Lesson Introduction
Poetry can be a fun and unintimidating way for ESL students to develop their oral fluency. In this lesson, students discuss what they know about poetry and then work in small groups to develop a choral reading of two poems about an assigned insect. The poems serve as an introduction to a research investigation (via the Internet) about the insect. Students use a worksheet to compile factual information about the insect and present the information, along with their choral poetry readings to the class.
Learning Objectives
In this lesson, students will have opportunities to:
- Participate in choral poetry readings.
- Work cooperatively in groups to create a choral reading of an assigned poem.
- Use a graphic organizer to gather factual information about a particular insect.
- Present choral poetry readings and research information orally to the class.
Materials and Resources
To teach this lesson, you will need:
- Insectlopedia by Douglas Florian (Voyager Books, 2002)
- Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harpercollins Juvenile Books, 1992)
- computer with Internet access
- chart paper and markers
- Research Information worksheet
Lesson provided by ReadWriteThink.org, a website developed by the International Reading Association and the N.C.T.E.