Daily 5 and Social Studies Integration

I don't know about you, but I have too much to teach and not enough time! I have found that the only way to get it all in is to integrate as much as possible. Social Studies is the most logical subject to integrate into the reading curriculum (although Science works out well sometimes).

 This is what I always hear but no one ever explains how to effectively integrate the two. It's more than just reading a Social Studies text as your Daily 5 mini-lesson. You have to use strategies in that text. This lesson is one that I have found the students love because it includes singing. I'm able to pull accuracy, comprehension, and fluency mini-lessons out of one text. After the mini-lesson I have clips of the students working together in their poetry folders. I also included what I use after that when I meet with small groups that need to focus on some of our phonics sounds to review. You can use the same text for whole group, independent / partner work, and small group teaching. It doesn't have to be something new all the time. If you pick your text well you can milk it for all it's worth - okay I'm stepping off my soap box.

Like I mentioned, Social Studies seems to lend itself well to being integrated into Daily 5.  The video above shows a mini-lesson and some student practice.  I also have some photos below of other ways to tie a United States unit into Daily 5.

Here are some big books I use during Social Studies and also Daily 5 mini-lessons.  These books are from Big Books by George.  I love them because you can get a big book, small book, and CD.  So we might read a page from American Symbols about the Statue of Liberty during a Daily 5 mini-lesson.  Then I would ask the students what else they know about the Statue of Liberty and we would discuss how their Schema helped them understand this book better.  I hope that makes sense to take the Social Studies concept but pull it into a reading mini-lesson.

Big Books by George

These pictures are of my Listen to Reading options after we have been in the United States unit for a while.  The students have already heard several of these books during the Social Studies lessons but now are getting another chance to listen to them during Daily 5.

This is the poster I use to teach when I have students point out phonics rules we have learned.  I can then use this same poster with a small group.  I have chosen certain rules that I think my small group might need to work on and covered those words.  We can then discuss them and use the phonics in authentic text.

Here is my Pledge to the American Flag Word Work part of Daily 5.  We know the Pledge because we recite it each morning.  However, it is not until later in the year (the US unit is around January / February for us) that I put this into Word Work.  This seems to be a better time for the students to actually be able to work with the words because they have a better grasp of reading at this point in the year.  I got the words and pictures from LRE.com. 

LRE Pledge PDF

They have a lot of good resources, but if you look at this one you will notice I do not use the resource in a lesson like they have on the website. I take things and work them into the framework I already have set up in my classroom.

Before and After a Round of Daily 5

Sometimes it seems easier to just assign students to a Daily 5 rotation or just let them go one table at a time. I have tried many things and my teaching has changed as I have seen success with certain practices. I have a chart that someone else made and I adapted to fit my needs. It has my students and the rotations in a graph. I keep track of which choices they have gone to so they get to all the rotations before beginning again. It takes a couple of minutes to dismiss, but I feel the time is well worth it. Please also notice that if the students choose Read to Self I ask them which strategy they want to focus on. I have found this provides more accountability and they have more to share at the end if they already have a plan of action.

I'm sure you have some students who get cleaned up and back to carpet quickly and then it seems like forever before the last few students get there. I try to fill those down times with sight word practice or even begin having the students share what they have learned. Once the students see we are moving on they tend to get back to us more quickly. One of the most beneficial parts of Daily 5 is the sharing after a rotation. I can really see who is using the skills at an independent level and the other students get mini-lesson reviews from other students. If you are not taking a few minutes after each round to share - I think you are missing one of the best parts of the framework.

By the way - please excuse the crazy socks, spray painted hair, sunglasses, etc. in these videos.  These were made during Red Ribbon Week.

Rules Photostory Lesson

I was recently having a discussion with a future teacher about what you do during the first few weeks of school. It reminded me of one of my favorite beginning of the year lessons. After we have started getting to know our rules and routines - the class helps create a project. We give it as a 'gift' to our principals to show them we know the rules and will follow them. The students seem very enthusiastic to have a real audience in the principals and a reason for making the Rules Photostory.



If you have never used Photostory - do not be scared. It is very simple if you are used to playing around on the computer. It is a free download so that is nice! You will also need a digital camera (or scanner, but it's easier to just take pics and download into the computer) and a microphone for this project.



So here is the lesson - I assign each table group an area of our day: blue table gets lunch, green table gets classroom, etc. Then I remind the students of the rules for those various areas and assign one rule to each student. This is a great time to pick students who you have noticed are not following a particular rule and have them illustrate that rule. Also, if you have a student who doesn't seem to be interested in much (usually a boy - for me anyway) the bathroom rule of flush the toilet is a favorite among these kids...



I begin the project by talking about wanting to let the principal's know that we are aware of the rules and really want to follow them. So we discuss how to make a project that we can make as a class and send to them as a 'gift.' The students are pretty much engaged from this point on!



Hallway –

No talking in the halls

Face forward

Keeps hands at your side

Walk in the light blue


Recess –

Be nice to others

Stay away from the fence and street

No climbing trees or fences

Line up when you hear the whistle

Share the equipment


Classroom –

Walk inside

Listen when someone is talking

Keep hands, feet, and objects to yourself

Show respect

Do your best


Bathroom –

No talking in the bathrooms

Flush the toilet

Wash your hands

Throw your trash away


Lunch –

Stay in your seat

Raise your hand if you need something

Push in your chair

Throw away your trash



After each student has illustrated his/her rule you will take a picture of the illustration and load into Photostory. This probably goes without saying...but just in case...you do this slightly time consuming part when the students are not in the room. Once everything is loaded into Photostory you do the next part with the kids in the room.



It takes a while, but the students are genuinely engaged so I usually make it through the whole thing without stopping. If you notice your students getting squirmy then it is easy to save and go back to at a later point. Have each student come up one at a time - remind him / her of their rule and then have him / her record it with the microphone. Then play it back so the student see and hear the progress - they LOVE hearing their own voices and seeing their illustrations on the screen as you do this.



Here is what the final product can be like:

The beginning of the year can be tedious because you have to go over the rules and routines so much - but if you find creative ways to cover the same things: class books, Photostory, etc. then it can be fun.