Monday, December 28, 2015

Main Topic and Key Details

Main topic and key details of informational text can be difficult concepts for students to grasp. Based on what I was noticing when teaching this concept to my students, I decided to create a product to help my students with identifying the main topic and key details of text in an engaging way. 



I created a pack of informational passages where students read the passage, then cut and paste the main topic and key details. These passages are high interest and engaging. My students have loved these activities and it is a great way for me to check their understanding. Some of the main topics are stated in the passage and some are inferred by reading the passage. Such fun and engaging practice! Check out the pack here!

Grab the digital Google Drive version here!


Happy Teaching!



Sunday, December 27, 2015

Missing Punctuation Mystery!



I am so proud of my students and the progress they have made. Their writing has really improved, they are using narrative structure, and I am noticing such an improvement with their use of details! I have noticed though, that they are forgetting some conventions now that they are writing more elaborate pieces. I created a fun resource to help them remember their punctuation when writing many sentences. It is called Missing Punctuation Mystery!

This resource contains both narrative and informational passages, and even friendly letters. The challenge for the students is that the punctuation is missing! The students act as the detectives reading the passages and discovering where the punctuation should be. They cut and paste the periods, commas, question marks, and exclamation points where they need to be. Then the students re-write the passage including the missing punctuation. This resource also allows students to practice fine motor skills, which are essential skills to learn in the primary grades.

This is a challenging and rigorous review of conventions, but it is so much fun as well! It is a perfect activity for literacy centers. I like to have parent helpers work with a group of students on this activity a few times until they get the hang of it… then they are off on their own practicing their punctuation detective skills!

If you are interested in this resource, get it here!

Happy Teaching!