The world of third grade is a fascinating one. It's a phase where readers are blossoming, ready to delve deeper into literature's treasures. Their appetites for compelling narratives are growing, and they're on the brink of exploring more intricate plots and character dynamics. However, any educator,
This post discusses the different types of outliners, my experience with outlining, and my ideal outlining process!
Check out these teaching ideas for the novel Wonder by RJ Palacio and grab free Wonder Novel Study samples and discussion questions.
Author Tricia Goyer shares Free Printables for Writing Your Novel. Do you want easy-to-use worksheets to help novel writing? Grab these!
This past school year was a great one. With every school year that passes, I like to take a moment and reflect on activities that were successful in the
Tips and tricks for a novel study or book study on Gary Paulsen's Hatchet. Hatchet Novel study activities to make your next novel study successful
This little gem was just delivered this morning and I am already in love!! This newest addition to the Wonder collection is a picture book called We’re All Wonders by R.J. Palacio, featuring everybody’s favorite inspirational 5th grader. I can hardly wait to share this with my own 5th grade class after Spring Break!! This post…
Suzanne Collins biography, graphic novel style! Students should enjoy reading, right!? And there's a reason why young children love picture books: images are appealing. Do I prefer reading a graphic novel version of my favorite books? Not really. But, that doesn't mean none of my students do. In fact, I would say quite a few of them would prefer it. If I want my students to enjoy reading, I need to offer plenty of choices. The same with writing. Some kids are happy to write a classic book report. But some aren't. So why not give them choices? With the recent announcement on the Hunger Games Fireside Chat of Sara Gundell's comic-style biography of Suzanne Collins (author of The Hunger Games), (see picture) this reminds me that there are so many appealing ways to entice students to read rather than the traditionally printed book. I offer loads of choices in my high school classroom because we all have different tastes. I do love reading comics and have Calvin and Hobbes, The Far Side, Close to Home, and Frazz books for students to read. Of course I offer the classics along side them, but I would much rather have a student read something over nothing. We need to admit that it is OK to allow these choices in our classroom. Students DO learn from reading non-academia texts! Reading the Guiness Book of World Records is still helping my students' reading skills. How? Because they are reading! It doesn't matter what they are reading. The act alone and repetition of it makes them better readers. It is the same with writing. The more they write, the better writer they become. So why do we assign the boring 5-paragraph essay over and over again so they learn to hate writing? I don't know (well I do...because we are forced to). It's crazy. I would rather assign them more relevant and personally-connected pieces because 1. they will enjoy it, and 2. the chances of them copying & pasting text from the internet is less likely. Here's a free download for you: comic strip panels to use to assign a comic bio or book report. Download all of the pages here: I created them using Pasq.com's Comic Life program. You can head to my teacher store to find additional ideas for literature- and history-based learning. Sample pages:
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen is one of my very favorite novels to teach. I am always on the hunt for ways to pull in my struggling boys, and the male protagonist and survival theme really seems to suck them in. The book is also one of my eleven year old daughter's all time favorites, so I can say with all honesty that the story is really appealing to adventurous young girls as well. There is so much that you can do with this novel. It makes a great literature circle book, as it pairs really nicely with other survival themed novels, such as Scott O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins, Jean Craighead George's Julie of the Wolves or My Side of the Mountain, Shipwreck or Everest by Gordon Korman, Deathwatch by Robb White, The Cay by Theodore Taylor, or The Girl Who Owned a City by O.T. Nelsen. The similar themes of these stories would make for some great class discussion and compare/contrast activities. Youtube has some great videos about the novel. I usually use an interview with Gary Paulsen that I found on youtube to introduce the author. I like the way he talks about his life as a writer and his reasons for writing. To keep the kids focused while we watch, I like to handout a few quick questions for them to complete while watching. We glue these in at the beginning of our Hatchet Interactive Notebooks, and discuss the answers as a class. If you would like a set of the questions we use (with answer key and video link), you can download it for free at my Teachers Pay Teachers Store here. As the theme of the novel revolves around survival, I like to introduce the novel by discussing some wilderness survival tips. I have collected a variety of tips on a handout, and we go over the tips and discuss them as a class. After discussion, I have the kids brainstorm and write about the tip they think is most important. The kids always enjoy this, and I find it to be a fun pre-reading activity to get them excited about the book. We usually get some pretty good class debates going on, as the kids like to argue over which tip is most important. In the past, I have had the kids complete chapter questions when we complete each chapter of the novel. I like these questions in particular because they include vocabulary words and opportunities for the kids to express their learning in an artistic way. This has been a good way to work on their vocabulary and to make sure they are understanding what they are reading. This past