Comparing and Contrasting: The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin | EL Education Curriculum

You are here

ELA G1:M4:U1:L6

Comparing and Contrasting: The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin

You are here:

These are the CCS Standards addressed in this lesson:

  • RL.1.1: Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
  • RL.1.3: Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.
  • RL.1.9: Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in stories.
  • W.1.8: With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.

Daily Learning Targets

  • I can compare and contrast the characters' experiences in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin. (RL 1.1, RL 1.3, RL 1.9, W.1.8)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Collect students' Stories of Bird Helpers response journals and continue to use the Reading Literature Checklist and Language Standards Checklist to track student progress toward RL 1.1, RL 1.3, RL 1.9, and L.1.1j (see Assessment Overview and Resources).

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Poem and Movement: "Bird Helpers" Two-Voice Poem (10 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Role-Play Protocol: Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin (10 minutes)

B. Shared Writing: Comparing Characters' Experiences (15 minutes)

C. Independent Writing: Contrasting Characters' Experiences (15 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol: Reflecting on Learning (10 minutes)

Purpose of lesson and alignment to standards:

  • In the Opening, students learn about a new type of poetry: a two-voice poem. In this introductory lesson, students begin to think about how the structure of this poem is different from other poems and they listen to it for basic comprehension.
  • In this lesson, students compare and contrast the experiences of characters in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin (RL.1.9). Students are assessed on this in Lesson 9 for the Unit 1 Assessment, so Work Time in this lesson follows a similar pattern to Work Time in Lesson 9 to ensure students' familiarity with the assessment format.

How this lesson builds on previous work:

  • Students synthesize their understanding of the characters' experiences in the two texts they read in Lessons 2-5.
  • Students continue to write in their Stories of Bird Helpers response journal. Their writing in this lesson is a bit more sophisticated as they contrast the experiences of characters in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin.

Areas in which students may need additional support:

  • Students may find the structure of the two-voice poem challenging at first. Remind them that they will have multiple opportunities to interact with this poem throughout the remainder of the unit.
  • The concepts of compare and contrast may be challenging for students. If necessary, provide additional real-life examples of comparing and contrasting to help make these concepts more concrete for students.

Down the road:

  • Students continue to read the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem in Lessons 7-9 and apply their vocabulary strategies to determine the meaning of more sophisticated words in the poem.
  • As noted above, students will compare and contrast the adventures of the characters in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin for the Unit 1 Assessment in Lesson 9.

In Advance

  • Prepare to present the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem in the Opening by either setting up the pre-recorded poem (see Teaching Notes) or inviting a student or other adult to support the reading of the poem.
  • Determine groups for acting out the two-voice poem during the Opening.
  • Strategically place students in pairs with at least one strong reader for the Role-Play protocol in Work Time A.
  • Distribute materials for Work Time C at student workspaces.
  • Preview page 5 of the Stories of Bird Helpers response journal to familiarize yourself with what will be required of students.
  • Post: Learning targets, "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem, and applicable anchor charts (see materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

Consider using an interactive white board or document camera to display lesson materials.

  • Continue to use the technology tools recommended throughout Modules 1-3 to create anchor charts to share with families; to record students as they participate in discussions and protocols to review with students later and to share with families; and for students to listen to and annotate text, record ideas on note-catchers, and word-process writing.
  • Make a video of the read-aloud of the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem during the Opening and post for families to watch at home to discuss vocabulary and practice reading fluently. Ensure that the chart with the poem can be seen and read during the video.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 1.I.A.1, 1.I.A.3, 1.I.B.6, 1.I.B.8, and 1.l.C.10

Important points in the lesson itself

  • The basic design of this lesson supports ELLs through opportunities to role-play and to compare and contrast the characters' experiences in two stories of bird helpers. This lesson scaffolds to the Unit 1 Assessment on RL.1.9.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to stay focused during the reading of the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem, as it is a long text with no illustrations and many new vocabulary words that will not be discussed in this lesson (see levels of support and the Meeting Students' Needs column).

Levels of support

For lighter support:

  • Invite a student to identify elements of story in the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem.

For heavier support:

  • Check for understanding after reading the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem. Ask:

"What are the characters doing?"

"What do the characters see?"

"What happened to the bird?"

"What did the bird helper do?"

Universal Design for Learning

  • Multiple Means of Representation (MMR): Continue to support students as they incorporate the most valuable information from the text into existing knowledge. Continue providing explicit cues or prompts to support students in attending to the features that matter most. Before reading the text, activate background knowledge by previewing the questions you will ask.
  • Multiple Means of Action and Expression (MMAE): Continue to support students in setting appropriate goals for their effort and the level of difficulty expected during this lesson.
  • Multiple Means of Engagement (MME): Continue to provide targeted feedback that encourages sustained effort during each activity and encourages the use of specific supports and strategies, such as the Word Wall and peer support.

