NTOT Gr4-6 English_Sessions 7&8_LINKS Lesson

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A LINKS Lesson on Winnie the Witch

Adapted and updated from a sample integrated lesson sequence by M. Dela Paz and N. Hermosa. From NNHermosa (1997) Literature and skills: An integrated framework. In Ocampo, D. Trends in Reading Education. UP Open University. This updated version is part of the BEST teacher resource package in English Grades 4-6.

OBJECTIVES A. Realize that solutions to a problem sometimes lead to complications.

Understand the love sometimes entails sacrifice. Admire a character’s concern for another character and for arriving at a creative solution to a problem. Appreciate and enjoy aspects of humor in the story.

B. Form a semantic map for witch Fill in a problem-solution chart Dramatize portions of the story Fill in speech/thought bubbles Write a diary entry Write a letter giving advice

C. Predict “what the character will do next” while listening to the story Infer characters’ emotional reactions by matching feelings cut-outs to events Identify likenesses and differences in short passages Compare and contrast characters, events, and settings

SUBJECT MATTER & MATERIALS Main Text: Winnie the Witch by Valerie Thomas & Korky Paul (Oxford University Press, 1993) Materials: Two puppets (that could somersault) Problem-Solution flow chart Cartolina cut-out of Winnie’s house Face cut-outs of Winnie and Wilbur showing different emotions Poster of Wilbur up the tree with the birds Manila paper charts for diary and advice column activities Crayon, paint, Manila paper, crepe paper, colored chalk Comparison-contrast teaching charts and worksheets PROCEDURE

A. PRE-READING

1. Developing vocabulary/concepts a) Tell the following dialogue using two

puppets. Write the underlined words/phrases on the board or present them on cards/strips.

b) Have the children read the word/phrase then give their meanings based on the way they were used in the exchange between Tommy and Anna. Ask a volunteer to do a somersault.

(Show puppets). These are Tommy and Anna. They are friends. Tommy: Hey, Anna, why do you look miserable? Anna: Yes, I’m very unhappy. I broke Nanay’s favorite vase and she is furious with me.

Tommy thought that something had to be done so that Anna will stop feeling miserable. He started doing somersaults (have the puppet do somersaults).

Anna: (laughs) What are you doing? You look so ridiculous doing that!

Tommy: Aha, but I made you laugh, didn’t I?”

Figure 1. Teacher's puppet story to unlock vocabulary

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c) Anna is always absent from her class. Her teacher decided something had to be done about it. What do you think will the teacher do?

2. Activating prior knowledge / Developing a purpose for reading a) Develop a semantic map for witch. Guide the children in categorizing the words they have generated.

Possible words are shown in Figure 2.

b) Based on the semantic map, draw a story-related concept and use this as a basis for making predictions. For example, on the item that witches like the color black. Why do you think witches like black? In the story we are going to read, Winnie the Witch has a black house full of black things. What problems do you think will she have because of this?

B. DURING READING (The format used here is a read-aloud by the teacher.)

Winnie the Witch lived in a black house in the forest. The house was black on the outside and black on the inside… One day, after a nasty fall, Winnie decided something had to be done. (STOP) Ask the class: What do you think would Winnie do? Why do you think so? What are the clues that tell you she will do that? …She picked up her magic wand, waved it once and ABRACADABRA! Wilbur was a black cat no longer. He was bright green! . . . This time, Winnie was furious. She picked up her magic wand, waved it five times and . . . (STOP) Ask the class: What do you think would Winnie do? Why do you think so? What are the clues?

…ABRACADABRA! Wilbur had a red head, a yellow body, a pink tail, blue whiskers, and four purple legs!... … She loved Wilbur and hated him to be miserable. (STOP)

What do you think would Winnie do? What are the clues? (FINISH READING THE STORY.)

C. POST READING

1. Engagement Activities I (Small groups)

Divide the class into five groups. Assign each group to do one of these tasks. Give directions and guidelines. a) Present black cartolina cut-out of Winnie’s house, similar to Figure 3.

