biographies Archives • Elementary Island

Mastering Nonfiction Reading Comprehension Strategies

Jordana — Sat, 27 Apr 2024 13:42:33 +0000

As each year unfolds, I find myself more excited about sharing the wonders of nonfiction reading with my students. Living in a world where information is just a click away, we’re truly spoiled. Yet, the real magic lies in having those nonfiction reading skills to navigate through texts! Be it a captivating book or an intriguing newspaper article, there’s no question about the value of this skill. So, do you want to ensure your students confidently navigate through whatever content comes their way? Look no further! This blog post is your ticket to exploring all that nonfiction reading comprehension strategies have to offer.

You don’t have to be in middle school or high school to master nonfiction books. Older students might have a higher reading level, but young readers can use nonfiction reading strategies to help them get the most out of informational text too. Over the years I have found that the key to helping younger readers master nonfiction skills is to start from the beginning of the year. Making both fictional texts and nonfiction texts a part of our classroom culture is one of the first steps.

These tips and ideas for helping students improve their nonfiction reading skills will help all students, regardless of their ability or reading level. I have seen them work well in supporting English Language Learners too.

Help Students Fall in Love with Nonfiction

Like many things we teach, finding an engaging way to teach a new skill or topic is half the battle. Teaching nonfiction comprehension skills is no different. That’s why I love to start by introducing my students to my favorite nonfiction books. When students see that I have “favorites” in the nonfiction category they realize that they can too.

Fiction books aren’t the only ones that have a vast amount of possibilities! I find great joy in guiding my students to the discovery that there are adventures and inspiring stories within the pages of nonfiction books too. My students quickly learn that they are not just sources of information but a great way to learn more about science, social studies, and everyday life.

We always begin by exploring nonfiction books. I let students’ interests be the guide as I challenge students to find a book that they want to learn new information from. I often start with background knowledge and ask students what is something they want to learn more about. Then I let them find a book on that topic. If possible, this is a great lesson to do in the library.

I do this because students can practice the same nonfiction reading strategies in different books. That’s the beauty of nonfiction. Almost all of them have similar nonfiction text structures. So students can use a book of their choosing and we can still discuss things like the central ideas, new vocabulary words, or the author’s purpose. And. . . when students have different books, allowing them to share examples provides a variety of examples for the entire class.

Small Group Teaching for Individual Needs

When I teach a new nonfiction reading strategy I will often do this through small groups. Understanding that each learner possesses distinct abilities and preferences, I implement strategy groups. These small groups provide a personalized approach that tailors instruction to individual needs. I can introduce the reading strategy that best supports students where they are without frustrating them with something that is too advanced or boring them with a strategy that is too easy. This ensures that every student receives the specific support they require to improve their comprehension strategies and thrive in their nonfiction reading journey. These reading minilessons become the foundation of solid reading comprehension skills.

One group might be learning to recognize different text features, while another is working on identifying the main idea of a text. It’s focused instruction at just the right pace and level for each learner.

Independent Reading Time

I love to introduce choice boards for students to use during independent reading time. This is simply a list of activities that help them grow their nonfiction reading skills. During this independent practice, students get to choose which activity they want to complete.

Many of the activities I include are similar to ones we would do together if we were doing a close reading of a text. For example, I have students read and focus on new words. They are asked to write down words that they don’t know so that we can use them later. Another activity might include asking students to create their own picture and caption that could be added to their book.

Choice boards are dynamic tools that cater to varied learning styles. These boards offer students options aligned with their preferences and strengths. In the realm of choice boards, students are empowered to take ownership of their learning, selecting activities that resonate with their individual styles.

As I witness groups and choice boards in action, my classroom transforms into a space where nonfiction reading becomes an inclusive and personalized experience.

Don’t Shy Away From Nonfiction Picture Books

When incorporating informational text into your lesson plans don’t overlook nonfiction picture books. Just because the words in a book have been simplified doesn’t mean the key concepts have been. There’s no rule stating that technical language is a requirement for nonfiction texts.

A lot of times I will begin with picture books because I know they are filled with vivid graphics and the words match the phonics skills my students have. This approach offers students exposure to the richness of informational text. They embark on a journey of exploration, learning new skills, or becoming inspired based on someone else’s life. Your students become equipped with applicable knowledge, which leads them to become enthusiastic about their learning.

