Giveaway Winner & 103 Things to Do With a Book

Let me start with a YAY and CONGRATULATIONS to my Giveaway winner, Laura Cooney!  Rafflecopter has spoken, and she won with her blog comment entry!  Thanks to everyone who joined the fun and participated in one way or another.  I appreciate you!

I read so many books to students and with  students, it's easy to find myself getting caught up in the "same ole', same ole' " activities.  I stumbled upon this website and found a helpful article on a variety of things (103) to do with books...before, during, and or after reading.  In my new coaching position, where I never know what will unfold in front of me, I often have to think fast and on the fly.  I've bookmarked this article and found that it's a fantastic resource on the days when I have no time to plan. It can be adapted to ANY age or grade level.   Some of my favorites include:

• Business Card book-Students retell the story in as many creative ways as they can on a business card (*You can simply use small paper, the size of a business card, but the REAL business cards are more fun!)  They'll come up with a variety of ways to express what they know...story maps, lists, summaries, etc.
• Roundtable-Students LOVE to talk, right?  This gives them the floor and the opportunity to just "discuss" the book as adults would at a book study....What confused you?  What do you think the author meant when...?  What would you change about the book?  
• Timeline-Timeline skills can always use a little extra practice. There's no better way than to create a timeline of the events in the story!
• Transparencies-Who says you can't have fun with "old school" teaching?  We still have some overhead projectors sitting around the school collecting dust, but they still work.  Give students some transparencies to create a story map on, character list, setting drawings, theme statements or illustrations, problem solution and/or cause and effect situations.  Slap them up on that dusty overhead projector and let them present.  
• Make Your Own Test-Kids quickly find out how difficult teaching is when they have to design their own questions and test to go along with their reading.  They get creative and have to really think about the answers before they write them!  

Enjoy the article and trying some of these creative and fun things to do with your students and the literature they're reading!  The image at the right will take you to the article!

Bananas for somebody else's quick ideas when my brain is on overload,