TEACHER'S GUIDE FOR:

The Best Shoes

By Gwendolyn Hudson Hooks
Illustrations by Michael Ramírez

Guided Reading: A
DRA: 1
Intervention: 1
Genre: Realistic Fiction
12 Pages
53 Words
Focus: Concepts of Print
* one-to-one matching * using the picture clues * reading patterned sentences

Supportive Text Features
* familiar words and concept * patterned sentences * two alternating sentence patterns * strong picture/text match

Essential Components of Reading Instruction:
* Phonemic Awareness: concept of word * Phonics: initial consonant digraphs /th/, /sh/ * Vocabulary: these, shoes, best * Fluency: reread the story independently or with a partner * Comprehension: determine what is important, make connections, ask questions

High-frequency Words: look, at, I, do, not, like, are, the

Getting Ready to Read
1. Introduce the concept and vocabulary by asking open-ended questions: * Why do people wear shoes? * Name some types of shoes that children wear. * What are your favorite shoes? Why?

1. Connect children’s past experiences with the story and vocabulary:
   • Hold the book, calling children’s attention to the title. Read: "The Best Shoes"
   • Ask children to predict how the girl on the cover is feeling.
   • Show the back cover and read the copy. Ask children which shoes they think the girl on the front cover might say are the best.
   • Have children predict some words they might read in the story.
   • Give children the book and have them look at the pictures.
   • Ask them to notice all of the different types of shoes.

1. Remind children of the strategies they know and can use with unfamiliar words:
   • Ask them, "What will you do if you come to a word you don’t know?"
   • Encourage children to look at the pictures and the beginning sound of the word.

1. Be aware of the following book/text features:
   • The book contains familiar words: these, shoes, best.
   • The text is below the picture on each page.
   • There are two alternating sentences: “Look at these shoes.” “I do not like these shoes.”
   • The last sentence is different: “These are the best shoes!”
   • The sentences on the last two pages end with an exclamation point.

Reading the Book
1. Set a purpose by telling children to read the book and find out what type of shoes the girl thinks is best.

1. Have children read quietly but out loud. Each child should be reading at his or her own pace. Children should not read in chorus. Listen to children as they read by leaning close or bending down beside each child.

2. Look for these reading behaviors during the first reading:

   • Do the words children say match the printed words in the book? (voice-to-print match)
   • Do children look at the pictures before they read the text or after they read?
   • What do they do if they encounter an unfamiliar word? (appeal to you, try a strategy)
   • Do their eyes go up to the picture before reading the new word in the pattern?
   • Are they saying the initial sounds of words before saying the whole word?
   • Are they saying the individual letter sounds
     /s/-/h/-/o/-/e/-/s/ or blending the sounds?
   • Do they reread if they come to an unfamiliar or unknown word?
   • Have they self-corrected any mistakes?
   • Is there any inflection or speech-like sound to their reading?
   • Have they responded with a laugh or other sound as they read the text?
   • Do they make comments as they read?

1. As children read, suggest a reading strategy if they are struggling: "Try looking at the picture to make sense of the print." Encourage children to take a guess or use the beginning letter sound.

2. Possible teaching points to address based on your observations:

   • Review using the photograph to help with each new word.
   • Review using initial consonant digraphs to read new words.
   • Model how to reread the sentence if it does not sound right or make sense.
   • Call attention to all the high-frequency words children have learned and used.
   • Point out that it is important to look at the pictures to find out what is happening in the story. Also note that the visual clues start with the picture on the title page.
   • Call attention to the exclamation points on the last two pages.

After the First Reading
1. Have children confirm their predictions about what type of shoes the girl thinks is best.

1. Starting with the title page, have children look at the pictures in order and tell the story in their own words.

2. Talk about how the girl is feeling on each right-hand page as she tries on different kinds of shoes. How do her feelings change when she finds the best shoes? If necessary, tell children to look at the girl’s face for clues to her feelings.

3. Have children revisit the picture on page 10 of the boy holding up the shoes his sister likes. Where/How did he find the shoes? Have children to look back through the book to find out.

