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Inferencing and Journalism Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
Become a news reporter and write your own daily column with these 22 inferencing, journalism writing activities. Newspaper format and great graphics are easy for students to work with. Uses writing process and peer workshopping strategies. Comes with two blank templates for creative fun and one lined page for extra writing space. Includes optional media and technology projects for differentiated classrooms. Excellent for use with relationship words, time order, fact vs. opinion, and more...Meets CCSS.
Writing Prompts for Grades 3-8
By Beth Hammett
40 prompts to help students with on-demand writing. Each handout has a black and white image to color that is non-fiction, real life related. Factual, lined page, story starters for critical thinking, assessment-style, standardized writing practice. Topics include: In my future, I see... Some people say I'm a dreamer... The road of life has many obstacles... The root system of a tree is as complicated as... Home represents... If I could soar like a bird... To walk a mile in another's shoes... The world's future is.... One of the biggest exaggerations I've heard or told was... I have a place in my heart for... Gossip spreads like wildfire. An example of this is... My friends are as unique as leaves on a tree... plus so many more fact-based prompts... Full page lined writing handout for 2 sided copying Copy and handout to students for on-demand, non-fiction writing practice, diagnostic testing, assessment practice, peer workshopping practice, and more. Meets Common Core and State ELA Standards for writing.
Write a Halloween Story with Word Bank/Coloring Images (Gr. 3 and up)
By Beth Hammett
16 Halloween coloring images with holiday word banks that include: Cats Bats Dracula Frankenstein Ghosts Pirate Pumpkins Trick or Treat Witches Zombies and more... Includes Suggestions For Use sheet and template to create your own vocabulary word bank. Upper levels can use for poetry and contest writing. Fun way to assess writing skills in an ELA classroom. Grab a blanket and flashlight, turn on the lighted pumpkin, and have a classroom read-around of Halloween stories!
Galveston Immigration (Texas History Comic Coloring Book)
By Beth Hammett
An overview of Galveston as the Gateway to America during 1845-1924. Follow immigrants from Europe to Galveston in dangerous conditions over rough seas as they enter the Port of Galveston to start their new lives. 23 pages of comic book style coloring frames; 11 of these pages are blank for students to write their immigration stories. Includes "Fact" box on each of the pages. Fun, engaging, and educational approach to learning about immigration through the Port of Galveston in 1845. Use for introducing skills or for assessment of knowledge.
Social Studies City or Rural Life: 10 Fact-Based Activities for Grades 2-3
By Beth Hammett
Help students understand the difference between city and rural life with 10 activities. Includes: Easy to understand definitions of city and rural Matching (2 worksheets: symbols and words) Maps with city and rural activities to choose from Draw items found in a city and rural areas Letters for reflection (fill-in-the-blanks) Directions on each page Great for intro to geography or social studies unit, homework, or assessment. Meets CCSS.
By Beth Hammett
Every April, students can celebrate Tell-a-Story Day, which occurs at the end of the month. This 16 page handout will help students with organizing and telling fact-based stories. Great for building oral communication, evidence/proof, and re-telling memories. Includes: Finding storytelling topics Graphic Organizers for planning stories in chronological order Setting up a storytelling event Designing advertisements/invitations Peer workshopping stories Links to multicultural, professional, international/national storytelling centers, storytelling videos and websites Can be used any time of the year! Students will enjoy sharing stories while learning how to use fact-based information. Fun and educational!
St. Patrick's Day My Pot o' Gold Character Traits Activity
By Beth Hammett
Introduce character traits to students then tie the concepts to real life with this pot o' gold activity. Students choose one character trait to define each of their classmates. Then, they write the character traits on gold coins, cut and paste onto peers' pot o' gold. Informative writing activity that reinforces using examples for fact-based essays. Includes: Easy to follow directions with optional age-based activities Pot o' Gold Coins handout Character Trait Sheet Follow-up writing activities Fun, engaging activity for elementary students who need introductions or reinforcement in working with character traits and fact-based writing.