Vocabulary

Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T); Vocabulary Used in Writing (W)

New:

  • two-voice poem, compare, contrast, experiences (L)

Materials

  • "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem (one to display)
  • Role-Play Protocol anchor chart (begun in Module 2)
  • Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart (begun in Lesson 2)
  • Compare and Contrast Icon Set (for teacher reference)
  • Glue stick (one for teacher modeling)
  • Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart (new; co-created with students during Work Time B; see supporting materials)
  • Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)
  • Stories of Bird Helpers response journal (from Lesson 2; added to during Work Time C; page 5; one per student)
  • Stories of Bird Helpers response journal (from Lesson 2; example, for teacher reference)
  • "African Penguins" (from Lesson 4; one to display)
  • Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol anchor chart (begun in Module 1)

Assessment

Each unit in the K-2 Language Arts Curriculum has one standards-based assessment built in. The module concludes with a performance task at the end of Unit 3 to synthesize their understanding of what they accomplished through supported, standards-based writing.

Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Poem and Movement: "Bird Helpers" Two-Voice Poem (10 minutes)

  • Gather students whole group.
  • Tell them that you have a special poem to share with them today.
  • Display the "Bird Helpers" two-voice poem.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"How does this poem look different from other poems we've read this year?" (There are two columns of text.)

  • Tell students that this is a special kind of poem called a two-voice poem. Briefly explain that a two-voice poem is written for two people to read aloud together. One column represents one character, in this case the bird. The other column represents the other character, the bird helper.
  • Read the poem aloud.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is this poem mostly about?" (A bird flies into a window, and the bird helper cares for her.)

  • Tell them they will now have a chance to act out being either the bird or the bird helper in the poem.
  • Move students into two pre-determined groups: birds and bird helpers.
  • Reread the poem aloud and invite students to act out being the bird or bird helper.
  • Tell students that in the next lesson they will read the poem again and learn more about some of its interesting vocabulary.
  • For ELLs and students who may need additional support with comprehension: (Adding Visuals) Consider adding a bird icon and a bird helper icon at the top of the corresponding columns of the poem to help students understand which lines each character is saying. (MMR)
  • For students who may need additional support with perception: Consider color-coding each column to differentiate the bird and bird helper voices in the poem. (MMR)

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Role-Play Protocol: Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin (10 minutes)

  • Tell students that one thing thoughtful readers often do is think carefully about characters in different stories.
  • Direct students' attention to the posted learning target and read it aloud:

"I can compare and contrast the characters' experiences in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin."

  • Define compare (to find similarities between two or more things).
  • Provide a simple example:
      • "When I compare dogs and cats, I can say they are similar because they both have four legs."
  • Define contrast (to find differences between two or more things).
  • Again, provide a simple example:
    • "When I contrast dogs and cats, I can say they are different because cats meow and dogs bark."
  • Define experiences (things a person has done or lived through).
  • Restate the learning target using the definitions of compare, contrast, and experiences:
    • "I can find the similarities and differences between what the characters did in The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin."
  • Tell students they are now going to use the Role-Play protocol to more deeply think about how the characters' experiences were similar and different. Remind them that they used this protocol in the first half of the unit and review as necessary using the Role-Play Protocol anchor chart. (Refer to the Classroom Protocols document for the full version of the protocol.)
  • Tell students that today when they role-play, they are not going to listen to the text read aloud again, but they can use the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart to support their thinking.
  • Direct students' attention to the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart and focus them on the Problem column for both of these texts.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What is Bird's problem?" (Bird is wounded, so he can't fly away with the other birds.)

"What is Pierre's problem?" (He lost his feathers, so he is cold and can't swim and the other birds are afraid of him.)

  • Move students into pairs and invite them to label themselves A and B.
  • Guide students through the protocol so that partner A begins by role-playing Bird's problem first, and then switch so that partner B role-plays Pierre's problem next.
  • Invite one or two pairs to demonstrate their role-play.
  • Invite students to switch roles and repeat this process.

Conversation Cue: "How did the role-play add to your understanding of comparing and contrasting? I'll give you time to think and discuss with a partner." (Responses will vary.)

  • For ELLs: (Strategic Grouping) Consider pairing students with a partner who has more advanced or native language proficiency. After the protocol, invite a partnership in which there was an ELL to share their role-play with the class. Prompt the ELL to share what part of the text they acted out.
  • For students who may need additional support with self-regulation: Invite students to share how they could handle confusion or disagreement that may arise as they plan the role-play with their partner. (MME)

B. Shared Writing: Comparing Characters' Experiences (15 minutes)

  • Share that students will now write about how the characters' experiences in these two texts are similar. In other words, they will compare them.
  • Tell students that the icons on the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart will help them see how the characters' experiences are similar.
  • Invite students to study the anchor chart and look for two icons that are the same.
  • Tell them to put a thumb up when they see two that are same.
  • After about 30 seconds of think time, ask:

"How are either the birds' or the bird helpers' experiences similar in these two texts?" (Both bird helpers keep their birds warm [fire icon]; both birds end up being okay at the end of the story [heart icon].)

