1/17/2016: It is Almost Martin Luther King Jr Day!

It is almost Martin Luther King Jr Day!

The week Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a wonderful time to teach your students about the life and legacy of the great American Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I have created two original plays about Dr. King, I Have A Dream - The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and The Dream - A Play about Martin Luther King, Jr.

These plays are complete with a teaching guide that lists questions before and after reading the play, words to preview, and extension activities, your students will have fun, build self-confidence and increase in reading fluency, comprehension and vocabulary development.

You can read more about Dr. King in my reader Martin Luther King, Jr. - First Grade Level D Reader.  My original series of leveled books is written to incorporate the Fountas and Pinnell leveled vocabulary, Rebecca Sitton spelling words, and common core curriculum standards for grades K-6 in the United States. They are great materials for Black History Month in February as well!

12/29/2015: Leap Into 2016!

The December holidays have come and gone, and soon school will be back in session.  Why not leap into a new year with some new readers for your class, like my new “Leaping Into Language Arts” readers?

“Leaping into Language Arts” are grammar and writing workbooks that contains instruction and exercises aimed at teaching grammar in the context of practical writing skills.  There are separate books aimed at grades 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

Enjoy the rest of 2015!

12/13/2015: Happy St Lucia Day!

It is already mid-December!  In different parts of the world, children may have been celebrating St. Nicholas Day or St Lucia Day as part of their own Christmas season tradition.  In my original play Where in the World is the Spirit of Christmas Detective John T. Brown travels the world to solve the Spirit of Christmas. Along the way he meets children from Israel, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Mexico and Sweden in hopes of finding the Grinch who is missing the holiday spirit. Come and see how others celebrate this holiday and how the Grinch learned that Christmas is really more than things.

My original holiday-themed books and plays are a fun and educational way to add some festivity into your classroom this season.  This is also a time of year when many of our thoughts turn to sweets and treats!  In my original play Candy Land, children play the traditional board game (Candy Land) and when they begin the game by moving their tokens down the Rainbow Trail, a lick of a sucker causes them to be thrown into a land far from home and set off on an adventure with their dog Brownie and a familiar cast of Candy Land characters.  

All of my original plays may be used as readers’ theater, as a part of balanced literacy (Read-Aloud, Shared and Performance Reading or Guided Reading), or for an actual play production. Using plays in literacy-based classrooms promotes active listening for the performers, as well as the audience, and offers an engaging way to teach reading skills.

12/2/2015: Happy (almost) Birthday to Louis Pasteur!

It is already the middle of December, and the birthday the great French chemist and biologist Louis Pasteur is approaching!  Pasteur was born on December 27th, 1822, in France.   His important contributions to science include proving the germ theory of disease, inventing the process of pasteurisation, and producing the first rabies vaccine.  Pasteurization is used to allow us to keep milk longer, to celebrate Pasteur and science try out this fun color changing milk experiment with your class!

If you looking for a way to combine science, history, reading, and writing activities, my

consider checking out on my book “Louis Pasteur - Exploring Pasteurization and Vaccines” on my Teachers Pay Teachers Site

This third grade Level N reader is a three-page story about some of his greatest discoveries,  accompanied by five pages of worksheets which reinforce literacy skills involving reading, language, spelling, and writing.

Please visit my Pintrest page http://www.pinterest.com/havenhillread/ for more ideas on getting students excited for science!  

10/23/15: Happy (almost) Birthday Jonas Salk!

Happy Birthday to Jonas Salk!  Jonas Salk, the important American scientist who developed the first successful vaccine for polio was born in New York City October 28, 1914. To learn more about this great scientist, my reader Jonas Salk - Famous Medical Researcher is perfect for combining science, history, reading, and writing activities! This third grade Level N reader is an informative text that explores Jonas Salk's discovery of the first vaccine for polio, which saved millions from getting this terrible disease.

Please visit my Pintrest page http://www.pinterest.com/havenhillread/ for more ideas on getting students excited for science!  

10/9/2015: Anniversary of the First Two-Way Telephone Conversation

Alexander Graham Bell and his assistant Thomas A. Watson held the first two-way long-distance conversation on October 9, 1876, when they spoke to each other by telephone over a two-mile wire stretched between Cambridge and Boston. 

Earlier that same year, On February 14, Bell and an American engineer named Elisha Gray both filed patents with the U.S. Patent Office for early telephones. There is debate about who got there first but Bell received the patent, and a few days later he succeeded in getting his telephone to work using elements similar to those of Gray’s.

Do your students enjoy learning about famous inventors? My first-grade Level F reader Alexander Graham Bell combines reading and social studies activities to provide interesting facts about Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone. Your students will build their vocabulary and improve their reading comprehension as they read the story, answer questions, and have fun with the puzzle!

9/30/2015: Happy Belated Birthday, Johnny Appleseed!

Fall is the time for apples, and September is also the birth month of Johnny Appleseed!  John Chapman, who later became known as Johnny Appleseed, was born September 26, 1774, in Leominster, MA

My original play “The Tale of Johnny Appleseed” is a great way to learn more about this famous frontiersman with your class!

It is written for use as readers’ theater, as a part of balanced literacy (Read-Aloud, Shared and Performance Reading or Guided Reading), or for an actual play production. In readers’ theater or through one of the balanced literacy approaches to teaching reading, children are not expected to memorize their lines, yet the reading encourages strong oral skills. An added benefit is performing the play for other classes or parents while increasing social skills, cooperative learning and creativity. Using plays in literacy-based classrooms promotes active listening for the performers, as well as the audience, and offers an engaging way to teach reading skills.