I love reading. That is certainly no secret!  But, have all of my students loved reading? No. I don't understand it, but I do realize that I have to find a way to engage them and hook them on reading. Oddly enough (odd to me) the ones that don't like to read will usually pick up non-fiction as their choice when we have reading time. I have also known adults that say they do not like to read unless it is non-fiction. The reason that I find this odd is because non-fiction can be more difficult to comprehend and it can be......... boring.  Problem: boring passages. Solution: create a literacy center with real-world text that is FUN!

I have used literacy centers in my classroom before they were ever called a literacy center. I think they have a valuable place in the classroom. Literacy centers can engage students in text that they might otherwise pass by. It is a good opportunity for them to read short passages about topics that might interest them (in hopes they'll pick up a book later!). They are a good way for your students to practice and improve reading skills. I do have a fondness for informational text literacy centers, as well as, short story or picture book centers. In fact, I love having a combination to meet everyone's needs.

One of the most popular literacy centers I created included a listening center, informational text, picture books, picture interpretation, and box books. (This is where I begin to do some shameless advertising and promoting.) What is a box book?  Over 23 years ago, my cooperating teacher showed me a stack of boxes that had the tops, bottoms, and one side cut away. Cake mix boxes, cereal boxes, toaster pastry boxes. I thought she was recycling, then she showed me their purpose. At the end of the year, she gives each student an empty box and some paper. They write a story on the paper and staple it in the box. The box serves as a book cover. I thought this was very clever, so I've used this and adapted it over the years. At times, the box books have been funny ways to create a "Mad-Lib" type of story using only the words on the box or maybe a fairy tale personifying an object on the box.  Year after year, I used them and word got out. My incoming class would ask at the beginning of the school year when 'they got to do those box book things'. I loved it!  Success!

Use box books for a scoot activity. Pass out a box with a passage and instructions inside, student completes, then moves to the next table.  Or, use them to interest your students in the next subject by passing out boxes with a lesson inside and see who can make the connection between the box and the next lesson. Fun!

Or, create a box book literacy center. (This is where I really advertise!) I have created and posted several examples of these on TpT in hopes that other classrooms will start their own box book libraries so other students can enjoy them.  Each box book contains picture directions on how to make a box book, the ways to use them,  a complete set of passages and questions to go inside each box, and the answer keys.  An instant literacy center!

How do you get started?
Start by collecting boxes. Use a cake mix? Save the box.
Cut off the bottom and top flaps, and one side panel.


These pages come from my resource,
How to Create an Engaging Literacy Center.

Then write or download your passages and staple them inside to form a book.  My box book resources include 20-23 passages, a variety of writing activities, and answers. The passages are all related to the box.

To purchase click here!

For example, this book contains passages about fudge, marbles, the history of cake, and history of chocolate.   If you make your own box books, look for clues on the package for good passage topics.

I also (just happen to) have a $2.00 guide on making both box books and pocket folders for use in a literacy center, as a scoot activity, or as a springboard activity.

  You can click on this link to check it out!

To purchase click here!

Try different boxes- just about any box will work.









                                               

           


     Literacy Centers can also include pocket folders for more variety for your students. I have some that are over 15 years old. I laminated them so they would last!

Buy the bundles and save $$$!

One more thing... Please share this blog to help get the word out. Summer is the perfect time to take an hour or two and create a literacy center or reading resources that will last for years to come!

And, while you are at my store, Chocolate 4 Teachers click the green heart to follow me and get news on the latest resources and sales!

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Father's Day made me start thinking of all the men in my life: my dad, my husband, my nephews, friends, loved ones, my boss, and colleagues. It also made me think of the influence men have had on my life. Many of the important lessons in life I learned from my grandfather. He was one in a million. He taught me unconditional love. Grandpa always told me that he loved me perfect. He also modeled to me the importance of controlling your temper and that worrying is a waste of time.  Grandpa's son, my dad, raised me to be strong, independent, and a God-loving woman. I am thankful for their influence in my life.  Both Grandpa and Dad made time for me. They made me feel like there was no one else they'd rather see and nothing else they'd rather do than spend time with me. I know that Dad was working long, hard hours to support my mom, sister, and me, but he made all of us a priority.

