The Mysterious Miss Nelson

Presented by: Rebecca Buerkett

Subject Area(s):

K-12: Technology
K-12: General
K-12: Language Arts

Grade Level(s):

K-2nd Grade

Description:

First grade students will learn literature appreciation and analysis, character and plot evaluation, and author/series comparisons using the Miss Nelson series of books by Harry Allard. This lesson is designed to take place over two different library instruction periods. The lesson will include large and small group activities as well as a technology component involving a SMARTBoard (modifications for use without the SMARTBoard are included).

Goals & Objectives:

Instructional Goals:

Students will become familiar with literature interpretation and analysis, including plot lines, character analysis, and setting.
Students will learn to behave appropriately during different types of classroom interactions (i.e. lecture, group discussion, questioning, small group work).
Students will understand how to compare and contrast characters in a story.
Students will identify similarities and differences between books in a series by the same author.

Learning objectives:

With members of a small group, students will devise at least one “quiz question” that identifies plot, setting, and/or character characteristics from the stories.
Students will learnto behave respectfully toward the instructor and fellow students during story time, group discussion, questioning, and small group work (i.e. raising hands to speak, waiting their turn, accepting others’ opinions).
By a show of hands, students will answer at least two questions correctly that compare and contrast characters in a book series.
By a show of hands, students will answer at least two questions correctly that compare similarities and differences between three different books in a series by the same author.

Motivational objectives:

Students will enjoy reading for its intrinsic value.
Students will feel more confident in their ability to interpret the books they read.
Students will realize that they are free to interpret and enjoy literature based on their own ideas and experiences; i.e., there is no wrong answer in literature interpretation.

Materials:

Book Sources:

Allard, Harry, and James Marshall. Miss Nelson Is Missing! Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1977.

Allard, Harry and James Marshall. Miss Nelson is Back. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1982.

Allard, Harry and James Marshall. Miss Nelson Has a Field Day. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 1985.

Lesson Plan Credit:

Lesson plan revised version of TeacherVision lesson plan, Miss Nelson is Missing Literature Guide. TeacherVision. 2000-2008. Pearson Education, Inc. 20 October, 2008

Other materials required:

SMARTBoard electronic whiteboard (preferred), or other vehicle for presenting a Venn diagram to the class (i.e. overhead projector, whiteboard, chalkboard, flip chart).

Computer (preferably with SMARTBoard) with PowerPoint for presenting "Are You Smarter Than a First Grader" game show.

Procedures:

Introduction: LESSON DAY 1
Materials/Techniques
The TL will ask students if they know what a mystery is, and will explain and ask for examples. The TL will then announce that we are going to read a mystery story, and they will be responsible for searching for clues in the story. The TL will ask any student who has read the books before to please not give away the ending. The TL will introduce the three books (title, author, illustrator) and discuss the concept of a series, asking for examples of series with which they may be familiar. Finally, The TL will state the learning objectives as well as the rules (students must raise their hands and wait to be called on, students must respect others and wait their turn, etc).
Brief lecture, questioning
Body:

The TL will read Miss Nelson is Missing, pausing at the point in the story when the students realize that Miss Nelson has disappeared to ask the children to identify the mystery.
The TL will hold a group discussion following the story to ask the students what they think happened. The children will most likely postulate that Miss Nelson and Miss Viola Swamp are the same person. The group will identify the characters in the book and discuss their roles in the mystery. The group will go through the book to point out the “clues” to the mystery (i.e. black dress and wig box in closet, false eyelashes on dressing table, Miss Swamp seen near Miss Nelson’s house). The TL will point out to the students that the book never tells us for sure whether or not Miss Nelson is Viola Swamp, so they are free to interpret the story any way they like.
Using the SMARTBoard (or other media such as overhead, whiteboard, chalkboard, or flip chart), the class will fill in a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting Miss Nelson and Viola Swamp.
The class will go back to the story area to read Miss Nelson is Back. First the group will compare the front covers of the two books. The students will be asked to predict the setting of the book based on the covers, and to predict what this book might be about. After the second story, the class will engage in a brief additional group discussion about the plot and characters in the second book in the series, comparing it to the first book. (NOTE: if necessary in the interest of time, all or part of Miss Nelson is Back could be read during the second lesson day).
Story time, group discussion, brainstorming using SMARTBoard (or other media), graphic organizer (Venn diagram)

Video showing the SMARTBoard segment of the lesson in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTPRVaPPXSo
Conclusion: LESSON DAY 2

