Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Teacher Candidate
Date/Time of Scheduled
Visit
Name/Address of School
Age/Grade level
Cooperating Teacher

Hanna Friedman

Name of Lesson
Content
area(s)/developmental
domain(s) addressed
Brief description of the
lesson

Cars, Trucks, and Things that Go!

Cognitive Development: Language and Literacy

This lesson is:

Rationale

Timeframe

Nursery (3-4 years old)

Classroom Number

The aim of this lesson is to introduce various modes of transportation that

children see in their neighborhood into the classroom environment. Children will
gain an understanding of how the different vehicles work and why each one is
able to travel in a specific location. Children will also gain the vocabulary
associated with each mode of transportation.
A new concept/activity
Children experience transportation in their daily lives. Especially in New York
City, the modes of transportation that children are exposed to are very diverse.
Childrens inherent curiosity leads them to become little explorers. This lesson
enables children to become more knowledgeable members of their community
through exploration of vehicles that they use in their daily lives. In addition,
through reading and critically thinking childrens language and literacy skills are
strengthened.
Large Group lesson will be approximately twenty minutes.
~ Ten minutes: Read Richard Scarrys book, Cars and Trucks and Things
that Go
~ Ten minutes: Discuss various modes of transportation seen in book and

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Objective(s) of the
activity

Connections to
standards

how the children relate to them.

Independent practice time unspecified.
As a result of this learning experience, children will be able to identify the
defining features of vehicles they encounter in their daily lives. They will also be
able to compare and contrast the vehicles, and discuss their similarities and
differences. Children will demonstrate new transportation-related vocabulary,
and use this vocabulary to elaborate on their personal experiences.
This lesson addresses the NYS Early Learning Guidelines to promote positive
outcomes in:
Domain III- Approaches to Learning
A. Curiosity and Interest: Asks others questions (e.g. What is that? Why is the
moon round?). Investigates and experiments with materials. Shows interest in
how and why others do things. Uses Why to get information about how his/her
world works. Develops personal interests (e.g. trains, farm animals).
C. Persistence and Attentiveness: Focuses on tasks of interest to him/her.
Remains engaged in an activity for at least five to ten minutes at times.
E. Reflection and Interpretation: Relates an experience today to one that
happened in the past (e.g. washing hands before meal time). Tells others about
events that happened in the past.
Domain IV Cognition and General Knowledge
B. Critical and Analytic Thinking: Children compare, contrast, examine, and
evaluate experiences, tasks, and events: Shows understanding of concepts of
same and different. Compares experiences with adult assistance. Uses
comparative words. Uses actions or words to justify choices.
Domain VLanguage, Communication, and Literacy
C. Expressive Vocabulary: Uses new vocabulary in spontaneous speech. Asks the
meaning of unfamiliar words and then experiments with using them. Uses words
to further describe actions or adjectives (e.g., running fast or playing well).
Uses multiple words to explain ideas (e.g., when talking about a primary
caregiver says mother/father and/or parent). Produces sentences with five to

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Language Objectives

seven words.
D. Grammar and Syntax: Describes a task, project, and/or event sequentially in
three or more sentences. Asks questions for information/clarification. Uses
prepositions.
E. Comprehension: Responds to questions with verbal answers or gestures.
Extends/expands the thought or idea expressed by another. Engages in
conversation that develops a thought or idea.
F. Expressive/Oral Language: Recounts some details of a recent event. Tells a
short (make-believe) story with assistance. Participates in conversation about a
variety of topics.
G. Selects specific details in a story and repeats them. Listens to others in a
group discussion for a short period. Responds to questions with appropriate
answers. Gains information through listening.
H. Oral and Written Communication: States point of view, likes/dislikes, and
opinions using words, signs, or picture boards. Uses multiple word sentences to
communicate needs, ideas, actions, and/or feelings.
I. Conventions of Social Communication: Pays attention to speaker during
conversation. Takes turns during group conversations/discussions, usually.
L. Print Concepts: Knows first and last page of a book. Identifies some individual
letter in text. Shows understanding that letters make up words.
M. Comprehension of Printed Material: Recites words in familiar books from
memory. Identifies major characters in a story. Uses pictures to predict a story.
Begins to understand the sequence of a story (e.g., beginning, middle, end).
O. Reading: Appreciation and Enjoyment: Gives opinion in terms of sections liked
and enjoyed.
This activity provides children with vocabulary to investigate how systems
function. The activity also provides children with language to reflect on previous
encounters and elaborate on personal experiences.

