 |
| Students take a few minutes to explore each of Ezra Jack Keats famous stories. Books are passed around the story to give students a quick preview of all his work. |
This past week, students were introduced to a new author that we'll be studying for the next few weeks- Ezra Jack Keats. Through an online website, students were introduced to him and learned about his early life, struggles as an artist, and how he became so famous. Students were given a preview on Monday about the kind of books he writes, where he gets his ideas, and about the characters that appear and play a key role in many of his award winning books. Learning about the caldecott medal has sparked many children to seek out other books in our library that have earned this great honor.
During this unit, some books are read once, while others are read 2-3 times. During this author study, students will focus on the literary elements to help them think about the texts being read. Everybody has had an opportunity to hear and talk about quality literature through Ezra Jack Keat's books. While listening to E.J.K books students have had conversations about the characters, problem, and solution and we will continue doing this as we explore other titles and compare and contrast the story elements across the titles. Our main focus this past week has been to help the students understand the problem that the main characters face and the related solution that unfolds. In responding to this literature, students have been crafting complete sentences and writing a response to answer specific questions. Some of these responses have taken a creative approach, and children are developing alternative solutions to the problems that occur to the main characters. Through discussion, turn and talk, and planning our writing, students develop a better understanding of this complex literature. In addition, students have been making text to self and text to text connections to help them develop a deeper understanding of the stories. 