Character Trait Activities

Summer is such a busy time of the year! Despite it being known as a time for a little R-n-R I have found myself being a busy bee and suddenly it is mid July. Where has it went? Knowing how fast time is zooming by, I have already found myself planning for the upcoming year. Reading is a subject that I find myself planning for a bit more than the others. Probably because it is one that instruction can vary from year to year and group to group. Plus, I love finding new novels to teach out of and inspire students to pick-up a book and grab onto reading.

I have been flying through books more than usual- for two reasons. One, I have gotten back into my nightly reading habit and two, I have found some really amazing books this summer that I can't put down. Check out my Instagram for a peek at those. 

I have made a sloppy copy on all of the mini-lessons I'd love to get through in the beginning of the year (it's way to messy to share at this point). Granted, they will take me a couple months; however I rarely find myself getting into guided reading before October with all the instruction and ground rules needed before we begin. After all, the more they understand the do's and don'ts in the beginning- the easier it is on me in the long run. So- I've decided on starting off the first couple of weeks with the basic story elements: character, setting, theme, conflict and plot structure of a text. Granted they will be revisited multiple times in the year. If you haven't checked out Linda Hoyt's Interative Read-Alouds book- do so. She has some amazing lesson plans for very common picture books. Plus each lesson is laid out so well- anyone can do it. She has it broken down to "on page ___ say this; ask that" I literally will write the questions down on post-it notes and stick them to the page.   I have found the kiddos love them just as much as I do. 

Next, I am diving into my first read-aloud novel. It's either Fish in a Tree  or Island of the Blue Dolphins. Both are amazing books and have strong characters- it will just depend on how many of my new kiddos have read Fish in a Tree already. Plus- they could both be considered narratives, which is the first genre of writing we cover in the year. 

The first mini-lesson is going to be on internal and external traits. I always find that when I ask a student if they can give a character trait for a specific character, they go to the physical appearance. However, there is more to a character than that. I found this great anchor chart over at teachertrap.com that I am going to adapt and use with the kiddos- which they will copy in their Reader's Notebooks. 

Then, we will work on creating a character trait chart for the main character- using evidence from the text to support our thinking. In order to help with this activity I am going to copy this character trait sheet from Read Write and Think. I am also going to introduce Ms. Leslie Ann's- A Trait A Day  to increase their vocabulary and give them some more ideas. 

Another resource that I absolutely LOVE from Ms. Leslie Ann is her Bloom's Taxonomy Ladders. I got them last year and used them very consistently with my students. There are both fiction and nonfiction- plus they can be used with any novel or passage and focus on higher order thinking skills. It was a great way for me to check my students comprehension on their independent and literature circle novels. I've also used her non-fiction ones for the students science textbooks. These are really a great resource and are super easy to use. 

The technology integration is going to come with Level 6 and I can not wait for my kiddos to complete this. If you haven't checked out the app Tellagami yet, do so!

 It is really great and can be used for many different types of projects in meaningful ways. Last year I had a student create a tellegami based on a character in his novel- he created the perfect job for him in the future. Not only did the student read the book,  wrote a passage on what he wanted to say, read it aloud fluently, but also thought creatively and used his critical thinking skills to justify. Lots of skills were wrapped up into this one meaningful technology project.

How great was that! As of now- this is what my brain has come up with. At least I am set for a couple of weeks. Check out last year's character trait's post for some examples of the read-aloud books I've used in the past.

Why I Have My Students Justify

I've always been a firm believer that there is a difference between reading and comprehension. So often I see students that have great fluency and read well, however they have a difficult time understanding what they read. This is why I believe it is so important to teach different comprehension skills directly along with higher order thinking skills. I came across this excerpt on higher order thinking skills and feel that this list does a great job at giving ideas while answering  the question: How do you know your students are engaged in higher order thinking? Here are some great strategies.

 Visualize a problem by diagramming it
 Separate relevant from irrelevant information in a word problem
 Seek reasons and causes
 Justify solutions
 See more than one side of a problem
 Weigh sources of information based on their credibility
 Reveal assumptions in reasoning
 Identify bias or logical inconsistencies 

Justifying solutions and explaining with evidence was a strategy I really tried to integrate into my teaching this past year. I started by integrating this strategy into reading and then found myself using it in all subjects. What can I say, it gave me a great idea what each individual student was understanding and still needing help with. As with anything I try, I tend to start small then build up. That's the cautious person in me, I like to get my feet wet before I jump in.  I began with my guided reading groups and I must say, we had so many amazing in depth conversations. They were truly fabulous. Meeting with a group of 5-6 already allows a teacher to grasp each students understanding super well, however this strategy really gave me even more of an idea.  This strategy was so great that by the end of the year I noticed it was carrying over to other classes (like spanish). All on their own, the kiddos were explaining their thinking. All because it became a habit. 

