Lisa Reagan

In the Middle of Fall - Storytime

Date: 10/8/18 Time: 9:30 Theme: Trees/Fall
Group size: 20 Location: Circle/Gathering Area

Ohio Early Learning and Developmental Standards

Domain: Language and Literacy Development
Strand: Reading
Topic: Reading Comprehension
Benchmark/Standard: With modeling and support, identify the topic of an
information text that has been read aloud.

Interests and needs of the children: The children need practice with colors and
weather elements, which are both discussed in the book called In the Middle of Fall by
Kevin Henkes.

Objective: The child will be able to… identify the topic of the book and answer
comprehension questions about the colors and weather elements of fall.

Assessment: Children will be assessed on his/her ability to listen to the story and
answer questions about the season of fall. While doing this I will monitor the
attentiveness of the children and their ability to identify the topic of the text.

Materials: In the Middle of Fall by Kevin Henkes, leaves, red ornament

Procedures: I will start by having the children sit on the carpet area together facing
where I will be sitting.
1. I will present the book by introducing the title, author, and illustrator.
2. I will ask the students what happens during this time of year, to pre-assess what
they already know about the topic.
3. I will begin reading the book, with emphasis on pages with the colors and weather.
4. Explain what “frisky” means – playful, full of energy, full of life
5. On the page that “…and the apples look like ornaments” I will show the students a
red ornament. What are ornaments? What does it mean that the apples look like
ornaments? Are they both round or like a circle? Are the apples hanging on the tree
like an ornament?
6. I will ask the students what the girl in the story is wearing. - It gets colder in the fall,
so we have to wear jackets to stay warm. Some people wear boots in the fall because
they keep their feet warm.
 7. We will make a prediction on what will happen after the leaves fall off the tree.
What do you think will happen next? What happens after the leaves fall off of the
trees?
8. We will end the story with review questions. I will hold up the colored leaves (red,
yellow, orange) and I will ask the children to identify each color and I will ask the
children if they can name other things that are red, yellow, and then orange.
9. Adaptation: I anticipate that some children will have a hard time paying attention to the
story or may have difficulty staying seated on the carpet during the story. They do not
usually have a story time when I’m present in the classroom, so they may not be used to
this activity. I will stop to clarify words that may be unknown to the children, so they are
able to have a better understanding of the story. I will have some questions prepared for
the children that are at varying levels, such as:
1) What did you see in the book? – Blank Level I: Remembering objects in book
2) What is this? (while holding up a leaf). - Blank Level II: Remembering information
3) What color leaves are there during fall? (hold up leaves while answered)
4) How are these the same? How are they different? (while holding up red, orange,
and yellow leaves) – Blank Level III: Identify similarities / Level II: Identifying
differences & Identify and describe characteristic of objects
5) What is the weather like during fall? – Blank Level II: Remembering information
6) What season comes after fall? - Blank Level II: Remembering information

Closure/transition: I will end the story time by thanking students for their participation in
the activity and attention to the book, then I will allow them to move on to the next
activity.