Do you have struggling readers you just can't reach? This mega list of reading intervention activities will help you teach all students how to read!
Alphabet Watches Craft Ideas. Free English Worksheets and Teaching Resources. English Activities For Kids. English Created Resources.
If you are looking for some high-interest activities, try using animated shorts to teach inference. Free handouts focus on student learning.
This is a visual for how students work their way up the Reading Ladder. Kindergarten is working within the levels 1 and 2 throughout the year. When working with your child, please focus on these skills so that they have a solid reading foundation. Success is earned and needs to be worked for. Thank you to Katelyn's Learning Studio for this amazing resource.
Hands-on pre-reading activities that encourage your elementary students to access their prior knowledge and make predictions.
If you're looking for dyslexia strategies for kids, these ideas will help you think outside the box and build on your child's strengths!
Creating adapted books is a lot of work. I found this wonderful website with over 400 free printable adapted books you can download. Read more...
Looking for ways to use comprehension passages in your classroom? Come check out how use mine plus check out my new comprehension one pagers!
Create a Math Block I can't say this enough. An effective math block will help you tremendously! It creates routine and structure that you need to make sure everyone is on task. This is what I include in my math block: Engaging Mini Lessons Math centers Independent practice visuals throughout the classroom Use A
See how our free reading program walks you through the steps to helping your child or struggling student, learn to read.
How to teach ELL students to read challenging, on-grade level texts through Visible Reading, a differentiated, process-driven reading strategy.
Helping your kids learn to read isn't difficult, expensive or scary. Read on to find out how i've taught my five kids to read. Includes resource links!
Independent reading is a great way to help students build a love of reading! These 5 strategies help hold students accountable!
In this post, I share my teaching strategies for reading comprehension in my upper elementary classroom. These effective reading strategies are easy to implement and they have been great for helping my students become better readers. Plus you can grab some FREE reading worksheets below! *This post contains affiliate links to Amazon for your convenience. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying
Top 10 Pixar Short Films for teaching middles school literary elements: theme, plot, inference, setting, dialogue, conflict, and more.
Use station activities to improve reading comprehension! Get your students
Teaching theme is not an easy task! Not only do students need to have a strong comprehension of the story's elements (like plot, setting, and characters), but they also have to be able to make inferences to find the author's message, since most themes are not overtly stated by the author. So, what are some of my favorite activities for helping kids understand theme? I'll list a number of them here. 1. Make an Anchor Chart Anchor charts are a great way to make learning visual and to have a record that kids can refer to when they need a bit of extra support. Theme may be defined in a number of ways. To me, the theme is the author's message or what he/she wants the reader to take away/learn from the story. It is a BIG idea, with a real-world or universal concern and can be applied to anyone. Besides talking about what a theme is, you'll also want to go over what it isn't. For example, some kids confuse the main idea of the story with its theme. To help students understand the difference, it's helpful to use stories that everyone in the class knows, like previous read alouds or classic stories like The Three Little Pigs. You can take each story and discuss the main idea (what the story was mostly about - specific to the story) vs. the theme (the lesson the author wants the reader to know - not specific to the story), to contrast the two ideas. The second area of confusion for some kids is that the theme is not specific to the characters in the story. In the book Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes, for example. The theme would not be that...A little mouse named Chrysanthemum learned to accept the uniqueness of her name. The theme would be larger than the book and would be something like...It's important to accept oneself. Also, you'll want to explain to your students that often times, a book has multiple themes and there are several answers which work equally well to describe a book's theme. Since theme is very subjective, I tell students that I will accept any answer, as long as they have the text evidence to prove it. For example, in the book, Wonder, by R.J. Palacio, one might argue that the theme is about friendship, another might say family, or even courage, or kindness. Any one of these themes would be right, and counted as such, since they each fit the story and could be supported by text evidence. 