Rhapsody with Raptors: Connecting Science with Common Core ELA Standards

Deborah McMurtrie – DeborahMC@usca.edu Gary Senn – SennG@usca.edu

Bridget Coleman – BridgetC@usca.edu

http://rpsec.usca.edu/Presentations/AMLE2013/

• Programs for Teachers• Programs for Pre-service Teachers• Programs for Students

Rhapsody with Raptors1. Raptor lesson: Use structured paired

brainstorming and structured note taking2. Mystery Metaphor/Simile Box activity3. Examine talons, wings, and feathers;

generate lists of “Bird Words”4. Find examples of figurative language in

poetry and children’s literature5. Compose a Cinquain poem

What do you already know?• With a partner, brainstorm a list of things

you already know about raptors such as owls, hawks, eagles, and ospreys.

• Then, share your list with another pair.

What is a Raptor?

A raptor is a bird.A raptor is a carnivore.A raptor is a predator.

A raptor seizes its prey with its talons.

Raptors are also called BIRDS OF PREY.

Owl

What does it look like? What can it do? How does it do it?

• Large round eyes• Round, fluffy body• Concave facial disks• Fringed feathers

• Keen sight & hearing• Silent flight• Seize prey with talons

• Silently• Stealthily

Hawk

What does it look like? What can it do? How does it do it?

• Supraorbital ridges• Sleek, aerodynamic body• Curved, hooked beak

• Keen sight & hearing• Fast flight• Seize prey with talons

• Swiftly• Powerfully

Common Core ELA: K-12

Anchor Standards for LanguageVocabulary Acquisition and Use

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

Common Core ELA: Grade 4Language StandardsVocabulary Acquisition and Use

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5a Explain the meaning of simple similes and metaphors (e.g., as pretty as a picture) in context.

Common Core ELA: Grade 5Language StandardsVocabulary Acquisition and Use

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.5.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.5.5a Interpret figurative language, including similes and metaphors, in context.

Common Core ELA: Grade 5Reading Standards: Literature Craft and Structure

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.

Common Core ELA: Grade 6Language StandardsVocabulary Acquisition and Use CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.6.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.6.5a Interpret figures of speech (e.g., personification) in context.

Common Core ELA: Grade 6Reading Standards: Literature Craft and Structure

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone

Common Core ELA: Grade 7Language StandardsVocabulary Acquisition and Use

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.7.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

Common Core ELA: Grade 7Reading Standards: Literature Craft and Structure

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds (e.g., alliteration) on a specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama.

Figurative LanguageFigurative language can be used to paint a picture or to compare two things.

• Similes• Metaphors• Alliteration• Personification• Onomatopoeia

SimilesA simile is a figure of speech that compares two unlike things that have a shared quality. Similes use the words “like” and “as.” Examples:• She is as free as a bird.• It is as light as a feather.• He is as wise as an owl.• You eat like a bird.• She watched me like a hawk.

MetaphorsA metaphor is a figure of speech in which there is an indirect or implied comparison between two unlike things. The signal words “as” or “like” are not used. Examples:• He is a night owl.• She is an early bird.• Birds of a feather flock together.• A bird in the hand is worth two in a bush.• She is a graceful bird in flight.

AlliterationAlliteration is a repetition of the first consonant sounds in several consecutive words. Examples:• Wide-eyed and wondering, we watched for

winged warriors• One outrageous, over-achieving oviparous owl • Few flew fast as feathers flapped• Ravenous raptors rapidly rip rats and

regurgitate

PersonificationPersonification gives human characteristics to objects, animals, or ideas. Examples: • The Great Horned Owl sang a lonely song.• The Barred Owl said, “Who cooks for you?”• The bird’s eyes danced in the moonlight.• Time stood still as the hawk detected the rat.• The branch groaned in protest.• The owl wore matching stripes.

Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is the use of words that mimic sounds or sound like their meaning. Examples include:

FlutterRustleWooshScreechClatter

WhinnyTrillCrunchRipRetch

SwoopTwitch

Raleigh the Barred Owl

Just the Facts• An owl was hunting a mouse.• The bird was hit by a car.• The driver took it to a vet.• Its wing was broken.

Adding Imagery• One night a Barred Owl spotted a tiny

mouse.• He readied his talons and leaped from a

tree.• The headlights of a car blinded him.• He lay on the side of the road.

Adding Sensory Details• Scanning the forest floor for movement, his

keen eyes spotted a tiny grey mouse.• Ears twitching, the timid creature scurried out

from under a rock.• Just before he pounced on his prize, he was

blinded by a blaze of harsh bright lights.• The majestic bird appeared to be a lifeless

heap of battered feathers sprawled in the road.

