Title: Nocturnal Animals - Bats Author: Kim Prejean Curriculum Area: Language Arts and Science Purpose: Students will complete the Nocturnal Animals units found in the reading and science books in the classroom, then visit the library to extend learning by discussing fiction and nonfiction literature, focusing primarily on bats. Both print and non-print sources will be utilized and students will complete and publish their first research paper in second grade. Materials: Print and nonprint sources, booksets, electronic reference sources and CD-ROMs, Internet accesses. Prerequisites: Students will have knowledge of locating specific types of books in the library, will be familiar with library procedures regarding computer usage and computer fundamentals, and will have discussed many types of nocturnal animals in the classroom after reading the science and reading book selections. Time required: 5-6 days in the library, 45 minute sessions
Information Literacy Standards Standard 1: The student who is information literate accesses information efficiently and effectively. Indicators 1,2,3,4,5 Suggested activities: Standard 2: The student who is information literate evaluates information critically and competently. Indicators: 1,2,3,4 Suggested Activities: Standard 3: The student who is information literate uses information effectively and creatively. Indicators: 1,2,3,4 Suggested Activities:
Independent Learning Standards: Standard 4: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and pursues information related to personal interests. Indicators: 1,2 Suggested activities: Standard 5: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and appreciates literature and other creative expressions of information. Indicators: 1,3 Suggested activities: Standard 6: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and strives for excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation. Indicators: 1,2 Suggested activities:
Social Responsibility Standards Standard 7: The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and recognizes the importance of information to a democratic society. Indicators: 1,2 Suggested activities: Standard 8: The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and practices ethical behavior in regard to information and information technology. Indicators:1,2,3 Suggested activities: Standard 9: The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and participates effectively in groups to pursue and generate information. Indicators: 1,2,3,4 Suggested activities:
This unit correlates with the following Louisiana English Language Arts Contents Standards and Benchmarks: Standard 1: Students read, comprehend, and respond to a range of materials using a variety of strategies for different purposes. ELA-1-E1-Gaining meaning from print and
building vocabulary. Standard 2: Students write competently for a variety of purposes and audiences. ELA-2-E1-writing with supporting details. Standard 3: Students communicate using standard English grammar, usage, sentence structure, punctuation, capitalization, spelling and handwriting. ELA-3-E1-writing legibly. Standard 4: Students demonstrate competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning and communicating. ELA-4-E2-giving and following directions
and procedures. Standard 5: Students locate, select, and synthesize information from a variety of texts, media, references, and technological sources to acquire and communicate knowledge. ELA-5-E1-recognizing and using
organizational features. Standard 6: Students read, analyze, and
respond to literature as a record of life experiences. Standard 7: Students apply reasoning and
problem solving skills to their reading, writing, speaking,
listening, viewing, and visually representing.
This lesson was developed to extend the learning from the classroom to the library, focusing on information finding skills. The lesson begins when the teacher introduces nocturnal animals in the reading and science books. The students then visit the library to discuss literature that focuses primarily on bats, the topic that will be researched in the next several days. This unit is the first that students will use to write paragraphs, which will be taught in the library. It also introduces students to various print and nonprint materials that are appropriate for second graders. The project totally immerses students with information about bats. After several days, the students are ready to begin mapping information for notes, writing sentences, creating paragraphs, editing and final drafts, and publishing the finished products. The students are assessed daily and should be able to complete the task that was taught that day and continue to use the new knowledge throughout the project. When the reports are published, the students are assessed for content, group work, locating information independently, and presentation. It is very important that the units are planned collaboratively between librarian and classroom teacher. This ensures that library skills are not taught in isolation and information is pertinent to classroom curriculum and content standards. It also allows the library to become an extension of the classroom. When this type of open access is begun so early in a child’s school career, the library becomes a comfortable and familiar place. Students become excited when locating information that answers both personal and classroom questions. Their enthusiasm is contagious and those students that might not catch on very quickly begin to ask for help, receiving it from other students. Collaboration between the librarian and the classroom teacher and open access in the library are the foundation of teaching information finding skills and learning to love literature – skills for a lifetime! |