The Meanest Thing to Say | 350L
- Learning Goal
- Identify and describe when a story takes place using evidence from pictures, text, and clue words.
- Approximately 50 minutes
- Necessary Materials
- Provided: Example Chart, Independent Practice Worksheet
Not Provided: The Meanest Thing to Say by Bill Cosby, chart paper, markers
will read The Meanest Thing to Say by Bill Cosby aloud, modeling using pictures, text and sequence clue words to determine more precisely when a story takes place. I will read Chapter 1 and model how to identify and chart (example provided) pictures, text and clue words to determine the approximate time of day of the setting of the story. I see in the first picture that Little Bill and his teacher are standing in front of a chalk board and a clock. The clock says 9:00. Because we go to school in the daytime, I know that it is 9:00 in the morning.
Ask: "How did I know what time of day it is in the story?" Students should respond that you paid very close attention to the word clues in the text and the details in the pictures.
will use pictures, text and clue words to determine the approximate time of day for the setting of Chapter 2. We will chart and discuss the evidence from the book that helps us determine the approximate time of day.
will identify at least 2 new pieces of evidence from the end of the book. You will describe which type of evidence it is and what it tells you about the time of the setting. (Independent Practice Worksheet is provided.)
Build Student Vocabulary contest
|Tier 2 Word: contest|
|Contextualize the word as it is used in the story||When Little Bill’s great-grandmother asks him why he is making noise, he tells her that he is “getting ready for a contest tomorrow.” He says that in his contest, “you have twelve chances to say something mean to the other guy.”|
|Explain the meaning student-friendly definition)||A contest is competition, sport, or game that people try to win. When Little Bill says that he is getting ready for a contest, he means that he was getting ready to play a game called “the dozens”.|
|Students repeat the word||Say the word contest with me: contest.|
|Teacher gives examples of the word in other contexts||I won first prize in the math contest. My sister entered a contest with her friends to see who the fastest runner was.|
|Students provide examples||Do you know someone who entered a contest? Start by saying I entered a contest for ________________.”|
|Students repeat the word again.||What word are we talking about? contest|
|Additional Vocabulary Words||shrugged, flexed|
Stop at the phrase "Playing the Dozens" on page 5 (Chapter 1). Explain to students that a dozen is 12 of something. A dozen eggs are 12 eggs, and a dozen insults are 12 insults.
Texts & Materials
(To see all of the ReadWorks lessons aligned to your standards, click here.)