CEClang.88


TITLE:  APPLES ARE A...PEELING

AUTHOR:  Judy Ross and Barbara Nelson, Scott Libby;
         Litchfield, AZ

GRADE LEVEL:  2nd graders

OVERVIEW:
     This interdisciplinary unit is designed to be used
with second graders at the end of September and into
October.
     The "CORE" of this unit involves children in many
facets and styles of learning as it "BRANCHES" out
through literature, reading, writing, oral language,
science, health, music, art, social studies, math,
computers, and skills for living.  The academic skills
will be coupled with social skills as the children
learn to function independently and also as a team
member in cooperative groups.  Various activities will
require group dependence as well as individual
accountability.  The students will be performing many
hands-on activities and the use of paper and pencil
will be minimal.
     September and October are perfect months for this
unit since apples are plentiful in our supermarkets at
this time of year.  The birthday of John Chapman (
Johnny Appleseed) is September 26 and October is
National Apple Month so again these months seem the
most appropriate for this unit.

OBJECTIVE(s):
Benjamin Franklin once said, "Tell me... I
forget...show me..I remember... involve me... I
understand!"  This is the underlying principle from
which my teaching objectives "STEM".

The students will:
a)   Develop listening skills and an appreciation for
     literature
b)   Increase language and critical thinking skills by
     involvement in this unit
c)   Explore Mathematical concepts through the use of
     manipulatives
d)   Complete writing activities following rubric
     guidelines
e)   Demonstrate critical thinking comprehension by
     answering questions at all levels of Bloom's
     Taxonomy
f)   Practice oral language skills by performing
     individually and as a group
g)   Utilize computer skills for word processing,
     simulations and creating words games
h)   Exhibit creativity through music, art, and poetry
i)   Explore the culinary arts by using apple recipes
j)   Develop a more positive self-concept
k)   Participate fully in cooperative learning groups
     assuming all the different job roles

RESOURCES AND MATERIALS:

LISTENING AND LITERATURE
Selections to be read:
Aliki.  "The Story of Johnny Appleseed". Prentice Hall,
     1963.
Evans, William.  Johnny Appleseed. Evan-Moor, 1987.
     "Johnny Appleseed". Good Apple, 1986.
Kellogg, Steven.  "Johnny Appleseed". Morrow, 1988.
     "Johnny Appleseed". Macmillan Early Skills 1982.
Silverstein, Shel.  "The Giving Tree". Harper & Row.

Computer programs:
1.  Sell Apples
2.  Time line maker
3.  Memory game
4.  Kid Writer
5.  Children's Writing and Publishing
6.  Graph Maker
7.  Crossword Magic
8.  Puzzle Maker

The activities with the page numbers after them are
ideas taken from: Thematic Units - Apples (Primary)
from Teacher Created Materials Thematic Series - Apples
- Creative Teaching Press  On my own copy the pages are
color coded so that I know exactly which book they came
from.

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:

QUESTIONS:
(Samples on the different levels of Bloom's)

Knowledge:
1.  What was Johnny Appleseed's real name?
2.  What did Johnny use for a hat?
3.  What animals became Johnny's friends?
4.  What is an orchard?
5.  What did Johnny do to help his friends?

Understanding:
1.  Why did people feel that Johnny was their
    friend?
2.  Why did the animals like Johnny?
3.  Why do you think Johnny got sick?
4.  Why did people call him Johnny Appleseed?
5.  Where did Johnny go to plant appleseeds?

Application:
1.  Choose three favorite things you like about
    Johnny Appleseed, tell why you like them.
2.  What could you do to be a friend to Johnny?
3.  Why did Johnny travel so far?
4.  Have you ever planted a tree?  How did you do
    it?
5.  If Johnny Appleseed lived now do you think that
    he would do things differently?

Analysis:
1.  Tell me as many things as you can that you think
    might really have happened.
2.  Tell me as many things as you can that might not
    have really happened.
3.  What was the happiest part of the story?
4.  What was the most unbelievable part of the
    story?
5.  Compare two versions of the story - how are they
    alike - How are they different?
Synthesis:
1.  Could you think of a new title for the story?
2.  Pretend that you are Johnny, what would you tell
    the pioneers and the children about your
    travels?
3.  What would have happened if Johnny had not
    passed out all those seeds?
4.  If the animals in the forest could talk what do
    you think they would say to Johnny?
5.  If Johnny had a "side-kick" what would he do?

Evaluation:
1.  Which of the characters would you like to be?
    Why?
2.  Could this story have really happened?  Why?
3.  Would Abraham Lincoln have like Johnny?  Why?
4.  Is it worth going out of your way to be
    friendly?  Why?
5.  If apples could talk what would they say to
    Johnny?

READING
1.  Use Apple Word Banks as a springboard for
    brainstorming words about apples. ( p.37 )
2.  Do the apple wordsearch (p.38) and also create
    one with words from the brainstorming activity
    and generate it with the computer program Puzzle
    Maker.
3.  Make a big book about Johnny Appleseed and have
    each cooperative group make a smaller copy.
4.  Sequence the Johnny Appleseed story first by
    pictures and then by sentences. (p.13)
5.  Complete the Johnny Appleseed crossword puzzle
    and as a class project make one to generate on
    the computer using Crossword Magic.
6.  Work on a character chart comparing Johnny
    Appleseed and Snow White. ( sample p.11)
7.  Have a whole group discussion of the following
    sayings: (p.41)
     a)  She's the apple of his eye.
     b)  An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
     c)  One rotten apple spoils the bunch.
     d)  He has a very large Adam's apple.
     e)  She really knows how to polish the apple.
     f)  He's a bad apple.
8.  Make bookmarks with apples on them.
9.  Make an apple wheel for vocabulary words.
    (p.39-40)
10. Read other books about apples.  Give out book
    list. (p.4)

