Ask comprehension questions. Lead students to answer orally, in a complete sentence. For each question, if the student answers incorrectly, guide him or her to read the text again. Questions: 1. What color is the rabbit? 2. What color is the basket? 3. Where is the rabbit? 4. What is the rabbit eating? Answers: 1. The rabbit is pink. 2. The basket is blue. 3. The rabbit is in the basket. 4. The rabbit is eating a carrot.
9. Ask the questions again in random order. Give each student a chance to answer correctly, in complete sentences.
10. Pass out pencils. Ask each comprehension question again. (See step 8 for questions and answers.) When a student answers correctly, write the sentence on the board. Say: “Copy the sentence onto your paper.” Do this for each question and answer. Take pencils from them.
Some students will not be able to copy the full sentence. If they write only the first letter, praise them for trying. Teach individualized lessons later to practice copying sentences from the board.
11. Pass out boxes of crayons. Say: “Choose one crayon.” Make sure they choose only one. Take boxes of crayons from them. Then say: “Color the carrot.” Make sure they color only the carrot. Take papers from them.
12. Give out reinforcers.
Materials:
photograph of rabbit, students’ circle-in-circle charts and branch organizers, lined paper, tape, three pieces of chart paper, dry-erase marker, watercolor marker
Before the Lesson:
1. At http://fhautism.com/arc.html, find the circle-in-circle chart, branch organizer, and lined paper. Print one of each for each student, plus a few extras.
2. On the chart paper, draw a blank circle-in-circle chart, branch organizer, and lined paper.
3. On the board, hang a blank circle-in-circle chart on the left and a branch organizer on the right. Make them large enough to write all the words you will need.
4. Write the date on the board.
Teaching the Lesson
1. Gather the children in a circle. Hold up the photograph of the rabbit. Ask: “What animal is this?” If no one can identify the animal, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself.
2. When a student says, “rabbit,” write “rabbit” in the smaller, inner circle of the circle-in-circle chart. Write very legibly. Students will be copying these words later.
3. Ask: “What can the rabbit do?” If no one answers, prompt the students. Ask: “Can the rabbit fly?” If no one answers, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself. Possible answers include hop, run, dig. Students may come up with different answers. Ask the question several times, and allow different children to answer. Write the answers in the large circle. Leave space between the words.
4. Ask: “What does the rabbit have? If no one answers, prompt the students. Ask: “Does a rabbit have wings?” If no one answers, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself. Possible answers include long ears, a nose, a tail. Students may come up with different answers. Ask the question several times, and allow different children to answer. Write the answers in the large circle. Leave space between the words.
5. Ask: “What does the rabbit like? If no one answers, prompt the students with a guessing game. Say: “The rabbit likes to eat a vegetable. It is long and orange. We put it in salad.” Do this for the other two answers. If no one answers, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself. Possible answers include carrots, leaves, lettuce. Students may come up with different answers. Ask the question several times, and allow different children to answer. Write the answers in the large circle. Leave space between the words. NOTE: Guessing games may be stressful for some children. If students appear to be getting agitated or panicky, just tell them the answer. The lesson is more important than the game.
6. Praise students and pass out reinforcers.
7. The children return to their desks. Pass out pencils and blank graphic organizers. On each desk, tape the circle-in-circle chart on the left and the branch organizer on the right. (Always emphasize a left-to-right progression when teaching reading and writing.)
8. Say: “Write your name on your paper.” Make sure everyone writes his or her name. Then say: “Write the date. It is on the board.” Make sure everyone writes the date.
9. Say: “Copy the words from the circle-in-circle chart on the board onto your circle-in- circle chart.” They do not have to copy all of the words at first.
10. Say: “Now we will do the branch organizer.” On the branch organizer on the board, write “Rabbit” on the top line and “Can,” “Has,” and “Likes” on the three spaces under the top line. Say: “Copy the words onto your charts.”
11. Ask: “What can the rabbit do?” Point to the words on the circle-in-circle chart. Encourage students to look at their own chart. If no one answers, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself. Ask the question several times, and allow different children to answer. If someone uses a nonsensical word, e.g., “carrots,” say the whole sentence. Say:
“The rabbit can carrots? Does that make sense? Let’s look back in the circle and find something the rabbit can do.”
12. Write students’ answers on the branch organizer on the board. For each answer, say: “Write (the answer) under the word ‘Can’ on your branch organizer.”
As you use words from the circle-in-circle chart, you may choose to cover up the words with a sticky note or leave them all showing.
13. For each word that students write, say the whole sentence, e.g., “The rabbit can hop.” As you say each word of the sentence, point to the corresponding word on the branch chart.
14. Ask: “What does the rabbit have?” Point to the words on the circle-in-circle chart. If no one answers, ask an aide to answer, or answer the question yourself. Ask the question several times, and allow different children to answer.
If someone uses a nonsensical word, e.g., “hop,” say the whole sentence. Say: “The rabbit has hop? Does that make sense? Let’s look back in the circle and find something the rabbit has.”
15. Write students’ answers on the branch organizer on the board. For each answer, say: “Write (the answer) under the word ‘Has’ on your branch organizer.”
16. For each word that students write, say the whole sentence, e.g., “The rabbit has a tail.” As you say each word of the sentence, point to the corresponding word on the branch chart.
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