A priority. Something or someone that is important. Do all of our students have a male figure in their lives that treats them like a priority? Unfortunately, they all don't have this luxury. Yes, I called it a luxury. Homes where children are priorities are too far and few. We are all so busy, that making time for children has become a luxury to us all.

Each time we step into the classroom, we impact lives.  Children need positive role models to guide them. Someone that they can depend on and trust. Someone that they can talk to. Thinking back to my childhood, I realized the important role that women and men played in my life. I needed all of them to shape the person that I am today. They all played a part, and still do, in my life. Children need good teachers. Not just mother or grandmother figures, but also father and grandfather figures. We need more men in the classroom to be these role models for our young people. We need men in the classroom to provide the rapport and guidance that only a man can provide. Maybe that sounds sexist to you. Maybe it is. But what I know is that children need the positive influence and presence of both male and female in their lives.


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Literacy Center Resource!

A great start to a  Literacy Center!

Pocket Folders have many uses!

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It was the night before our big trip,  the annual trip that my nephew and I make to the zoo.  As usual, I was experiencing some apprehension. What if we had a wreck? The roads are curvy and narrow, the drive is long. Anything could happen. What if one of us got sick?  Could happen, after all we would be eating lunch along the way with grubby, germy hands.  What if I lost the car keys or we got locked out of the car?  Hasn't happened for over 30 years, so it is about time for it to happen again. What if someone stole my purse?  With all the increased break-ins and robberies, this should definitely be on my worry list.

Needless to say,  I had little sleep. I did what I know I should not do- worry. I wasted time of precious rest to worry about things that could happen, but probably wouldn't happen. Things I have no control over (well, maybe my car keys).

And 24 hours later, my fears had proven unfounded and our trip was a success (as usual). We enjoyed the animals, the petting zoo, and the safari drive.  My nephew, a budding wildlife photographer, was in his element. A buffalo on the left, a zebra on the right, and a caracal taking a midday rest.  The highlight of the trip was the moment my nephew told me that he wasn't too old to go to the zoo with his Aunt Kim because we always have so much fun.  

I also thought about all the times that I have let dread or anticipation spoil my wait time.  There are so many times that I pick up a worry and hang on to it. I let my worries control me.  How many times have I led dread about my future ruin my present?  Too many. Sometimes my fears are silly, and other times they are of a more serious nature, but nothing is too big for God to handle. Nothing.

What about you? What do you dread? Whatever it is, focus on God and let it go.  Stop worrying about the journey so much that you don't enjoy the trip. Life has too many special moments to capture and turn into memories to let them slip by.


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I don't really know what I want them to do besides enjoy their summer and have lots of stories to share in the fall ("I would love for them to continue reading", spoken like a true reading teacher).


I do know what I don't want them to do. Forget everything I've taught them. I put time and energy into my lessons. I don't my students going back to school and telling next year's teacher that the teacher last year didn't teach them anything.  I love it when a colleague tells me that they can tell which students I had because they are so well-prepared. But. There. Is. Always. One. One who tells the others that they "don't remember that" or "we were never taught that." Cringe.  

There is one other thing that I don't want them to do. I don't want them to develop an attitude of ingratitude. Whatever you want to call it, this attitude makes for a miserable year. The child that expects everything handed to them or done for them. Not my cup of tea. How will they learn if they expect everyone to do things for them? They won't.  I see kids in grocery stores with tired moms who are screaming and demanding their way and mom gives in. I have to walk away to keep from intervening and saying, "Hey, wait a minute. Who is the parent and who is the child? Who is in charge here? Do you always give in to your child's demands?"  I know there are exceptions to every case, but we've all seen 'the attitude'.  The one that turns a precious child into a demanding, ungrateful, I-don't-have-to-earn-it-I-deserve-it adult.

So, my wish for all of my students, past and present. Enjoy your summer. Relax, swim, talk to friends, have picnics, spend time with your family, read a good book, remember some of what you were taught.  But, please don't develop an attitude of ingratitude.

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