A sliver of moonlight barely illuminated the November night sky. The nocturnal predator was perched on a branch in the forest. He was hungry. Two weeks of heavy rain had seriously curtailed his hunting, and the nights were getting colder. He needed food.

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Scanning the forest floor for movement, his keen eyes spotted a tiny grey mouse. A greasy fast food bag, tossed carelessly from a car window, had attracted the mouse’s attention. Ears twitching, the timid creature scurried out from under a rock.

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The Barred Owl saw an opportunity. Focused on his prey, he readied his razor-sharp talons and silently leaped from the branch of the old hickory tree.

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The owl was so focused on catching his next meal that he saw nothing else. Just before he pounced on his prize, he was blinded by a blaze of harsh bright lights. Tires squealed as the driver slammed on the brakes.

The girl stopped the car and jumped out, horrified. The majestic bird appeared to be a lifeless heap of battered feathers sprawled in the road. His large eyes were closed but he was breathing. He was clearly in shock. The girl wrapped the trembling owl in a towel. She gently lifted him up, placed him in the car, and drove to her veterinarian’s office.

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The x-rays revealed that the Barred Owl’s left wing was broken. “Owls, like all birds, have bones that are as hollow as straws,” the vet said. “The hollow bones are lightweight, which help them fly, but they are also quite fragile.”

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The owl was gently placed in a pet carrier and transported to the home of a raptor rehabilitator. A raptor rehabilitator is a person who works with injured birds of prey, such as hawks and owls. Their goal is to provide medical treatment until the bird can be released back into the wild.

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Cliché or Clever?ClichéPoor as a church mouse, Strong as an ox, Cute as a button, Smart as a fox. Thin as a toothpick, White as a ghost, Fit as a fiddle, Dumb as a post. Bald as an eagle, Neat as a pin, Proud as a peacock, Ugly as sin.

When people are talking you know what they'll say as soon as they start to use a cliché.

CleverAs poor as _______. As strong as ______, As cute as ______, As smart as ______. As thin as ______, As white as ______, As fit as ______ As dumb as ______. As bald as ______, As neat as ______, As proud as ______, As ugly as ______.

Use fresh similes when you speak and you write, so your friends will think you are quite clever and bright.

Unusual Comparisons• How is a pencil like a railroad?• How is snow like an hourglass?• How is a soaring eagle like a light bulb?• How is a mirror like a book?• How are wildflowers like stars?• How is moonlight like jewelry?• How is a bird like a heart?• How is spring like death?

Mystery Metaphor/Simile BoxSelect an object from the box. How could this object represent what a raptor looks like, what a raptor can do, or how the raptor can do it?

A ______________ is like a _______________ because ______________________________.

Why is the Great Horned Owl called a “Tiger with Wings?”

Four Square Activity: Hands-On Bird Words• Brainstorm a list of adjectives that describe what the

wings, talons, and feathers LOOK like and FEEL like (such as shape, color, texture)

• Brainstorm a list of nouns that share physical characteristics with raptors (such as plane, knife, hook)

• Brainstorm a list of verbs related to raptors (such as stalk, grasp, kill)

• Brainstorm a list of adverbs related to raptors (such as fiercely, stealthily, powerfully)

Then, use one or more of your Bird Words to create a simile or metaphor.

Finding Figurative Language

Choose from:• Poetry• Children’s Literature• Raleigh’s Story

Look for:• Similes• Metaphors• Alliteration• Onomatopoeia• Personification

Poetry AnalysisThe EagleBy Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1851)

He clasps the crag with crooked hands; Close to the sun in lonely lands, Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.  The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls; He watches from his mountain walls, And like a thunderbolt he falls.

Children’s LiteratureOwl Moonby Jane Yolen

Adopted by an Owl by Robbyn Smith van Frankenhuyzen

Figurative Language• Simile- compares 2 things using like or as• Metaphor- indirectly compares 2 things• Alliteration- repeats first consonant sounds • Personification- gives human characteristics• Onomatopoeia- sounds mimic meanings

Cinquain

A cinquain is a five line poem that follows a specific format: • Line 1- A one-word title (the subject of the poem)• Line 2- A pair of adjectives describing that title• Line 3- A three word phrase that gives more

information about the subject• Line 4- Four words describing feelings related to

that subject• Line 5- A single word synonym or other reference for

the subject from Line 1

Compose a CinquainLine 1- One-word title Line 2- Two adjectivesLine 3- Three word phraseLine 4- Four wordsLine 5- One word synonym for title

Cinquain Example

OwlEnormous eyesHunts at night

Majestic wings, silent flightRaptor