"Book Bits": a Fun Pre-reading Activity for Number the Stars
4.9 (210 reviews)Pique student interest and activate critical thinking before beginning a novel-study unit! "Book Bits" are carefully selected snippets of information from the book. There are 47 “Book Bits”, however, you will only need one for each student; you can pick and choose which ones you like the most. 1.…
- Grade
- Grade 6
- Subject
- Reading
- Pages
- 11
- Answer key
- N/A
- Teaching duration
- 3 Days
- Digital download
Description
Pique student interest and activate critical thinking before beginning a novel-study unit!
“Book Bits” are carefully selected snippets of information from the book. There are 47 “Book Bits”, however, you will only need one for each student; you can pick and choose which ones you like the most.
1. Give each student a “Book Bit”. The students will read their individual “Book Bits” and be allowed a little time to ponder and reflect on what they say (e.g., What impressions are they gathering about the book?).
2. Have the students move around the classroom, reading their “Book Bit” to every other student, while also listening to the other students’ “Book Bits”. No discussion or interpretation occurs at this point; they are simply reading to each other.
3. After hearing the other students’ “Book Bits”, students can then do a quick write on the impressions they now have about the book (What is this book about? What can we infer about the characters?, What might happen in the story? etc.)
4. After the quick write, students can discuss with each other in pairs, small groups, and eventually whole group.
5. The “Book Bit” quick write can then be revisited after students have read more of the book, or have completed the book.
Depth and Complexity Companion for Number the Stars
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Please read: This is a nonrefundable digital download. Please read the description carefully and examine the preview file before purchasing.
© Copyright 2018 M. Tallman. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to copy pages specifically designed for student or teacher use by the original purchaser or licensee. This is intended to be used by one teacher unless additional licenses have been purchased. The reproduction of any other part of this product is strictly prohibited. Copying any part of this product and placing it on the Internet in any form (even a personal/classroom website) is strictly forbidden. Doing so makes it possible for an Internet search to make the document available on the Internet, free of charge, and is a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
Reviews
Showing 11–15 of 374 reviews
Not appropriate for beginning of the year
This is very hard for me to implement until almost the third quarter. Week one has decimals, and my fourth graders don't learn about decimals until the third quarter. It also jumps into division and bigger multiplication early. I wish it had a few weeks of third-grade review.
Affixes Resource Pack
This was not exactly what I was looking for for a supplemental resource for my 5th grade class.
Not a "spiral" review
I wanted to like this so much because it was exactly what I wanted. But, Week 1 already starts talking about coordinate grids and volume, standards that aren't covered until later on in the school year. I wish it was organized by the order the standards are taught throughout the school year instead of introducing end-of-year concepts in the first few weeks.
Great Activities, but Limited Direct Instruction
This resource is advertised as a week-long unit, but in practice it functions more like one day of direct instruction followed by several activity days. There is only one PowerPoint for teaching, with the remaining materials focused on practice.
I expected a more balanced structure with instruction and assessment spread across multiple days. For example, I was able to use the PowerPoint and the second day’s worksheet within a single class period, and the “scoot” activity worked well for a separate day. However, I’m unsure how I’ll incorporate the remaining sketch notes, which might have been more effective if directly integrated into the initial instruction.
One major area for improvement is alignment between instruction and assessment. The assessments and task cards include concepts like “to be” verbs and auxiliary verbs, but these are not introduced or modeled in the PowerPoint. This created confusion for my students and could easily be developed into an additional day of instruction.
Overall, the materials are well-designed and engaging, but the unit would benefit from more comprehensive instruction and clearer alignment between teaching and assessment.
This starts off Running
I thought the assessments would get progressively harder but I do not feel I could start these assessments with my students week 1. I may be able to start them mid year
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