Navigating Nonfiction

As students progress through the grades, more and more of their reading is done in nonfiction, or expository, materials-content area textbooks, reference books, periodicals, and informative articles on the Internet, for example. 

Because the main purpose for reading these texts is to acquire information, the reasons for teaching our students efficient and effective strategies for tackling this type of text are compelling. Students need explicit instruction in identifying and best utilizing the text features and text structures they encounter. If students learn to read the signposts that are guides to the organization of a particular piece of nonfiction, they will be better equipped to navigate their way through and comprehend the material.

Excited to get your kids hooked on nonfiction texts? Check out my digital resource, Reading Information Texts to help students navigate nonfiction. Readers will learn how to approach nonfiction texts, identify and utilize text features, figure out tricky words, and determine facts related to the main idea.  It includes: 

• EIGHT presentations for Google Slides™
• Interactive activities for EACH presentation. 

The EIGHT topics are: 

1.  Story Types (Fiction vs. Nonfiction)
2. Text Types (Features and Structures of Fiction and Nonfiction) 
3. Author's Purpose 
4. Fact vs. Opinion 
5. Context Clues 
6. Main Ideas 
7. Main Idea and Details 
8. Text Features 

There is NO PREP! You will be provided links to each presentation. Each presentation is made for Google Slides™ , but can also be downloaded as a PowerPoint™. The interactive activities can be presented online or downloaded and completed as printables.

Information Writing - New Resource!

Yahoo!

I just uploaded my new unit, Information Writing, to my TPT store.

In this unit of study, students craft informational books about topics of their choice. Their chapters will feature topic sentences, facts and supporting details, and summary sentences.

This unit of study is organized around 14 big ideas of persuasive texts. The primary goal of the unit of study is to help students become stronger writers. The development of writing skills and strategies are the emphasis.

The 14 sessions include:

1.  Launching The Unit 
2. Learning From Mentor Texts 
3. Identifying Facts 
4. Noticing Text Structure 
5. Introducing Topics
6.  Hooking Readers 
7. Adding Details 
8. Concluding Topics 
9. Adding Text Features 
10. Linking Paragraphs with Transition Words 
11. Enriching Vocabulary (Using Technical Terms) 
12. Detailing Content (Creating A Table of Contents) 
13. Revising and Editing 
14. Publishing and Creating 

Each big idea has been developed into a session, or a lesson plan, which consists of the following:

1.  Anchor Chart(s)
2.  Preparing to Write (Mini-Lesson) 
3. Independent Writing 
4. Partner Share 
5. Reflection

Enjoy this 88 page resource as students delve into and navigate informational texts!

Navigating Non-Fiction In Reader's Workshop

I hope you are having a WONDERFUL winter break! To celebrate the upcoming New Year, I have uploaded my Reader's Workshop unit Navigating Non-Fiction to my store!

The unit of study has 13 sessions for your students to investigate the genre of non-fiction. Each session has a detailed lesson plan, anchor charts, and a group task.

In the first session, students ready their minds to reading non-fiction by identifying features which distinguish fiction from non-fiction.

Each session includes an anchor chart and a group investigation!

I hope you enjoy my new resource! 

Visit my store for this resource and many others!