WITCH

long black dress

wicked

haunted house

can fly

drink lemonade

black pointed hat

Figure 2. Semantic Map for WITCH

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Here is an outline of Winnie’s house. Using white chalk or crayon, draw the things found inside Winnie’s house. Label them.

b) (See Figure 4)

Here’s a poster of Wilbur up the tree with the birds. What do you think are the birds saying? What do you think is Wilbur thinking? Fill in the speech/thought bubbles.

c) (See Figure 5)

When Wilbur became rainbow-colored, he felt miserable. How did Winnie feel? Write a diary entry for Winnie that night. What do you think was she thinking then? Write it on this Manila paper.

d) (See Figure 6)

Pretend you are a writer of an advice column. If Winnie wrote to you when she kept tripping over Wilbur, what advice would you give her? Write what Winnie might have written. Then write down your advice.

e) (Provide materials)

Dramatize how Winnie turned Wilbur into a green multi-colored cat, then to a black cat once more. Make and wear costumes for this task

Note: Guide the groups while they work on their engagement activities. Give enough time for children to work on their tasks. When they finish, put up their work on the board or walls. Leave some space for the Problem-Solution Flow Chart. Then proceed to the discussion.

Figure 4. Poster for writing speech/thought of characters

Figure 3. Cartolina cut-out of WtW's house

Figure 5. Poster for Winnie's diary entry Figure 6. Sample Advice Column poster

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2. Engagement Activities II: Discussion (Whole class) Put up a properly labeled flow chart like the one shown in Figure 7. As each situation is discussed, have pupils tape appropriate Winnie and Wilbur cut-outs, with different emotional expressions beside the appropriate portion of the chart.

Where did Winnie live? Group A, can you tell us more about Winnie’s house. Group A presents output: Things in Winnie’s black house.

What could be the reason why everything in Winnie’s house was black?

Present a cut-out of Wilbur. Put it in different parts of the house cut-out.

Was It easy to see Wilbur in this house? Why did Wilbur’s color present a problem? How do you think Winnie felt every time she sat on or tripped over Wilbur? How do you think Wilbur felt?

Face cut-outs with appropriate feelings are pasted on the chart.

What did Winnie do to solve this problem? Group E will show us. Group E dramatizes/pantomimes the scene where Winnie

turns Wilbur into a green cat. They wear the costumes they have made.

Did this solve the problem? Why? What was the next problem? What did Winnie do to solve the second problem? Group E will show us.

Group E dramatizes/pantomimes the scene where Winnie turns Wilbur into a multi-colored cat.

How did Wilbur feel? Why? Face cut-outs are pasted on the chart.

What did Wilbur do? Group B, can you tell us what the birds might have said about Wilbur? And what Wilbur might have been thinking?

Group B presents output: Bird Tweets)

What was Winnie’s problem now? How did Winnie feel? Group C will tell us.

Group C presents their output: Winnie’s Diary Entry Face cut-outs

Group D, what do you think Winnie could have done about her problem?

Group D presents their output: Advice Column

Who else have ideas other than those presented by Group D?

What did Winnie decide to do? How does Winnie’s house look now?

Present an uncolored house and have children color the different things in the house according to the descriptions given in the book.

Winnie lived in a black house with a black cat named Wilbur.

Problem 1

Solution 1

Problem 2

Solution 2

Problem 3

Solution 3

Figure 7. Problem-Solution Flow Chart

Figure 8. Poster of Winnie's new house to be colored

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We know that Winnie likes the color black. Was it easy for her to turn her house into many different colors? Why did she do it? In a scale of 1 to 10, how much would you rate Winnie’s love for Wilbur? Why? What can you do to show your love for someone?

Call children’s attention to the flow chart.

How many problems were met by Winnie in the story? How many solutions did she think of? Was there a solution to every problem in the story? Would a solution always make sure that it would be the end of a problem? What does the story show us about problems and solutions? (Guide the discussion such that children arrive at the realization that, sometimes, a solution causes another problem. Real life problem situations could be discussed, with children sharing their experiences on this issue.)

Did the story make you laugh? Which parts of the story were funny?

Flip through the book, showing the pages. By looking at the pictures even before reading the story, can you tell it’s going to be a funny story? Why?

