A Seat at
the Front
Orientation and Conferencing Plan
Orientation
Stage 3
Comprehension questions
Ensure that you have read about using the plan in the
Program Guide.
1. When Grandma was a girl, what did the law say
about people on the bus?
Book summary
2. Who was Rosa Parks?
Read the following summary to the student.
When Tony asks his grandmother why she always sits
at the front of the bus, she tells him about a woman
named Rosa Parks. Find out how Rosa Parks helped
to change American history.
Introduction
Foster interest and activate the student’s background
knowledge. Be concise – focus on motivating and involving
the student. Encourage prediction by using the text
and illustrations on the cover of the book. Discuss new
vocabulary and remind the student to use the glossary
(when applicable). Also remind the student to ask him/
herself questions before, during and after the reading.
3. What did Rosa Parks do that was against the law?
4. Why do you think black people boycotted buses?
5. Why do you think the law was changed?
Answers to the Comprehension questions
1. Black people and white people were not allowed to sit
together.
2. She was a friend of Grandma’s mother, and she
thought it was wrong that black Americans were treated
differently from white Americans.
3. She wouldn’t give up her seat for a white man.
4. Answers will vary.
5. Answers will vary.
Discuss how the student and their parents travel
to school and work, how easy or difficult it is, and
how they feel at the end of the day. Talk about the
way Rosa Parks’s small act after a tiring day at work
changed American history. Discuss how one person’s
actions can affect the whole country or even the
world.
Supporting English Language
Learners
Locate the town of Montgomery on a map. Discuss
what the student knows about prejudice and racism.
Purpose
Conferencing
Check how well the student reads
When you are conferencing, the student reads all or part of
the book to you. Then:
•praise, pause, and prompt appropriately;
•check for accuracy (by counting mistakes) and fluency;
•check for understanding by using one or more of the
following methods:
−asking
−
the comprehension questions provided and any
others that seem necessary;
−asking
−
the student to retell the story in their own words;
−asking
−
questions about and discussing aspcts of the
story, such as the theme, plot, main ideas, sequence
and characters;
−encouraging
−
the student to confirm the predictions they
made during the orientation.
Decide what the student does next
Next recommend that the student:
•practices some more on the same book, with or without
the audio;
•completes one of the activities provided that is related to
the book;
•practices with another book from the same level; or
•is assessed for promotion to the next level.
The following are suggestions for optional lessons to take
with your English language learners. See the overview chart
in the Program Guide for a summary of the text features of
this book.
Responding orally to texts by restating facts and
details to clarify ideas
Introduce the concept and practice
Students learn about culture through connecting their
own experiences, information, and ideas with those
of others. Talk about the concept of human rights
and being able to choose what you do or don’t do.
When the student is familiar with A Seat at the
Front, discuss what they learned from the story,
including what may cause people to treat others from
different cultures in a contrary manner. Talk about
the different ways that people treat each other, giving
both kind and unkind examples.
Ask the student if they know of anyone from their
own culture who has made a difference to people’s
lives. If the student doesn’t know of anyone, as a
homework activity, they could ask their parents. Talk
about the similarities and differences between this
person’s story and Rosa Parks’s story. For extension,
you could ask the student to tell the Rosa Parks
story in their own words to another student.
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)
A Seat at
the Front
Cloze Activity
Stage 3
Name:............................................................................................................................... Date:...............................................
Introduction: When Tony asks his grandmother why she always sits at the front of the bus, she tells him about a
woman named Rosa Parks. Find out how Rosa Parks helped to change American history.
When Tony caught the crosstown bus, he liked to sit
at the back. When he was with _________ grandma,
they always _________ at the front. “Why do _________
always sit at the_________ of the bus, Grandma?” Tony
_________ one day. “I sit at _________ front because of
Rosa Parks,” _________ replied. “Is she a _________ of
yours?” Tony _________ . Grandma smiled and shook
her _________ . “When I was a young _________ , I lived
in _________ place called Montgomery, in Alabama.
_________ those days, there was a law that _________
black people and _________ people weren’t allowed
_________ sit together on _________ bus. White people
_________ at the front of the bus, _________ black
people sat at the _________ . If the seats _________
the front of the _________ were full, the black _________
had to stand and _________ the white people _________
seats.”
