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Writing Wednesday: Revision Cards and Mentor Text Videos
Revision cards break the task of revision into manageable chunks. They feature revision suggestions for: * beginnings * description * staying on topic * titles * putting boring words to bed * visualizing * onomatopoeia * sensory words * details * endings * strong verbs * clearing up…
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Writing Wednesday: Use FROG SONG as a Mentor Text for Writing
FROG SONG by Brenda Z. Guiberson illustrated by Gennady Spirin Henry Holt, 2013 Different types of unusual frogs from around the world are brought to life in this book with interesting facts, onomatopoeic frog sounds, and gorgeous paintings. Writing Skills: * Nonfiction writing * Onomatopoeia * Specificity…
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Writing Wednesday: Using MARTIN AND MAHALIA as a Writing Mentor Text
MARTIN AND MAHALIA: HIS WORDS, HER SONG By Andrea Davis Pinkney Illustrated by Brian Pinkney Little, Brown 2013 This book moves me to tears every time I read it. The beauty of the words and the illustrations feel like a song and celebration. The Pinkneys have woven two…
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Writing Wednesday: Using SNOWFLAKE BENTLEY as a Writing Mentor Text
SNOWFLAKE BENTLEY By Jacqueline Briggs Martin Illustrated by Mary Azarian Houghton Mifflin, 1998 I use this book for many things in the classroom. It’s a favorite we return to again and again. It’s a picture book biography of Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley, who lived on a farm but was…
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Picture Book Month Day 29: Picture Books as Writing Mentor Texts featuring MONSTORE
MONSTORE by Tara Lazar Illustrated by James Burks Aladdin, 2013 Summary: Zack needs a monster to keep his sister away from his room, but every monster he buys doesn’t work, and buying more monsters doesn’t work either. He has to find a solution to his monstrosity of a…
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Picture Book Month Day #28: Picture Books as Writing Mentor Texts featuring GIANT DANCE PARTY
GIANT DANCE PARTY by Betsy Bird Illustrated by Brandon Dorman Greenwillow, 2013 Summary: Lexy loves to dance, but when she gets up on stage, she freezes. When she offers to help others with their dancing skills, she doesn’t anticipate that giants will sign up to dance. Mentor…
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Picture Book Month Day #27: Picture Books as Writing Mentor Texts featuring GHOST IN THE HOUSE
GHOST IN THE HOUSE by Ammi-Joan Paquette Illustrated by Adam Record Candlewick, 2013 Summary: When a ghost, a mummy, a skeleton, and a witch all go sneaking through the house, they are most startled by a little human boy. Mentor Text Writing Skills: * Adjectives * Onomatopoeia…
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Picture Book Month Day 26: Picture Books as Mentor Texts featuring WHEN MARIAN SANG
WHEN MARIAN SANG: THE TRUE RECITAL OF MARIAN ANDERSON by Pam Munoz Ryan Illustrated by Brian Selznick Scholastic, 2002 Summary: WHEN MARIAN SANG is a biography featuring the life of African-American singer, Marian Anderson, a woman who broke barriers for African-Americans during the time of the Jim Crow…
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Picture Book Month Day 25: Picture Books as Writing Mentor Texts featuring NIGHTSONG
NIGHTSONG by Ari Berk Illustrated by Loren Long Scholastic, 2012 Summary: Chiro the bat learns to fly away from his mother and how to survive by using his senses. Mentor Text Writing Skills: * Word Choice * Sensory words * Specificity * Vivid Verbs For more information…
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Picture Book Month Day 24: Picture Books as Writing Mentor Texts featuring DAVE THE POTTER
DAVE THE POTTER by Laban Carrick Hill Illustrated by Bryan Collier Little, Brown, 2010 Summary: Dave was a slave who created beautiful pottery and even wrote poetry on the pots. This is a lyrical story that mostly focuses on the creation of the pots themselves. Historical information is…
