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This unit is designed to focus on building students’ knowledge of different characteristics and traits between animals that help them to survive through the use of varied texts.

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1.     Animals differ from one another.

2.     Different traits help animals live and survive.

3.     Not all animals need the same traits to survive.

4.     Without certain traits, animals would not be able to take care of themselves.

5.     Some animals are better prepared for certain environments than others.

These 'big ideas' were identified as the main points students should understand after finishing the readings within our text set. These ideas were chosen based on disciplinary core ideas as identified by the The National Research Council (2012), presented below:

"LS1.A: Structure and Function -
All organisms have external parts. Different animals use theri body parts in different ways to see, hear, grasp objects, protect themselves, move from place to place, and seek, find, and take in food, water, and air. Plants also have different parts (roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits) that help them survive and grow

LS1.D: Information Processing -
Animals have body parts that capture and convey different kinds of information needed for growth and survival. Animals respond to these inputs with behaviors that help them survive. Plants also respond to some external inputs."

Reference:
National Research Council. 2012. A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/13165

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1. Trait - something that makes somebody (or something) different from someone else.
2. Predator - an animal that eats other, smaller animals to live.
3. Prey - an animal that is eaten or hunted by other animals.
4. Habitat - where an animal lives.
5. Survival - ability to continue living.

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Neuman and Wright (2013) dispel the myth that children are “word sponges”, are absorb vocabulary words through a one time exposure. Instead, the authors argue that repeated exposure is necessary for true learning. The books that compose this text set contain repeated and related terms, allowing for repeated presentation to allow students to more fully learn the terms.

Neuman and Wright (2013) also state that students require both implicit as well as explicit instruction with regard to vocabulary acquisition. For this reason, I have highlighted five vocabulary terms to explicitly review with my first grade students. I plan to highlight the appearance of these words in the texts, or instances when the text alludes to these words but are not present. For example, in "Don't Laugh, Joe" by Keiko Kasza the main character, a possum, must learn to play dead in order to protect himself from predators. While the word predator is not within the text, after my explicit teachings I can relate the word to the storyline. The words are either included in each text, or can be related to the storylines.

In addition to my explicit and implicit instruction, I have identified words that can be categorized as "academic terms", according to Beck, McKeown and Kucan (2013). Neuman and Wright (2013) term this as "being intentional" with word choice, as the teaching of Tier Two words to children can expand vocabulary while building on more commonplace knowledge. All of the chosen vocabulary words fall within Tier Two of Beck and colleagues' (2013) categorization of vocabulary. Tier One words are those that are more basic and commonly used, while Tier Two words are less commonly used everyday and tied more closely to academia (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2013). Lastly, Beck, McKeown and Kucan (2013) describe Tier Three words, which are specifically related to certain topics or foci.

The selected vocabulary also help to create "knowledge networks", which Wright and Neuman (2013) state help to support children's learning. As defined by the authors, 'knowledge networks' are groups of related words that can help to build comprehension.

Furthermore, use of challenging words within the classroom help students to distinguish them from 'everyday words' (Neuman and Wright, 2013). As the class dives into this text set, this writer also plans to clarify confusion as well as provide examples for further explanation. Neuman and Wright (2013) suggest that this students better understand presented materials.

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Exposure to new vocabulary through text makes words significant and memorable (Neuman and Wright, 2013).

This text set consists of different types of books, including predictable text, fiction, and informational pieces. All are inter-related and center around the big ideas previously mentioned.

The text set begins with a predictable, rhyming book, as Neuman and Wright (2013) suggest for teaching children. The authors state that these books often possess vocabulary terms to be learned in addition to an appealing rhyme scheme that allow children to integrate the text into their own vocabulary. It is this writer's belief that beginning with the selected text will help to build students' background knowledge.

Next, the text set contains a fictional storybook. Neuman and Wright (2013) state that storybooks are important to include as they allow for the presentation of information in a fun and enjoyable way. While the text included is fictional, it relates to the overarching themes of unique animal traits and survival.

