Children's Books

Cheyenne Again, by Eve Bunting

Comprehension Challenges:

• ·         The story takes place in settings that may be unfamiliar, like an American Indian reservation (which may be an unknown concept to some ELLs), and a boarding school.
• ·         The book assumes an understanding of American history in the 1800s when American Indians were being “civilized” by whites.
• ·         There is very content-specific vocabulary throughout the book (i.e.:  buckskins, moccasins, Cheyenne, breechclout)
• ·         The story is narrated using an American Indian voice that leaves out some parts of speech and refers to people and places in unfamiliar ways (like “The Man Who Counts”).

Scaffolding Ideas:

• ·         Find out what students already know about American Indians by using a K-W-L chart, or something similar.
• ·         Build background knowledge by showing examples of Indian reservations, and boarding schools.
• ·         Pre-teach content-specific vocabulary, and draw attention to it as words are read.  Show pictures that represent new vocabulary words.
• ·         Explain the difference in speech styles between how the book is written, and how we speak.  Show examples between the two speech styles.
• ·         Use illustrations in the book to reinforce new concepts and vocabulary.  Check for understanding as you read.

Frog and Toad are Friends, by Arnold Lobel

Comprehension Challenges:

• ·         The story takes place in a forest, which may be an unfamiliar setting for some English language learners
• ·         Some of the vocabulary is a bit antiquated, or specific to the setting, which may be unfamiliar.
• ·         The book uses personification, which may be a new concept for some learners.
• ·         Illustrations in the book are not realistic, and may confuse some of the readers.

Scaffolding Ideas:

• ·         Introduce the concept of fictional writing, and the differences between fiction and non-fiction.
• ·         Teach students that some fictional writing includes main characters that are animals.  These main characters may do things that they don’t really do in real life (like talk, go for walks, make friends, etc.).
• ·         Use realistic pictures of frogs and toads to compare to the illustrations in the book.
• ·         Use book illustrations to help students understand new vocabulary and settings (such as meadow, forest, etc.).