of the Month due to the fervor surrounding our nation's Presidential Election. It was a fun way to interact with students in Kindergarten through 5th grade about the electoral process and the idea of having a duck for President! Students responded to the text after a read-aloud through shared retellings, written responses, and making predictions based on the details of the text and their own personal knowledge. Enjoy our K-5 learning community's responses to Duck for President, by Doreen Cronin:

Reading Response Journals as Safety Net

Last month the Leadership Team launched a one-on-one safety net with 21 of our readers in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. After initiating the weekly two-way communication with an introductory letter, each member of the Leadership Team waited anxiously for a return letter from each student. The letters received demonstrated that each of the 21 students were deeply engaged by the opportunity to write about their reading lives and the meaning they were (or were not) making of the book they were reading independently. The second and third letters revealed that students were not only engaged, but they picked up on the language of a reading conversation quickly. Many initiated their own thoughtful interpretations, responded to questions posed, and asked questions generated by their own interaction with text. A few students even began to mimic the language that their Leadership Team mentor was using (i.e. signing off using creative phrases such as "Your Reading Buddy"). Stay tuned for posted student and mentor Reading Response Journal samples as this safety net demonstrates how readers can grow through a written conversation about making meaning, self-monitoring, and reading inquiry.

Duck for President!

“The voters had spoken. Duck was officially in charge.”

Imagine…a duck is tired of doing his chores, and decides to hold an election to replace Farmer Brown. When Duck wins, Duck quickly realizes that running a farm requires too much hard work, and sets out to run for governor. With the help of the hens, and speeches "that only other ducks can understand," he eventually ends up running the country.
I chose this book as a fun way to engage our students in the Presidential electoral process in this 2008 election year. Mayport students have already participated in a nationwide online Mock Presidential Election – now they can enjoy an author’s fictional spin on this important civic right and responsibility! As we conclude our K-5 Narrative Genre study, students can appreciate Doreen Cronin’s use of a simple repeating line (The voters had spoken. Duck was officially in charge.) to organize the events of Duck’s story. Our young authors can also learn from Ms. Cronin’s use of a circular story structure where the beginning (Running a farm is very hard work.) is the same as the end of the story (Duck is writing his autobiography which takes us back to the beginning of the story we just read…Running a farm is very hard work.).

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES:

K/1 (Reading Standard 2: Comprehension – retell the story & predict what Duck will do next after he finishes writing his autobiography)
After hearing Duck for President read aloud with pauses to think aloud about predictions you are making as a reader, each class will produce a retelling of the story. Using a large sheet of chart paper, facilitate the writing of a shared, whole group, interactive piece to be displayed on the standards-based bulletin board outside your classroom with teacher commentary. Then, discuss student predictions about what Duck will do next after he finishes writing his autobiography (i.e. Duck will fall in love with another Duck and have a baby duckling; Duck sells so many of his books that he becomes rich and never has to work again.) Next, give students a piece of paper to record their predictions and illustrate.

2/3 (Reading Standard 2: Comprehension – infer cause-and-effect relationships that are not stated explicitly: Predict/Infer)
After hearing Duck for President read aloud with pauses to think aloud about predictions you are making as a reader, each class will produce a retelling of the story and add at least 2-3 predictions to the end using original ideas (i.e. Next Duck will get bored again with his farm chores and take his book to Hollywood to make it into a movie.) Using a large sheet of chart paper, facilitate the writing of a shared, whole group, interactive piece to be displayed on the standards-based bulletin board outside your classroom with teacher commentary. Next, invite students to create their own written predictions to post with the shared retelling.

4/5 (Elb The student makes and supports warranted and responsible assertions about the text: Predict/Infer)
Read aloud Duck for President and pause to think aloud about predictions you are making as a reader. After each prediction, note the details from the text that support your prediction. Next, brainstorm student predictions about what Duck will do next after he finishes writing his autobiography. Make a list of student predictions on the left side of a T-chart. Once you have 2-3 strong predictions, lead a discussion to identify details and events in the text that support each prediction. Create a bulleted list of these details and events on the right side of the T-chart next to each prediction. Assign groups to record a single “warranted and responsible” prediction and write details or events from the text that support the group’s prediction. Post the class chart and group predictions on your standards-based bulletin board with teacher commentary.

Kindergarten Family Night Live!