Reading Comprehension Skill Reference Sheet - Digital Download

State testing is over for my third graders...thank goodness!

Today we have the day off because it was reserved as a Bad Weather Make Up Day. It's truly been wonderful because I'm getting so many things done.

Not only things for school, but many things around the house that just need to get done. Plus, I got to sleep in and I really, really needed that! :)

One of the many things that I've checked off of my to do list today is the new product I just listed. I created some Reading Comprehension Skill References Sheets for my students and yours! I wish that I would have thought to create these earlier in the year, but I suppose I can't think of everything my first year, huh?

I got this idea from some after school tutoring that I've started doing. In Texas, our 5th graders get multiple opportunities to pass the state assessment, STAAR, and those make up tests are quickly approaching.

I started this tutoring group just this past week on Thursday. It's really nice because the 5th grade teachers provide everyone tutoring with the materials that you need and you just open your folder, pull out your materials, and get started. One of the materials that was handed over to us was a reference sheet.

On the reference sheet, there are a variety of reading comprehension skills that are briefly defined and explained. I asked one of the 5th grade teachers about it and she said that they originally found the pages online and then revamped them to fit their needs.

{Click here to download Reading Comprehension Skill Reference Sheets.}

So, I thought that would be a good idea for my students, too. This version of the reference sheet is a little more simplified because it is geared more toward my third grade students than any others, but I hope that teachers in grades 2 - 5 will find it helpful in their classrooms.

To download the files, please just click the image or link above and you'll be lead to my TpT store. :)

I hope you're all having a fabulous start to your week!

Summer's not far...

Author's Purpose Assessment - Digital Download

Last week we covered Author's Purpose thoroughly. I posted about three books you should use to teach author's purpose, too!

In that same post, I shared an Author's Purpose poster freebie for you to use in your classroom. Now, I'm back with another Author's Purpose resource for your classroom!

This one is for assessment. I needed something that I felt was just as thorough as the lessons I used to teach author's purpose, which is exactly what I have for you...

Author's Purpose Assessment - Digital Download

This assessment is a 3 page multiple-choice assessment with varied degrees of questioning. It will definitely save you some time!

Enjoy!!!

Author's Purpose PIE Poster - Free Download

This week in my class we are discussing Author's Purpose.

We are using the PIE acronym to help us remember the different reasons that authors write various texts. I broke down each purpose into one day.

So far, I feel like this has worked out really, really well for me & my students. Monday we didn't have school, but below I'm listing a breakdown of how I taught Author's Purpose this week.

Tuesday - To Persuade

We read Earrings By: Judith Viorst & discussed how the character in this story desperately tried to persuade her parents to let her get pierced ears. The students were even able to make text-to-self connections as they admitted they knew exactly how to persuade their parents!

I had one student say, "I know if I can't persuade my mom to get me something, I can talk to my grandma!"

It was really too funny!!!





Wednesday - To Inform

We read How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World By: Marjorie Priceman.

We discussed how some texts are written to teach us how to do things, or to share information & knowledge with us (even though sometimes we already know about the topic the author has written about).

This book talks about someone going through so much trouble just to make an apple pie.

One of my students said, "You mean she did ALL that for an apple pie?!"




Note: With both of the above stories, I helped my students identify that the author's purpose wasn't to persuade or inform; it was actually to entertain. We talked in depth about how each story taught us about a process (persuasion & informing) so that we understood what those things were in order to identify the author's purpose in other text, however!

Thursday - To Entertain

On Thursday we read a story that my students were very familiar with, Click Clack Moo Cows that Type By: Doreen Cronin.

Last year, my kids saw this play at a theatre as second graders. :)

As we read this story, we discussed how its sole purpose was to entertain us.

The cows in the story were trying to persuade the farmer, but the author originally wrote this story to make us, as readers, laugh.

{Click here to download this FREE Author's Purpose PIE Poster.}

Because we've been talking about this in depth, I also decided to make this FREE Author's Purpose PIE Poster for you to download. This is EXACTLY how I've taught my kids to identify the author's purpose. Of course, I've even made NEW Author's Purpose Anchor Charts that I'll have to post at a later date. Darn...still haven't gotten in the habit of taking my camera to school!