(Go back to the semantic map that the class made in the pre-reading part of the lesson. Guide the children in expanding it with new insights from the story. In the example shown in Figure 10, the entries with asterisks were added to the semantic map made during the pre-reading part. )

3. Enrichment/Extending the Literary Experience/Curriculum Connections (Individual Students/Small groups) Here are possible activities which may be done as individual or small group projects to extend the literary experience and make connections across the curriculum.

How witches look long wrinkled face black pointed hat long black dress long nose warts bent body

*colorful costume

witches

Words that describe witches bad/evil/wicked clever, smart ugly, crooked

*loving, caring *funny

What witches can do fly cast spells make magic drink lemonade

*love a pet

What witches use broom cauldron wand cane spiders, lizards

Where witches live cave forest castle haunted house

*black house *multi-colored house

Figure 9. Sample revised semantic map after discussion

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WRITING House’s Story: There’s another story in the book. Make the house tell the story again

from its point of view. (“I was an elegant black house. . .) Abracadabra!: Invent your own magic words. You could write them at the back of

your Witch Hat.

ART Construction and coloring activities

MUSIC Singing Winnie’s Song

(https://youtu.be/EsHWZDeZyNA?t=5) The song can be taught in the music class. It can also be used in a lesson on adjectives (arrangement of two adjectives before a noun)

SOCIAL STUDIES Research/Read about superstitions

about black cats Research/Read about how

Halloween is celebrated in different parts of the world.

SCIENCE Science Experiments

These simple experiments can be done in the Science class/Reading class. They review the concepts of chemical reaction, and camouflage, respectively.

Figure 10. Winnie hat and Wilbur headdress; Coloring Winnie

Winnie’s Song A big tall hat Ten long toes A black magic wand A long red nose.

She’s Winnie Winnie the Witch.

A long black tail Big green eyes He goes with Winnie When she flies. He’s Wilbur Wilbur the Cat.

Figure 11. Winnie's Song

Figure 12. Science experiments on the concepts of chemical reaction and camouflage

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4. Explicit Teaching of a Reading Comprehension Skill: Comparison-Contrast

Step 1: Introduction/Warm Up

Remember the story of Winnie the Witch and her pet cat, Wilbur? Here are some sentences about it. Let’s read them. Which sentence tells how the house and Wilbur are alike? Which sentence tells how they are different? Which clue words helped you decide? (both / but) Today, we will use clue words or signal words to help us tell how people, things, or events are alike or how they are different.

Step 2: Teaching/Modeling

Refer the children to the compare-contrast chart, Figure 13.

What do we do when we compare? What do we do when we contrast? The sentences that you read about Wilbur and the house make comparisons. When we make comparisons, we compare and contrast. Being able to make comparisons will help us understand better what we read. How do we compare and contrast? Here’s a strategy we can use (show chart in Figure 13).

Have children read the steps for comparing and contrasting. Use the sample paragraph in Step 1 to illustrate the steps, if needed.

Present the Practice Chart or Worksheet.

Read the paragraph in the Teaching Chart/Worksheet. Which sentences tell how Winnie and Wanda are alike? Which sentences tell how they are different?

Let us see what clue words helped you decide when the witches are alike and when they are different. “Both have pets.” Here, both is the clue word. When you see the word both, you know that the sentence tells how things or persons are alike. What two persons are being compared in the sentence? Follow this procedure for the rest of the sentences, pointing out the clue words as you go along: like, also, while, however. Let us summarize the information in the paragraph by filling in the comparison table. The completed comparison table will look like the one in Figure 13.

Before going on, have pupils review the strategy for making comparisons.

COMPARISON TABLE Alike Different

Both are witches.

Winnie lives in a black house; Wanda lives in a cave.

Both have pets. Winnie has a cat; Wanda has a wolf.

Both witches can cast spells.

Winnie casts good spells; Wanda casts evil ones.

Figure 13. Sample teaching

charts/worksheets for Steps 1-2 of the explicit teaching of compare-contrast

TEACHING CHART/WORKSHEET Winnie and Wanda are witches. Winnie lives in a black house but Wanda lives in a cave. Both have pets. Winnie has a black cat named Wilbur while Wanda has a black wolf named Woof. Like Winnie, Wanda can cast spells. However, while Winnie casts good spells, Wanda casts evil ones.

