Theme, Poetry, and Susan Stevens Crummel

This past week has been super busy in the Hillside library with all sorts of learning! When we return from the Thanksgiving break, we will have an author visit. We are very excited to have Susan Stevens Crummel visit with all grade levels.

My plan is to have a bulletin board displaying student work pertaining to Susan Stevens Crummel's books. With first grade this week, I read aloud the book PLAIDYPUS LOST.  The students loved the repeating text, and read it in chorus with me. After reading the story, the students created their own platypus. They designed the pajamas, and we added patches with pieces of scrapbook paper. I loved how they turned out, and can't wait for Susan Stevens Crummel to see all of their work.

Last week, a third grade teacher approached me and asked if she could bring her class in for a lesson over theme. They had covered the skill in class, but needed a little extra practice. I decided to use the picture books by Susan Stevens Crummel for the lesson. First, the teacher and I went over theme, and I made an anchor chart while we taught/reviewed. (I did not take a picture of my anchor chart, it was not pinterest worthy.)  We taught the students a great way to remember THEME is that it is THE MEssage that the author wants the reader to learn. The students then brainstormed some common themes we see in literature, such as perseverance, teamwork, honesty, and responsibility to name a few. 

I read aloud one of my favorite books, THE LITTLE RED PEN by Susan Stevens Crummel. The students loved the book, especially the pushpin AKA Señorita Chincheta. After reading the book, we brainstormed together the theme of the story. The students came up with "Teamwork, "Don't Be Lazy", and "Never Give Up".

Next, the students were paired up by their teacher, and I brought each pair a book by Crummel. Their job was to read the book and together decide what the theme was. They also had to include text evidence to prove their theme.  

As you can see from the picture our tables were missing, so we had to be flexible. Hillside had our Blue Ribbon celebration that day, so all of the library tables and chairs were being used for the celebration. We still work hard and learn in the library, even without chairs! 

Fourth grade has a unit over poetry this month, specifically figurative language this week. The fourth grade ELA teacher and I discussed a lesson together, and we decided to use the book 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE THANKSGIVING by Dav Pilkey. The fourth graders all wanted to go down to the rug, so I read the book in our reading area to them. We then reviewed personification, simile, and metaphor. 

The assignment was to create a Popplet (www.popplet.com) and categorize the 3 types of figurative language from the poem. I did type out the poem for the students so they could have the text in front of them to find the examples. 

Whew! Just one more day until our Thanksgiving break!!

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