Laughing and Learning with Elvis

No, this is not a blog post about Elvis the singer.  {Sorry!}  It's just a quick post to let you know about the most hilarious book that I have read in a long, long time, Elvis and the Underdogs by Jenny Lee.

I first heard about this book from the (also very hilarious) Alison at Rockin' and Lovin' Learnin'.  She raved about how funny her kids thought the book was and even had them write book recommendations for her blog post.  I was sold!

If you are a fan of the book Wonder, you will also love Elvis.  Here's the review from Amazon:

From Jenny Lee, writer on the Disney Channel show Shake It Up!, the number-one-rated kids' show in the country, this feel-good middle-grade novel is about a sickly boy whose life is turned upside down when he gets a therapy dog . . . who can talk!Benji Wendell Barnsworth is a small ten-year-old boy with a big personality. Born premature, Benji is sickly, accident-prone, and at the hospital so often he even has his own punch card. So when Benji wakes up one day from a particularly bad spell, his doctors take the radical step of suggesting he get a therapy dog. But when a massive crate arrives at Benji's house, out walks a two-hundred-pound Newfoundland who can talk! And boy, is he bossy.

If you are looking for a fall-off-your-seat-laughing, heartwarming story of courage, perseverance and friendship, this is it!  Elvis and the Underdogs would make a great read aloud, and it can also be used to teach literary devices such as point-of-view (the story is told in 1st person) and inferring.  Each chapter begins with a really cute illustration that could be used to infer what will happen:

I can't wait to get back from spring break to share this heartwarming and hilarious story with my 4th graders.  I'm linking up today with the very talented Amanda at Teaching Maddeness to share this must-read chapter book.  I hope you will check it out!

Happy Reading!

Reading Like a Writer

So I was in Hobby Lobby last night and was stopped dead in my tracks when I saw this...

It seems like I had been transported to the North Pole instead of Racine, Wisconsin...

Christmas???  Already??? 

I know it's because there are a lot of crafters out there who need these supplies to get ready for this big holiday...which is still six months away...but I have barely gotten through the 4th of July yet.   Oh well...

Yesterday I wrote about using mentor texts in the revision stage of writing.  If you missed that post, scroll down or you can click here. 

Using mentor texts in writing is one of the best things you can do! Why not teach your students to learn from an expert?   As a teacher, using mentor texts in your writing instruction is like having a writer-in-residence and a teaching partner in your room.  You never have to be alone in the teaching of writing again!

If you stop to really think about it, everything we have learned in life, we have learned from someone else -- riding a bike, knitting, baking, driving a car, writing a blog :).  Writing should be no different!  We learn from the authors of the books we've read, the experts that have come before us.

Many of us have used mentor texts -- but usually at the beginning of the writing process.  I am advocating for bringing in mentor texts during revision. 

Why revision?  Because the when students draft, they are not producing their best work. They are just getting their ideas down on paper.  In revision, students are given the opportunity to improve their writing, make it better, make sure it says what they want it to say.

Think about how we revise our lives....If we try a recipe and it doesn't work, we may try it again.  When we craft, each time we make something it gets better.  In sports, we practice and repeat to help our game improve.  Kids play video games over and over to get a better score.  Our life is one big revision, isn't it?

Just reading a mentor text is not enough.  You need to teach your kiddos how to read like a writer. 

Here are some suggestions:

• First, a text should be read a time or two for comprehension.  Kids need to understand the story so they can free up their brainpower for looking at the writing in a different way. 

• Next, students will need to be taught to put on a different pair of reading glasses, so to speak, so they know they will be looking at the "how" of the writing, not the "what."

• Teach students to slow down and reread many times, looking at the "how."  Rereading is very important!

• Focus on a small part of the reading.  For my activity for my presentation, I passed out a bunch of picture books and I asked the group to simply focus on the introduction.  They went around the table and read the first line of each story out loud then talked about what they saw.  Patterns started to emerge here.

• Develop a common vocabulary for the things you see.  If you see that several authors are beginning their writing by talking about interesting details about a character, call it 'character development' or something like that.

• Discuss how this technique helps you as a reader -- does it create a certain mood, set a tone, help you make a connection, etc.

• Talk about how students can apply what they've read to their own writing. This is very important because students need to be able to see how their mentor text can help them improve their writing.