Some of my favorite books to use when introducing nonfiction reading are the Step Into Reading Books like Eat My Dust! Henry Ford’s First Race.

One way I expose my students to informational texts is through biographies like this one. There are lots of wonderful biographies that fall into the picture book category.

My students love learning about historical figures from decades ago up to the present day! As we dive into this nonfiction genre we not only learn about people, but we have lots of opportunities to practice nonfiction reading comprehension strategies. Students learn to identify important points in the person’s life and ask good questions about why the person did or did not do something.

For more information on teaching biographies check out 4 Fun Ways to Teach Biographies to add some fresh ideas to your lessons.

Improve Nonfiction Reading Comprehension with Graphic Organizers

If there is one thing that can get overwhelming to students with nonfiction text, it is the facts. While most students find it easy to remember a storyline, trying to remember all.the.facts is something completely different. That’s why I teach my kids about graphic organizers.

What I have found working with my students is that graphic organizers are one of the most powerful tools we can give to our students. There are so many things vying for our students’ attention that it can be difficult for them to keep track of the information they are reading. Plus, they are visual tools that transform their approach to nonfiction reading by highlighting the key information. After all, they should be reading a nonfiction text differently than a fiction one.

Graphic organizers become a tool that helps students identify main ideas, unveil supporting details, and decipher complex text structures and features. As young students dive into the world of graphic organizers, comprehension becomes a breeze. Even as they begin to read longer texts, the graphic organizer becomes a tool they can use again and again.

Try these Graphic Organizers in Your Classroom!

Remember how I said I love tackling biographies with my students? Well, add that to teaching them to use graphic organizers and you have this set of free biography graphic organizers. To help you jumpstart nonfiction reading in your classroom, grab these 22 FREE biography templates to help your students as they work on reading nonfiction text and document what they learn with a graphic organizer.

22 FREE Biography Templates

Check out these 22 biography templates for your beginning researchers!

GRAB YOUR FREE TAGS TODAY

Sticky Notes to the Rescue

In my teaching journey, I’ve found a simple yet effective nonfiction reading comprehension tool. I equip my students with sticky notes. In fact, students keep them in their book boxes so they are readily available. You will also find extra sticky notes in the classroom library too. These unassuming tools transform the reading experience into a nonfiction knowledge quest.

As students are reading, I encourage them to jot down important details, questions that spark their curiosity, keywords they might not understand, or reflections that arise as they read their text. Later, we use their sticky notes as a way to review and practice the nonfiction reading comprehension strategies we have learned.

After our independent reading time, we take a few minutes to do a debrief. This is when students can share what they wrote on their sticky notes. If they share a reflection, we talk about the reading strategies they used. If they have a question or an unknown word we talk about the reading strategy they could use to resolve the question. It allows us to practice and review many different strategies at one time.

Using sticky notes as a tool allows students to jot down thoughts and questions and then move on with their reading. I encourage students to write the page number on their sticky notes and stick them to the page of the book that the note relates to. Students know that they will always be able to come back to the sticky note later. This strategy promotes active thinking while reading, something I want my students to be doing.

The Magic of Nonfiction Text Features

Have you ever asked a question about something found in a caption or heading only to have students flabbergasted because they can’t find the answer? I don’t know what it is, but so many students just ignore any text that is not part of the main paragraphs.

That’s why I love to introduce all the different text features as “cheats” they can use along the way. In reality, there is no cheating involved, just smart reading. But when students find out that nonfiction texts have some special features designed to make reading them and understanding the information easier, they are all in.

I guide them through the intricate landscape of page numbers, headings, and bolded key terms. We dive into pictures, illustrations, and captions too. Don’t forget the valuable information that can be found in the table of contents, index, and glossary. We also talk about bold print, headings, and highlighted words.

I also emphasize the importance of navigating with the table of contents. This is a strategy that I consider the best way to approach these enriching books. I always start off with a scenario about traveling and how that experience can change whether you have a map or not. I connect the scenario to how the table of contents becomes their trusty roadmap. It will guide them through their nonfiction text in an organized and efficient manner.