2. Use Pixar Shorts to Practice Theme Besides the sheer enjoyment which comes from watching these mini-films, your students can learn a lot about reading concepts from these. They're great for ELL students or for struggling readers, and for all readers really since the text complexity piece is removed. You can find these clips on YouTube, but you'll want to make sure to preview them first, so you're more familiar with the plot and are able to focus on theme questions. Here are some of my favorite Pixar Shorts for teaching theme: Piper Partly Cloudy Lava Boundin' 3. Use Mentor Texts Mentor texts are one of my go-to teaching tools as picture books are able to portray examples of just about any reading concept you need to teach. One thing I like to do when using mentor texts for theme, is to vary the types of questions I ask. Rather than always saying What is the theme?, I might ask... What is the deeper meaning of this story? After reading this book, what do you think matters to this author? Which idea from the story do you think might stay with you? What did the author want people to learn from this story?... Once kids answer, you might say, Ah...so that's the theme! Some of my current mentor text favorites for theme include the following: Ish by Peter H. Reynolds I Wish I Were a Butterfly by James Howe Journey by Aaron Becker (a wordless book) Beautiful Oops by Barry Saltzberg The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires Spoon by Amy Krouse Rosenthal Pete and Pickles by Berkeley Breathed If you're looking for more titles, I have a FREE Mentor Text List for Literature which includes a page on theme which you can download from my TpT store. 4. Use Posters with Themes to Chart Book Themes I like to choose 8 - 10 common themes and place posters of them in the classroom. These are included in my Theme unit but you could easily make them yourself if you'd like. After we finish a class novel, a read aloud, or a mentor text as part of a mini-lesson, I like to have the kids discuss the theme of the book. Once we decide on the theme, I place a miniaturized copy of the book's cover (about 3 x 3 inches or so) under the correct theme poster. You can also make the posters more interactive by allowing kids to write titles of books they have recently read on sticky notes, under the posters as well. 5. Use Songs to Practice Finding the Theme I love to add music to the classroom whenever possible. Not only does it add instant motivation for some kids, but it is also just good for them in so many ways. There are lots of songs you can use to teach theme, from current pop songs to oldies, rap songs, and country songs. While all of these work well, I especially enjoy using Disney songs. Disney songs are easily recognized for some kids, have catchy, fun tunes, and have lyrics that need no censoring (yay!). You can easily find the lyrics online to project on a smartboard or document projector, and the song clips may be found on YouTube, Here are some of my favorite Disney songs which work well for theme: Hakuna Matata from Lion King Just Keep Swimming from Finding Dory Reflection from Mulan Let it Go from Frozen Something There from Beauty and the Beast A Whole New World from Aladdin 6. Introduce Short Texts Using Task Cards Using task cards for theme gives your students a great deal of practice in a short period of time, which makes them a perfect way to begin to practice finding the theme using text. I love the fact that students can read multiple task card stories and practice finding the theme 20 - 30 times, in the time it might take to read a story and find the theme once. You can do task cards as a center activity, to play Scoot, or as a whole class scavenger hunt. One thing I like to do for the scavenger hunt is to make sure everyone has a partner and to pair stronger readers with struggling readers. 7. Add Some Writing After students have worked on theme for a week or two, I like to have students create their own short stories which show a strong theme, without directly stating it. This changes each student's role from a theme finder, to a theme creator and gives students insight into how authors create a situation that allows a theme to unfold. When I introduce this project, we refer back to the task cards we just completed, as an example of story length and rich content. In a matter of 2 - 3 paragraphs, students learn that they can include enough information to let our readers know our message. After students are finished creating these short stories, it's fun to share them in some way, to give more theme practice. Sometimes I have students meet in small groups to share out, with group members guessing the theme. Other years, I leave a stack on my desk and grab several if we have a few minutes. Either the students or I read the short story out loud, and the class discusses the theme. 8. Move to Passages, Short Stories, and Novels. Once we have scaffolded a great foundation for the understanding of theme, there comes a point where kids have to move on to text which is more challenging. I like to use page-long passages which I have created, before using short stories, and ultimately novels. If you're looking for some ready made materials to help you teach theme, here's a packet I love to use which works well for 4th and 5th Graders. Click here to read more about the Theme unit. Want some more teaching ideas and activities to teach theme? Click here to read Teaching Themes in Literature. If you like this post, make sure to share it with a teacher friend! Thanks so much for stopping by! For more ideas and strategies focused on upper elementary, be sure to sign up for The Teacher Next Door's free email newsletter! Bonus, you'll also gain access to my FREE Resource Library which contains exclusive upper elementary freebies that you won't find anywhere else! I'd love to connect with you! The Teacher Next Door's Website Pinterest Facebook Instagram TpT Store
Are your students having trouble identifying theme within a story? This step-by-step process scaffolds through several reading comprehension skills to help students get a thorough understanding of theme. Students will be able to determine the theme of a story, poem, or drama from details in the text by first
Finding resources to support middle school special education students is difficult, here are the best reading resources that I have found.