Accuracy Chart (Exact word replacement only)
Errors
Level
M = Meaning (makes sense)
More than 11 correct
Independent
Heard
10 or 11 correct
Instructional
Fewer than 10 correct
Frustration
Words Entered
Score
Seen
S = Syntax (sounds right)
Unseen
Comments:
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)
Errors
M S
A Seat at
the Front
Text-Sequencing Activity
Stage 3
When Tony caught the bus, he sat at the back.
When he was with his grandma, they always sat
at the front. He asked his grandma why she did this.
“I sit at the front because of Rosa Parks,”
she replied. “When I was young, I lived in Alabama.
There was a law there that said black people
and white people weren’t allowed to sit together
on the bus.
White people sat at the front, and black
people sat at the back. If the seats were full,
the black people had to stand and give the
white people their seats. There was a woman
named Rosa Parks.
Rosa thought this was wrong. One day,
Rosa was coming home from work.
A white man got on the bus and
told her to stand up. Rosa said no, and the
police were called. Rosa was arrested.
When the black people heard about this,
they stopped traveling on buses until
the law was changed. This went on for a year.
In the end, the law was changed.” Grandma smiled.
“That’s why I like to sit at the front of the bus.”
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)
Word Search Activity
A Seat at
the Front
Stage 3
Name:............................................................................................................................... Date:...............................................
Words can
be found
in these
directions:
The letter in
each square
can only be
used in one
word.
Words
to find:
p
a
c
c
a
l
l
e
d
b
a
c
k
e
s
s
r
b
f
r
o
n
t
b
u
s
o
k
r
m
o
l
s
c
h
o
o
l
g
p
e
e
t
i
s
a
t
o
w
a
n
r
l
d
p
h
t
l
s
c
d
d
a
o
o
e
g
l
e
h
r
e
t
k
a
o
s
u
o
o
i
y
a
o
h
d
o
y
n
l
p
v
o
e
c
t
d
e
w
h
w
e
a
s
e
d
d
t
a
e
a
h
e
n
n
w
i
r
l
i
k
e
u
d
y
r
t
h
e
t
o
w
h
e
r
e
g
m
o
t
h
e
r
s
n
w
o
u
l
d
h
u
n
t
i
l
w
h
i
t
e
a
n
d
t
h
o
m
e
and
called
good
law
one
school
they
white
asked
caught
group
like
over
sit
to
why
back
crosstown
head
mother
people
smiled
until
would
black
day
her
no
replied
that
was
bus
front
home
on
rode
the
where
Use the letters that are left to make the word that tells what black people had to
do for white people if the seats on the bus were full. .............................................................................
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)
A Seat at
the Front
Board Game Activity
¬¬
Spin the numbered spinner.
¬¬
The highest number starts.
¬¬
You need to spin the exact
number to move onto the
END square.
Black people
START
1
You sit at the
front of the
bus with your
grandma.
Stage 3
2 You ask why
Grandma
always sits at the
front of the bus. Go
on to 4.
3
22 Not many
4
END
23
5 Grandma
17
30
24
6
16
29
25 In the end,
7 You learn
15 The bus
28
27
26
14
13
12 Rosa Parks
11
19 were angry
20
18
21
and stopped using
buses. Name two
numbers. Spin
again. If you spin
one of them, go on
to 21.
driver called
the police. Rosa
was arrested. Go
back four spaces.
That’s why your grandma always
sits at the front of the bus!
black families
had cars. They
had to walk. Spin
again. Go back that
number.
smiles and
tells you a story.
Go forward three
spaces.
the law was
changed. Name
two numbers. If you
spin one of them,
go on to 27.
refused to
give up her seat to
a white man. Spin
again. Go forward
that number.
about an old
law. Black people
couldn’t sit next to
white people. Miss
a turn.
8
10 The old law
said white
people could sit at
the front and have
the seats. Go back
to 6.
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)
9
Writing Activity
A Seat at
the Front
Stage 3
Name:............................................................................................................................... Date:...............................................
You’re a newspaper reporter. Answer the questions below to plan an article about
the Rosa Parks story.
Headline:
Who was involved?
What happened in the bus?
When did it happen?
Where did it happen?
How did it change history?
Write on the back of this page if you need more space.
REMEMBER
Include details about: how the law affected black people,
what Rosa Parks did, why black people stopped using buses,
and how the law was changed.
© 2015 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Distributed exclusively under licence in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing, Inc. (www.myokapi.com)