| Overview | Initial Assignment Procedure | Independent Assignment Procedure | Vocabulary |

Teacher Page


NOTE: This project was revamped in July 2006. Please read the directions carefully, as there are significant changes.

This project was developed to help fourth grade teachers incorporate New York State ELA tasks while engaging students in online research, publishing and collaboration. The students will be encouraged to produce high quality writing samples that will be posted on the project website for all to share.

The project can be completed at any time during the school year.
Each of the authors and books were selected because they represent a range of reading skills appropriate for a fourth grade student - Fountas and Pinnell Levels N - W. (See Booklist)

The basic project is outlined below. You can choose to do more by adding:

Initial Assignment Procedure

1. Review the concept Text-to-Self with the students. Explain how authors connect their stories to their own personal experiences.
2. Read the Initial Assignment.
3. Read aloud the following excerpts from the book The Watsons Go To Birmingham – 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis*.

4. Then read aloud the author’s biography and interview. Ask if the author mentioned anything from his own life that he placed in the excerpts that we have just read.
5. Elicit responses from the students and record them on the appropriate planning pages. View a sample completed planning page.
6. Have the students write an essay answering the question, "How are authors' real life connections reflected in their fictional writings?" The students must use details from the story excerpts and from the author’s biography and interviews in their essays.
7. Students needing more support can use the writing frame to guide the structure of their essays.

Independent Assignment Procedure

1. Read the Independent Assignment.

2. Choose an author and a book from the book list that suits your class or select books for leveled reading groups.

3. Review note taking skills with your students. Some sample graphic organizers are provided for you to download and print.

4. You may read the book you selected out loud or have students read independently. You might have them take notes on the reading, limiting the note taking to the chapters you feel are pertinent to the final question.

5. Have the students read the author's biography and the interview(s) as listed on the website. Some of the authors have their own websites that can be visited as well.
NOTE: Some of the interviews are at a higher reading level than others. Refer to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Level to guide you. The KidsReads.com interviews are more challenging.

6. In the final activity the students will complete the Independent Assignment.
7. Students needing more support can use the writing frame to guide the structure of their essays.
8. Teachers should choose exemplars from their class and email them to Linda Brandon (lbrandon@lakelandschools.org) to be published on this web site.

Vocabulary to Review

interview fiction
non-fiction genre
plot reflecting
character setting


Project Participants
Linda Brandon, Instructional Technology Staff Development Coordinator, Shannon Bird, Van Cortlandtville Elementary, Dawn Guadagnolo, Benjamin Franklin Elementary, Paula Markowitz, Lincoln-Titus Elementary, Melissa Mero, George Washington Elementary, Ellen Murphy, Benjamin Franklin Elementary, Patricia Wienecke, Van Cortlandtville Elementary
Web Design by Linda Brandon

* Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf, 1995.