Visiting an Apple Orchard Through Books
Literature-Based Lesson Plan About Growing and Picking Apples
Sep 4, 2008
To build background knowledge about visiting apple orchards, pair the books Tucker's Apple-Dandy Day by Susan Winget and Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace
If you are planning to visit an apple orchard as a fun autumn activity this fall season, or even just to learn more about apple orchards, share and compare and contrast Tucker's Apple-Dandy Day by Susan Winget [HarperCollinsPublishers, 2006] and Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace [Winslow Press, 2000] in this literature-based lesson plan.
Objectives
- Students will use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast elements of the two books.
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of apple orchards by using information from the books to write and illustrate a short guide to an apple orchard.
Share the Books
- Display the front and back covers of Tucker's Apple-Dandy Day and discuss the pictures and title, talking about what an "apple-dandy day" might be.
- Preview and discuss the illustrations of photographs on the endpapers.
- Have children predict what they think the story will be about. Then, read the story aloud and check predictions.
- Display the front and back cover of Apples, Apples, Apples and discuss the pictures and title.
- Preview the illustrations on the front and back endpapers, noting that these are the same illustrations as pictured on the back cover.
- Have children identify any similarities they see already between the two books.
- Have children predict what they think this story will be about. Then, read the story aloud and check predictions.
Comparing and Contrasting the Books
- Explain that while both of these books are fiction, or tell made-up stories, Apples also includes nonfiction content that tells true facts about apples. Also, Tucker has one main text feature (illustrations to show what is going on in the story), while Apples contains many text features (like diagrams and recipes) to display extra information beyond the main plot.
- Help children make a list of ways these two books are alike and different. Encourage children to make as many comparisons as they can, however big or small.
- Provide children with blank copies of Venn Diagrams. Have them label each circle with the title of one of the books. Then, work together to list things the books have in common in the shared section, and things that are different about the books in each of the individual circles.
- Some examples of similarities include that both books: involve bunnies visiting an apple orchard, teach that apples grow on trees, show characters riding wagons to the orchard and storing picked apples in bags, and show characters making something with the apples.
- Some examples of differences include: how the characters pick the apples (by standing on crates or with a special tool), what the characters make with the apples (apple pie or applesauce), how the characters get to the orchard (school bus or walking), and why the characters are visiting the orchard (a teacher-led school field trip or a family outing).
- Other things you can compare include the style of the illustrations, the personalities of the characters, and, most importantly, the purpose of each book.
Exploring Author's Purpose and Theme
- Tell children that authors write books for a reason, or purpose, and that every book has a theme, or main idea.
- Ask children what they think the theme of each book is and why the author wrote it. For example, the theme of Tucker could be why it is important to help other people, and the author could have written it to teach this lesson. On the other hand, the theme of Apples could be that apples are fun to pick and useful in many ways, and the author could have written it to teach people important information about apples.
Assessment
Have children use what they have learned about apple orchards to write a short guide to one. They can use Apples as a source for scientific information about growing apples and Tucker as a source for examples of fun things you can do while visiting an apple orchard and picking apples.
Try other lessons to explore additional topics such as how apples grow, how people make a living growing apples, and the writer's craft used to make Apples, Apples, Apples.
The copyright of the article Visiting an Apple Orchard Through Books in Primary School Lesson Plans is owned by Renee Carver. Permission to republish Visiting an Apple Orchard Through Books in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
 |