year, however, I decided to switch things up a bit. We had been learning about summarizing, and I really wanted the kids to get some practice with these skills while reading through the novel. To do this, I decided to have them summarize and illustrate what happens in each chapter. This was a nice break from chapter questions, and the kids like the opportunity to show their understanding in artistic form. I also really loved how the completed projects looked! We hung them on the wall outside our classroom for a bit, and then glued them into our Hatchet Interactive Notebooks. The little image on the left of Brian with mosquito bites makes me giggle every time I see it. The kids had so much fun with these and I really love how they turned out. As we progress through the novel, we spend a significant amount of time brainstorming the ways Brian has changed from the beginning of the novel towards the end. I have them do a compare and contrast organizer in small groups, which we then go over and add to as a class. When we are done, I have them glue them into their Hatchet Interactive Notebooks, as they will need to refer back to them for the next activity. For this activity, the kids are required to illustrate and discuss the changes that Brian went through during the novel. It makes for a great visual representation of Brian before and after. I like the way this assignment forces kids have to look at the changes that occurred in Brian both on the inside and outside. Again, the kids loved being able to use art to show their understanding, and I love how they turned out. Once they were complete, we glued them into our Hatchet Interactive Notebooks. If you are interested in picking up any of the resources shown in this post, you can pick them up at my Teachers Pay Teachers store by clicking here or on one of the images below. Do you teach this novel in your classroom? I would love to hear about some of the activities that work for you!
Bring books to life with your family or a group of friends. The planning is done for you. This is such a great way to have fun with reading!
Don't let your literature anthology dictate the short stories you read with your middle school and high school students. There are so many wonderful short stories out there, many of which can be used to teach a variety of literary elements and paired with other texts. Read on for 13 of my favorites, which literary terms and skills they lend themselves to teaching, plus suggested text pairings and activities.
Do you do this too? Snatch out a moment anywhere you can to keep up with a great action book? That's Stephen King reading Lee Child's Tripwire between innings at the baseball—looks like he’s deep into one of Jack Reacher’s exploits. (Apparently King’s a big Boston Red Sox fan, so it’s not
A multiple choice quiz after reading is a quick and easy way to check student comprehension, but it doesn't allow you to assess deeper understanding and it certainly isn't fun or creative. If you are looking for more meaningful and engaging activities to use with students during literature circles or a novel unit, here's twelve ideas that are favorites in my classroom and the Common Core standards they align with.
Matchbook chapter summaries super simple and fun project that you can have your students complete during your next novel study.
A Little Princess is one of my favorite stories! It is filled with great lessons for kids and adults alike. Study this treasured classic with this A Little Princess book study.
Whether you're a homeschool mom looking for a great book for your 5th grader or a classroom teacher trying to build a great library, finding texts that are engaging and a great fit for your readers can be tough. I've compiled this list of the best books for 5th graders to help save you time and give you a
One of my favorite ways to outline or plan a story is to map it out like a subway or road map. Here's how this technique works. Each road or subway line
Major Character Characterization -list (SOURCE: anikaandaj.deviantart.com) 5 Ways to Keep Characters Consistent (…
There's no better day to read aloud The Dot than on International Dot Day! Join us for this celebration of creativity and courage.
Fables are an important part of English Language Arts instruction. The genre, which often includes animals that act like humans and moral lessons, is perfect for targeted lessons in reading, writing, listening, speaking, and analyzing. Classic and modern fables are both entertaining and approachable. Fables also shed light on other cultures, characterization, and moral lessons. Most importantly, they're just plain fun to teach! Here are 6 easy ways to teach fables in your classroom... I LOVE giving students a chance to write their very own fable. I recommend starting with mentor texts so that students can become experts on the genre. Then, through targeted writing instruction, students can write their own story that includes a moral, animal characters, story elements, and illustrations. As students develop their stories, you can even have them "pitch" their stories to their peers acting as storybook editors. Once students have written a strong fable, take these lessons to the next level and let students create a children's book filled with illustrations. You could even have them share their fables with younger students. Check out this ready-to-teach Fable Writing Unit! Don't you just love lessons that meet a ton of instructional standards at once? Well, this fable unit does just that! It’s a 7-day unit designed around Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” and in it students read three different versions of the fable. After building background on each form, they have the opportunity to critically read and respond to the fable in prose, verse, and drama form. Through small group work, independent studies, and class discussions students will not only understand and appreciate the elements of a fable and each form of literature, but they’ll also develop a deep understanding of each