Nonfiction Text Feature Scavenger Hunt

Once I introduce these features I set students off on a nonfiction text feature scavenger hunt. It’s so easy to do too! Each student gets a nonfiction book and I call out a text feature. Then off they go hunting through their book to find it. We share examples before moving on to the next one. It’s a fun-filled time of book exploration while reinforcing the importance of the text features.

I utilize this Nonfiction Text Features reso urce for all of our activities. This resource is filled with posters, anchor charts, graphic organizers, and worksheets that will help students learn to use nonfiction text features to their advantage. Learn more about how I teach text features and resources to help introduce them to your students with How to Introduce Nonfiction Text Features.

You’re Ready to Get Started!

Embarking on the journey of teaching nonfiction comprehension strategies goes beyond mere reading. It’s about instilling a love for learning, nurturing critical thinking, and shaping students into active readers across diverse subjects. The key lies in the right mix of strategies that transform students into proficient readers equipped with essential skills for success. Grab the Nonfiction Text Features Worksheets Anchor Charts & Graphic Organizers Features resource pack to get started today!

Experiment with various approaches to nonfiction reading comprehension strategies that spark a transformative experience for your students. Witness their remarkable growth in navigating and comprehending complex texts as they emerge as confident readers. Here’s to happy teaching and the exciting journey ahead in the world of nonfiction reading!

Save this Idea

Remember to save this post to your favorite classroom Pinterest board to return to when you need nonfiction reading comprehension strategies!

The post Mastering Nonfiction Reading Comprehension Strategies appeared first on Elementary Island.

4 Fun Ways to Teach Biographies

Jordana — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 18:10:00 +0000

Biographies are fascinating to read at any age, but young children love hearing stories about real people. Learning about the lives of those who lived before them is intriguing. Biographies give kids a peek at what it’s like to be someone else and possibly live in a different time period than they do. Bringing biographies to life for your students can even help spark a love of reading! Are you excited about teaching biographies but feel a bit intimidated? I’ve got four fun, engaging ways for you to teach your students all about biographies!

Why Should You Teach Biographies?

Biographies are a fantastic way to introduce young students to important historical figures and teach them valuable life lessons. Biographies are windows into people’s lives who have made a difference in the world and can inspire kids to dream and reach for their goals. They help kids understand that the world is diverse and that not everyone is just like them.

Students can also learn empathy by reading about people’s experiences and challenges. They may feel really sorry for famous people they learn about. Students will start to understand what these individuals went through or see that they were treated poorly.

Biographies are the perfect complement to any Social Studies Unit or Thematic Unit! Students can relate to history more easily through personal stories because historical events are explained from the perspective of real people who lived through those times. Check out this blog post about how I use biographies to teach about Martin Luther King Jr.!

Now that we know why teaching biographies is important, let’s jump into HOW!

1. Introduce Students to Biographies with Read Alouds

I can’t say enough about how much I love reading a good picture book to my students to stir up excitement for a lesson. Sharing a great biography is no exception! Start with a beautiful book like:

Counting on Katherine by Helaine Becker
Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire by Amy Guglielmo and Jacqueline Tourville
Who SaysCan’tn Can’t Be Doctors? The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell by Tanya Lee Stone

These books are incredible stories of perseverance and overcoming obstacles. Students see a glimpse of what life was like years before they were born and how things were very different! Did I mention the illustrations? They are gorgeous!

There are a million incredible biographies, so it can be tough to sift through them to find the perfect books for your students. Check out this post I wrote about my six favorite Biography Series! You will find plenty of biographies that fit right in with your next Social Studies Unit or for a Biography Unit!

Once you have finished sharing your biography read-aloud, ask your students to create a timeline of events in the person’s life from the book. In my Biography Student Reports resource, you will find two options for a print-and-go timeline: one with space for five events and one with space for seven events. Your high flyers will get a bit of a challenge identifying seven events, while your struggling students can still do the same activity focusing on five key events.

2. Conduct an Interview!

Want a fun way to get your students excited about biographies and writing one? Ask them to interview a friend in the class! You can allow students to choose a classmate they would like to interview or assign students to interview each other. Give students a list of questions to ask and 20 minutes or so to conduct their interviews.

