B.J. Novak from The Office fame has branched out as an author of a children’s books. And his first book is a book with no pictures. A book with NO PICTURES? YES! And it is hilarious! Your kids will want you to read it again and again. Novak is trying to teach your children what reading is really about. It’s about words on the page, and your students are forced to rely on you (the reading-aloud adult) for entertainment. True to its title Novak’s book features no illustrations, just words in ... continue reading...
Search Results for: label/author's craft
Book Talk Tuesday: Nelly Gnu and Daddy Too
What do you do when you have a big box? In this heartwarming story Nelly Gnu and her dad make a beautiful playhouse out of the box. This beautiful book takes you through the process step by step as Nelly and her daddy make the playhouse. (this would be a great mentor text for procedural writing) When Nellie and her dad go to the store to buy paint for the playhouse she gets lost. Uh-oh! Thankfully Daddy Gnu is right there to ... continue reading...
Secret Stories with Katie Garner
For those familiar with the Secret Stories- Cracking the Reading & Writing Codes with the Brain-in-Mind! my name might sound familiar! I'm Katie Garner, author of the Secret Stories, and have been brainstorming with Deanna the past few weeks about this shared blogging endeavor! These "Secret Sessions" will be posted both here and on the new Secret Stories BLOG. Click for the Secret Stories "Awesome Anchors" Pinterest Page A handful of times each month, ... continue reading...
Throwback Thursday! Mental Images with a Freebie
Happy 4th of July! I am linking up with my sweet friend, Cara's Throwback Thursday post. I posted this last year and I thought I would bring it back to the top. This is a great poem to read at the beginning of the year when you are teaching your littles that Great Readers create images in their mind when they are reading to help them understand what they are reading. Okay, admit it! You know this made you want to bite into a big juicy apple! :) This is such ... continue reading...
Who Would Win? FREEBIE
Have you ever wondered who would win in a fight? Jerry Pallotta has a series of books called, Who Would Win? These books are AMAZING. The pictures and facts grab the attention of the Littles and keep them hanging on every word. Before I read them the story I asked them, "If a polar bear and a grizzly bear got in a fight, who would win?" I had them complete the first section of their WHO WOULD WIN? paper by drawing their prediction and stating their reasoning. Then, I had them draw another ... continue reading...
Mental Images free download
This is such a fun poem! I love, love it! It is great for mental images and inferring (for a beginning lesson). This poem is from the book, Oh, No! Where Are My Pants? and Other Disasters: Poems Lee Bennett Hopkins (Author), Wolf Erlbruch (Illustrator) I created a response sheet for this poem and My Neighbor's Dog is Purple. (see yesterday's post). Just click on the picture to download. Okay y'all! ... continue reading...
All About Penguins Unit!
All about penguin lesson plan ideas for kindergarten and first grade. Reading, math, crafts, and anchor charts to help teach your students about penguins! Free file included too! All About Penguins! We love to learn about penguins each winter. It provides a great opportunity to teach your young learners using both fiction and nonfiction! All About Penguins: Charts Here are a few of the ways we organize our thinking! Penguin Chit Chats Chit Chats are a daily routine that we use to review ... continue reading...
Book Talk Tuesday: The Day the Crayons Quit and a FREEBIE
The following content was provided by the publisher about The Day the Crayons Quit. "Crayons have feelings, too, in this funny back-to-school story illustrated by the creator of Stuck and This Moose Belongs to Me -- now a #1 New York Times bestseller " The Day the Crayons Quit is a book about Poor Duncan who just wants to color. But when he opens his box of crayons, he finds only letters, all saying the same thing: His crayons have had enough They quit Beige Crayon is tired of playing ... continue reading...
Stellaluna Read-Aloud
Listening to a read-aloud is often the most exciting part of the day for students. They love sitting together and listening to their teacher read a fantastic book. Honestly, this is one of the calmest parts of the day. However, it can also be one of the most educational! With the Read Aloud Lesson Plans, students can enjoy amazing stories while working on engaging activities. For instance, they can enjoy the Stellaluna read-aloud and dive into their standards. Students will love the story and ... continue reading...
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More Read Aloud
Read alouds are a wonderful resource to use in the classroom. They allow students to hear a fantastic story. Additionally, teachers can work on so many literary skills throughout one book. However, a key aspect involves engagement. Students need to be interested in the story to focus on skills, such as characters, vocabulary, and predictions. Thankfully, the I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More read aloud will create excitement in every student! The fun book and the Engaging Reader Lesson Plans will ... continue reading...
Name Activities for Early Learners
Carol Lyons once said, “The most powerful and effective way for children to begin learning the complex process of learning about letters is by working with their own names." This quote does an incredible job of explaining how important one's name is. When meeting students for the first time, one of the first questions asked is, “What’s your name?” Teachers work so hard to remember all of the names as quickly as possible. This shows teachers care about them for who they are and enjoy getting to ... continue reading...
Fairy Tale Stem Activities for Kindergarten-2nd Grade
Engaging STEM activities for kindergarten- 2nd Grade students. Students collect clues by completing STEM and math activities to break the spell on Cinderella. Come to any of our Get Your Teach On conferences and you will see the excitement and energy that comes from completing hands-on learning activities. The Fairy Tale STEM for Kindergarten-2nd Grade activities were first introduced at GYTO in 2017 and it was a hit! That resource is now available in a printable format so you can take it ... continue reading...
Penguin Activities and Videos for Kindergarten and First Grade
Engaging Penguin activities and videos. Students will enjoy reading and writing about penguins, doing a science experiment, and making a craft. It's Winter... the best time to learn about penguins! What better way to embrace the winter months than to learn about an animal that loves the cold (well most of them). Learning about penguins can be such a fun time in your classroom. Here are a few lesson ideas for you! Penguin Activities Start learning about penguins with books and videos. ... continue reading...
Let’s Talk Turkey!
Turkey Trouble reading comprehension activity for kindergarten and first grade. Anchor Chart, retelling, and craft too! Vocabulary study too! Turkey Trouble reading comprehension activity: Informational Text The week before Thanksgiving is a great time to learn about turkeys! We pair fiction and nonfiction texts to keep the kids engaged so that the pre-holiday crazies don't trot in. :) To get started we had the kids record their schema on the Turkey Trouble recording sheet. Then, ... continue reading...
5 Lesson Ideas for Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly and a FREE FILE!
5 reading lesson ideas for Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly. K-2 Reading Comprehension lessons, responding to literature, and a FREE FILE! Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly Reading Lesson Ideas This book is a fun story about a first grader who makes a name for herself after a class field trip to learn about butterflies! A great book to use during science when learning about butterfly migration and metamorphosis. We've planned out 5 reading lessons for you to print and teach! ... continue reading...