Cosmo the Boat CatRhyming Spelling Words

Mrs. Spratt, 1
st
Grade

Standards (Music and other Academic Area):
Make accurate use of standard English to communicate in
grade appropriate speech and writing
With limited guidance, convey expressive intent for a
specific purpose by presenting a final version of personal
musical ideas to peers or informal audience.
With limited guidance create musical ideas for a specific
purpose.

Objectives (Include the three elements of an objective learned in
class):
Students will write a 4-lined poem that includes one sh
word, spelled out in letters. individually
In groups of 4,Students will perform one of their poems
with their self-choreographed movements for the class.

Materials:
PowerPoint
Computer
Poem worksheets

Background for teachers (if needed, describe any context for the
lesson that another teacher should know):
The class has been studying poems and rhyming
words this week.
Steps in the lesson:
Introduction/Building Background Knowledge:
First, the teacher reads the book Cosmo the Boat Cat.
Introduce this weeks spelling words: shark, shell,
shore, and shrimp
Body: (Step-by-step scaffolding that includes teacher
modeling, guided work, and independent work)
Then, the teacher gives the students the directions:
Since we are learning about rhyming words and
poems this week, I want you to create a poem about
Cosmo the Boat Cat using the spelling word assigned
to your group. The poem must be four lines, and one
of the lines must spell out the word your group is
given.
The teacher then shows the class of the example
he/she created. Here is an example of the one I
created, but I want you all to be as creative as possible
with your poems!
o Cosmo caught a shrimp,
Cosmo ate a shrimp,
It was the perfect treat to end the day,
S-H-R-I-M-P, Shrimp!
The teacher splits the class into groups.
The teacher then passes out the cards with the spelling
words randomly to the groups.
While the students are creating their poems, the
teacher checks on their progress and helps them if
needed.
Closure:
When the students are finished, each group is
instructed to perform their poem using movements of
their choice.
Then, allow the students to move about the classroom
and study other groups poems to assist in memorizing
the spelling words for the week.

Assessment (linked directly to objectives):
Students will be assessed based on their completion of a 4-
lined poem that includes one sh word, spelled out in
letters.
Students will be assessed based on the movements they
perform with with the presentation of their poems.

Adaptations/Extensions (include at least one strategy for
differentiation):
Children who have trouble writing can be put into groups
with children who are efficient in the skill.

Rationale: Why is it important that students learn my lesson?
What will they gain from my content?
It is important that students learn my lesson so they will
gain the ability to correctly spell their spelling words for
the week. When this is done, the students will be able to
correctly spell the words for other subjects as well as in the
spelling unit.
The students will gain from the content presented because
it is a fun way to learn to spell and the poems creating a
mnemonic device when applying the skill.

Next Steps/ Connections to Other Subjects: What lesson will
come next? How will you build on this learning?
Since in the book, Cosmo the Boat Cat, takes place in the
ocean. I would probably go into a Science unit that helps
the students learn about different ocean animals. That
week, going over a different sea animal every day.
To build on this learning, every day the students should go
over the poems they have collected and created. This will
help their memory ando make the spelling of the words
more concrete.

Reflection
Groups may not be 100% beneficial when assessing the
students accomplishments. Group work makes it hard
to see if children are actually getting the concept, or they
are just in a group with those who do. I would probably
rewrite this lesson to have the students write their poems
solo. Then, get into groups and choose one of the poems
to choreograph their movements to.