Students can ask questions like:

Where were you born?
How many brothers or sisters do you have?
What’s your favorite movie?
What do you want to be when you’re older?

You could allow students to share what they learned in their interviews with the class or take this activity further by writing a biography about their friend!

This type of project can take a bit of preparation on your part to keep it running smoothly. However, with my Biography Student Reports pack, this “interview and write a biography” activity is a breeze to incorporate into your classroom!

Included are 2 Student Interview Pages filled with interesting questions to get your kids talking! Plus, printable pages where students write the information they learned. They then piece the pages together to create a friend’s biography! Your students will love learning about each other and feel accomplished because they wrote a biography!

3. Research a Famous Person and Write About Their Life!

How can you ensure your students understand what biographies are and what information they include? Have them write a biography about a famous person! Yes, writing a biography can seem overwhelming- even for an adult, much less a student! It can definitely be done, but your students will need guidelines and support throughout the process.

Luckily, my Biography Student Reports resource includes Notes Pages that allow your students the freedom of choosing who they learn about while having questions that will guide them during their research! To help students include important information in their biographies, they will be asked questions like:

When was this person born? When did they die?
Describe this person as a child.
Did this person get married or have children?
How did this person contribute to society?

These pages have differentiated versions so students of all ability levels can participate in this activity. Each version has questions, but some are more specific and require more detail. This allows you to easily differentiate for your students and push some to think a little more deeply, while other students can answer the questions more broadly while still experiencing success!

A booklet with labeled pages is included so that students can practice transferring the information from their Notes Pages into an actual biography of their famous person! Your students will feel fulfilled when they finish their biographies and see all the hard work that went into that challenging (but fun!) project!

4. Incorporate Art with Your Biographies!

Now that students have researched their famous person, learned interesting facts, and written those facts into a biography, let them celebrate with a little art project! The art project included in my Biographies Pack is the perfect way to allow students to show what they know in a different and creative way!

Using a piece of large construction paper and the directions in the pack, students will cut the paper in such a way as to create the shape of a body. Students will then fold the paper to make two flaps appear to be clothes, then add arms, hands, feet, and a head to the body shape.

Students will decorate their body shape to look like the famous person they researched (adding as many details as possible). They will take the biography book they wrote and glue it inside the clothes flap, making the cutest display for all of their hard work!

I love displaying these in the hallway for other classes to see. You could even invite other classes to come by and have your students read their information out loud to their audience!

Would you like to try Biographies?

Your students will love learning about famous people from history, but sometimes you have to try things for yourself to see how awesome they are! Dip your toe into biographies with this incredible Biography Templates Freebie!

Use these templates to help your students organize three facts they learned about important historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Rosa Parks, Henry Ford, and many more! This is a great way to ease your students into learning about biographies.

Let’s Teach Biographies!

Introduce your students to biography research and make learning fun with this Biography Report and Research Activities Unit from my TPT Store!

The set includes templates for biography reports that can be used all year long, catering to the needs of different levels of learners. Differentiated research activities are included, along with anchor chart sets that can be printed in black and white or color for student reference during the unit. A classmate research activity is also included, fostering community building within the classroom. Engage your students in the excitement of learning from history through biographies!

Pin this Post on Pinterest

Not ready for ideas on teaching biographies but need them later? Save this post to your favorite Teaching board on Pinterest. You’ll have them when you need them!

The post 4 Fun Ways to Teach Biographies appeared first on Elementary Island.

8 Awesome Martin Luther King Jr Activities and Videos for your Classroom

Jordana — Wed, 07 Sep 2022 22:01:00 +0000

It is so important that we teach our students about the brave men and women who helped shape the history of our nation. Men and women who overcame incredible obstacles to accomplish things that made our country a better place! One such man is Martin Luther King Jr. His huge leading role in fighting for equality for all is not only inspiring but he quite literally changed people’s lives. Read on to see how I use 8 awesome activities and videos to teach my students about Martin Luther King Jr. in ways they will never forget!

Teaching our young students about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. can be tricky. The themes associated with his life can be hard to put into words and activities that our kids can not only understand, but grasp the seriousness of. Whether you are teaching this for the first time or looking for some new MLK Day activities, you’ve come to the right place.