Take a look at these 15 must-have books for learning hand lettering and modern calligraphy, getting inspired, and starting to make money with your artwork.
Do you do all of these 6 essentials of reading intervention? Each is a must-have for effective intervention and will make it so much easier...
Do you need English reading comprehension worksheets to supplement your ESL classroom? Check out some of the worksheets and editable documents on this page. Reading comprehension, or the ability to…
I have always assigned nightly reading. Why? I don't assign nightly reading because I want to give students "reading homework." I don't assign nightly reading
A perfect activity for literature circles and shared reading during your literacy block! Students work independently and in groups to analyze, respond to, and discuss fictional texts. Each student receives an 8.5” x 11” page, and contributes a different piece of information to the group's overall discussion of the text. Roles can be rotated every chapter/section, or this activity can be completed after the students have read the entire text. Note: If they are new to Literature Circles, younger grades may require more direction than simply being handed their copy of the poster. It is suggested that a completed example be provided, or a section be completed together as a class so students understand teacher expectations. Roles: Setting Description- students draw and describe the setting (time/place). Main Events- students explain the main events of the plot. Character Development- students describe any growth/change in the characters. Quote Analysis- students select a quote and describe its importance in the text. To display their completed poster, students trim along the dotted edges and place their pages side by side on a background. French Version: French Literature Circle Collaborative Poster Clipart Credit: May Hates Mondays Copyright © Zenful Ziggy Designs By purchasing this resource, you are agreeing that the contents are the property of ZENFUL ZIGGY DESIGNS, and licensed to you only for classroom/personal use as a single user. I retain the copyright, and reserve all rights to this product. Please visit my store to purchase additional licenses for this product.
Discover my favorite activities that are aligned with the science of reading curriculum to help your young learns master reading fast.
Freedom Homeschooling provides reading lists for 2nd through 12th grades. Also, there's a FREE lesson or novel study for each book!
SHOW students why they should read through these engaging, collaborative learning stations that feature informational text + multimedia. Each station focuses on a different benefit of reading. These stations work well for any ELA class. They're great for the beginning of the year/semester, before literature circles, or before any whole-class or independent/choice reading project. When you purchase this resource, you will receive the following in both PRINT and DIGITAL (Google Slides & Forms) versions for your convenience: 5 engaging learning stations with links to articles & videos Teacher instructions Interactive Google Slides version with clickable buttons Alternative Google Forms version for ease with grading! Love this resource, but want amazing book recommendations to go with it? Your students will LOVE my unique book recommendation brochures with reader personality quizzes that give students personalized book recs based on their interests! Check them out below: Middle School Book Recommendation Brochures with Interactive Personality Quizzes High School/YA Book Recommendation Brochures with Interactive Personality Quizzes
Filler Activities for ELA (blog post) What can you do with five extra minutes in secondary ELA? Here are a few ideas to engage students until the bell.
