The lesson I chose to review from the RWT website is titled "Integrating Language Arts: If You Give A Mouse A Cookie". I chose this lesson because I am very familiar with the author, Laura Numeroff, and the story. This story is great for teaching cause and effect and for inspiring some great stories.
This lesson is taught over 7 sessions and is designed to practice making predictions, sequence events in the story, explore cause and effect, provide peer presentations, and create personal cause and effect stories.
The sessions begin with a picture walk and predictions. Next, students practice recalling events by using cloze activity cards. Students also practice sequencing the events of the story with story cards. Sequencing is even further practiced as the students recall the story events to children in other classrooms. I really liked this idea. It never occurred to me to do this, but I can see how this would empower the students and they would feel a real sense of accomplishment and feel very knowledgeable as they recall events to students from another class.
After practicing sequence, students explore cause and effect with if... then... statements. For example, if you skip breakfast.... then you will be hungry. Students use their new knowledge of if... then sentences to create and illustrate their own stories.
The extensions to this lesson were great. They include an author study of Laura Numeroff, a story circle activity, and center and dramatic play ideas.
This lesson is a perfect way to teach cause and effect, sequecing and retelling to students. It makes these concepts both fun and simple.
Kelly Campbell