If you find yourself asking questions like “How do I celebrate MLK Day at school?” or “What are some kid appropriate activities for MLK Day?” then you keep reading. These 8 activities are just what you need for teaching your students about Dr. King and all he stood for.

MLK Day Activities for Kids

These 8 activities have been used again and again in my classroom with great success. They take some deep concepts and teach them in a way that kids can understand.

If you are looking for a great way to introduce Martin Luther King Jr. to your kids – why not let another kid do it. Kid President has this great video about Dr. King and his life. It’s a great way to set the stage for the learning to come.

Once you introduce Dr. King you are ready to dive into these fun and engaging MLK Day activities for kids.

1. Read Inspirational Books

I love a great picture book to introduce my kids to any topic I’m teaching. Books are a great way to build interest and share background knowledge for students to connect to as I teach. So of course, I have my three favorite picture books on Martin Luther King Jr. to help you get started.

National Geographic Readers: Martin Luther King Jr.

National Geographic Readers: Martin Luther King Jr. by Kitson Jazynka is an in-depth, but not intimidating, biography of Dr. King.

It shares difficult-to-understand historical information in such a way that kids can easily comprehend. Brightly colored photographs and illustrations will draw in your students and bring to life the interesting facts on each page.

I also love the book’s use of Text Features such as timetables, captions, sidebars, and fact boxes. They organize information and serve as an excellent real-world example to show your students why text features are important in non-fiction texts.

Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by Doreen Rappaport takes a different approach as it tells the story of things that happened in Dr. King Jr.’s life as a story rather than a grouping of facts. Throughout the story, students get to hear firsthand the actual words of Martin Luther King Jr. as he spoke them! Combine that with gorgeous illustrations, and your students will be spellbound by the emotional depth of this story!

The Story of Martin Luther King Jr.: A Biography Book for New Readers

The Story of Martin Luther King Jr.: A Biography Book for New Readers by Christine Platt is another excellent biographical offering that includes a wealth of information in short, easy-to-read chapters.

Black text on a white background with simple (yet effective) illustrations, makes the pages just right for readers who don’t like busy backgrounds.

The use of bold text on vocabulary words helps students to zero in on important facts. This book also does an excellent job of showing the effects of certain events in Dr. King’s life, while a visual timeline helps students to understand the sequence of events and cause-and-effect relationships.

If building interest in Martin Luther King Jr.’s life is your goal, you truly can’t go wrong with any of these 3 books!

2. Listen to Martin Luther King Jr. Speak

After reading a book or two to your class, let your students witness Martin Luther King Jr.’s life for themselves! In this video Meet the Civil Rights Leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., students get to see a collection of pictures that show Dr. King’s early life, historic moments in his later years, and what life in America was like for African Americans before and during the Civil Rights Movement.

Students even get to experience Martin Luther King Jr. with their very own ears as they hear snippets of his famous “I Have a Dream” speech spoken straight from his lips. This audio combined with beautiful photography makes everything you have already discussed come to life for your students!

When the video is over, ask your students to share what stood out to them as they watched.

Did they learn anything new from what they saw?
Did the pictures give them any new ideas or help them better understand Dr. King’s life?
Did they connect any information from the video to the books you read?

As students become more excited about what they are learning about the life of Martin Luther King Jr., now is the time to let them continue their research on their own!

3. Martin Luther King Jr. Biography Research Project

Now armed with so much prior knowledge about Martin Luther King Jr.’s life, students will excitedly start coming up with their own questions about him! Let your students create a project based on information they have learned from class and researched through books or the internet!

Students can create posters about Dr. King by writing interesting facts about his life, making a timeline of important events, and even drawing a picture of Martin Luther King Jr.!

If the idea of a Research Project appeals to you but want a little more guidance on how to make one work for your students, check out my Biography Report Templates and Research Activities!

This resource gives you 3 different leveled templates for students of all abilities to complete, 3 different print-and-go timelines, an adorable craftivity, writing pages, and more! Research reports have never been easier (or more fun!) than with this pack! Your students will love writing about and illustrating the information they have learned about Dr. King and you will love that all the resources you needed to complete the activities were right at your fingertips!

