Lesson Plan: Teaching Storytelling & Feelings with "I Want My Hat Back"

Engage young learners with this comprehensive lesson plan for Jon Klassen's "I Want My Hat Back." Perfect for preschool and kindergarten, this activity teaches essential literacy skills like story sequencing and reading comprehension, while also exploring social-emotional learning (SEL) by identifying character feelings. Includes a creative drawing activity and differentiation tips.

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The Great Hat Hunt: A Lesson in Storytelling and Feelings

Materials Needed:

  • The book "I Want My Hat Back" by Jon Klassen
  • 1-2 sheets of plain paper
  • Crayons, markers, or colored pencils
  • Optional: A few fun hats (party hat, baseball cap, winter hat)
  • Optional: Simple drawings or flashcards of emotions (happy, sad, worried, angry, surprised)

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this 30-minute lesson, the learner will be able to:

  • Retell the main parts of the story in the correct order.
  • Identify at least two different feelings the characters have in the story.
  • Create their own simple story about looking for a lost item.

Lesson Plan

Introduction: The Missing Item! (5 minutes)

Hook:

Start by holding up a fun hat (or just pretending). Say with a worried voice, "Oh no! Imagine my favorite hat was missing. I want my hat back! Have you ever lost something you really, really loved? How did that make you feel inside?" Listen to their story and validate their feelings ("Oh, that must have felt sad," or "I bet you were worried!").

Tell them what you'll teach:

"Well, today we are going to read a story about a big bear who lost his hat. We will be Story Detectives! Our job is to:

  1. Figure out what happens first, next, and last in the story.
  2. Discover the big feelings the characters are having.
  3. Then, you'll get to be the author and create your very own 'I want my ____ back!' story."

Body: The Story Detective Adventure (20 minutes)

Part 1: I Do - Reading the Story (7 minutes)

Model the skill: Read "I Want My Hat Back" aloud with lots of expression.

  • As you read, think out loud about what's happening.
  • Talking Points:
    • (When the bear is sad): "Look at his face. He looks so droopy. I think he feels very, very sad that his hat is gone."
    • (When the bear asks the other animals): "He is being very polite. 'Have you seen my hat?' He must be hoping someone will help him."
    • (When the rabbit answers): "Hmm, listen to how the rabbit talks. 'No. Why are you asking me?' He sounds a little nervous, doesn't he?"
    • (When the bear remembers): "GASP! Look at his eyes! He just remembered something important! His feeling just changed from sad to surprised!"

Part 2: We Do - Detective Work Together (8 minutes)

Guided practice:

1. Retell the Story:

  • Go back to the beginning of the book. "Okay, Detective, let's solve the case of what happened in this story. What was the FIRST thing that happened?" (The bear was sad because his hat was gone.)
  • "Who did he ask NEXT?" (Flip through the pages together to remember the fox, frog, etc.)
  • "What happened at the very END of the story?" (He found his hat... on the rabbit's head!)

2. Hunt for Feelings:

  • Look at the pictures together. Use the emotion flashcards here if you have them.
  • "Let's find some feelings. How does the bear feel on this page?" (Sad, droopy, tired).
  • "How do you think the rabbit feels here when the bear is staring at him?" (Nervous, scared, sneaky).
  • "And how does the bear feel on THIS page?" (Angry, mad!). "How can you tell?" (His eyes are red and squinty).

Part 3: You Do - Your Turn to Be the Author! (5 minutes)

Independent practice:

  • Give the learner paper and drawing tools.
  • Instructions: "Now it's your turn! I want you to make up your own story. It can be 'I Want My Toy Back,' 'I Want My Snack Back,' or anything you want! Draw a picture of you, what you lost, and who you ask for help. Then, draw how your story ends."
  • Success Criteria: "A super story will show me: 1. What you lost. 2. Who you talked to. 3. How you felt."

Conclusion: The Big Recap (5 minutes)

Share and Summarize:

  • Ask the learner to share their drawing and tell you their story. Give lots of praise for their creativity. "Wow, you lost your dinosaur and you asked the dog for help! That's a great story!"
  • Tell them what you taught: "You did an amazing job today. We read a fantastic story, we put the story in order like true detectives, and we figured out all the big feelings the bear and rabbit had. Best of all, you created your very own story. That's what authors do!"

Assessment

  • Formative (During the lesson): Listen to the learner's answers during the "We Do" section. Are they able to recall at least one animal the bear talked to? Can they point to a picture and name a feeling like "sad" or "mad"?
  • Summative (At the end): Look at the learner's "You Do" drawing. Does it show a clear story with a beginning (something is lost), a middle (asking someone), and an end? Their ability to tell you about their drawing shows they understood the task.

Differentiation

  • For a Learner Needing More Support:
    • Offer sentence starters for the drawing activity, like "I want my ____ back." You can write it for them to trace.
    • Instead of drawing a new story, have them draw their favorite part of the bear's story.
    • Use the emotion flashcards heavily, asking them to match the card to the character's face in the book.
  • For a Learner Needing a Challenge:
    • Encourage them to draw a three-panel comic strip for their story (Beginning, Middle, End).
    • Ask them to write a word or a simple sentence under their drawing.
    • Ask a deeper question: "Do you think the bear was right to be so angry? What else could he have done?"

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