Kindergarten Fall History — Family, School, Community Helpers, and the First Sense of Past, Present, and Future

Lesson 14 25 min hist.gK.f.lesson_14

When Grandma was little — past, present, future with family photos

Skills targeted

Objectives

Students can sort family photos onto a PAST / PRESENT / FUTURE 3-band mat using the 'when I was born' line.
Students can identify one detail in a photo that signals it's from the past (clothing, technology, building).

Vocabulary

pastpresentfuturebornyoungerolderclue

Lesson plan

Warm-up

3 min

Daily YTT chant; recall: 'long ago' belongs on the PAST band.

Teacher moves

Point to past/present/future bands and chant
Place the 'when I was born' line marker on the mat — this is the present-anchor

Direct instruction

9 min

When Cynthia Rylant was a girl, she lived in the Appalachian mountains with her grandparents. Her book is a memory — past. Listen for CLUES that the story is from a long time ago.

Key examples

These details tell us it's PAST. Notice how the book itself says 'when I was young' — that's PAST language.

model Clue: water from a pump. Clue: kerosene lantern. Clue: dressing in front of a coal stove.

prompt Read When I Was Young in the Mountains — pause on the well-pump and the schoolhouse pages

Checks for understanding

What is one clue this story is from the past?
What is the past-language phrase the author uses?

Sourcework

Source type

literary source modeling memoir as history

Routine

Read-aloud -> identify past-clues -> apply to own family photos

Details

When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant (1982) — child-friendly memoir as historical source.

Media


        M-K-F-CHR-14-A

Illustration

Reproduction of Diane Goode's interior watercolor illustrations: the well-pump spread, the coal-stove dressing spread, the schoolhouse spread. Soft pastel watercolor; child-of-Appalachia in faded calico dress; quiet domestic detail.

Guided practice

8 min

Tasks

Sort 3 family photos onto the PAST/PRESENT/FUTURE mat

scaffold Past band = before you were born; Present band = since you were born; Future band = hasn't happened yet (drawing)
For one past photo, identify ONE clue that it's past

scaffold Sentence frame: 'I know this is past because ___'

Media


        M-K-F-CHR-14-B

Manipulative Physical / non-image

18x36-inch felt mat with three colored horizontal bands (purple PAST, green PRESENT, blue FUTURE). Black marker line between PAST and PRESENT labeled 'WHEN I WAS BORN' with a baby-icon. Family photos affix with non-stick mounting putty so they can move.

Formative assessment

2 min

Exit ticket

Place one of your photos on the chart. Tell me which band and ONE clue.

scoring Correct placement + correct clue = mastery; correct placement only = practicing; both wrong = re-teach 1:1

Closure

Moves

Add Rylant book to the I-Wonder chart with one wondering
Preview: tomorrow, classroom rules revisited

Homework

5 min

Tasks

Ask: 'When you were a child, what did you do for fun?' Bring an answer tomorrow.

Exercises in this lesson

hist.gK.f.chr.past_present_future.ex_02 Look at the photo I show you. Tell me whether it's past, present, or future, AND give me ONE clue that tells you so.	identify clues in photo · diff 4
hist.gK.f.his.photo_as_source.ex_04 Look at your family photo. Find ONE clue that tells you it was taken in the past (not today). Circle it with your finger and tell me.	find past clue · diff 4

Differentiation

Scaffolds

Pre-sorted half of the photos
Picture-only clue identification
Sentence frame on card

Extensions

Sort 5 photos
Find TWO clues per photo

English Learners

Bilingual past/present/future labels
Allow home-language clue

Ieps 504s

Allow pointing-only
Larger photos
Extended time

Teacher notes

The 'when I was born' line is the developmental anchor for past — children can locate it in their own life. Without it, past is too abstract. The Rylant book gives a gentle entry to past-as-memoir; some children may share their own grandparent stories that are richer than expected.