ABC Explorers

Knowledge Constructor, Empowered Learner and Creative Communicator

Overview

Students go on a hunt to find a word for each letter of the alphabet from a free online picture dictionary.

Students use Enchanted Learning’s Little Explorers Picture Dictionary to find a word that starts with each letter of the alphabet. The students should do the research online and record their findings on a printed copy of the record sheet.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

Be able to navigate to Little Explorers website.
Be able to click each letter of the alphabet across the top.
Be able to choose one word per letter to record on their paper.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary Words:

Online dictionary: An online dictionary is a website that tells about words in ABC order (you may want to have a physical dictionary to compare).

Pre-planning

To prepare for this lesson:

Find a way to bookmark the website for your student or make it easy to navigate to. Here are some choices:
- Symbaloo
- Google Classroom post
- Create a shortcut on the computer desktop
Print or give digital access to the template for this lesson.
- Google Document
- Google Classroom assignment
- Copy the document and add to Microsoft Word as a template

Accommodations

See the Accommodations Page and Charts on the 21things4students website in the Teacher Resources.
Students could choose to draw a picture instead of writing a word. (This would require more time, or you could consider the choice below.)
Some students may benefit from completing only some of the letters of the alphabet. Writing 10 words for 10 letters of the alphabet can still meet the objective of navigating an online dictionary and recording findings.

Steps

Directions for this activity:

Model the activity, showing how to navigate to Little Explorers, select the letter A, and write down one word for the letter A. Model 3-4 letters.
Distribute record sheets and writing utensils and send them to their devices.
The students should work individually as you go around the room, checking in with students and helping as necessary.
For students who finish early, Starfall ABCs is a great letter-based activity. (In fact, you might even consider doing the letter hunt on this website if you prefer it to Little Explorers! They could choose to write down one word from each letter activity.)

Assessment Options

Different options for assessing the students:

Observations
Check for understanding
Formative Assessment: Walk around and observe student work; are they able to effectively navigate the online dictionary? Are they able to record one word/letter?
Summative Assessment: Look over the record sheet; were they able to find and record one word for each letter?

MITECS Competencies & ISTE Standards

MITECS: Michigan adopted the "ISTE Standards for Students" called MITECS (Michigan Integrated Technology Competencies for Students) in 2018.

Knowledge Constructor
3c. Students curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.

Empowered Learner
1c. Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.

Creative Communicator
6b. Students create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations. (if students are given the option to draw instead of write their responses)