How Do We Explain Difficult Topics?

Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember tells the story of September 11, 2001 in Arlington, Virginia through a tapestry of poems. Each narrative poem discusses the terrorist attack on the Pentagon from the perspective of a young person. The narrators all have their own story of that day and its aftermath.  

Seven-year-old Henry waits for his mother. Almost all the other children have been picked up early from elementary school. He’s confused and aware that the adults around him have been crying. Henry says, “Grown-ups talk to each other, but not to kids.”

Read Henry's poem and discuss: How should adults explain frightening news events? Should they be direct with kids or should they try to protect them? What can adults do or say to make kids feel safe when current events are disturbing?

Sixteen-year-old Calista is taken aback when the little boy she is babysitting tells her he saw a hole in the Pentagon. Calista doesn’t know how to explain to a three year old something she doesn’t really understand herself.

Writing Prompt: Imagine someone younger asks you about a frightening news event. Would you explain it? Or change the subject? Write a dialogue between Calista and Dylan about what happened at the Pentagon on September 11^th. Or if you prefer, write a dialogue between yourself and a younger sibling to explain a troubling news event.

For more activities and ideas for using Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember, please visit my website to download the full Teacher’s Guide.

BIO: Jacqueline Jules is the author of fifty books for young readers including the Zapato Power series, the Sofia Martinez series, My Name is Hamburger, The Porridge-Pot Goblin, Never Say a Mean Word Again, and Tag Your Dreams: Poems of Play and Persistence. The resources page of her website has many activities for educators and parents. Visit www.jacquelinejules.com 

Persuasive Writing: A Letter to a Bully

In My Name is Hamburger, ten-year-old Trudie Hamburger is ashamed of her last name. Daniel Reynolds, the class bully, frequently reminds her that it means, “Chopped meat. Something a butcher grinds up.”  

My Name is Hamburger takes place in 1962 in the small southern town of Colburn. As the Jewish child of a German-speaking immigrant, Trudie stands out as different from her peers. When a Korean boy joins her class, she feels guilty, knowing negative attention has been diverted away from her and onto him. Trudie doesn’t like being a bystander any better than being a victim. She doesn’t know what to do.  

Only after a family crisis and the support of friends is Trudie able to stand up for herself.

Something people cook on the fourth of July,”

I answer. “An all-American food!”

Daniel blinks as if he can’t believe

someone like me, with a dad from somewhere else,

knows what Americans eat. But he doesn’t say more

because I got the last word today.

My name is Hamburger. An all-American food.

Writing Prompt: To stop a bully, it helps if both the victim and the bystander speak out. Write a persuasive letter from either the perspective of a person being bullied or a person watching cruel treatment. Express your emotions in the letter. Do you feel anger, fear, or hope that relationships could change? Can you share personal experiences or reasons why bullying behavior hurts all involved? Do you have the courage to try and persuade a bully to rethink his/her behavior?    

Jacqueline Jules

Defeating Goblins with Teamwork

In The Porridge Pot Goblin, siblings Benny and Rose are frightened by an invisible goblin, only known by his pranks and his tracks. They fear the goblin is too big for them to stop. But working together, Benny and Rose learn they are much braver than they think.

After reading The Porridge Pot Goblin aloud, have the class discuss how teamwork saved the day for Benny and Rose. If Benny had refused to help, do they think Rose could have trapped the goblin on her own? Did Benny’s presence make Rose bolder? What role did Benny play in how they ultimately handled the goblin?

Ask students to share a time when they worked with another person to overcome a challenge. Could they have solved the problem on their own? What are the advantages of joining forces? Are there disadvantages?

Writing Prompt: Write your own goblin story. Imagine the presence of an invisible spirit in your home. How would it make itself known? What tricks would it play? Would you try to trap it or make friends? Would you work alone or with someone’s help?   

Happy Writing!

Jacqueline Jules

TAG YOUR DREAMS!!