Anchor chart and example words I got over at Life In Fifth Grade by Ms. Leslie Ann.

After the justifying concept was introduced in the beginning of the year- I wanted to test the waters with a getting to know you activity (after all we do so many of these in the beginning of the year-why not step it up a bit). Each student took a look at themselves and brainstormed a list of character traits. They typed them out and then cut out a profile silhouette I took of them.  Eventually they glued their character traits onto  their silhouette.

Now came the justification! They were to take a selfie (what kid doesn't like that) on their iPad and then using ChatterKid app to explain their reasoning for each trait (great way to integrate writing and  fluency as well). At the very end, we connected the silhouette and ChatterKid justification through Aurasma. Here is an example of how they turned out.

Granted, I may be a bit biased, but I think they turned out awesome! It was such a fun, engaging activity to get to know your students. Plus it got them to work on justifying, writing, fluency and technology integration. I must say, that this will be an activity that occurs every year in my room. 

Visualization: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The setting for this book is The Metropolitan Museum of Art. I don't know about you, but it can be hard for me to visualize a books setting if I have not been there. Especially a setting as large as The Met. This is one reason why I really love authors who use ample description in their writing. E. L. Konigsburg does a good job at describing the scenes inside The Met: such as the large antique bed, the knights armor etc. The figurative language that is used as well to describe the character's experiences and feelings is fantastic. Check out these similes: The bus bounced along like  an empty cracker box on wheels. Claudia's heart sounded to her like their electric percolator brewing the morning's coffee. These are just two examples why I love reading figurative language, it gives the reader description in a creative way. If you forgot about similes and metaphors- check out this video as a refresher.

Since I have never been to The Metropolitan Museum of Art and thanks to our wonderful world of technology, I thought I'd research it a bit. First, I thought I'd search for some images on Google and create a Pic Collage. These images allowed me to visualize the setting much, much  better. Could you imagine being a kid and running away here? Think of all of the places you could hide and everything you could learn! I know our characters, Claudia and Jamie, are really going to be having an adventure and thanks to this amazing book, we get to go along for the ride.

The next step I took in my research was going onto The Met's webpage.  Amidst all of the exhibit information and digital features, I found out that their is a Van Gogh exhibit on his Irises and Roses paintings. As some of you know, I love art and integrating projects into my classroom.  I have  loved browsing Kathy Barbaro's, Art Projects for Kids site since I was a first year teacher.  She has so many amazing, colorful projects and she breaks the project steps down to make them oh so simple. Of course she didn't disappoint with my Van Gogh search! She has multiple Van Gogh art projects that could be integrated (in fact we made the Wheatfield pastel drawing this year)- she even has an iris mural that would be fun for a whole class to do. How awesome could that be?

Comprehension Strategies:

Research the setting: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Search for figurative language the author used.

Start a Vivid Visualization's Graphic Organizer- Use your 5 senses in your description. 

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

For my next summer read, I decided to choose a book I have always been curious about. One of my students is reading this now and I thought why not join her. After all, what a fun way to continue sharing a passion for reading.

I was aware that this novel was in the mystery genre, but let me tell you- the first page got my mind activated with many questions. Mostly I was super curious about how this page connected with the rest of the book. Especially since the first chapter is told from the perspective of a sixth grade girl name Claude. I believe she will be our main character of the story, but that is just my prediction. Remember, readers adjust their predictions as they learn more information as they read.

In the first chapter the reader is also introduced to Claude's three brothers and the plot of the story.

The author, E. L. Konigsburg does a great job introducing some character traits for Claude and Jamie (one of her brothers- when you will read, you will find out why he is an important part to the story). Kiddo's, this is a great opportunity to keep a running Venn-Diagram that lists both of these character's traits. This will help you keep track of how these two characters are the same and different, while playing important roles  in the plot.

Comprehension Strategies:

Ask Questions: Make a list of all the different questions you are wondering about.

Compare and Contrast: How are Claude and Jamie the same and different?

Make Connections: Are there any text-to-self connections you can make?

