We created our own mail center in our schoolroom and play room because my kids love getting the mail. They love to send letters to friends, teachers, and grandparents. I also created monster postcard templates to help them practice everything from early writing skills to addressing postcards and learning the parts of a letter. Of
Read MorePart of learning to construct sentences is recognizing the parts of speech. When students have an understanding of the parts of speech and grammar, they can better express themselves in both writing and speech. Students can understand how sentences are composed and why they are as they are. Students can recognize mistakes, especially as they
Read MoreI’ve always had a special space in my heart for Two Bad Ants by Chris Van Allsburg because of the memories associated with it. Somehow, my teacher knew how to reach me on my first truly horrible big kid bad day. She helped me calm down with a picture book, a new book that had just
Read MoreIn Tia Isa Wants a Car and A Chair for My Mother, kids work towards earning money for a goal. Although they are very different stories, the goals of the main characters make them perfect for a lesson in comparing and contrasting. The ultimate goal setting lesson from these books is also a great character
Read MoreThe Red Book by Barbara Lehman is a wordless picture book, so it may not be the first to come to mind when considering a book to “read aloud” to a class. However, because the illustrations tell the story, The Red Book can be an ideal book to use as students practice outlining and retelling
Read MoreI had a lot of fun considering favorite picture books as I considered the variety of ways one could organize a story. So many times in elementary school kids are given a prescription for writing and they must follow that. Obviously many stories follow a traditional structure with a clear beginning, a middle, and an
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