 

Tag Your Dreams: Poems of Play and Persistence celebrates being active, reaching goals, and learning limits. The poems employ figurative language devices such as alliteration, simile, metaphor, repetition, personification, and onomatopoeia. Each poem tells a story about a young person discovering skills, strengths, and dreams through activity. Team sports are included along with playground games, biking, sledding, swimming, hiking, and simply twirling in the rain.  

To help teachers use Tag YourDreams as a classroom resource, I have developed a teacher's guide with questions to discuss, ways to examine the poetry, and writing prompts. 

To give you a taste, please see the poem and questions below:

TAG YOUR DREAMS

Discuss!

What are your dreams for the future?

Examine the Poem!

Identify verbs which refer to the game of tag, e.g., chase, running, reaching.

Do dreams have strong legs? Is this personification— attributing human characteristics to something that is not human?

Write!

Write about your dreams. Does anything stand in your way? Are you confident you will succeed or are you afraid of failure?

The entire teacher’s guide can be found on my website. 

I am available for virtual visits with students. Please contact me through my website at www.jacquelinejules.com

 

Happy Reading!

 

INSIDE OUT: POEMS ON WRITING AND READING

Do you know how to smell a poem? 

In Inside Out: Poems on Writing and Reading Poems, Marjorie Maddox offers the reader a delightful suggestion. “Keep following the trail of scent to sniff out the meaning.”

Maddox also tells us how to befriend a poem. “Invite him home for dinner but don’t insist on rhyme.”

And she explains that “Much of what he has to say lies between the lines.”

This clever collection of poems and writing exercises begins with verses on how to see, hear, taste, smell, and touch a poem and then delves into poetic devices and forms. Teachers should find ample inspiration to motivate student writing.

For example, these glorious lines from “Fishing for Sestinas.”

“the poems themselves sew together our world,

the way fish in waves thread themselves in and out,

the way dreams swim their own stories”

And this couplet invites writers to try a villanelle.

“To write a villanelle, think like a bird

that sings a song that you’ve already heard.”

 The 27 poems in this collection are followed by 9 creative writing exercises including fun suggestions for writing persona poems, clerihews, and sonnets.

A 3 page glossary provides succinct definitions for every term referenced in the poems. Inside Out by Marjorie Maddox is an excellent resource to jump start creativity in the classroom or at home. 

Jacqueline Jules

https://metaphoricaltruths.blogspot.com/

An Amazing Classroom Resource!

by Jacqueline Jules

Where can a teacher easily find interesting pieces to share in the classroom? Look no further than Issue 8 of Balloons Lit. Journal.

This magazine for upper elementary and middle school students is an amazing resource of poetry, fiction, and art. What’s more, it includes contributions from all over the world and features student work alongside professional adults. Poems are attractively presented in full page layouts sure to inspire the imagination. I am thrilled that one of my poems,  “Egret” appears on page 41.

I wrote “Egret” while I was out on a brisk walk near a body of water and this beautifully immobile creature stopped me in my tracks. Ask your students to describe an animal or plant so enchanting they couldn’t help but pause for a moment to gaze. Better yet, take your students outside and ask them to stand silently for five minutes, watching the natural world. What did they see, hear, smell? How did they feel? Can they make an effort to pay attention to the grass, the trees, the clouds, the insects, and everything else which flutters unnoticed when we hurry too much? Mindfulness can enrich one’s life as well as one’s writing.   

Listening to an author read their own work can be a meaningful experience for students. Balloons Lit. Journal also offers audio clips on selected pieces. Scroll down the page where Issue 8 appears and you will see an audio section and an opportunity to hear me read my poem, “Egret” as well as three other poets in this issue.  

I highly recommend sharing 14 year old Braxton Schieler’s voice reading his work, “Someday I’ll Be—An Autobiography.” Braxton writes about his life from the age of three till an imagined old age, describing emotional transitions with clarity and insight. Hearing a student read his own personal narrative aloud should jump start many a reluctant pen in your classroom.