With the focus on Science of Reading proven strategies, let us share our top four tools to create true Science of Reading Classrooms.
Thank you to Diane for submitting this fun book report poster. It’s legal size (paper) worksheet and is great for lower grades (or as an easy project for upper grades). Great end of the year …
This post explains how teachers can use an academic version of the highly engaging Spoons game to review concepts. Free games included!
Activities that boost fluency all year long…and that you only have to prep once!
Unleash the power of poetry analysis with our dynamic Poetry Analysis Graphic Organizer, meticulously designed to be paired with any text or poem. This versatile resource, crafted using Google Slides, offers the flexibility of both printing and digital assignment, enabling students to unravel the intricate layers of poetry's artistry. Key Features: Comprehensive Analysis: This graphic organizer presents a comprehensive framework for diving deep into the poetic realm, encompassing key elements such as Tone, Word Choice, Imagery, Style, and Theme. Digital and Printable: Accessible via digital platforms or traditional print, this resource adapts seamlessly to diverse learning environments, ensuring accessibility and convenience. What Students Will Explore: Tone: The graphic organizer guides students in uncovering the speaker's attitude toward the subject, fostering an understanding of the emotional tone of the poem. Word Choice: Students will analyze the specific words used, their connotations, associations, and emotional impact on the reader, facilitating a deeper comprehension of the poem's linguistic nuances. Imagery: The organizer prompts students to immerse themselves in the sensory details of the poem, from sound and smell to sight, taste, and touch, enhancing their sensory perception and connection to the text. Style: Students will explore the author's unique style, including the use of figurative language, repetition, rhyme, and rhythm, illuminating the poetic techniques that shape the verse. Theme: The graphic organizer helps students uncover the poet's profound insight about life, encouraging them to ponder the deeper meanings and messages embedded in the verse. Why Choose Our Poetry Analysis Graphic Organizer: Comprehensive Framework: This resource provides students with a systematic framework for in-depth analysis, fostering a deep appreciation of poetry's artistry. Digital and Printable: Designed for both digital and print use, this graphic organizer accommodates various learning preferences and environments, enhancing accessibility. Critical Thinking: By guiding students through the exploration of poetic elements, this organizer promotes critical thinking, interpretation, and a profound connection to poetry. Empower your students to become skilled interpreters of poetry, unveiling the secrets of verse and fostering a lifelong appreciation for the art of language. The Poetry Analysis Graphic Organizer is an essential tool for nurturing critical analysis and poetic awareness. Elevate your teaching and inspire your students with a versatile resource designed to deepen their understanding of poetry and its captivating intricacies. Transform your classroom with the Poetry Analysis Graphic Organizer from History and Literacy for All!
Likability is a key principle of SCM—because it makes building rapport effortless. It causes students to want to listen to you, please you, and behave for you. It helps make your consequences matter. Being disliked, on the other hand, makes classroom management far more ... Read more
Wait until you discover the physical, mental, and social benefits of this gentle martial art.
Science of reading activities can be so helpful for students of all ages. Reading is an essential skill to have in order to succeed in school and life. It’s not just about being able to read the words, it’s about understanding what you are reading and connecting those ideas with what you already know.
Step by step directions for teachers explaining how to teach students to build reading stamina in order to become independent readers.
If your non-English speaking students aren't ready to do the regular class work, what should you have them do instead? This handy tool can help.
Have struggling reader issues causing your kid to be behind? Or, maybe your child hates reading? Is teaching how to read is sucking all the fun out of books? Here's how to help a child with reading difficulties, how to read challenges, and how to motivate your child to choose books they love. Here's how to help a child who doesn't like to read and understand the biggest mistake you're making when teaching at home for grade level learning and prevent future problems!
Top online learning sties for upper elementary classrooms for in school or home or distant or remote learning. Websites for reading, language arts, math, science and art included.
