Characteristics of the Text Genre • Informational text
Text Structure • Imperative sentences followed by statements• Second-person introduced on last page
Content • Rainstorms• What people do during and after a rainstorm• Urban and rural scenes
Themes and Ideas • A big rainstorm has a beginning, a middle, and an end.• Heavy rains and lightning happen during a rainstorm.• Children can play safely after the storm ends.
Language and Literary Features
• Repetition of words and phrases• Meaning provided though integration of photos with text.
Sentence Complexity • Repeated sentence patterns: Look at the —; — is coming• Present tense with helping verbs: is coming, is going • Sentences of six words or fewer
Vocabulary • Storm-related words and phrases: clouds, big storm, lightning, come down, umbrellasWords • High-frequency words, many repeated: look, the, is, come, down, and
• Mainly one-syllable words; several two-syllable words; three-syllable word umbrellas• Plurals
Illustrations • Vivid color photos support text.Book and Print Features • Photo above text on each of nine pages
• Each sentence begins on a new line, broken before a phrase• One- and two-line sentences, extra space between words
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Number of Words: 71
L E S S O N 1 5 T E A C H E R ’ S G U I D E
The Stormby Celeste Albright
Fountas-Pinnell Level DInformational TextSelection SummaryClouds grow bigger and darker, showing that a big storm is coming. The storm arrives with heavy rain and lightning. People try to stay dry under umbrellas. Then the sun comes out, the sky turns blue, and children can go out and play.
Build BackgroundRead the title to children, and have them tell what a rainstorm is. Have them point out the heavy clouds in the cover photo. Show them the rain falling in the far distance. Ask them to think about what the book might show about a real-life storm. Ask: How do people know that a storm is coming? Have you ever seen lightning in the sky during a storm? What did you do?
Introduce the TextGuide children through the text, noting important ideas and helping with unfamiliar language and vocabulary so that they can read the text successfully. Point out the repeated sentence pattern Look at the. Here are some suggestions:
Page 2: Tell children that this book shows how a storm comes, what happens when the storm is here, and what happens when the storm goes away. Suggested language: Turn to page 2. What do you see in the photo? The author says: Look at the sky. A storm is coming. Say storm. What two letters would you expect to see at the beginning of storm? How can you tell that a storm is coming?
Page 4: Turn to page 4. Remember that you can use the information in the photos to help you read. What do you see in this photo? How can you tell that a big storm is here? Would you want to be outside near these trees during the storm?
Page 5: Turn to page 5. The author says: Look at the lightning! How would you feel if you saw lightning like this? Why is it important to stay inside during a lightning storm?
Now turn back to the beginning and read to fi nd out what happens in a big rain storm.
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ReadAs the children read The Storm, observe them carefully. Guide them as needed, using language that supports their problem solving ability.
Respond to the TextPersonal ResponseAsk children to share their personal responses to the book. Begin by asking what they liked best about the book, or what they found interesting.Suggested language: The next time it is raining, what is something you could look for that you saw in this book?
Ways of ThinkingAs you discuss the text, make sure children understand these teaching points:
Thinking Within the Text Thinking Beyond the Text Thinking About the Text
• Rain falls from dark clouds.
• Lightning may happen in a storm.
• People try to stay dry under umbrellas.
• When the sun comes out, children can go out and play.
• A storm has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
• The sky goes through changes, depending on the weather.
• It is exciting to see a storm.
• The author wants to make us feel that we are seeing a real storm.
• The author tells us what to look at on every page. The last page is different—the children are talking.
Choices for SupportConcepts of PrintDirect children to the fi rst sentence on page 8. Point out the comma and the exclamation point, and explain the purpose of each mark: The comma tells readers to take a short pause, and the exclamation point tells readers to say the sentence with feeling. Model reading the sentence aloud, and have children echo read.
Phonemic Awareness and Word WorkProvide practice as needed with words and sounds, using one of the following activities:
• Blend Sounds Say words from The Storm sound by sound, and have children say the whole word. Words to use: sun, big, rain, sky.
• Clapping Syllables Say a word from The Storm, and then repeat it syllable by syllable, and have children clap the syllables with you. Words to use: com-ing, go-ing, clouds, storm, a-way, um-brel-las, light-ning, blue, play.
• High-Frequency Words Display these words from the book for children to read and use in oral sentences. Words to use: look, the, a, is, come, down, and, all, we, go, out, play.
Writing About ReadingCritical ThinkingRead the directions for children on BLM 15.4 and guide them in answering the questions.
RespondingRead aloud the questions at the back of the book and help children complete the activities.
Target Comprehension SkillSequence of Events
Target Comprehension Skill Tell children that they can remember a book by
thinking about what happens in the beginning, the middle, and the end. Model thinking about the sequence of events:
Think Aloud
In the beginning of this book, the clouds grow heavy and dark. In the middle, the rain pours down, and lightning fl ashes. At the end, the sky turns blue, and children go out to play.
Practice the SkillAsk children to think about another science book and to tell what happens at the beginning and the end.
Writing PromptRead aloud the following prompt. Have children draw and write their response, using the writing prompt on page 6.
Draw two pictures of the sky. Show what the sky looks like before and during a storm.
English Language LearnersFront-Load Vocabulary Preview the photos to help children understand the words storm, clouds, lightning, umbrellas, and the phrases come down, coming out, going away, and go out.
Oral Language DevelopmentCheck the children’s comprehension, using a dialogue that best matches their English profi ciency level. Speaker 1 is the teacher, Speaker 2 is the child.
Beginning/ Early Intermediate Intermediate Early Advanced/ Advanced
Speaker 1: Where are the clouds?
Speaker 2: in the sky
Speaker 1: What is coming down here?
Speaker 2: rain
Speaker 1: What is coming out here?
Speaker 2: the sun
Speaker 1: What is in the sky here?
Speaker 2: Lightning is in the sky.
Speaker 1: How are the people staying dry in the rain?
Speaker 2: They have umbrellas.
Speaker 1: How can people tell that a storm is coming?
Speaker 2: Dark clouds are in the sky.
Speaker 1: How can people tell that a storm is going away?
Speaker 2: The sun starts to come out through the clouds.