text. Learn more about this unit here. Of course, fables are wonderful to read in the classroom. But, why just read a fable when you can also connect, investigate, write, and draw? I created this Foldable Fables resource with Art with Jenny K. to combine reading, writing, and illustrating. This resource is super engaging because students create an accordion-style booklet filled with their learning and creativity. It's fun and educational! The seven learning activities help students connect deeply to their reading. Check out the super engaging Foldable Fable here! I've found that fables are wonderful to add to learning stations focused on reading comprehension skills. For instance, in this sequencing centers resource, students investigate "Fox and the Goat" at one of the learning stations. At the station, they're tasked to read the fable and then put the fable in the correct sequence with an interactive shape. Since fables are often short and focused they're the perfect addition to reading comprehension learning stations! Fables lend themselves perfectly to plays. I've found that students respond really well to opportunities to perform short skits and plays in the classroom. In this theme mini-unit, students get to act out "The Four Oxen and a Lion." As a small group, they practice reading out loud, acting, and investigating theme. It's fun for students to get into different characters as they act out a fable! I'm a big fan of reading out loud to students. Often, I would read stories to students as they completed their daily warm-ups. My read alouds included novels, poems, short stories, and of course, fables. You might mix-up your own read alouds with fables from around the world or modern fables. Here are a few collections of fables that you might want to add to your classroom library... --- Aesop's Fables: The Classic Edition --- Buddhist Stories for Kids --- Filipino Children's Favorite Stories ------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope you've found some simple ways to teach fables in your classroom! Fables really are wonderful literature treasures for teaching reading, writing, investigating, performing, and more! Thanks for stopping by! Mary Beth P.S. My friend, Art with Jenny K., has another idea for adding fables to the classroom. Check out her post here. *This post contains affiliate links.
Published in London in 1884, Edwin Abbot’s amusing short novel Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions is a biting cri...
Use social media obsession to your benefit and get to know your students! This Instagram page layout is current to 2023, and includes two pages: A profile page - draw your profile photo, write your username and a brief bio; and fill six photo squares with drawings of activities, foods, family members, or friends. A post page - draw one photo and add your own caption. Want more Back to School activities? Try these: All About Me Mingle Bingo
BRIDGERTON SEASON 3 PEN AND COLIN 03x03
Explore adorable Crochet Minnie Mouse Amigurumi ideas for Disney crafters! Create magical, handmade toys with these inspiring designs.
What Makes an Interesting Villain? — Let's explore the elements that contribute to the creation of an intriguing and memorable villain.
Here are a few of my favorite books to use as first day read alouds for middle grade students...
There are many benefits to using movie trailers as an alternative assessment in English class. The main one: students genuinely enjoy them!
Happy New Year 2013!!! I am both psyched and nervous about this new year. I anticipate many changes to happen in my life. I have a feeling that this is going to be an awesome year!!!! I made a list of things that I plan on changing this year. I only hope that I can accomplish each one. During my Christmas/New Year break, I decided to stay busy by working on my lesson plans for January. The new year also begins the 3rd 9 weeks at my school. I really hope my 3rd graders are well rested because I plan on working them for the next 18 weeks!!!! One of my favorite novels is Charlotte's Web. I love reading and teaching my students about this book. E. B. White delivered such a wonderful message about friendship and love. I can't wait for my students to begin reading the book. I am sooo excited that I created a 35 page unit on Charlotte's Web. Yes, you read that right~~~35 pages!! It is my FIRST unit of this size!!! Not only is it 35 pages, it is also FREE!!! I do not sell any of my products on TpT. This is on my list to change for the new year. I want to begin selling some products to help with finances~~who can't use the help!! Please don't forget to leave me a comment letting me know how much you enjoy my unit!!!!! Thank you!!!!! Included in the unit: 6 spelling lists divided into chapters, 6 vocabulary lists divided into chapters, several bubble maps, story summary, diary for students to complete, several reports (pigs & spiders), adjectives, venn diagram; & many, many more! Please check out the pictures below for a quick preview of some of the pages you will receive!!! Grab your FREE copy (HERE) A while back, I posted the following spelling lists for Charlotte's Web. This is one of my first creations. It does not include list 6. Please download your FREE copy (HERE). I am linking up again with TBA's Freebie Friday and Classroom Freebies, Manic Monday. Please hop over to these blogs and pick up some Freebies!!
Making inferences worksheets and activities aren't always easy for students, but there are fun ways to teach this challenging reading skill.
Build a deeper understanding (and love) of language that'll last a lifetime with worksheets that boost understanding, bolster vocabulary, and challenge kids with complex text.
FREE Ronald Dahl Unit Study
Heartstopper books in order to read and enjoy them fully is something to consider for reading this best selling YA graphic novel series.
Check out these fun Because of Winn-Dixie activities. The engaging novel study ideas includes character analysis, vocabulary work and chapter summaries.
