Monday, July 19, 2010

Child Tested, Teacher Approved. Small Group Activities

At the end of every school year, I ask the kids what some of their favorite activities were. These were some favorites for small groups that are also favorites of mine. 

Readers Theater

We could not get enough of Readers Theater.  Fortunately, it is an excellent way to improve fluency and be creative at the same time! You can have the students create the script themselves, or use premade scripts. I use scripts from Lakeshore Learning called Genres of Literature Readers’ Theater Script Boxes. There are 4 sets of scripts in each box, and 4 parts to each script. These have been a HUGE hit! You can check them out here: http://tinyurl.com/294u9ft.


Another Readers Theater source I use is Readers Theater, Grade 2 from Evan-Moor (DST) (Author). This book offers 15 readers theater scripts ranging in subjects from the Statue of Liberty to Our Solar System.  It is pictured on the left.


Slide and Learn 

Slide and Learns™ from Really Good Stuff. As students move the sliders they create new words. The sliders can be purchased as a whole set or individual sets. Check them out here: http://tinyurl.com/297e4ux. You can also make them yourself relatively easily.

Story Starters

Learning Resources Story Starter Cubes, Set of 6. This set comes with color coded cubes: 2 for setting, 2 for character, and 2 for situation. Students love these. Just roll the cubes and start writing! Kids love the funny story combinations that come up. Plus, each person in the group will be working on a unique story.
You could also make your own story blocks with even more combinations!
Spelling Word Stories. In this group, students write a story using their spelling words. I love reading their stories! Alternatively you can have them write sentences with the words.

These are just the favorites or my class.  I'm sure there are lots of other wonderful ideas out there.  Please share your ideas.

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