The TL will read Miss Nelson Has a Field Day. The TL will ask students what they think will happen. Pause for dramatic effect several times during the story to ask what they think will come next. After story is finished, the TL will moderate a group discussion about whether or not Miss Nelson and Viola Swamp are the same person in this story, thereby following through with the series. The group will briefly revisit the character and setting analyses in order to reinforce the concepts.
Using the SMARTBoard or other media, the TL will announce the "Are You Smarter Than a First Grader" game show (PowerPoint-see supporting materials). First, the TL will be the contestant and the kids will try and stump her with questions about the books. The TL will break the kids into three or four groups. Each group will work together to come up with one question about the books and the TL will have to try and guess which book the question comes from. For example, “In which book did Viola Swamp wear a whistle around her neck?” The TL will try to answer the questions (injecting silliness whenever possible, while trying to keep their questions on task), making sure to get at least one "wrong" to show them that there may be more than one way to interpret the story (and to let them know that it is okay to be wrong sometimes).
Afterwards, the TL will turn the game show around and ask them a few "quiz" questions just to round out the unit, reinforce the concepts, and assess learning (see supporting materials PowerPoint for quiz questions). At the end, they will all be declared winners!
Game, small group discussion, wrap-up lecture

Assessment:

The final assessment will be embedded in the discussions and the “game show” questions. The students will be asked to answer several questions by a show of hands during the second half of the game show. Each question will address the learning objectives (see supporting materials). In addition, creativity and relevancy of the small group question development as part of the first half of the game show will be indicative of learning comprehension. Finally, the students’ behavior during the story hour, discussion, and questioning will be observed to determine if learning objectives are met.

Supporting Files:

IST663Miss_Nelson_Lesson_Plan.doc
Full lesson plan
Venn_Diagram_PPT.ppt
Venn diagram Power Point for use with SMARTBoard
Venn_Diagram.doc
Venn Diagram template - Word document
Are_you_smarter_than_a_first_grader.ppt
Are You Smarter Than A First Grader? Game show

Introduction: LESSON DAY 1	Materials/Techniques
The TL will ask students if they know what a mystery is, and will explain and ask for examples. The TL will then announce that we are going to read a mystery story, and they will be responsible for searching for clues in the story. The TL will ask any student who has read the books before to please not give away the ending. The TL will introduce the three books (title, author, illustrator) and discuss the concept of a series, asking for examples of series with which they may be familiar. Finally, The TL will state the learning objectives as well as the rules (students must raise their hands and wait to be called on, students must respect others and wait their turn, etc).	Brief lecture, questioning
Body:
The TL will read Miss Nelson is Missing, pausing at the point in the story when the students realize that Miss Nelson has disappeared to ask the children to identify the mystery. The TL will hold a group discussion following the story to ask the students what they think happened. The children will most likely postulate that Miss Nelson and Miss Viola Swamp are the same person. The group will identify the characters in the book and discuss their roles in the mystery. The group will go through the book to point out the “clues” to the mystery (i.e. black dress and wig box in closet, false eyelashes on dressing table, Miss Swamp seen near Miss Nelson’s house). The TL will point out to the students that the book never tells us for sure whether or not Miss Nelson is Viola Swamp, so they are free to interpret the story any way they like. Using the SMARTBoard (or other media such as overhead, whiteboard, chalkboard, or flip chart), the class will fill in a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting Miss Nelson and Viola Swamp. The class will go back to the story area to read Miss Nelson is Back. First the group will compare the front covers of the two books. The students will be asked to predict the setting of the book based on the covers, and to predict what this book might be about. After the second story, the class will engage in a brief additional group discussion about the plot and characters in the second book in the series, comparing it to the first book. (NOTE: if necessary in the interest of time, all or part of Miss Nelson is Back could be read during the second lesson day).	Story time, group discussion, brainstorming using SMARTBoard (or other media), graphic organizer (Venn diagram) Video showing the SMARTBoard segment of the lesson in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTPRVaPPXSo
Conclusion: LESSON DAY 2
The TL will read Miss Nelson Has a Field Day. The TL will ask students what they think will happen. Pause for dramatic effect several times during the story to ask what they think will come next. After story is finished, the TL will moderate a group discussion about whether or not Miss Nelson and Viola Swamp are the same person in this story, thereby following through with the series. The group will briefly revisit the character and setting analyses in order to reinforce the concepts. Using the SMARTBoard or other media, the TL will announce the "Are You Smarter Than a First Grader" game show (PowerPoint-see supporting materials). First, the TL will be the contestant and the kids will try and stump her with questions about the books. The TL will break the kids into three or four groups. Each group will work together to come up with one question about the books and the TL will have to try and guess which book the question comes from. For example, “In which book did Viola Swamp wear a whistle around her neck?” The TL will try to answer the questions (injecting silliness whenever possible, while trying to keep their questions on task), making sure to get at least one "wrong" to show them that there may be more than one way to interpret the story (and to let them know that it is okay to be wrong sometimes). Afterwards, the TL will turn the game show around and ask them a few "quiz" questions just to round out the unit, reinforce the concepts, and assess learning (see supporting materials PowerPoint for quiz questions). At the end, they will all be declared winners!	Game, small group discussion, wrap-up lecture