And the best part is, that when you are finished creating biographies for Martin Luther King Jr., you can use these same resources again and again to research and create biographies for other important people!

4. Fair or Unfair Discussion

Kids can often learn new facts, but it may take a while before they start to “see” what they’ve learned. Help your students connect what they learned about Martin Luther King Jr. to their daily lives by playing Fair or Unfair.

Give your students a series of real-life scenarios. Students are to give a thumbs up if they think the situation is “Fair” and a thumbs down if they think it’s “Unfair”.

Some scenarios could include:

A student gets in trouble because they couldn’t afford school supplies.
The principal gives prizes to students for getting all A’s on their Report Card.
The basketball coach only plays the kids on the team if he’s friends with their parents.
A student yells at the teacher and has to go to the Principal’s Office.
The teacher gives snacks to students who don’t bring one to school but doesn’t give one to the students who bring one from home.
A student wins an Art contest and gets their picture in the newspaper.
Two students get caught cheating on a test. One gets a zero because it’s her third time being caught cheating, while the other gets to retake the test because it’s her first offense.

Some of these situations might seem pretty straightforward, but some may require thinking from a different perspective! It’s definitely important for students to be able to explain why things are fair or not, but also to see that some situations may seem fair until they look at it from the other person’s point of view!

5. On the Inside, We’re All the Same

Dr. King always shared the message that no matter what your skin color is, we are all the same!

One way for students to realize this for themselves is to show students a physical example of this. All you need for this simple yet effective visual aid is to grab two eggs- one brown and one white!

First, ask students to describe the two eggs. Students will probably notice they are the same shape. When they touch the eggs, both the brown and white eggs even feel the same. But very obviously, their colors are different.

Now crack the brown egg into a bowl, then crack the white egg into the same bowl right next to the brown egg.

Ask your students what they see, and they will tell you that once the shell was cracked and thrown away, they can’t tell the difference between the two.

Ask students if it matters that they had different colored shells and see what they say. Then ask them several questions:

What will happen if you drop a brown egg? What will happen if you drop a white egg?
How would cookies taste if I use brown eggs in the recipe? Would the cookies taste the same if I use white eggs? Why?
If I leave a brown egg out of the refrigerator for several days, what will happen? If I do the same thing to a white egg, what will happen?

Once students have discussed these questions and answers, explain to your class that people are just like these eggs! Their outside “shell” (skin color) has nothing to do with who they are as a person on the inside.

People of different skin colors have the same fears and the same dreams, and we shouldn’t treat people differently because they don’t look like us. Then allow time for students to add their thoughts and feelings about how this activity connects to what they have learned about Martin Luther King Jr.

6. Peace Circle Whole Group Activity

Once students realize that all skin colors are amazing and should be celebrated, use this idea to bring your students together to create a display for your classroom or hallway! Give students construction paper (or some other type of craft paper) in colors that replicate various skin tones. If you do not have colored paper, students can use white paper.

Ask students to trace their handprints several times on the paper and cut out each handprint. If using white paper, ask students to color their handprints to replicate various skin tones or let them make handprints using paint. Once you have a fairly large quantity of different colored handprints, give students a large piece of butcher paper or an area on the wall in which must work together as a team to create a peace sign out of their handprints.

If using butcher paper or a paper-covered bulletin board, you may want to draw an outline of a peace sign so that students can tape or glue their hands inside the outline.

Add a quote from Dr. King to go along with your peace sign and have students write about what that quote means to them or what it means to “live in peace”.

7. Peace and Love Craft

Art is the perfect way for students to get creative after such an emotionally powerful activity! This simple Peace and Love Craft only takes black, white, and red construction paper to make a visual to help students remember the lessons they are learning.

Have each student trace their handprint on a piece of black paper using a white crayon and again on a white paper using a black crayon. Place each paper touching end to end and glue a red paper heart directly in the middle of the two papers. Write the phrase “peace and love” on the red heart.

8. Share Kindness to Everyone Around You

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an inspiration to others! He used peaceful ways to get his message across and helped as many people as he could to have a better life. What better way for students to show what they have learned than to put it into practice in their daily lives?

