Anchor Activity: Brown Bear Activities for the story: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? By Bill Martin, JR. The anchor activities will be: matching picture to picture, re-telling the story, and tile animal puzzles.
Grade: Early Childhood Special Education (3-5 years old)
Curriculum Focus: These activities are related to the concept or concepts being learned. They are activities that everyone in the class will be able to do, providing differentiation because students have a choice of activities.
Outcome-
• Extend and review skills and demonstrate understanding of content and skills that students need to acquire. Designed to teach color vocabulary, animal names and/or sounds and matching picture to picture. Different students can have different anchor activities so their process of reviewing content will be different depending on what activity they do.
The expected outcome(s) :
• Students will take an active role in learning classroom routines.
• Students will be able to complete the file folder game of matching the correct animal to the correct picture. Students will complete the tile puzzles.
• Students will retell the story, Brown Bear Brown Bear by Bill Martin using the flannel board pieces.
Procedure(s): I will give verbal directions for each activity. I will demonstrate and model how to do each one as well. I will make sure that each student knows where the materials are kept and are clear on the expectations. I will make sure that the students know what to do if they have any questions if I am busy with some other students. For example, Go to ______ (paraprofessional) for help.

Pre-Activity:
Before starting the Anchor Activity, I read the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See? by Bill Martin, JR. several times prior to the students actually completing the anchor activities. Students were familiar with both the story and the rhythm of the repeated phrases (Animal, Animal) what do you see?” I see a (Animal)) looking at me. I also made sure all the students were familiar and demonstrated an understanding of the word ie. quiet corner, table, and other vocabulary necessary to complete the task.
Day 1- Read the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin. I will have flannel board pictures for all the “Brown Bear animals”. After chances to tell and retell the story with the pictures, I will put all the pieces on the flannel board. I will ask the students to cover their eyes-no peeking! I will remove one of the animals and the students will try to remember and guess which one is missing. Sometimes, I will remove more than one. It is a great way to remember what animals are in the story as we also will do a patterning activity prior to the anchor activity. Each day before going to the next activity we will play a game. For example, “If you are wearing a red shirt, go sit down at the table” It will build their sense of color as the students see themselves and others wearing that color.
Day 2 Students will make a sequencing necklace. An excellent way to retell the story. They will string their pictures (3x3) tag board squares of animal pictures) in the order in which they appear in the story. I will have a visual strip of the animals in order for them to follow. Some students will need assistance with this task and some students will be able to complete the activity independently. It just depends on their individual needs.
Day 3. We will do a large group sensory activity. I will provide each student with a coffee filter cut out of one of the animals in the story and a pippet. A pippet is similar to an eye dropper. Pippets are way easier to use with young children. Students will use their pippet to place different colors of food coloring (same colors as the animals) onto their coffee filter shape. Students can have a choice between this activity or play with colored shaving cream of 2 different colors in sealed zip lock baggies.
Day 4 Take an animal from the flannel board set and go and see if they can find some item also that color in the room.
Day 5 I will read the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear again to the whole class. Using a pocket chart and the flannel board pieces we will graph the number of legs of each of the characters from the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear with the whole group assisting and helping each other.
Responses to Managing Anchor Activities (Heacox pgs. 126-127)
1. When will the students work on these? The students will work on these when I am working with an individual student or with another small group of children.
2. Are the activities worth points? No
3. Should a certain number be required to be completed? No. However, the students will be able to choose an activity or certain students will be individually assessed prior to doing the anchor activity and be given an activity based on the observation of the students strengths and weaknesses.
4. What about the students who need all the class time provided to complete the assignments? This is an activity to enhance their understanding of color. There will be days when some students do not make it to this quiet corner.
5. Should some activities be “bigger” and others done in a day or class period? Yes. We will have several big group projects done with this unit where all the kids can work collaboratively on a project. For example, we will be having them do an activity together as listed above for Day 4.
6. Will activities be due? When and How frequently? No, they will be given ample amount of time to complete these activities during the unit. The students can complete them at their own pace or if extra attention is needed it will be given to the student based on their learning needs.
7. Will activities be only worked on in school or can they become homework? In school. However, they can bring home any of the activities that we have done during the week to reinforce what we have learned. Also, parents will be invited to a Family Learning Day. On this day, we will put together literacy boxes for their child. The box will contain stick puppets of the animals from the book, colored paper for their own child to make a personal book(template included) and textured materials (green paper scraps, yellow feathers, fabric, red glitter etc.) to be glued onto their drawings and/or the templates that were provided of each animal. The literacy box will also contain the sign language for each picture in the book. Parents will learn to use these different tools with their child as they read Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin to them. Parents will also receive a copy of the book that their child colored in class. If parents are unable to attend on this day, one will be given to them with directions on how to use the literacy box and how to contact me with any questions.
8. Will there be check points along the way? At the end of using this activity, we will share as a group of where the pieces go in each of the activities. This will be a great way to reinforce turn-taking skills along with providing students practice of doing an activity together.
9. How will students keep track of what they have done? After students are finished with an activity, each student will have a visual chart with their name on it. The student can pick out a sticker and put it next to the visual picture of the item they have completed. Paraprofessionals and/or the teacher will assist them if needed.
10. How can I easily check their progress? At any point I can walk around the classroom and observe what they are working on.
11. How will I organize task cards or directions for the activity? Each bin will have a picture and directions of what to do. I will model first each activity prior to having students do the anchor activity. I will also have a visual direction strip.
1. 2. 3
12. How will I organize the necessary materials? I will have the materials labeled in bins with a visual picture of the activity on the outside of the bin.
13. How will I collect the completed work? I will monitor and have random checks of students. I will check to see who is in the quiet corner and have a para or myself complete a data sheet to indicate what activities they have done with verbal comments about each one.

14. How will I provide feedback? Give students praise, high five’s and having an individual sticker chart with each student’s name on the chart. When students have completed the activity they can place a sticker by the appropriate activity.
15. Will activities be done individually or can a student work with a partner? The students can complete these activities individually or work with a partner.

Anchor Activities

File Folder Game (Matching picture to picture)

Flannel board story (retelling the story or have 2 sets so they can match the same animal?”

Anchor Activity- Tile Puzzles of Brown Bear Animals

Sequencing Necklace

Ziploc baggy (Shaving Cream)

How many Legs? Activity