Description

What do first graders like to talk about when they come back to school in August? You probably guessed it. They like talking about themselves! So, why not start the year off letting them do just that as you can get to know them, too! Help students celebrate their individuality and learn about likenesses and differences. This unit builds those important beginning of the year skills and a sense of family in your classroom. Along with language arts, this thematic study integrates math, social studies, and health as it complements the Reading Frameworks created by teachers in Bay District Schools and adapted from Patricia Cunningham’s Four Blocks. The Month-by-Month Phonics for 1st grade by Patricia Cunningham is also incorporated.

Duration

The planned duration of this activity is 15 days.

Lesson Plans

Pass the Manners, Please
Students become aware of correct classroom communication and manners by reading the book, David Goes to School, and playing the Good Manners Pudding Game. This is the first lesson in the All About Me Unit.

Name Fame
In this lesson, students learn the uniqueness of their names by reading the book, Chrysanthemum, and completing other integrated math counting and graphing activities.

Mirror, Mirror
In this lesson students practice important beginning reading skills with poems and the big book, In the Mirror. They learn some new vocabulary about themselves and they celebrate that their bodies are alike, but also different!

How Do I Measure Up?
In this lesson, students find out more about their bodies and what makes them different by tracing each their partners' bodies on butcher paper. They record their heights and weights, then compare them to the others in the class.

Happy Birthday Class
Birthdays are important events in children’s lives. This lesson integrates graphing and the use of calendars with their special days.

Blooming with Self-Confidence
Many children worry about not being able to do what other children can do. This lesson will help them understand and respect differences in readiness and abilities, as they read the book Leo the Late Bloomer and make flowers of their own.

I Like Me
This lesson celebrates the uniqueness of students and what they like about themselves. Students make collages and display them in the classroom

The Important Thing
Student-made time capsules end the All About Me unit by showcasing important things about individuals in class.