Craft Lesson 2

Craft Lesson 2: Understanding/Judging a Title
Resources and other materials: Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Grade Level: 8th Reading Comprehension Unit


Discussion:

When reading books as experienced readers, we notice the title right off the bat. As a readers and teachers, we look over the title and wonder what it means for the book. The title might be a hint as to what the book is about, express a theme in the book, or describe a character in the book. Titles grab our interest, but also give us hints to what we might find inside the book. We often judge books by their titles and decide if we like them or not based on that alone. Those students, you haven’t been reading as long as we have, might not know to take notice of the title of a book, or why it is important. As teachers we can help our students understand titles and how they are important to the book itself.


How to Teach it:
A title serves as the name and description of a book all in one. Titles are exciting because they get us interested in what we might want to read. They also do something else, what do you think that might be? (Ask students why they think a title is important and hold a short discussion, while supporting correct answers with explanation.) Many of the things you all have said are right! A title is something we judge; we like the book or don’t think it is for us, just by reading the title. When we started this book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, did you think you would like the book? (Let them dicuss how they judged the book for themselves and discuss why they liked the title or didn’t.) Well this shows us that we judge titles, but we can also find out a lot about a book by its title. This title lets us know it might be a diary about a kid who is wimpy, or think he is. Titles help us learn about books before we start to read them they are a name and a description all rolled into one. What are the titles of some of your favorite books? Did they play a part in making you want to pick the books up and read them, and why?

Extension
To take this lesson further, go on a trip to the school library or the public library. Give the students about twenty minutes to browse the shelves and pick out three books that interest them, just from the title. Then have them write down a few sentences to explain why the title interested them and what they think the book will be about. Have the students share with a friend and then read the synopsis to see if they were right, if it still fits their interests. This is a great way to figure out how a title influences ones book choice.

Bibliography:
Kinney, Jeff (2007). Diary of a wimpy kid, NY, NY: Amulet Books.

TEKS:
(10) Reading/comprehension. The student comprehends selections using a variety of strategies. The student is expected to:
(A) use his/her own knowledge and experience to comprehend (4-8);(B) establish and adjust purposes for reading such as reading to find out, to understand, to interpret, to enjoy, and to solve problems (4-8);(C) monitor his/her own comprehension and make modifications when understanding breaks down such as by rereading a portion aloud, using reference aids, searching for clues, and asking questions (4-8);(D) describe mental images that text descriptions evoke (4-8);(E) use the text's structure or progression of ideas such as cause and effect or chronology to locate and recall information (4-8);(F) determine a text's main (or major) ideas and how those ideas are supported with details (4-8);(G) paraphrase and summarize text to recall, inform, or organize ideas (4-8);(H) draw inferences such as conclusions or generalizations and support them with text evidence and experience (4-8);(I) find similarities and differences across texts such as in treatment, scope, or organization (4-8);(J) distinguish fact and opinion in various texts (4-8);(K) answer different types and levels of questions such as open-ended, literal, and interpretative as well as test-like questions such as multiple choice, true-false, and short answer (4-8);(L) represent text information in different ways such as in outline, timeline, or graphic organizer (4-8); and(M) use study strategies to learn and recall important ideas from texts such as preview, question, reread, and record (6-8).


(11) Reading/literary response. The student expresses and supports responses to various types of texts. The student is expected to:
(A) offer observations, make connections, react, speculate, interpret, and raise questions in response to texts (4-8);(B) interpret text ideas through such varied means as journal writing, discussion, enactment, and media (4-8);(C) support responses by referring to relevant aspects of text and his/her own experiences (4-8); and(D) connect, compare, and contrast ideas, themes, and issues across text (4-8).
(12) Reading/text structure/literary concepts. The student analyzes the characteristics of various types of texts (genres). The student is expected to:
(A) identify the purposes of different types of texts such as to inform, influence, express, or entertain (4-8);(B) recognize the distinguishing features of genres, including biography, historical fiction, informational texts, and poetry (4-8);(C) compare communication in different forms such as contrasting a dramatic performance with a print version of the same story or comparing story variants (2-8);(D) understand and identify literary terms such as playwright, theater, stage, act, dialogue, dialect, analogy, and scene across a variety of literary forms (texts) (8);(E) understand literary forms by recognizing and distinguishing among such types of text as myths, fables, tall tales, limericks, plays, biographies, autobiographies, tragedy, and comedy (8);(F) analyze characters, including their traits, motivations, conflicts, points of view, relationships, and changes they undergo (4-8);(G) recognize and analyze story plot, setting, and problem resolution (4-8);(H) describe how the author's perspective or point of view affects the text (4-8);(I) analyze ways authors organize and present ideas such as through cause/effect, compare/contrast, inductively, deductively, or chronologically (6-8);(J) recognize and interpret literary devices such as flashback, foreshadowing, and symbolism (6-8); and(K) recognize how style, tone, and mood contribute to the effect of the text (6-8).