Tell your students a few days ahead of time that you will hold a Day of Service in order to do kind things for people! Brainstorm a list of “act of kindness” ideas as a class and type up that list to send home with your students or message to their parents.

Acts of Kindness do not need to be big or cost money, they just simply need to be ways to help those around you! Ideas could include, but are not limited to:

smile and say “Hi!” to everyone you see today
holding doors for other people
writing a note of thanks to your bus driver or the cafeteria staff
picking up trash off the playground or in a park
baking cookies for your principal and school secretary
sweeping the classroom floor so the janitor doesn’t have to
telling 5 other students a kind compliment

On your Day of Service, have precut construction paper hearts set out where students can access them. Ask students to write each kind deed on a heart throughout the day and tape it to a specific area on the wall where everyone can see all the kindness being spread around the school!

Pin These MLK Day Activities for Kids!

I hope this post has inspired you to teach about Martin Luther King Jr. to your students! If you found some awesome ideas that you would like to use, then Pin this post to your favorite classroom Pinterest Board so you will always have them when you need them!

The post 8 Awesome Martin Luther King Jr Activities and Videos for your Classroom appeared first on Elementary Island.

6 Amazing Biography Book Series Teachers and Students will Love

Jordana — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 19:34:00 +0000

I love having my students read biographies. Not only does this expose them to a new genre of writing, but there is quite often a great social studies or history connection too! And . . . if that wasn’t enough, there are so many amazing people that can inspire our students to do anything, go anywhere, be all they can dream of being! I’m excited to share some of my favorite biographies for elementary students and activities we use when studying this genre.

Amazing Biographies for Kids

Over the years I’ve seen lots and lots of biographies. Here are my absolute favorites that are not only well written but have been loved by elementary students too!

1. Ordinary People Change the World by Brad Meltzer

Brad Meltzer is a biography genius when it comes to writing for kids! Not only are his books great for learning about the lives of some amazing people, but his format is so engaging. This biography series, Ordinary People Change the World, is top-notch! Using great images and a combination of traditional text and comic book style formatting, even the most reluctant of readers love these books.

Just look at those inviting books and amazing real-life stories. Each book is filled with facts about the lives of these great people. The images really draw the students into the books too! Check out these pages from the Leonardo DaVinci book:

It’s a masterful way to connect real photos with illustrations and traditional text with graphic novels.

2. You Should Meet . . . by Ready to Read

Another great biography series for elementary students is the You Should Meet series published by the team at Ready to Read. These guys have been publishing high-quality readers for a variety of skill levels that are perfect for our young students.

These short chapter books are a great option for students who love picture books and aren’t quite ready for a longer, more traditional chapter book. Ready to Read has a great combination of text and images in these Level 3 biographies.

Take a peek inside the book about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

With biographies from a variety of people around the world, you are sure to find the perfect book to connect to your lessons or your students’ interests.

3. Step into Reading Biographies

Another great publisher that has been filling the shelves of classroom libraries for many years is Step into Reading. What started as fiction books has expanded into a very nice selection of non-fiction books as well. Their biographies are a fantastic option for elementary students of all ages.

With biography options from Level 2 to Level 5 these books are great for 1st grade readers and up!

4. The Story Of . . . A Biography Series for New Readers

Another great biography series for elementary students is The Story Of . . . series. Designed for kids ages six to nine, these books have pulled out all stops when it comes to helping students read and understand.

Each biography book includes short chapters that won’t intimidate your students. Throughout the text, important words are highlighted and even there’s even a glossary to help students as they are reading! A great learning tool that will help students increase their comprehension as they read these inspiring stories.

One of my favorite features is the Think Tank questions that are built into the book’s page layout. A great way to get kids thinking about what they are reading without having a teacher right there!

Take a peek into The Story of Helen Keller:

5. Easy Reader Biographies by Scholastic

I don’t know about you, but Scholastic is a trusted book provider in my classroom. For decades they have been providing teachers and students with quality books for reading instruction and reading pleasure. These Easy Reader Biographies are a great option for younger students or lower-level reading students.

This series has 12 books, each written for Guided Reading Levels I – J. That makes these books perfect for your 1st and 2nd graders or struggling readers. Non-fiction can be accessible to all our readers!

