Theme: Use the book, Dear Santa, Please Come to the 19th Floor to introduce your students to apartment living, people with disabilities, the Christmas holiday and friendships.
Pre-reading: Show students the cover and last page of the book (where the two characters are staring out the window), read the title of the book, the author’s name and the illustrator’s name. Ask them what they think the book will be about.
Reading: As you read, show students the illustrations and ask them to study them closely. What details can they find in the pictures? Have the class look closely at the expressions on the faces for the characters and ask them how they change throughout the story. Ask the class how they think the characters are feeling?
Post-reading: Starting from the ground floor, have students plan a trip up 19 flights of stairs. Imagine climbing up each floor. The students can do this in small groups or altogether. How many flights can the students climb before getting real tired. Do you think the 19th floor is too high to climb? If we rewrite the ending, at what floor would our Santa collapse?
Science: On the 10th floor, Willy gives Santa some cookies. Using the food pyramid, what nutritious snack would you carry in your pocket to give to Santa?
Literature: Read another book about Christmas or the disabled. One great book is Wheel Wizard by Matt Christopher. Look for other books by Yin and Chris Soentpiet. If you really enjoyed reading Dear Santa, write a review and post it on the book pages of Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com so others can enjoy your reading experience.
Bulletin Board: Santa Claus carries lots of presents in his “sack”. Display one on the bulletin board. If each student was Santa Claus, what would they give to their best friend? Make a list and post it on the board.
Dear Santa Lesson Plan
Created by Yinauthorvisits.com
Common Core Lessons: Created for yinauthorvisits, this packet of lesson plans is ready to download and print for use in your class. Designed for Common Core Standards for the 3rd Grade, the packet may be adjusted for grades higher and lower. Feel free to use and enjoy all or parts of the plan.
