Mini LessonSloppy Joe By Dave KeaneSummary: A sloppy boy decides it’s time to change his ways and become neat. With an unexpected turn he has to take care of his sick family and turns to his old ways.Focus: Text structure (Character comments)Connection: Explain that today students will be looking at text structure and specifically adding comments to characters.Teach: Read Sloppy Joe (If possible show on an active board so that all students can clearly see the pages’ details).Ask students if they saw anything interesting about the way the author chose to write some of the lines.Show students pages 4 and 16. And again ask what is different. (Students should notice different colors of font and writing in a curved line).Discuss how using different fonts, or writing in different styles can help an author get a point across or even emphasize something important.Active Engagement: Students will compose a narrative story using special text features. Students should be encouraged to use different colors or may stray off of the lines in order to aid in allowing the reader to understand their writing.Link: Summarize the day by again sharing different ways an author can change text structure.Invite students to sit in the author’s chair to share and even project their writing onto the active board if they would like.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.3 Poor Joe is a representation of the bad habits that we all have! He is just not who he thinks everyone wants him to be! His determination to change for the ones around him is inspiration and sweet! Discussing why Joe wants to change can build connections between the reader and the story. Some lessons that can be taught are about hygiene or about accepting yourself and others how they are but changing things that are hurtful to other people.
Book shows the lack of manners of the main character, yet shows that everyone should be theirselves.
—Kate
Good books for kids about accepting yourself.
—lorri
AR BL: 2.4Points 0.5
—kaion
It was funny.
—eon
