Online Reading and Worksheets

Here you’ll find worksheets I’ve created to go with online books and read-alouds. Check out our book, Lessons Inspired by Picture Books for Primary Grades, for complete lesson plans with anchor charts, rubrics and assessments. If you like creating your own worksheets, check out my class on Skillshare.

Wishing you peace and health…

Hair Love

There’s a lot more to Hair Love, by Matthew Cherry and Vashti Harrison, than the book’s title suggests. In fact, if readers look closely at the illustrations, they’ll see that Zuri and her dad are going through something. The dad is not sleeping in his bed, and dirty laundry is strewn throughout the hallways. Ask learners to read the illustrations while watching the read-aloud on Brightly. What do they notice about Zuri’s father? Learners can download this worksheet to record responses.

Notable Notebooks: Scientists and their Writings

Imagine reading a story from space! Astronauts make that easy for us to do. Watch astronaut Joseph Acaba read Notable Notebooks: Scientists and their Writings on Story Time from Space. He reads the book from the International Space Station. The book is written by Jessica Fries-Gaither and illustrated by Linda Olliver. Download and print this worksheet and guide readers to list things they are curious about. Check out SciStarter and Knowledge Quest for some citizen scientist ideas. Then, encourage learners to write the steps they need to take to observe and record their findings.

Balloons Over Broadway

What does it take to put on a parade? Balloons Over Broadway, by Melissa Sweet, shows us what it took for Toni Sarg to design the giant balloons for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Watch Rocco Staino read this fascinating story on KidLitTV. Ask learners to notice what Toni Sarg’s thought about while creating the balloons. What problems did he have to solve? Why was his final design a success? Download this worksheet from our book Lessons Inspired by Picture Books for Primary Grades. Invite learners to follow Sarg’s example and plan a successful parade.

The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs

Did you know that humans can save dying coral reefs? Author Kate Messner explains how one man restored coral reefs in her book The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs. The gorgeous illustrations are by Matthew Forsythe. Invite learners to watch Messner read her story and wonder about coral reefs. Download this worksheet to record questions. Encourage learners to find answers to questions by reading books and searching online resources. Resources are listed on the worksheet and in the blog post How Much Do Your Learners Know about the Coral Reefs? on Knowledge Quest.

Words With Wings

Think of a time when words in a story were so evocative they made you pause. You may have read the words again to get the full essence of their meaning. Author Nikki Grimes has a way of doing that to me with her book “Words With Wings”. A video clip of her reading an excerpt from the book can be found on the No Water River YouTube channel. Invite learners to illustrate one of the words Grimes describes in her story; butterfly, spring or carousel. Download this worksheet so they can record their thinking.

Daniel Finds a Poem

April is National Poetry Month, and author Micha Archer has the perfect book about the craft. Learners are going to love following along with Archer as she invites viewers to participate in her reading of Daniel Finds a Poem. In the story, Daniel spends seven days asking animals what poetry is. They each come up with a different, poetic answer. Invite learners to create their own definition of poetry by downloading this worksheet.

If you like these lesson ideas, please take a look at our book, Lessons Inspired by Picture Books for Primary Grades. This resource includes ready-to-go lesson plans that meet the standards. Worksheets, assessments and rubrics are included.

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