Lastly, the text set includes three informational text pieces, one of which is a narrative and two of which are expository. Informational text provide students with factual information and more specific details than other types of text might (Neuman and Wright, 2013). The narrative informational text provides factual information while following a story, while the expository informational texts present factual information shared through the presentation of labeled diagrams.

Each text should enhance students' understanding of animal characteristics and the differences between them that booster survival.

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Book 1: "Feathers and Hair, What Animals Wear" by Jennifer Ward

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Book 1: "Feathers and Hair, What Animals Wear" by Jennifer Ward

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"Feathers and Hair, What Animals Wear" by Jennifer Ward is a nonfiction predictable, rhyming book. Throughout the book, the author describes different types of outerwear demonstrated by various animals. At the end of the book, Jennifer Ward presents summaries on specific animal and how their outer layer helps to keep them safe and enables them to survive.

This text presents colorful, attention-grabbing illustrations as well as factual information regarding unique animal traits.

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Book 2: "Don't Laugh, Joe" by Keiko Kasza 

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Book 2: "Don't Laugh, Joe" by Keiko Kasza 

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"Don't Laugh, Joe" by Keiko Kasza is a fictional storybook about Mother Possum and her son, Joe. Mother Possum desperately wants to teach her son to play dead to avoid predators, however, Joe cannot stop his constant giggling. Mother Possum acts as different predators to help Joe learn to play dead incase he were to run into a predator, but Joe fails every time. Eventually, Joe faces a bear and is able to successfully play dead.

This story is comical, as the bear Joe encounters is not actually a predator, but wants to play with Joe due to his great sense of humor.  The text serves as a great addition to our unit, as it focuses on one specific animal and its unique survival trait. The language is not overly complicated, but introduces concepts such as "predator" and "prey".

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Book 3: What Do You Do With A Tail Like This by Steven Jenkins

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Book 3: What Do You Do With A Tail Like This by Steven Jenkins

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"What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?" by Steven Jenkins is a narrative informational text, which mentions different body types that vary greatly between animals and provides animals' different uses for their unique traits. This text can be used to prompt discussion regarding difference between animals, and how this variability helps to ensure survival.

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Book 4: What If You Had Animal Teeth? by Sandra Markle 

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Book 4: What If You Had Animal Teeth? by Sandra Markle 

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This expository informational book, "What If You Had Animal Teeth?" by Sandra Markle differs from the previous texts as it contain photographs of the animals discussed as well as explicit facts about the animals of focus. The text centers specifically on different animals' teeth and the purposes they serve. In addition to facts included, the author also states hypothetical situations explaining how humans would function with different sets of teeth. The book is entertaining and informative.

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Book 5: What If You Had Animal Ears? by Sandra Markle 

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Book 5: What If You Had Animal Ears? by Sandra Markle 

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"What If You Had Animal Ears?" by Sandra Markle is also an expository informational text. It is similar to the preceding text, with a focus on animal ears instead of teeth. The book provides the same hypothetical situations as well as photographs of certain animals. The text's focus on a specific characteristic and the great dissimilarities between animals highlight how different traits help different animals.

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Beck, I.L., McKeown, M.G., & Kucan, L. (2013).  Bringing words to life: Robust vocabulary instruction (2nd edition). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Jenkins, S. (2003). What do you do with a tail like this?. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin.

Kasza, K. (1997). Don't laugh, Joe. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's.

Markle, S. (2016). What if you had animal ears!?. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.

Markle, S. (2013). What if you had animal teeth!?. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.

National Research Council. (2012). A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/13165

Neuman, S.B., & Wright, T.S. (2013). All about words: Increasing vocabulary in the common core classroom, PreK-2.  New York: Teachers College Press.

Ward, J. (2017). Feathers and hair, what animals wear. New York, NY: Beach Lane Books.