Our class has been studying a unit on Ladybugs. We have read several books about these fascinating insects. We were shocked to learn how important these ‘ladies’ are to our environment, and now we know why they are so lucky!

Before reading our ladybug books, the children were eager to discuss all of the facts they already knew and things they wanted to know about ladybugs. We made a class KWL chart with all of our information.

 Then, as we read books, we added our newly-learned information onto our chart. The information was written in note-taking form, using bullets for new facts and information.

Using the chart, the students worked on creating a paragraph that incorporated a main idea with supporting details. The students needed to create these complete sentences from the note-taking bullets. Lastly, the children transferred their creations onto the computer using the computer program KidPix and/or created a paper ladybug with their writing inside the wings.

Our unit supports the UDL model. The students were able to choose their creations--paper ladybugs or the computer using KidPix. Some students chose both! The students also had the choice of the direction of their writing piece. Some students chose to write about why they are lucky, while others concentrated on the types of ladybugs or simply all of the fascinating facts about them.

This lesson incorporated New York State Learning Standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics, Science, and Technology.