[MOSAIC] K lesson on questioning

[CNJPALMER at aol.com]

Just wanted to share a successful lesson in K from last week...
The classroom teacher had modeled questioning as "I wonders" during a  lesson 
on the previous day and had started an anchor chart regarding how the  
students thought questioning helped them. Most of the discussion on the first  day 
centered around asking an adult a question when they didn't know the word!  My 
coteacher and I wanted to help the students learn how questioning yourself  
could help when you are confused and how it could help them think more about  
their reading before, during and after reading.
 
I pulled out my old stand by- the book Grandfather Twilight and  modeled the 
questions I had as I looked at the title and cover  picture and recorded them 
on a big sheet of butcher paper. I showed a  few pictures inside the book 
before reading as part of my preview and talked  about those I wonders too and 
recorded them! By then the kids were buzzing with  their own questions... (Oh,  
the power of a great piece of literature!) I  started to read and continue to 
model and had them turn and talk about their  questions every few pages.  I 
then took a page out of the book Starting  With Comprehension and gave the kids a 
chance to 'use their bodies to show their  questions.' I wasn't sure how this 
was going to work out...and indeed a few kids  seemed confused by how to do 
that...but I had the kids talk with a partner first  about the question they 
were going to act out and how they would do it and then  Voila' ---they were all 
successful! The questions were great... Why was the  strand of pearls 
endless? Why is he taking a pearl for a walk? Why is the pearl  getting bigger as he 
walks? 
 
Then after a few more pages, but before the end of the book, I put  them in 
groups of four with great big sheets of butcher paper and let them write  or 
draw their "I wonders..." What excited me most was the conversation as they  
worked...the inferences were wonderful as they tried to answer each other's  
questions! Two groups even figured out that the pearl represented the moon  before 
Grandfather Twilight lifted the pearl up to the sky! 
 
The kids were so engaged and couldn't wait for the end of the book! 
As closure, we talked about how the questions helped us think more about  the 
story and how it made reading the book more exciting! 
Whoever said K kids weren't ready for comprehension instruction never met  
this little crew!
Just thought I would share for anyone else teaching the comprehension  
strategies in Kindergarten.
Jennifer
Maryland
 
 



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