Classroom Resources > Resource Type

Have your students do a Bradbury author study, and then create flyers to advertise their favorite story. First, have students read several titles from Bradbury's extensive body of work. Provide a classroom library or a booklist from which students can select titles. After students have read a sample of Bradbury's stories, ask them to select their favorite.

• Have students use the ReadWriteThink Literary Elements Mapping tool to record the story's characters, setting, conflict, and resolution. They should also write a brief synopsis of the plot.
  
• Next, have them use this information to create a flyer advertising their favorite Bradbury story. Direct students to the ReadWriteThink Printing Press tool.
  
• Finally, have students share their recommendations as a group.

Have your students write original short works of historical fiction in verse format, modeling the style Hesse used to write Out of the Dust. Have students read the book and discuss the ways that Hesse incorporates historical detail into her work. Then brainstorm some of the historical topics they have studied in class during the school year. Tell students they will be writing original works using the history they have studied. Have pairs of students do the following:

• Select a history topic from the brainstorm list for their story.
  
  
• Research the topic, looking for factual details to include in their stories (names, places, and events).
  
  
• Create a Story Map to develop the details of their story.
  
  
• Work as a team to write the story in verse.

When all pairs have finished their stories, display them in your classroom by having students place them in order along an historical timeline.

DiCamillo often writes about animals, such as the title characters in Mercy Watson to the Rescue, Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, and The Tiger Rising. Have your students examine the characters in these stories, looking for character traits, examples of personification, and similarities and differences. Then challenge students to write original short stories featuring animals as central characters.

• Have students visit the interactive Plot Diagram to plan their stories.
  
• Then have students visit the interactive Story Mapping tool and select the character map option to develop their stories' central characters.
  
• Ask students to print out their plot diagrams and character maps and use them to write their stories. When students have finished writing, have them share their work by reading their stories aloud or posting them in the classroom.

Use Ringgold's books as a springboard for a discussion of race, gender, and civil rights-both current and historical. Then invite your students to write and illustrate original picture books based on these issues.

• First, have students brainstorm, select, and research a specific event or topic, such as Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic speech or the Underground Railroad.
  
  
• Then have students plan and write an illustrated story using the interactive Flip Book. The Flip Book allows students to create up to 10 pages and provides text, drawing, and background editing tools. See the Flip Book page for more information about this tool.

When their books are complete, students can be invited to take turns reading them to the class.

Kick off National Family Literacy Day by inviting parents, grandparents, and other family members to your classroom for a family-school reading day.

• Invite students' family members to read a favorite story from their childhood, or their child's favorite bedtime story. (Grandparents can share both their child's and their grandchild's favorites!)
• Provide a collection of books for families to share during a group reading session. Invite families to get comfortable by bringing a cushion, beanbag chair, or pillow.
• Introduce families to some of the games & tools provided by ReadWriteThink. Encourage them to use these engaging tools at home to enhance their reading and writing experiences.
• Provide each family with a certificate of participation or a bookmark at the end of the event. Ask a local bookstore for a donation, or print certificates and bookmarks from your computer.
• At the close of your event, be sure to remind parents about other National Family Literacy Day events in your community.

Remember that family literacy is something that should be encouraged all year round. Invite students and their families to brainstorm ways they can keep their family engaged in reading on a regular basis!

In Nothing But the Truth, Avi writes in a documentary style, using journal entries, dialogue, and other writing genres. After reading this novel, have your students explore a current event topic and write their own short work of fiction in a similar multigenre format.

• Have students research and select a current event topic of interest. Provide print resources such as magazines and newspapers, as well as access to news on the Web.
  
  
• As a group, brainstorm a list of possible genres to include in a documentary-style story. The list could include those used in Nothing But the Truth, such as maps, poems, letters, or interviews.
  
  
• Have students make brief presentations to the class on the topics they have chosen, including the resources they have selected for inclusion in their writing. Encourage constructive criticism and sharing of ideas for alternate resources students might include.
  
  
• Have students use the feedback to plan their stories before writing. You may wish to have students use the Literary Elements Mapping tool to help with planning.
  
  
• Finally, have students write their stories. Publish the stories on a bulletin board or in a class book.

Use a list of current and past Coretta Scott King Book Award winners as a booklist for a book report assignment. The rich variety of literature offers something for all tastes, including nonfiction, fiction, short stories, biographies, and more. First have each student select a book from the list and then have students complete one of these book report alternatives from ReadWriteThink:

• Book Report Alternative: Writing Resumes for Characters in Historical Fiction
• Book Report Alternative: Character and Author Business Cards
• Book Report Alternative: Comic Strips and Cartoon Squares
• Book Report Alternative: The Elements of Fiction
• Book Report Alternative: Summary, Symbol, and Analysis in Bookmarks
• Book Report Alternative: Examining Story Elements Using Story Map Comic Strips
• Book Report Alternative: Hooking a Reader with a Book Cover
• Book Report Alternative: Creating a New Book Cover

Project for students an excerpt of an interview with Amy Tan  (Q8: Chinese Characters, 1:09:45 to 1:11:00). Discuss their impressions of her stance toward writing from her personal experience as an extension of her identity. Then invite students to tell a story of their own, either a fictionalized account of a memory or family experience or a more straightforward true story that is important to them and who they are.

Share the Story Map or the Story Cube interactives to help students generate and organize their ideas. Then give students the opportunity to share their stories by holding a classroom reading or creating an online or print collection.

Note Franklin's service as Postmaster General by setting up your own classroom postal service. First, have students investigate the roles and duties of the USPS Postmaster General and Franklin's role in particular. Discuss Franklin's contributions to postal history, then have students set up their own mail delivery service.

• First, have the class nominate (by show of hands or ballot) and select a Postmaster General, who will organize your postal service.
• Set up mailboxes, such as mail pouches attached to student desks, shoeboxes with slotted lids, shelves, decorated coffee cans, etc. Then choose a frequency of delivery-daily? Morning and afternoon?
• Finally, have the Postmaster General organize a group of "mail carriers" to collect and deliver mail from and to mailboxes. You may wish to have all students take turns along with other classroom jobs, or accept volunteers who can be scheduled for mail duty on a rotating basis.
• Students can use the interactive Letter Generator to write letters to their classmates. Be sure students understand that their letters should be appropriate for the classroom, and that everyone should be included. More tips are  available for use with the Letter Generator.

Have students compare and contrast two views of the Holocaust from different authors. Have students first read both Night and Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. Then, have them look at the similarities and differences between these two accounts of Holocaust events. Ask students the following questions, using a Venn diagram to record responses during your discussion. If you prefer, students can work in small groups to create their own Venn diagrams using the ReadWriteThink Interactive.

• How are the two authors similar and different?
• How did their experiences during the Second World War differ? How were their situations similar?
• Did Anne Frank and Wiesel's main character share similar feelings?
• How did the formats of these two texts differ?
• What were the differences between the endings? Were there any similarities?

Extend students' study of the Holocaust by having them research stories of other survivors who may or may not have published books. Have students create a presentation highlighting the person they select.