“A Ballet Dancing Truck Driver” presents a fun way to work on reading fluency with students and it serves as a good model for teaching intonation. Copy the picture cards on pages 44- 47 to provide students with sequencing practice in independent learning centers and during reader’s theater. Don’t forget to consider this song for class performances!Lesson 7.1
Skill/Concept: Listening, Sequencing, Fluency
Materials: CD set to track 7
Class-made big book See lyrics and sample pictures.
Teaching students actions for each occupation in “A Ballet Dancing Truck Driver” integrates movement, listening, and sequencing into class performance. Use the actions listed below, or let your students
create their own.
1. truck driver: grab an imaginary steering wheel and sing as you drive.
2. ballet dancing truck driver: turn in a circle on tip toes like a ballet step followed by truck driver motion.
3. runner racing: get arms into pre-race position and say “Ready, set, go!”
4. elephant tamer: make a large motion to show where the elephant should sit and say “Sit here, please.”
5. fi nest cook: stir a large imaginary pot of soup and yell “Soup’s On!”
6. carpenter nailing: pound an imaginary nail with an imaginary hammer and say “tap, tap, tap.”
7. math teacher: use two fi ngers on each hand and say “2 and 2 is 4.”
8. astronaut: put hands together, palms facing each other at chest level, raise hands over head, separate and say “Lift off!”
Once students are familiar with “A Ballet Dancing Truck Driver,” create picture cards that illustrate the above actions (see pages 44-47) or those your students invent. Place the picture cards in a center for students to put in order, or keep props in the reader’s theatre for sequencing and fluency practice.