A. Read appropriate materials for a sustained period of time daily

1. functional (menu, catalog, schedule, directions)
2. textual/informational (classroom texts, magazines, diagrams, tables, charts)
3. recreational/literary (student-authored work, trade books, self selection, multicultural, author/illustrator studies)

Weeping Camel: Finding Rituals in Our Daily Lives
In this lesson, students will identify characteristics of traditional and modern rituals found in different cultures. Through reading stories about rituals, students will identify some of their characteristics. Finally, students will apply their understanding to rituals which occur on familiar holidays.

Reading Informational Texts Using the 3-2-1 Strategy
Being able to effectively read informational texts is a fundamental quality of successful readers. In this lesson, students in grades K–2 learn to use the 3-2-1 strategy, which involves writing about three things they discovered, two things they found interesting, and one question they still have. After teacher modeling, students read a magazine article independently and use the 3-2-1 strategy to comprehend what they read. This strategy can be adapted and used with older students as well.

Predicting and Gathering Information With Nonfiction Texts
Nonfiction is being recognized by the reading community to be vital to early learners. This concept is relatively new and most primary teachers have little experience with how to introduce nonfiction to their students and use it as part of the reading curriculum. This lesson supports second-grade teachers in introducing nonfiction to their students and using it for informational purposes. Students develop an understanding of nonfiction through peer interaction and hands-on experiences with books. They use graphic organizers to record their thinking and new learning

The Frog Beyond the Fairy Tale Character: Searching Informational Texts
Students examine their prior knowledge, make predictions, and verify their predictions through research on the Internet. Students initially record their predictions about frogs on a worksheet with true and false columns. A third column provides a "Web clue," which corresponds to an internal page link on the website, The Somewhat Amusing World of Frogs. To verify their predictions, students click on the internal page links to reach a subheading. The subheading signals to the reader that this section of informational text contains evidence to support or contradict the statement.

Creating Comic Strips
In society, we communicate information/ideas through various mediums (words, symbols, illustrations, etc). When analyzing comic strips, it is noticeable that each has a different style, point of view, setting, plot, and summary, communicated not only through words, but through illustrations. By creating comic strips, students communicate ideas that cannot be expressed through words alone.
 

Animal Study: From Fiction to Facts
This lesson describes how to use selected fiction and nonfiction literature and careful questioning techniques to help students identify factual information about animals. Children first identify possible factual information from works of fiction which are read aloud, then they listen to read-alouds of nonfiction texts to identify and confirm factual information which is recorded on charts and graphic organizers. They also use the Internet to gather additional information about the animal.

Reading Picnic:  This idea celebrates the use of Reading Records with a Reading Picnic.

Read, Click and Win with BookAdventure!:  This site creates personalized lists of books on the reader's level.

Balanced Literacy:  Teaching the Skills AND Thrills of Reading

Clifford's Charm School:  This Clifford Episode is an inspiration for creating book clubs.  Scroll to the bottom of this page to see their suggestion.

William Steig Matching Game:  If you're doing an author study on William Steig, see if your students can remember this books he wrote with this matching page.

Suggestions for English Language Learners (ELLs):
(E/B=Entering/Beginning, D=Developing, E=Expanding) 

E/B: Respond to simple questions by pointing to pictures or with one-to-two word responses and simple sentences when given an oral prompt.
E/B: Identify and represent key characters and setting nonverbally (i.e. gestures, pointing, pictures) or with one-to-two word responses when given an oral prompt; D: Describe key characters, setting, and plot with spoken and written descriptive sentences.
E/B: Identify features of poetry and recite simple poem; D: Read simple poetry and respond to simple factual questions about poetry content with simple oral sentences; E: Read short poems and orally identify their features (i.e. rhythm, rhyme).
D: Explain basic elements of plot, setting, and key characters with spoken and written descriptive sentences; E: Explain basic elements of plot, setting, and key characters with expanded spoken and written vocabulary and descriptive sentences.
E: Identify beginning, middle, and end of literature selection.
 

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