By Beth Hammett
Twitter-like page with tweets handouts for social media discussions and short responses, such as main ideas, paraphrasing and summarizing. Includes: Directions and Suggestions for Use ______'s Page for creating a social media page Top 5 Trending, Add Pic/Photo, Subjects to Share, Banner, @_________ new social media name Tweets boxes with 140 spaces for writing short responses Use with CCSS and other state aligned materials to help students with short answer responses. Fun way to include social media an discussions about appropriate online guidelines and posts!
Magazine Covers Writing Activities
By Beth Hammett
13 magazine-like covers/handouts designed to help students master CCSS genre study elements for non-fiction texts. After studying real magazine covers, have students choose their favorite topic and fill-in the information. Color the images for great classroom displays! Includes directions and suggestions for use and connections for Common Core subjects. Magazine covers handouts include: Animals, Games, Gardening, History, Math, Music, Reader, Science, Sports, Technology, Writer, Blank Form Can be used for inferencing, main ideas, paraphrases,spelling, summaries, titles, vocabulary, and more...
Fall Thanksgiving Newspaper Writing Activity
By Beth Hammett
Have students write their own expository, fact-based newspaper articles and complete their own entertainment reviews with Talkin' Turkey Times. Plenty of templates for students to: draw pictures work on grammar skills work on spelling/vocabulary write themed articles paste related images (great for lower levels/extensions) practice main ideas write headings write titles form topic sentences work on paraphrasing/summarizing develop paragraphing skills work on proofreading/editing Easy to use, and great for bulletin board displays during Thanksgiving. Send home for students to complete with Thanksgiving memories while on holiday break. Great assessment tool and meets Common Core Standards.
By Beth Hammett
Everything students need to know about Abraham Lincoln! And,written in comic book format that comes with a second set of pages that have blank text boxes for students to paraphrase/summarize/research then fill-in facts. Includes: Early Life: Birth, School, Manhood, Death of Mom, Step-Mother Young Adult Years: Employment, Politics Famous Quotes Law License John Todd Stuart, First Law Partner Mary Todd Lincoln & Marriage Four Sons (Birth & Death) Political Timelines Speeches (House Divided, 2 Inaugural Speeches,Gettysburg Address, Last Address) Political Slogans Noah Brooks' reporter's viewpoint Black Hawk War Civil War Ford Theater Death Fun, easy, interactive way to learn facts about Abraham Lincoln, his life and political career. Can be used for ELA, history, social studies, as well as plays, bulletin boards, posters, etc... Meets CCSS fact-based, non-fiction standards.
By Beth Hammett
Students are Hollywood stars in this movie-themed, narrative writing project. Differentiated writing project Includes: Brainstorming handouts Plot line for upper level students Lined essay paper Credits/playbill page Directions for use Narrative definition Project Extensions for GT/AP Supplemental Resources Fun, engaging format for working with narrative writing. Use as introduction to narratives or for assessment purposes. Meets CCSS.
Winter Holiday Stories Color, Write, and Publish
By Beth Hammett
Make a book the easy way with 53 slides to color and use for factual or fictional writing. Winter themed images with space for text writing and speaking (Speech Bubbles). Includes: 5 Title pages 5 "The End" pages 1 Directions for Use 42 black and white winter images/handouts Excellent for assessing standardized writing skills, such as inferencing, working with the writing process, peer workshopping, expository writing, narratives, or fictional stories. Easy to follow directions with several options for book binding.
By Beth Hammett
Students make their own fact based or fictional Thanksgiving Storybooks then bind and share. These ready to use handout sheets are loaded with holiday graphics that include:
4 Title pages to color
4 The End pages to color
6 Coloring Frames with Speech Bubbles
16 Coloring Frames with Writing Spaces
Instructions for Use and binding with Optional Extensions (media)
32 slides of Thanksgiving fun that allows students to create their own books to share with classmates, families, and friends. Can be used as assessment for grammar/writing skills, as fact-based only stories, or as creative writing assignments.