6. National Geographic Kids Biographies

Another trusted source in non-fiction texts is National Geographic. With access to some of the best photos and archives of people and events, National Geographic is the creator of some of the best non-fiction books around, including biographies. One of my favorite things in these readers is the use of real photos. There’s something about a photograph that helps students connect this to real life. They also take students back in time giving them a view of history that many other publishers can’t provide.

These National Geographic Kids biographies come in a variety of levels, making them a great option for many elementary students.

Take a peek inside this Rosa Parks biography and check out all the amazing photos and features that make these books so engaging for our young readers:

You Can’t Go Wrong with Biographies

If you are teaching in an elementary classroom you can’t go wrong with any of the biography series listed above. Just like we all have personal preferences for books and movies, your students will also likely be drawn to different biography books.

All of the series are just a little different and I think that helps students to develop a well-rounded view of this genre. I think it also helps them to learn some valuable lessons about books too!

Not all books with illustrations are fiction
Real-life events and people can be engaging and entertaining like a story
Books can help us learn and inspire us

In my classroom, I love to make books for a variety of sources available in our classroom library. This is something that I have built up little by little over the years I’ve been teaching. But if you don’t have a classroom library don’t worry! Use your school library and community library to provide your students with a variety of options.

Biography Activities

1. Fact and Opinion

As a non-fiction text source, biographies give us many different connections we can make to other reading skills. One of my favorites is fact and opinion. Learning to recognize fact from opinion is an important skill our students will use throughout their lives. It will help them determine important information, give weight to different things they read or hear, and help them determine the author or speaker’s purpose. As we strive to train our students to become thinkers and able to process information in order to draw their own conclusions, differentiating facts from opinions is a valuable tool.

2. Non-Fiction Text Features

Many of these biographies series I love to use are written with a variety of non-fiction text features. This is a great way to teach students about how these text features can help them improve their understanding of the non-fiction books they read.

I introduce text features with these posters and activities and keep in them in the room where we can easily refer to them all.year.long! Each time we talk about a new non-fiction text feature we add the coordinating poster to the wall. They are perfect for these biographies or any non-fiction text you use in class.

Some of the non-fiction text features I teach my students from these biographies are:

Headings & Sub-Headings
Bold Print
Photos & Captions
Timelines
Table of Contents
Glossary
Index

I love talking about these features as we read biographies together. We focus on what each text feature does and how it can help us better understand what we are reading. It’s so fun to watch them as they find these helpful text features on their own during independent reading.

3. Introductory Research and Note Taking

I also love to use biographies as a great introduction to research for my students. Once students can identify facts, they are ready to dig into some basic research skills like finding facts and documenting them. This introduction to research and note-taking is at the most basic of levels, but we are laying the foundation for the research projects and college thesis papers of the future.

Grab These Free Biography Note Taking Templates

These biography note taking templates are a great way for your elementary students to work on basic note-taking skills. As students are reading a biography, have them find and write down three facts about the person. These can be used as a stand-alone activity, a biography reading response activity, or as the first step in a research project.

Grab your free biography templates today!

Biography Research Project

If your students are ready to take their research to the next level, then you will love this ready-to-use Biography Research Project packet. Designed for younger students, this research project kit will guide your students from start to finish.

All of the templates in this biography research packet can be used with any person or biography book. There are differentiated options so you can choose the level of note-taking and reporting that works best for your students. Students will also learn about creating a timeline as a method of ordering events in time.

I love to use this at the end of the year as a culminating social studies, reading and writing activity. Students will choose person and read a biography about that person. As they read, students will take notes about the person.

Then students will create a timeline and final project about the biography they read. This can be presented to the class or displayed on a bulletin board. Not only do the students love sharing all they learned but they enjoy learning from their peers too!

You can find all of these Biography Student Report templates and activities in this Biography Packet on Teachers Pay Teachers.

Save these Biography Books and Teaching Ideas

Don’t waste time searching the internet when I’ve already done that for you! Just pin this to your favorite classroom Pinterest board so you can quickly come back here when you are ready to teach biographies. All these book ideas and teaching resources will be right here!

The post 6 Amazing Biography Book Series Teachers and Students will Love appeared first on Elementary Island.