"Families Work Together " class book

Objectives:
1. Maryland Voluntary State Curriculum
Social Studies/Political Science Standard 1C1a: The learner will identify the roles of family members.
2. Maryland Voluntary State Curriculum
Reading/ELA/Writing Standard 4A2a: The learner will write to express personal ideas using letter-like shapes, symbols, and letters

Motivation: To get the students and families ready for the project, a description of the rules will be sent home in the last September newsletter. The newsletter will state that each student will bring the class digital camera home on a scheduled date in October. The child is to plan a picture of a family member doing a chore that helps the family. He or she then takes the picture and returns the camera to school the next day.
After all of the students have taken their pictures, the teacher will print out each picture leaving space for writing at the bottom.
In advance, the teacher will also prepare a front and back cover for the class book.

Procedure:
1. Sitting on the carpet the teacher will teach the students the song "I'm Glad I Have a Family." The song is sung to the tune of "Have You Ever Seen a Lassie?"
2. The teacher will record the students singing the song with a digital voice recorder and play it back for them. They will repeat this process using different voices (quiet, loud, high, low).
3. The teacher will read the book "Tell Me a Story Mama" by Angela Johnson.
4. After the story the teacher will tell the students that one of her jobs in her family is to read bedtime stories to her children.
5. She will show the students a picture of bedtime at her house. In the picture she will be reading to her children.
6. Next, she will tell the students that they are going to share the pictures that they took of their family members.
7. The students will talk about their pictures.
8. Next, the teacher will tell the students that they are going to make a class book.
9. She will explain that they've already illustrated the book using the digital camera. The pictures will be like the illustrations.
10. The teacher will tell the students that they will be the authors, too.
11. She will show the students how to look at the word wall to locate the words "my" and "is".
12. The teacher will write the words "My Family" for the students to see.
13. She will instruct the students to return to their tables to write the words "My Family is __________" under the photograph on his or her page of the book. The students adds his or her personal idea to finish the sentence. The teacher helps the students complete the sentences and writes the correct spelling above the students' invented spellings.
14. When all of the students are done, the class will put the pages together along with a front and back cover.

Closure:
As closure for the lesson the teacher and students will read the completed book together.

Assessment:
1. The lesson will be a success if the students were able to identify the role of their family member in the pictures.
2. The lesson will be a success if the students were able to finish the sentence using writing to express a personal idea.