Conversation Cue: "Who can explain why your classmate came up with that response? I'll give you time to think." (Responses will vary.)

  • Cut out either one of the fire or heart icons from the Compare and Contrast Icon Set.
  • Use a glue stick to adhere the fire or heart icon to the Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart. Refer to the Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Tell students that they will now work together to write a sentence about how the characters' experiences are the same.
  • Turn and Talk:

"How are the characters' experiences in these two texts similar?" (The characters' experiences are similar because both bird helpers keep the birds warm. The characters' experiences are similar because both birds are okay at the end of the story.)

Conversation Cue: "Who can explain why your classmate came up with that response? I'll give you time to think." (Responses will vary.)

  • Provide the sentence frame:
    • "The characters' experiences are similar because_____________."
  • Circulate to listen in as students discuss and pre-select a student to share out.
  • Invite the selected student to share out. Write the sentence below the icons on the Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart.
  • For ELLs: (Student Modeling) Ask students to share how they used the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart during the work of comparing characters' experiences.
  • For students who may need additional support with motivation: Invite students to restate the directions for the shared writing before they begin working with partners. (MME)

C. Independent Writing: Contrasting Characters' Experiences (15 minutes)

  • Tell students that they will now contrast the experiences of these characters by once again selecting icons and writing a sentence that tells how the experiences are different.
  • Briefly explain that they will write the contrasting sentence independently in their Stories of Bird Helpers response journal.
  • Invite students to study the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart and look for two icons that are different.
  • Tell them to put a thumb up when they see two that are different.
  • After about 30 seconds of think time, ask:

"How are either the birds' or the bird helpers' experiences different in these two texts?" (The birds' problems are different [wing and feather icons]. Bird is helped by an animal helper [lion icon], and Pierre is helped by a human helper [person icon].)

Conversation Cue: "Who can explain why your classmate came up with that response? I'll give you time to think." (Responses will vary.)

  • Cut out two different icons from the Compare and Contrast Icon Set. (Example: wing icon and feathers icon)
  • Use a glue stick to adhere the two different icons to the Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart.
  • Turn and Talk:

"How are the characters' experiences in these two texts different?" (The characters' experiences are different because Bird hurts his wing and Pierre loses his feathers. The characters' experiences are different because Bird is helped by a lion and Pierre is helped by a person.)

  • Provide the sentence frame:
    • "The characters' experiences are different because_____________."
  • Transition students to their workspaces and invite them to complete page 5 in their Stories of Bird Helpers response journal.
  • Circulate to support students as they work. Refer to the Stories of Bird Helpers response journal (example, for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • After 8-10 minutes, refocus whole group and invite one or two students to share their sentence.
  • Write the sentence on the bottom of the Comparing and Contrasting The Lion and the Bird and Pierre the Penguin anchor chart.
  • Transition students back to the whole group area by singing "African Penguins."

*       For ELLs: (Student Modeling) Ask students to share how they used the Stories of Bird Helpers anchor chart during the work of contrasting characters' experiences.

*       For students who may need additional support with strategy development: Invite students to verbally state their sentence while drawing a line on their journal page for each word in the sentence. (MMAE)

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol: Reflecting on Learning (10minutes)

  • Gather students whole group.
  • Briefly remind them about all of the hard work they have done so far in reading and writing about stories of bird helpers.
  • Using a total participation technique, invite responses from the group:

"What are some of the skills you have practiced as readers and writers as we've read these stories?" (finding the meaning of new words; identifying the character, setting, problem, solution, and ending of stories; comparing and contrasting characters' experiences; writing about the stories)

  • Tell students they are going to use the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face protocol to reflect on which of these skills they feel proud of and which they want to keep working on in the next few lessons. Remind them that they used this protocol in Module 3 and review as necessary using the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face Protocol anchor chart. (Refer to the Classroom Protocols document for the full version of the protocol.)
  • Guide students through the protocol using the following prompts:
    • "Which reading and writing skill do you feel most proud of?"
    • "Which reading and writing skill do you want to keep working on?"
  • Share with students that they will read a new story with a bird helper in the next lesson!
  • For ELLs: (Adding Visuals: Writing a List) Make a list of students' responses to the question: "What are some of the skills you have practiced as readers and writers as we've read these stories?" Display the list and invite students to choose from it as they participate in the Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face protocol.
  • For students who may need additional support with working memory: Consider charting student responses for use as reference during the protocol. (MMR, MMAE)

Get updates about our new K-5 curriculum as new materials and tools debut.

Sign Up