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Guiding The Reading Lesson Essentials: Vegetables
Guiding The Reading Lesson Essentials: Vegetables
Guiding The Reading Lesson Essentials: Vegetables
Focus Question:
What are some vegetables?
Book Summary
Text Type: Nonfiction/Informational
Eating healthy foods is essential for students’ development, and that includes lots of fruits
and vegetables! Vegetables introduces students to a wide variety of foods from this food
group—some they might already know, and some they might not! Colorful photographs
and a repetitive text structure support early emergent readers. This book can also be used to
teach students how to connect to prior knowledge as well as to classify information to better
understand text.
Guiding the Reading (cont.) word broccoli. Ask students: If you did not know how
to read the word broccoli, how could you use the
is to group items that are alike. Point out that photograph to help you? What clues do you see in
deciding how to sort the information from the the photograph to help you identify the word? Have
book into groups is called classifying information. students review other photographs in the book and
• Put students into small groups. Give each group discuss in groups how the photographs give clues to
pictures of a variety of toys. Have students work help them figure out unknown words in the text.
together to sort the toys into groups (for example, Invite volunteers to share their ideas with the class.
by color). Once done, have students determine
Skill Review
another way to sort the toys into groups (by type,
by size, and so on). Have groups share the new way • Model for students how you connect with prior
they sorted the toys with the class. knowledge as you read. Share personal experiences
with eating vegetables, which vegetables you
Vocabulary like, which ones you don’t, and any stories you
Have students turn to the “Words to Know” box have related to vegetables. Remind students that
on the copyright page. Point out that these words connecting to prior knowledge will help them
can be found in the story and that understanding better remember and understand the information
the meaning of each word will help them better presented in a text.
understand what they read. Read the words aloud to • Have students work together to periodically sort
students and as a group, discuss the meaning of each the items from this book into different groups.
word. On the basis of the definitions discussed, have • Model classifying information.
students work in groups to illustrate each vocabulary Think-aloud: I know that all the items in this book
word on a poster. Have students share their posters are vegetables, but I can also sort them into
with the class. different groups. One way I can sort them is by
color. I see that broccoli, lettuce, and chile peppers
Set the Purpose are green. I also see that potatoes, corn, cabbage,
• Have students read to find out more about and carrots are not green. Therefore, I can sort
vegetables. Write the Focus Question on the board. them into two groups: green vegetables and
Invite students to look for evidence in the book to vegetables of other colors. I will continue reading
support their answer. to see if there are any other ways I can sort the
• Have students make a small question mark in their vegetables from this book.
book beside any word they do not understand or • Model how to complete the classify information
cannot pronounce. These can be addressed in a worksheet. Have students sort the vegetables into
future discussion. different groups.
Guiding the Reading (cont.) • Write the following sentence from page 3 on the
board, leaving off the capital letter and period: this
Response to Focus Question is a potato. Have students locate it in their book.
Have students cite specific evidence from the book to Ask a volunteer to come to the board and add a
answer the Focus Question. (Sample: Some vegetables capital letter to the beginning and a period to end
are potatoes, broccoli, lettuce, corn, chile peppers, of the sentence. Ask another volunteer to explain
cabbage, and carrots.) why this is a declarative sentence.
• Check for understanding: Have students look through
Comprehension Checks the book with a partner to locate the declarative
• Book quiz • Retelling rubric sentences. Have students underline the capital
letter and circle the period in each sentence.
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have
Book Extension Activities students complete the declarative sentences
worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.
Build Skills
Phonological Awareness: Word Work: High-frequency word this
Initial consonant /v/ sound • Write the word this on the board and read it aloud
• Say the word vegetable aloud to students, with students. Explain to students that they will
emphasizing the initial /v/ sound. Have students say often see this word in books they read and they
the word aloud and then say the /v/ sound. Have should memorize it so they can decode it right away.
students practice saying the /v/ sound to a partner. • Spell the word aloud while students write each
• Say the following word pairs, and have students letter in the air.
identify the word in each pair that begins with the • Write the following sentence on the board: This is a
/v/ sound: violin/piano, victory/lost, dust/vacuum, carrot. Read it aloud with students and discuss with
flowers/vase. them the meaning of the word this.
• Check for understanding: Say the following words • Have students practice spelling this in many ways,
one at a time, and have students give the thumbs-up such as in shaving cream spread on their desk or in
signal when they hear a word that begins with the /v/ rice on cookie sheets.
sound: vampire, drums, violin, pants, vest, and vote. • Check for understanding: Have students reread the
book and circle every occurrence of the word this.
Phonics: Initial consonant Vv
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have
• Write the word vegetable on the board and read students complete the high-frequency-word-this
it aloud with students. worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.
• Have students say the /v/ sound aloud. Then, run
your finger under the letters in the word vegetable Connections
as students say the whole word aloud. Ask students • See the back of the book for cross-curricular
to identify which letter represents the /v/ sound in extension ideas.
the word vegetable.
• Have students practice writing the letter Vv on a
separate piece of paper while saying the /v/ sound.
• Check for understanding: Write the following words
on the board, leaving off the initial consonant: van,
vote, vulture, and village. Say each word, one at a
time, and have volunteers come to the board and
add the initial Vv to each word.
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and
have students complete the initial consonant Vv
worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.