My First Summer Read

I have to admit something happened this year that has never happened before and I am a bit ashamed of it. I started a read aloud book with my students and didn't finish it! The hectic end of the year schedule got the best of me. We started the book Pay It Forward by Catherine Ryan Hyde. I chose to read aloud the young readers edition instead of the adult version. We got all the way to chapter 15- up to that point, the students enjoyed it. Especially the theme- I can't tell you how many wonderful discussions we had as a group!

Since I am challenging myself to read more this summer than I have in the past, I decided to start off my summer reading by finding out how this novel ends. I have a love/hate relationship with the cliffhangers that authors leave me with between chapters, so I thought I would finish my own cliff hanger that I created and find out what happens next. 

I promise you, the author did not disappoint! I sat and finished the last 130+ pages on a Saturday afternoon, in one sitting. I couldn't put it down. I do think that having chapters come from different perspectives definitely helped keep my mind actively going. When reading the Letter From the Author, I discovered one difference between the adult and young readers version. I must say, I liked this creative change. If I would have finished this read aloud with my students, I can only imagine all of the different ideas they would have come up with for the ending. I am so bummed that this group discussion didn't occur.  So, if you are one of my awesome students and wanted to figure out how the rest of this book develops- email me and tell me your thoughts! Happy Reading.

Summer Reading Benefits

The last week of school, my students took some time to research/discover books that they would like to read over the summer. The students were given an opportunity to share book ideas, look at a list I compiled, and research on their own. By creating their own "Summer Reading List" I am hoping this gives them many book ideas and sparks their ambition for reading during such a fun time of the year.

Yes- I know that summer is time for fun!  A time for a break. Pools, lakes, cabins, camps, sports, vacation, play dates and many more. The three months seems to fly by in a blink of an eye. With all the busy schedules, I understand how reading can get set on the back burner. I am guilty of this myself. However, reading can be fun! It is a time that you can get lost in a book and take a trip to a whole new world. Besides having an escape in a book there are many other benefits of reading. Especially since it helps keeping the summer slide at bay. 

Here is a link to the article above. 

What can we do to help prevent summer reading loss in a world full of technology? Julie M. Wood Ed.D has some very helpful ideas and tips. Check out her article here.

Character Traits

I decided to begin the year focusing on teaching character traits. Not only is this concept necessary when analyzing character's in a story, but it is also one that students can use for self reflection. I chose to implement a little bit of inquiry and not discuss the focus with my students from the get go. Instead, I chose to read two read aloud books that focused on the character trait courage. The first one was a classic first day read, Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco. It is an autobiographical story and in it Patricia shares with her readers the struggle she had with reading. This a touching story that sheds light on a concept many students struggle with. This read aloud also provided an opportunity to touch base with my very own students to learn what they wanted in a teacher.

What awesome qualities the students chose. 

The second read aloud I chose was one that was illustrated by a fantastic author and illustrator, Henry Cole. It is called Clara Caterpillar. In it, the main character overcomes obstacles and ends up being courageous when an bully is in need of help.

The two read alouds shed light on the trait courage. I wanted my students to know that this is a character trait found in real people. Enter Amy Purdy's Ted Talk. What a courageous individual she is. The students really enjoyed listening to her talk and shed light on the obstacles she overcame.

"If your life were a book and you were the author, how would you want your story to go?"

What a great writing prompt! This was one of the two extension activities that followed. In the second one, I asked my courage to complete a chart that showed how the characters Tricia (Thank You, Mr. Falker), Amy Purdy (Ted Talk), Clara and Cornelius (Clara Caterpillar) were courageous and more specifically how they demonstrated the character trait courage by identifying specific text examples. Then they were to write what they thought courage was and how they could become more courageous. 

At this point, I felt like the students were ready to learn exactly what character traits are. These are the two anchor charts I made to teach this concept. The students then created their own in the mini-lessons tab in their own reader's notebook. 

For our first classroom novel, we are going to read Island of the Blue Dolphins,
by Scott O'dell. It is a great fifth grade novel that will allow the students to apply their
knowledge on character traits and analyze Karana, while finding evidence on how
she is courageous.

Here are some other picture books I used to focus on the character trait courage.

This story is so up-lifting. It allows readers to see how
important it is to encourage others and be courageous ourselves.
EXTENSION: Create an "ish" drawing

In this book, Bernard Waber puts a spotlight
on the fact that courage is different for everyone.
EXTENSION: I had each student write down what courage was to him/her,
then create an illustration that depicts their courage.
Classroom book, here we go!

This is by far one of my favorite books! It is one that I have used to
bring up bullying in the past with my students. However this year, I felt like I'd use it to
show that courage is needed to stand up for what is right.