4. Look at the text on pages 10 and 11. Model how the exclamation point on page 11 changes the way the sentence should be read. Have children talk about how this affects the meaning of the sentence on page 11.

5. Focus children’s attention on the picture on the last page and talk about the differences between the girl’s shoes and the boy’s boots. Ask why they think the girl is holding her socks.

6. Have children tell what they think might happen next in the story.

Second Reading
1. Have children reread the book in a whisper voice or to a partner.

1. This is a time for assessment. While children are reading, watch what they do and what they use from the teaching time. Alternatively, you might take a running record on one child as an assessment of the child’s reading behavior.

Cross-Curricular Activities
Language
Record children’s retelling of the story of The Best Shoes on chart paper. Then reread the story with children several times, pointing to each word as you read. Children may also enjoy acting out the story using props from the dress-up corner.

Have children brainstorm words that rhyme with not. List the words on chart paper and then ask children to make up sentences using each word. The words may also be added to the word wall.

Language/Math
Give children a set of cards with pictures of a wide variety of shoes. Ask them to sort the cards in an open-sort activity, without giving any directions. When children are finished, ask them to explain why they grouped the shoes as they did. Then have them sort the pictures in a different way and talk about the new grouping. Make a list of adjectives to describe the shoes.

Math
Review with children that a pair consists of two items. Have children look through the book and count how many pairs of shoes they see. (Note: the shoes on the walls are not pairs.) Then have them name other things that come in pairs.

Draw five pairs of shoes on the chalkboard and have children practice counting the number of individual shoes by twos.

Science
Have children name their body parts that come in pairs. Then play the “Hokey Pokey” using as many of the paired body parts as possible. If children are not yet comfortable with “right” and “left,” just say, “You put your one foot in,” “You put your other foot in,” and so on.

Art
Have each child trace his or her shoes on a piece of paper and cut out the shapes. On one shoe, children write words to describe their “best” shoes (color, pattern, style, and so on). Then decorate the other shoe to match the description. Punch a hole at the top of the shoes and tie each pair together with yarn or string. Hang the shoes in the classroom.

Social Studies
Make oversize flash cards of different types of footwear, such as sneakers, rain boots, dress (party) shoes, flip-flops, sandals, slippers, and so on. Show children the flash cards and talk about when and where you would wear each type of footwear.

Writing
Tell children to imagine they have magic shoes that can take them anywhere they want to go. Have them write about a place their shoes take them.

# Los mejores zapatos

Guided Reading: A
EDL/DRA: 1
Intervention: 1

12 Pages
43 Words <div style="line-height:10pt">

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The Spanish edition also uses two alternating sentences and familiar words: zapatos, gustan, los mejores. Because many children speak dialects or may mix Spanish and English, you may need to help children understand that “book language” does not always match the words we use every day.

The book introduction and guided reading lesson follow the outline for the English edition. Children need exactly the same support and strategy instruction as their English-speaking classmates.

If children have difficulty with concepts or words in the story, see the article "Guided Reading with Emergent Readers" for suggestions.

Guided reading levels were assigned by certified Reading Recovery® teachers and literacy experts using the guidelines identified in Guided Reading and Matching Books to Readers by Irene C. Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell (Heinemann).

Intervention levels were assigned by certified Reading Recovery® teachers and literacy experts and are intended for use in early intervention and one-on-one tutorial programs, including Reading Recovery® programs. These levels were not officially authorized by Reading Recovery®. Reading Recovery® is a registered servicemark of The Ohio State University.

DRA (Developmental Reading Assessment)/EDL (Evaluación del desarrollo de la lectura) levels were determined using information in the Developmental Reading Assessment Resource Guide and EDL Resource Guide by Joetta Beaver (Celebration Press).

All level placements may vary and are subject to revision. Teachers may adjust the assigned levels in accordance with their own evaluations.

Copyright © 2011 by Bebop Books®, an imprint of Lee & Low Books Inc. Used with permission. </small>