read aloud

There are so many terrific books and therefor so many terrific read alouds.  Most of them, with a little ingenuity, can be used for various comprehension think-alouds, turn 'n talks, stop 'n jots or stop 'n acts.  What can be tricky is when you're trying to find a book for a particular comprehension strategy.  For example, if I want to do a reading workshop unit on making connections because my 1st graders have a limited understand of it, or because I want my 5th graders to go deeper into activating their background knowledge and making text-to-text and text-to-world connections that matter, then I need to find books that allow me to model the strategy through a think-aloud AND allow my students to access the material, find relevance and make thei

As a huge fan of the fantasy genre, including the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, I take these words very seriously, but I may have a new favorite book series...Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Over Spring Break, I started and finished both The Lightning Thief, Book One and The Sea of Monsters, Book Two.

This series is for middle schoolers, but is appropriate for most students that can read at a six grade reading level.  The protagonists, include a male and a female, both of whom are strong characters. Oh, and one of their parents is a Greek god.

What are some good texts for teaching students how to make connections in reading?

Let's share our ideas! And successes!

Text to Self Connections

Wimberly Worried

Alexander and the Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Teach it:

Find some ideas for how to teach the lesson here:

http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=228

I just finished reading Because of Winn-Dixie by the amazing Kate DiCamillo.  If you've read anything by Kate DiCamillo you know that her stories are worth reading to children of just about any age.  If you need some convincing, here are some other ideas.