Students explore varying points of view, one of Van Allsburg's common themes, by rewriting a traditional story.
Today is Chris Van Allsburg's birthday.
Newbery Medal winner Christopher Paul Curtis was born in 1953.
Students brainstorm a list of civil rights-related issues and use the Acrostic Poems interactive to create poems.
Commercial ice cream is first sold in the U.S. in 1786.
After finding advertisements from the past, students evaluate them and discuss how ads have changed over the years. Students then create an advertisement for a new flavor of ice cream.
April is National Poetry Month!
Students are assigned to be "poets of the day" and are provided several models to create, illustrate, and present their different poems to the class.
Annie Moore becomes the first immigrant to enter Ellis Island in 1892.
Students explore online resources about Ellis Island, interview an immigrant in the area, and publish their stories.
Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus.
Students make believe that the year is 1955 and they just heard about Parks' arrest. Students write newspaper editorials with their points of view on segregation.
Veterans Day is celebrated in the United States today.
Students write biographical poems about a soldier.
Celebrate Halloween!
Students research information on Halloween, create masks or costumes from a text they are reading, or write a narrative essay describing their best Halloween ever.
Black Poetry Day is celebrated.
Books and webpages are gathered that focus on the work of African American poets and students explore the resources and find a poem to contribute to a poetry reading.
Today is World Poetry Day.
Students read and respond to Billy Collins' poem "Introduction to Poetry." Students then write about a favorite poem and imagine the perfect way to read it.
John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, was born in 1775.
Students use the Timeline Tool to organize details about Chapman's life, the Venn Diagram to organize information, and the Shape Poems Interactive to create poems about apples or Johnny Appleseed.
Time Magazine launches its "Tom Swifty" contest today in 1963.
Students have fun with language by creating a special kind of pun with its origin in a literary source.
Today, the American Library Association announces its annual book award winners.
Students research different awards given by the ALA and do an activity based on one of the awards.
William Carlos Williams was born in 1883.
Students write imitation poems, review grammatical structures, and use the ReadWriteThink Printing Press or Stapleless Book to publish their finished work.
Telling My Story: Make a Bio-Cube
Let children explore an interesting subject—themselves. An online tool will teach them to summarize and organize information as they write.
Write Theme Poems
Use shape and theme poems, or poems that look like the things they describe, as a fun way to introduce children to poetry.
Write a Recipe
Use recipes to help children practice reading and writing step-by-step instructions. Have them sample the results to see how they did.
Create Trading Cards for Favorite Characters
Use the online Trading Card Creator tool to have children make cards describing their favorite characters from the books on their reading list.
Explore Point of View in Fairy Tales
Explore fairy tales told in both old and new ways and use an online tool to help children create their own "fractured" version of a fairy tale.
Make a Mystery Puzzle
Have children explore the different parts of mystery writing by making a puzzle about a favorite book. They can then invent and write their own mysteries using the online Mystery Cube tool.