How to Compare and Contrast

1. Think of ways that things, people, or events are alike.

2. Think of ways that they are different.

3. Use clue words to help decide if things are alike or different.

4. When you have decided, read to see if you are right.

In the beginning, Wilbur and the house were both black. In the end, Wilbur was black but the house was yellow.

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Step 3: Guided Practice Introduce the Venn Diagram as a device for showing similarities and differences. Draw it on the board then guide children in filling it up with the same information found in the comparison table. The completed diagram may look like the one in Figure 14.

Provide a practice exercise with another compare-contrast paragraph, preferably an informational material in the content areas. Guided practice is usually done with the whole class, with the children reading aloud the sample text, and the teacher guiding the discussion on the compare-contrast points. This will give an idea which students are understanding what is being taught and if there is a need for re-teaching, e.g., going back to Step 2. The sample worksheet for Guided Practice shown in Figure 15 is a text that might be taken from a Social Studies book.

Step 4: Independent Practice

Review why readers make comparisons. Then give exercises for independent practice. These may include worksheets, Venn Diagrams, writing, e.g., children can make diagrams/tables or write paragraphs comparing two things/persons/animals. Give each child a copy of the Compare-Contrast Tool Kit to guide them in doing the practice exercises. See sample paragraph below.

Step 5: Application

This step goes beyond the lesson sequence described above. The skill of comparing and contrasting should transfer to different texts that children read across different subject areas, both narrative and expository materials. Opportunities for writing using the comparison-contrast text structure may also be provided within the language arts classroom. Below are some worksheets that provide additional practice for using the skill of compare-contrast for writing (see Figure 17), and for comprehending content area materials. As the children master the skill, they can move on from making comparisons within texts to comparing a text with another (see Figure 18).

WINNIE lives in a black house pet cat – Wilbur casts good spells

WANDA

lives in a caved pet wolf – Woof casts evil spells

witches have black pets can cast spells

Figure 14. Venn Diagram showing the same information shown in the comparison table

Directions: Read the paragraph comparing nests and houses. Do you see any clue words? Underline them. Use your Compare and Contrast Tool Kit to help you locate the clue words. Then make a comparison table or a Venn Diagram to show how nests and houses are alike,

and how they are different.

Nests and Houses

You already know that there are major differences between a house and a nest. In contrast to a house, a nest is small and has only one room. Another difference is that a house is usually for people while a nest is for birds. However, you might be surprised to find out that nests and houses have some things that are the same. For example, both nests and houses provide shelter. Another similarity is that both use trees in their construction. Birds use sticks and twigs while people use lumber from trees. Last, they are alike because they take up space, although a house usually takes up more space than a nest!

(Slightly adapted from ReadWriteThink. Copyright 2007 IRA/NCTE. All rights

reserved. ReadWriteThink materials may be reproduced for educational purposes)

Figure 16. Compare-Contrast Tool Kit and sample text to be used for independent practice

Figure 15. Sample worksheet/chart for guided practice

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Figure 17 shows a Venn Diagram generated from a discussion comparing dogs and cats as pets. It can serve as a pre-writing activity and a guide to help students write an essay on comparing and contrasting.

Figure 18 shows compare-contrast charts that provide students ways to apply the skill (and advance in it) that are natural outgrowths of their reading experiences. These grids can be completed individually, in pairs,

or by groups, and they can be used by students at any grade level.

Acknowledgments Some of the materials used to exemplify parts of this LINKS lesson were taken from the following sources: Read-Write-Think. International Literacy Association & National Council for Teachers of English (2017) http://www.readwritethink.org/

Scoula via Conforti. Winnie’s Song (subbed) https://youtu.be/EsHWZDeZyNA?t=5, May 22, 2013

Twinkl Educational Publishing http://www.twinkl.co.uk/

Teacher Created Resources https://www.teachercreated.com/

Figure 17. A sample Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting dogs and cats as pets

Figure 18. Sample charts/worksheets for comparing across texts