Curated OER
Elements of Fiction
The metaphor of a pot of soup and a series of colorful templates remind young writers of the elements that make for a rich story. Pepper the plot with carrot/character, potato/point of view, corn/conflict, tomato/theme, and season with...
Curriculum Corner
Fiction Organizer
Teach your youngsters about the elements of plot with this handy graphic organizer. Pupils note down the main character, the setting, the problem, and the solution of any fictional story they read.
Curated OER
Compare and Contrast Two Settings in One Text
Look for the signal words! Scholars get both instruction and practice comparing and contrasting. Although it is completely scripted, it can also serve as a detailed outline. Demonstrate this as you read a passage (included) and search...
Scholastic
Mixed Bags: Fiction and Nonfiction
Using a bag with one fiction and non-fiction book of similar topics, partners work together to find the differences and similarities of each story. They record their obervances in a T-chart.
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Arthur's New Puppy (Brown)
Learn new words as you read Marc Brown's story, Arthur's New Puppy. This is focused as a vocabulary-in-context activity (though this strategy could be used with any book and set of words). Introduce the new words you will focus on:...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Blueberries for Sal (McCloskey)
Take your budding readers on a literary trip to pick blueberries as they learn vocabulary from Robert McClosky's book, Blueberries for Sal. By pre-teaching the words pupils are prepared to raise their hands when they hear the words in...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride (Priceman)
What a fun way to explore new vocabulary words! Marjorie Priceman's book Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride offers plenty of new words for scholars to learn in context: amateur, assembled, demonstration,...
Curriculum Corner
Summer Reading Record
No more summer reading lag! Give young readers a set of graphic organizers and worksheets to keep track of the books they read over the summer and to keep reading comprehension skills fresh. The graphic organizers include identifying...
Curated OER
Elements of Fiction
Students identify key story elements in a fiction text. In this literacy lesson, students are introduced to the various elements of fiction such as the setting, plot, and theme. Students read a short story of their choice and identify...
Curriculum Corner
"I Can" Common Core! 1st Grade Reading
This series of printable I can statements breaks down first grade Common Core reading standards into child-friendly terms. A great resource for providing clear learning objectives for young readers.
Ideas From Suzi
Guided Reading: Beyond the Basics
Elevate children's reading comprehension skills with this collection of guided reading resources. From paper dice with basic comprehension questions printed on them to a system for using sticky notes to identify key parts of a story,...
Do2Learn
Book Report
Tackle the basics of plot with a straightforward book report form. Learners note down the author and title, setting, characters, and basic plot points in any story or book.
Curated OER
Elements of Fiction
Students investigate themes and settings in their favorite fiction stories. In this creative writing lesson, students discuss the reasons a fictional story works well and discuss ways to create their own. Students create their own...
Seussville
Hooray For Diffendoofer Day!
Eleven engaging activities make up a story guide that accompanies Dr. Seuss' Hooray For Diffendoofer Day! Scholars design a fictional classroom setting including scary face tests, writing job descriptions, adapting the book into a play,...
Cloudinary
Star Wars® Reads Day
Calling all Star Wars® fanatics! A set of activity-based worksheets is centered around Star Wars®. From mazes to matching to cutting and coloring, young padawans engage in multiple activities that add a little fun to learning.
Curated OER
Goldilocks Live!!!
Study story elements with your young learners. Read Goldilocks and the Three Bears and discuss the order of events by making a story panel out of butcher paper. Sentences are given as suggestions for the panel, though you may compose...
Curated OER
Measuring Comprehension in First Graders
Make a prediction! Read The Very Cranky Bear with your first graders, making predictions and asking questions. Consider creating a list of comprehension questions to post while readers are listening to the story. Also consider making a...
Curated OER
“I Can” Common Core! 1st Grade Reading
I can read and understand fiction and nonfiction texts! Here is a great checklist that highlights 19 first grade Common Core reading standards. The resource is three pages long. Pages one and two focus on comprehension for fiction and...
Lesson Plansos
Guided Reading Activities with Pizzazz
Get the most out of your guided reading lessons with this collection of literacy materials. Offering a system for using color-coded tags to mark pages while reading books, as well as an assortment of comprehension and grammar worksheets,...
Curated OER
Build Mastery: Visualization
What do you see? Young reader tap into the visualization process as they listen to or read a fiction story and fill out a graphic organizer. Model this first with a think-aloud, showing scholars how you visualize a familiar story. For...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Cooking
A Reading Adventure Pack focuses on cooking. Scholars participate in three hands-on activities after reading the fiction book Easy as Pie by Cari Best and the nonfiction book How Did That Get in My Lunchbox? by Chris Butterworth....
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Dinosaurs Before Dark
Young readers travel back to the time of the dinosaurs in this literature unit based on the story Dinosaurs Before Dark. Intended for use with upper-elementary special education young scholars, this resource provides reading...
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Mummies in the Morning Egyptian pyramids, hieroglyphics
Visit the Magic Treehouse and take your class on a trip through time with a reading of the children's book Mummies in the Morning. Using the story to spark an investigation into Egyptian culture, this literature unit engages...
Curated OER
Loving Literature
First graders, after having "Are You My Mother?" by P.D. Eastman read to them, participate in group discussions or independentally work to analyze a spreadsheet to identify essential elements in the story and graph their data. In...