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Resources/materials
needed:
(Include any worksheets or
sources of evidence for
childrens learning you will
use during the activity)

Technology inclusion (if

applicable)
Procedures (step by
step)

Cars and Trucks and Things that Go by Richard Scarry

Richard Scarry name wall tag (first name with picture)
Clear masking tape
Write-up about Richard Scarrys life, printed and bound
Large Lined Paper/Experience Chart (to record student discussion/reactions)
2 Black Washable Markers
For transportation puppets:
Photos of various modes of transportation that travel on land, sea, air, and
underground laminated (i.e. bus, car, taxi, bicycle, garbage truck, firetruck,
scooter train, speedboat, barge, submarine, tugboat, sailboat, cruise ship,
airplane, helicopter, hot air balloon, blimp, subway).
Popsicle sticks
Stapler & staples
N/A
Anticipatory Set (Connection/Motivation)
The lesson will be conducted in large group circle, involving the whole class. The
children will be introduced to the author, Richard Scarry, by guessing a mystery
name on the experience chart. The children will first count how many letters are
in his name, then infer the letters by letter sounds made by teacher. When the
mystery name is solved, the teacher will place Richard Scarrys name tag on the
name wall (under the letter R). Then the teacher will read a short write-up
about Richard Scarrys life.

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Instruction/Mini Lesson
The teacher will introduce Richard Scarrys book Cars and Trucks and Things that
Go, and read it to the class. As she is reading and encounters a new mode of
transportation, the teacher will take a transportation puppet out of the mystery
bag and hand it to a child in the circle. The puppets will enable each child to
maintain focus and become actively engaged in the story.
When the book is finished, the teacher will call each child up, one at a time, to
talk about the puppet they are holding (airplane, truck, taxi, scooter, helicopter,
sailboat, etc). and state their favorite part of the book. When each child is done
sharing their thoughts, they will place the puppet back in the mystery bag and
return to their seat in the circle.

Independent Practice
Upon completion of the lesson, tell the children, Richard Scarrys book, Car,
Trucks, and Things that Go, will be available in the Authors Corner. You may read
it on your own, or ask a teacher to read it with you during free play, quiet time,
or center time. You will also find other transportation books by Richard Scarry in
the Authors Corner which you are welcome to explore.
Closure (sharing/reflection, next steps)
To ensure that the children have achieved the goals of this lesson, observe them
incorporating of transportation into other areas of play (i.e. building roads in the
block corner, using small legos to build cars or trains, representing various

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

modes of transportation through art and dramatic play). Also, pay attention to
childrens ability to identify various modes of transportation throughout their
community on neighborhood walks or trips to the park.
If the children do not demonstrate knowledge of the distinguishing features of
the modes of transportations, continue to read Cars, Trucks, and Things that Go,
and other transportation books, during class time, such as during mealtimes and
transitions. However, if the children have gained the knowledge intended and
achieved the lesson objectives, introduce a transportation sorting game to
extend this theme and develop childrens mathematics/sorting/classification
skills.
Method of assessing
childrens
understanding of
lesson/activity/objective
(s)
(Be sure to include any
tools, rubrics/checklists
and/or worksheets you will
use for assessment(s)

Pre-assessment
To evaluate students
prior knowledge, I will
conduct informal
observations within the
classroom before
implementing the lesson.
More specifically, I will
assess students
knowledge of vehicles
they see and use in their
daily lives on walks or
trips to the park.

Plans for differentiated

instruction/instructional
modifications

Supporting children
with identified delays
or disabilities
To support children with

Assessment of Student
Assessment of
Learning
Childrens Language
I will observe the children
Learning
looking at the book on their Similar to assessment
own, I and assess their
of students learning, I
learning achievement
will perform anecdotal
through performing
observations during
anecdotal observations
students free play and
during free play and center center time to assess
time. This is when children
their achievement of
will have the opportunity to language objectives.
generalize what they have
learned to other areas of
play.
Supporting English Language Learners
To support English Language Learners, I will retrieve
a translated audiobook of Richard Scarrys book from
the library. This will be available for children at the

Learning Activity Plan for PreK-Grade 2

Follow up/Extension
activities

delays or disabilities, I
listening center at all times. Furthermore I will use
will introduce the lesson
visual aids and hands-on props, such as puppets, to
beforehand in a one-onhelp these students grasp concepts and language.
one setting, then I will
provide these children
with opportunities of
empowerment during the
large group lesson. This
will help them remain
focused and engaged
with the material.
On walks to and from the park, we will conduct a transportation hunt. During this
time, children will look for as many of a particular vehicle as they can. When they
spot one, we will write down a tally mark. Then children will describe the defining
features of the vehicle they found.

Any additional
information that would
be helpful for the
observer to know
Observer feedback on the lesson plan, including commendations and recommendations for improving aspects
of the learning activity