Creating a Glossary with First Grades

First grade classes create a glossary in CCGPS ELA:
ELACC1RI5: Know and use various text features (e.g., headings, table of content, glossaries, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text.

I chose a non-fiction title that did not have a glossary, but had a lot of interesting words.  The title from the National Geographic series, What Did One Elephant Say to Another?: A Book About Communication, by Becky Baines worked well as would A Den is a Bed for a Bear: A Book About Hibernation .

I read the book and gave each student a strip of paper with a word from the book printed on it. I had a strip with a different word for each student, so part of the challenge of this activity is finding a book with enough words that 1st grade students will know and be able to write about!   Each student wrote a definition on the strip of paper.  I took one class's words and arranged them in alphabetical order on a bulletin board in the hallway with an explanation of the activity.  I took the other classes' words and glued them onto a large sheet of paper (in alphabetical order of course) and delivered them to the class.  If I would have had more time, we could have put them in alphabetical order in the library media center.  I think I will do that next year.