Some of Fleishman's memories in his essay "My House of Voices" are shared with the class. Students then write a descriptive essay that gives a tour of the voices in their homes, school, etc.

Act out a story after reading it. Work together to create a script and make costumes and props. Then invite others to watch and hear your story!

When you plant a garden, involve children in the process by writing down questions and observations on the garden's growth in a garden journal.

Children will learn their address and phone number to help keep them safe.

Children love books that rhyme and to create their own rhymes. It's a fun way to learn how words sound similar to one another!

Get children excited about writing and descriptive language by creating yummy descriptions of their favorite candy.

Encourage children to connect words and pictures by having them write their own captions for family or magazine photos.

Kids will love Hink Pinks—word puzzles that use two-word clues to lead to a rhyming solution. Try one and get hooked yourself: Obese feline? Fat cat!

Children learn how to make a convincing argument—an important skill in school and in life.

Writing stories that imitate a certain genre or type of fiction allows children to explore a book they love by imagining new twists for their favorite characters and plot lines.

In this activity, children look closely at living things in their natural environments and then make books about what they see.

Let children explore an interesting subject—themselves. An online tool will teach them to summarize and organize information as they write.

Use shape and theme poems, or poems that look like the things they describe, as a fun way to introduce children to poetry.

Use recipes to help children practice reading and writing step-by-step instructions. Have them sample the results to see how they did.

Use the online Trading Card Creator tool to have children make cards describing their favorite characters from the books on their reading list.

Share a fun book about staying safe and then talk about real-life safety issues before writing a letter to someone in your community who can help.

Boost vocabulary by taking an imaginary trip into space. After a lunar "landing," children return to Earth with a galaxy of new words.

Choose favorite rhyming songs or nursery rhymes then replace the rhyming words with seasonal themes.