Text Talk: Julius, the Baby of the World

Student Objectives

Session 1

Session 2

Extensions

Student Assessment/Reflections

 

STUDENT OBJECTIVES

Students will

• Respond to open-ended questions using support from language in the text
  
  
• Interpret story elements based on textual language
  
  
• Use context clues to help define story vocabulary
  
  

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Session 1

Begin by introducing the story and showing students the front cover of the book Julius, the Baby of the World. Tell students that you would like them to listen to the story; however, you will not be showing them all of the pictures. Use the following questions throughout the story to prompt development of meaning and discussion:

• Before reading: Ask students what they think about the front cover. Which one do you think is Julius? Who is the person in the mask?
  
  
• Page 1: How can Lily do these things before Julius was born? Revisit the characters on the cover. Who do you think the characters are now?
  
  
• Pages 2-3: How does Lily feel about her little brother? How do you know?
  
  
• Pages 4-9: Why do you think Lily's parents do not want to leave her alone with Julius? Do you think Lily liked being alone with Julius? Why or why not?
  
  
• Pages 10-13: Why did Lily's parents treat her and Julius differently when they did the same things (e.g., blowing bubbles, gurgling)?
  
  
• Page 14: What do you think is the uncooperative chair?
  
  
• Pages 15-16: Do you think Julius' invitation really got lost in the mail? How do you know?
  
  
• Pages 17-22: Why do you think Lily's parents did nice things for her? Why didn't it work?
  
  
• Page 23-end: Why did Lily get upset when Cousin Garland said Julius was disgusting?
  
  
• Follow-up questions: Why do you think Lily liked Julius at the end? Do you think they will stay friends?

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Session 2

1.	Begin the lesson by discussing the story and questions from the previous session. You may want to reread the story.
2.	Display the following vocabulary words in a pocket chart: insulting chimed constantly clever doubtful dazzling uncooperative
3.	Read the words aloud to students. Then reread the sentence where each word appears in the story. Ask students what clues the story gives about the meaning of the word. Discuss possible meanings and give students the correct meaning. Ask students to give an example of another situation where they might use or see the word. Example: insulting "She pinched his tail and she yelled insulting comments into his crib." What do we know about how Lily feels about Julius? If she is yelling the comments, what kind of things do you think she is saying? What might "insulting" mean? Can you think of a time when someone might say something insulting?

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EXTENSIONS

To extend this story, visit the Kevin Henkes' website for background information on the author, coloring pages, and activity ideas.

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STUDENT ASSESSMENT/REFLECTIONS

To assess students' learning, take anecdotal notes based on their comments and discussion. Some guiding questions may include:

• Are students using the language of the story to make interpretations?
  
  
• Are students going beyond the immediate events of the story to make deductions and draw conclusions?
  
  
• Are students building meaning based on the text rather than relying too much on their prior knowledge?
  
  
• Were students able to use context clues to interpret the meaning of text vocabulary?
  
  

Encourage all students to respond to the discussion questions and note those students who are unresponsive.

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