WRITING
1.  Make copies of words from brainstorming.
2.  Write concrete poems using the apple, apple
    basket, or apple tree shape.(prepare samples)
3.  Teach the form of the Haiku and the guide lines
    for writing one.  Work together on the number of
    syllables in the apple words.
4.  Write acrostic poems using the words APPLE,
    JOHNNY APPLESEED or other unit related words.
    Allow for individual choice.  (Use a cooperative
    setting)
5.  Write similes and metaphors about apples.
6.  Write a story about the adventures of an apple.
    Make a chart with the rubric being used to grade
    the stories and discuss it with the students Do
    all the stages of writing:
     a)  brainstorming
     b)  pre-composition
     c)  first draft
     d)  sharing for editing
     e)  rewriting
     f)  evaluating
7.  Share your stories with the class.
8.  Keep a writing folder ( decorated by the child)
    for all the writings.
9.  Use Bank Street Writer, Kid Writer or Children's
    Writing and Publishing to make a class story
    book.
10.  Share your story with a student from another
    class (use some of the teachings of Quest).

ORAL LANGUAGE
1.  Use apple finger plays and choral reading
    activities.
2.  Relate the story of Johnny Appleseed to another
    student or group.
3.  Perform the play " I am Johnny Appleseed " for
    the other second grade classes.  Have two
    students play each part so that more children
    can perform. (p.1-10)
4.  Perform " There was a Young Man Who Planted a
    Seed" at a flag ceremony in October. (p.20-21)
5.  Recite original poems in a poetry contest.

ART
1.  Help design and make costumes and props for the
    play "I am Johnny Appleseed".
2.  Make paper mache' apples as gifts for parents.
    (p.28)
3.  Make apple person using teacher design or make
    your own design.
4.  Illustrate individual poems and stories.  Help
    each other in cooperative groups.
5.  Make apple prints.(p.11)
6.  Work as a class on a bulletin board for October
    to celebrate National Apple Month.
7.  Depict your favorite dwarf in Snow White.

MUSIC/ Games
1.  Use pages 8 and 9 of Theme series- Apples from
    Creative Teaching.
2.  Learn some of the music from " Snow White".
3.  Play the Musical Apple Game. (p.8-9)
4.  Create and perform Apple Raps.
5.  Have an apple relay race.

HEALTH/ SCIENCE
1.  Sequence the seasons of a tree in pictures and
    in words. (p.50)
2.  Label and know the parts of an apple flower.
    (p.51)
3.  Plant apple seeds and record the results.
4.  Discuss as a group why apples are good for you
    and make posters to display around the school.
5.  Identify and know the four food groups and how
    each is important.
6.  Discuss healthy snacks and have an apple sale
    instead of a bake sale.
7.  Make apple recipes ( different for each
    cooperative group ) and share with other groups.
8.  Do the learn from bad apples experiment.

SOCIAL STUDIES
1.  Locate on a map of the U.S. the leading apple
    growing states. (p.22)
2.  Discuss apple customs. ( p.56)
3.  Make a map of an apple orchard. (p.57)
4.  Sequence the steps from tree to market. ( p.58)
5.  Show the relationship in prices because of
    supply and demand.

MATH
1.  Do patterning with apples of different colors or
    different varieties.
2.  Review number words by placing the correct
    number of apples on the number trees on the
    bulletin board (use this as a station ).
3.  Each child picks a favorite kind of apple from
    the apple boxes( apples provided by teacher )
    and make a floor graph.
4.  Collect data about favorite kinds of apples and
    make individual graphs (bar, picture or line )
5.  Make a graph on the computer and generate word
    problems from it.
6.  Estimate the weight of three apples ( one answer
    per cooperative group ).  Use the estimates in
    various activities such as: ordering numbers,
    odd and even, find the difference between the
    largest and smallest guess, learn about pounds
    and ounces, discuss the cost of apples,  writing
    prices in different forms, understanding what is
    reasonable and what is " far out" and lots
    more....
7.  Use apples to teach the fractions one-half,
    one-fourth, and one-eighth.
8.  Compare 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8.  Verbalize a strategy
    for making comparisons.
9.  Do cooking activities that involving measuring.
10. Discuss time and degrees when doing cooking.
11. Measure the circumference of different trees on
    our campus and graph the information.
12. Find ads in the paper showing different prices
    for apples in different stores.  Share the
    information at home.
13. Compare apple prices with the prices of other
    fruit and find the difference.
14. Count the money from the Apple Sale and figure a
    profit after paying expenses. ( Class activity).
15. Make number lines for the first graders using
    apples made of construction paper to mark each
    number.
16. Draw an apple picture using a grid.  Discuss
    coordinates. (p.60)
17. Use computer program " Selling Apples" as a
    cooperative learning activity.
18. Do some research into how long it takes before
    an apple tree will produce good-sized fruit.

EXTRA ACTIVITIES
Cooking:
1.  Stuffed apples ( p.65)
2.  Sun dried apples (p.65)
3.  Apple sauce (p.64)
4.  Apple Butter (p.67)
5.  Caramel Apples (Kraft Caramel bag)
6.  Apple cake

Rewards
1.  Apples ( real)
2.  Scratch and sniff apple stickers
3.  Apple Grams  Video "Snow White and the Seven
    Dwarfs"

Party
1.  For Johnny Appleseed's Birthday
2.  To celebrate National Apple Month
3.  To celebrate a wonderful A...Peeling Unit

Culminating Activity:
Read the Giving Tree and correlate it to Quest Skills
for Growing  and to many of the Self-Esteem Activities
we will be doing in the classroom.