Teach students the architecture beneath a successful story--and boost their reading comprehension and writing skills for a lifetime
Writing instruction can sometimes seem scattershot, as teachers try to cover a galaxy of craft techniques, ideas, intentions, and genres. The possibilities are endless--and that's the problem. In Text Structures from Picture Books, elementary and middle grade teachers tap into a well-ordered universe of inspiring and illustrative stories to help students frame their thinking and focus choices.
Using the bite-size format of picture books as a starting point, the authors share 50 low-prep, quick-access lessons to help you teach students seven concrete ways to respond to text in any genre. Through these lessons, students will be able to:
- Generate their own writing, using a text structure harvested from the work of professional authors
- Retell a story, using the text structure from the story
- Generate reading responses, using structures that support clarity
- Analyze a story to construct thematic statements, capturing the author's message and bigger themes
- Write about a theme or big idea demonstrating empathic and evidence-based interpretation
- Answer open-ended questions by selecting a technique that reflects the text and their engagement
- Experiment with author's craft in their own writing
Based on master writing teacher Gretchen Bernabei's instructional model, the lessons offer a lively, high-impact mix of reading aloud, discussion, modeling, student writing, and peer share. Plus, readers have access to a complete companion website full of text structure reproducibles, reading response prompts, additional lessons and extensions, students samples, and links to demo videos.
State tests are now assessing reading and writing together. And that's a good thing--but we've got some catching up to do. Written for students beginning in second grade, Text Structures from Picture Books will help your students swiftly and surely become text-savvy readers and writers.
Kayla and Stephen Briseño are a married pair of veteran middle school English teachers with over 30 years of classroom experience between them, ranging from K-12. They are self-proclaimed (and student-proclaimed) book nerds and are frequent public library patrons, usually leaving with a stack of 30+ picture books to read with their daughter-and to study.
They have been consultants for Gretchen Bernabei's Trail of Breadcrumbs group, delivering Gretchen's unique brand of reading and writing instruction to districts all across Texas and internationally for over ten years.
Stephen is also a picture book author himself. His debut picture book, The Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border, was illustrated by Magdalena Mora and published by Random House Studio in June 2022, with many more picture books on the way.
With Stephen being a picture book author and a middle school teacher himself, it lends even more authority to the ideas we are expressing - and opens up an additional audience - picture book authors looking to hone their own writing craft.
![Text Structures From Picture Books [Grades 2-8]: Lessons to Ease Students Into Text Analysis, Reading Response, and Writing With Craft by Stephen](http://atlanticbooks.com/cdn/shop/files/9781071920862_502x650.webp?v=1769293537)