• Encourage them to be purposeful in giving it a try!

For my presentation, we focused on introductions because I feel they are one of the most important parts of writing.  You need to snag your reader into your writing or they will walk away.  Also, many students really struggle with introductions, and it paralyzes them so they don't write.  Using mentor texts is a great way to get them started.

Here are some other techniques you can use mentor texts to discover:

• Use of figurative language
• Sentence structure -- use of fragments, many one-syllable words in a row, etc.
• Repeating words and phrases throughout
• Use of dialogue
• Humor, facts, tension, etc.
• Character development
• Strong endings (Note that "The End" are not the last two words in most stories :)

I hope you will give using mentor texts during revision a try!  Because this was my own presentation, I have lots and lots to say (in case you couldn't tell!).  If you have any questions or need more resources to read about this topic on your own, just let me know!

Have a great Saturday!

Me Procrastinate???

Happy Sunday, blogging buddies!

I hope you have had a nice weekend!  The weather here in Wisconsin has finally turned to the hotter and I am loving it!  Now if I could only get my garden to stop growing all of the weeds from the 8 inches of rain we've gotten recently, I'd really be in business!  Here is a pic of the beautiful sunrise this morning...I've been up since 4:30 so I got to see it.  Beautiful!!!

Is anyone else out there having a really hard time getting anything done these days?  I don't know if it's because I've got so much going on that I can't seem to focus on any one thing for more than 30 seconds, or if I've developed a temporary case of ADD.  I'm usually not like this -- I'm usually very on top of things.  But because I've got so many things I need and want to do, I don't seem to be able to get any of them done. 

My husband told me this morning that I was procrastinating -- which did not help me feel any better and only made me NOT want to do the things I need to do -- so I think I can blame this on him, right???  So to prove him wrong, I rearranged the cookie sheets in the kitchen cabinet, vacuumed under the bed, cleaned the ashes out of the fireplace, balanced the checkbook, swept the garage, and dusted the shelves in his office.  I mean, those things NEEDED to be done....TODAY.  Do you see what I mean???

OK, now down to business....Want to cross "write blog post" off my to-do list.  (This is actually something on my list in the "Want to do" column.)

First, I want to share the goody box that arrived on Friday from Joanne at Head Over Heels for Teaching.  I won her Bloglovin' giveaway and she sent me a big ginormous box of goodies.  She wasn't kidding when she said she was a "master packer"!  The lady at the post office told her that "If it fits, it ships" so she packed this box full.

And check out what was inside..

There were over 50 packs of Post-its (WOW!) along with this very sweet note from Joanne (I just love her!!)

Thanks Joanne, this made my week!

I'm also going to link up for the first time ever with the great gals from Collaboration Cuties for their Mentor Text Linky party.

This week's topic is Language Arts mentor texts and I'd like to share a book that I just read that I wish I had found five years ago.

 

If you use a Writers' Workshop in your room and have your students capture daily moments in a Writer's Notebook, you MUST read this book to them. 

 

How many times have your students said "I don't know what to write about?"  Happens all the time, right?

 

In this cute story (AR level 3.7), young Eva is faced with a desire to write, but doesn't know what to write about.  "Write about what you know", her teacher tells her but Eva looks around her world and doesn't see anything worth writing about.  Then with the help of supporting characters, Eva sees that if you truly look for the little moments in life, you will have lots to write about.  I could see using this text during writing by having the students make a list of the writing tips they learn from the characters in this story. 

This is a great text to use at the beginning of the year when you are going over the procedures for Writers' Workshop and using a Writer's Notebook.  The language in it is fresh, evokes the senses, and makes it easy to visualize.  The author also skillfully uses the comma in many different capacities so it would make an excellent mentor text for grammar study. 

 

On one final note (before I really tackle that "to do" list), I begin my three week journey with the National Writing Project  at UW- Milwaukee tomorrow.  (Maybe that explains why I'm so unfocused these days...too excited!)  My hope is that I will be able to post something daily to share with all of you the great things I learn.  Let's keep our fingers crossed!  Wish me luck!!

Don't forget to enter my Rafflecopter contest to win a $10 Amazon gift card and one of my Writer's Notebook Divider Page sets from my TpT store!  The drawing is on Wednesday so enter now!

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Have a great Sunday! I think the dogs need a bath now and my spices need to be put in ABC order.... :)