Text Structure • Focus is on a single subject, growing a sunfl ower.Content • What sunfl owers need to grow
Themes and Ideas • Seeds need soil, sun, and water to grow.Language and
Literary Features• Simple language with repetition: She can ___.
Sentence Complexity • Five-word or six-word sentencesVocabulary • Familiar words related to growing plants: seeds, soil, water, sun, fl ower
Words • Highlighted high-frequency words: all, sheIllustrations • Photographs support each page of text.
Book and Print Features • Five pages of text, photos on every page• Two lines of text, with extra space between each word• Punctuation includes periods and an exclamation point on the fi nal line of the text.
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Number of Words: 28
L E S S O N 2 3 T E A C H E R ’ S G U I D E
The Flowerby Sally Schultz
Fountas-Pinnell Level BNonfictionSelection SummaryThe narrator’s mother discovers that if you start with a sunfl ower seed, plant it in soil, water it, and make sure the plant gets plenty of sun, you will get a beautiful sunfl ower.
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all she
Words to Know
The Flower by Sally Schultz
Build BackgroundRead the title to children and ask them what they see in the cover photograph. Help children use their knowledge of fl owers to think about the book. Build interest with questions such as this: What do fl owers need to grow?
Introduce the TextGuide children through the text, helping with unfamiliar words so they can read the text successfully. Here are some suggestions:
Page 2: Explain that this book tells how the narrator’s mother grows a fl ower.Suggested language: Remind children that they can use information in the pictures to help them read. What do you see in the photo on page 2? It’s a shovel full of soil. The book says: My mom can dig the soil. Say the word the. The has three letters and it starts with a t. Can you fi nd the word the and put your fi nger under it? You will fi nd the word the on lots of pages in this book.
Page 3: Turn to page 3. What do you see? The photo shows fl ower seeds. So the book says: She can plant all the seeds. Say the word she. Find the word She and put your fi nger under it. And you can see that She starts with uppercase S because it comes at the beginning.
Page 4: Look at the picture on page 4. What do you see? Those seeds need water to grow. So now what do you think the book will say? It says: She can water all the seeds. Find the word all and put your fi nger under it. You can see that all is a small word. It has only three letters in it and it starts with the letter a.
Page 5: Turn to page 5. Seeds need sunlight to help them grow, too. So now what do you think the book will say?
Now go back to the beginning and read to fi nd out how the narrator’s mother turns a seed into a fl ower.
Words to KnowHave children turn to the Words to Know at the back of the book. Read each word aloud and then together. Explain any unknown words. Tell children to look for these words as they read.
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ReadNow have children read The Flower softly while pointing under each word. Observe children as they read.
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 most interesting.Suggested language: Have you ever tried to grow fl owers before? What happened?
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
• Sunfl ower seeds can grow into fl owers with soil, water, and sun.
• The narrator tells how her mother grows a fl ower.
• Certain things in the world of nature are needed for fl owers to grow successfully.
• The writer uses the same sentence pattern on several pages: Every sentence starts with She can_.
• The photos help show the words named in the text.
Choices for SupportConcepts of PrintPractice early reading behaviors, such as reading from left to right and matching one spoken to one written word while reading.
Phonemic Awareness and Word WorkProvide practice as needed with words and sounds, using one of the following activities:
• Listening Game Have children listen for words that begin with the same sound. Have children raise their hands if the words begin with the same sound and keep their hands in their laps if the beginning letter is different. Say pairs of words, emphasizing the beginning consonant sound: seeds and sun; soil and dirt; water and wash, sun and fun, fl ower and hour, fl ower and fl ame, etc.
• Finding Letters Have children recognize letters by name and locate them quickly in words. Use letters from the words in the book: my, mom, can, dig, the, seeds, soil, water, sun, fl ower.
Writing About ReadingVocabulary PracticeRead the directions and have children complete the Vocabulary questions on BLM 23.1.
RespondingHave children complete the vocabulary activities on page 7.
Building VocabularyThings in a GardenBuild on the nouns in The Flower. Suggested language: Let’s think about all the things we can see in the book. What else can we see in a garden? Can we see a rabbit or a worm? As children suggest different things they can see, write their words on the board or on a large strip of paper. Begin the list with: We can see the.
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English Language LearnersCultural Support Some children may never have grown a plant from a seed. Help them understand what seeds need to grow.
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: Show me the seeds.
Speaker 2: [Child points to the seeds on page 3.]
Speaker 1: Show me the water.
Speaker 2: [Child points to the water on page 4.]
Speaker 1: What do you see on page 6?
Speaker 2: the fl ower
Speaker 1: : What do you see on page 3?
Speaker 2: seeds
Speaker 1: What do you see on page 5?
Speaker 2: the sun
Speaker 1: What do seeds need to grow?
Speaker 2: Seeds need soil, sun and water to grow into fl owers.
