Card #15: Badger Fixes the Roof

Oral Language Teaching Strategy:
Disagree Agreeably Help students cope with disagreements in social settings by showing them how they can disagree in discussions.

Time: one 30-minute lesson or two 15-minute lessons
Materials: Art Card #15
Grouping: whole class or small group
Assessment: Kindergarten Oral Language Assessment Scale

FOCUSING ON THE PICTURE

[Analyzing/inferring]

  • What do you see in the picture? What do you think is happening?

    Show students the picture. Ask them to look at it and think about what they see and what they think is happening.
  • Invite each student to share their ideas about the picture with a partner.
  • Provide time for partner discussion and then invite a few partners to share their thinking with the group.
[Analyzing/inferring]

  • Offer prompts to stimulate discussion:
    • What do you think is happening? Why do you think that? We don’t know exactly what is happening, but it is okay to suggest different things that make sense and fit the picture.
    • Who are the characters in this picture?
    • Is this picture from a fiction or non-fiction piece of writing? How do you know that?
    • What do you know about these types of animals?

    • This picture makes me think a bad storm blew through and the badger is trying to repair the roof.

      Where do you think they are? What clues in the picture make you think that way?
    • What other stories do you know where animals help each other out?

GOING DEEPER

  • Tell students that this is an illustration by Robin Muller found in a book called Badger’s New House. Have students share what they think the artist might have been thinking when he created the illustration.

[Inferring/evaluating]

  • Offer prompts that focus the students on the emotions and interactions portrayed:
    • How do you think badger is feeling? How do you know?
    • How does the mouse character, at the bottom of the ladder, feel? What has the artist done to help you think that way?
    • What has the artist done to show how far up the ladder badger is?
    • Is this a safe way for the badger to be repairing a roof?
    • Do you think that badger is good at repairing a roof? How has the artist helped us to think that way?
    • What clues has the artist given you to understand the type of character badger is?

  • Ezio I noticed that you thought that the badger is a very good hammerer, but Clare disagreed and said, “No, he isn’t!” It’s okay to disagree but you need to speak in a quieter voice and explain what made you think that way.

    As students answer the questions, demonstrate to them how they can disagree with one another about what might be happening in the picture.

You may conclude the lesson at this point and do the second part on the next day, or you may decide to continue and do Connecting and Predicting as part of the first lesson.


CONNECTING

Teaching Tip: If you decide to do Connecting and Predicting on the second day, begin your lesson by reviewing the picture with the students.

[Making connections]

  • Ask students to connect their personal experiences with the artist’s imagination:
    • What do you think the artist was thinking as he created this picture?
    • When you create a picture what do you think about?
    • What has the artist done to make us think that we are closer to badger than the mouse?
    • The artist has selected some very specific colours for this picture. What do the colours help tell us about this scene?
    • What clues has the artist given to tell you what time of day this scene is taking place?
    • When you create a picture how do you select the different colours you use?
    • What feeling does this picture give you? Do you think the artist felt the same way you do?

  • I heard Carlos say, “I think the artist likes badger so he made him bigger than mouse.” Helen said, “I think the artist doesn’t like badger because he makes him look silly with the way he’s on the ladder.” Those are both good points.

    Offer prompts that fit the discussion that you have had with the group.

PREDICTING

[Predicting]

  • Remind students of the title of the story (found on the bottom left of the card) that this picture comes from and have students predict what needs to be done when building a new house.

  • Ask students what they think could have happened before or after this scene. As students share their ideas, be sure to acknowledge each child’s opinion and identify how each one brings their own feelings and ideas to each circumstance, just like an artist. 

  • Invite students to share their thinking about how the picture might have looked if it was from the mouse’s point of view.

  • This is just one picture the artist made for the story Badger’s New House. What other pictures do you think the artist made for the story? Try to start by saying, “In my opinion…”

    As students share their ideas, point out how each of them, along with the artist, has their own interpretation of the situation and will have different ideas about how things look from another perspective. Have students share their opinions by starting their sentences with, “In my opinion…” Point out to students that it is important to listen to one another’s ideas and that each person is entitled to their opinion.

  • Acknowledge the different opinions, for example:
    • In my opinion, he might have made a picture showing mouse washing windows.
    • That’s a silly idea, in my opinion he made one with badger painting his door bright red.

      • Those are all good ideas; remember we each have our own ideas, just like the artist did.

    • I don’t think it would be bright red, Brittany, I think he would have painted it blue.

LESSON EXTENSIONS

  • Use the picture as the basis of a shared writing lesson. Have students dictate what they think the conversation would be like between mouse and badger. Record the conversation on chart paper in a script format so students can use it for reader’s theatre.

  • Use the shared writing account as a shared reading text and reread with the students.

  • Place the shared writing text in an area where students can read it during centre time.


FOLLOW-UP IN CENTRES

  • Provide students with a variety of puppets. Students can act out the story as a reader’s theatre script or create their own version of the story without a script.

  • In the art centre provide students with materials so that they may:
    • recreate the picture on the card in another season.
    • draw a picture from the mouse’s perspective.
    • create another scene with mouse and badger.