Valentine's Day Figurative Language Fun
By Beth Hammett
13 colorful Valentine's Day themed slides that introduce and help students to use and master figurative language. Includes: Directions with optional activities Alliteration Hyperbole Idioms Imagery Internal Rhyme Metaphor Onomatopoeia Personification Simile Symbolism Valentine's Day Images Writing Activities Each slide includes definition, example(s), and writing practice. Presentation can be used for assessment, flipped classrooms, and all differentiated levels of students. Can also be used for individual reviews of specific terminologies.
Great Depression / A U.S. History Comic Coloring Book
By Beth Hammett
Learn about the Great Depression era through 42 pages of coloring and comic book frames with additional blank templates for creative fact-based writing and assessment. Topics Include: Timeline 1929-1941 President Hoover Stock Market Crash Unemployment Rates Food Riots Immigration Bank Failures Domestic Government Programs President Franklin D. Roosevelt (and re-elections) New Deal Dust Bowl and Eyewitness Accounts Dorothea Lange and Migrant Mother photo John Steinbeck and Grapes of Wrath Minimum Wage Pearl Harbor Germany and World War II Fun, engaging way to learn about the Great Depression era of U.S. History with fact-based writing activities for critical thinking and reinforcement. Meets CCSS and TEKS.
Asian-Pacific Month (Comic Book)
By Beth Hammett
Do you know how Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month begin? This 25 page comic book explains the history behind the celebrated month, and it offers students the opportunity to review information then fill in their own comic speech bubbles and facts using the comic templates.
Includes:
Immigration of the first Japanese to America
Number of Japanese who left their homeland for U.S.
Transcontinental Railroad
Map of Railroad Line
Golden/Last Spike
Asian-Pacific Continents & Islands (partial list)
Commemorative Bill made into Law
White House Fact about Visitors
Timeline of Congressional Bill into Law
Public Law 102-458
Hawaiian Words List and Activity
Famous Asian-Pacific Americans and Their Info: Amy Tan, Steven Chu, Michelle Kwan, Jerry Yang
Interesting facts, great coloring images, and follows CCSS guidelines. Use for assessment, introduction, and/or refresher. Fun, educational way to learn facts about Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month!
Dairy Month (June) Activities and Handouts
By Beth Hammett
June is Dairy Month, so get students learning about cows with these fourteen activities for group or individuals that use critical thinking skills. Includes: Coloring handouts (2) KWL chart Calendar to fill in with dates & dairy items; star the items Maze Poem or Story writing Milkman United States' map activity Cow or Dairy Facts Decorate the Cow Skull List as many dairy items as possible Graph to chart Cow Confusion true or false activity Thumbprint cows (to use with inkpad) Know and label the parts of a cow For use with science or social studies units. Can be used for assessment and with differentiated classes. Meets CCSS.
By Beth Hammett
41 page across-curriculum Comic Book Writing lesson plan has guidelines and materials needed for classroom comic book writing. Revised to Include:
Conquering the "I Can't Draw" Syndrome
Colorful student examples
Supply list
Comics timeline (history of comics)
Superhero/Alter Ego handouts
Comic story graphic organizer
Superheroes and Their Powers Review sheet
Handouts for speech/thought bubbles and frames
Extra Resources (website links, books, music and more
Scoring Rubric
Symbolism sheets
Tips for publishing
Short story elements include:
Inferencing
Characterization
Research
Plot (working with Plot Line and Elements)
Point of view
Dialogue
Symbolism
Technology
and much more...!
Can be used with all ages and differentiated classrooms (ESL, AP, G/T). Great for assessing grammar, inferencing, story skills,and writing process. Students will be excited to start comic book writing in the classroom. Fun and educational!
By Beth Hammett
Reinforce word origins by having students come up with their own made-up words! Use compound words, foreign words, prefixes/suffixes, shortened words, sound words, rhyming words, etc...for this fun, visual activity. Includes: Directions Definition Example from Classic Poem Student Examples Application Activity Publishing Activities Meets CCSS, improves vocabulary, uses decoding skills, and visualization. Use for individual or group activity.