Other pieces in Balloons Lit. Issue 8, such as the poems, “I Think My Teacher is a Witch” and  “Pillow Problems” could be great models for humorous writing.

Finally the artwork in Balloons Lit. Issue 8 is stunning. Available in PDF form on the website, images could be projected to present the ekphrastic challenge of providing a written response to and/or description of artwork.

Don’t miss this amazing resource for the classroom! Check out Issue 8 of Balloons Lit. Journal today!

www.jacquelinejules.com

CANDY CANDIDATES: Writing Campaign Posters

by Jacqueline Jules

Both Halloween and Election Day are just around the corner. Why not capture the excitement of both events by having a candy election?

Elementary school students should enjoy making posters and writing slogans for their favorite candy treat.

Since there are so many different kinds of candy, you could have primary elections to select candy candidates. Or you can simplify the process and offer three choices.

The important thing is to get students thinking about what goes into a campaign and attracting voters. It takes more than artwork, it takes poetry in the form of slogans.

How do you describe the best qualities of your favorite candy? Can you write 5 to 10 reasons why your candy will improve the life of voters? What promises can your candy make? What can you write that will persuade someone to vote for your candy?

You could even have a debate between candy candidates. One group could write questions and another group could prepare answers.

A classroom of 25 students is the perfect environment for demonstrating the importance of each ballot. A single vote may win the election or there could be a tie, requiring a runoff or coin toss.

Voting is a civic duty. It is never too early to explain the process and to get your students excited about voting.

For more teaching resources on government, voting, and civic responsibility, please check out the following:

Ben’s Guide to the U.S. Government

Hot Chalk Lesson Plans--Elections

Scholastic Lesson Plans and Book Resources--Elections

U.S.Elections – Teacher Vision

Voting and Elections: Resources For A Civil Classroom

IF YOU HAD SUPER HEARING ...

by Jacqueline Jules

Freddie Ramos, the boy with super-powered purple sneakers, is back with a new adventure in Zapato Power #7: Freddie Ramos Hears It All.

In Freddie Ramos Hears It All, Freddie must adjust to the thrill and the challenge of having super hearing in addition to super speed and super bounce. He goes to a space museum with his class and realizes that he can overhear conversations everywhere. Should he help the museum guards find a lost child? Should he help a woman who dropped her bracelet? Freddie has a big heart and a thirst for being a hero. With super hearing he can find many more opportunities to use his super hero powers. He can also find opportunities to eavesdrop. Should he be listening through his friend's door? What is the line between being a snoop and a super hero?

After reading Freddie Ramos Hears It All, students can write about how they would use super hearing and how it might help or complicate their lives. 

Here are some questions to consider.

Would you listen through a closed door?

Would you share important information you overheard? Or keep it secret? 

Would you be tempted to listen in on others all the time? 

Who would you most like to eavesdrop on? Your parents? Brother or sister? Teacher?

What would you do if you heard someone crying? Would you run to get involved or respect his/her privacy?

Story Prompt Ideas:

·       You’ve overheard a conversation on the playground. Two friends are talking about another student. The information you heard is supposed to be a secret. What will you do?

·       You’ve heard your parents’ talking about your brother. The information surprised you. What is it? Will you tell your brother what you know?

·       You’ve overhead your teacher talking about a pop quiz for your class. Do you tell your friends to study? Do you study? What do you do?

Encourage your students to think of all possibilities. Information obtained through eavesdropping can be happy or sad. And the dilemma of knowing something you were not supposed to know can be very real. Happy Writing!

www.jacquelinejules.com   

Reader’s Theater for Pluto Demoted Day & Beyond

by Jacqueline Jules

Did you know that August 24^th is Pluto Demoted Day?  That’s the day the International Astronomical Union voted to downgrade Pluto’s status from the ninth planet in our solar system to belong, instead, to a group of dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt.

In my new book, Pluto is Peeved: An Ex-Planet Searches for Answers, Pluto seeks answers in a museum. After meeting Earth, some wild-and-crazy germs, a friendly dinosaur, and others, Pluto learns that his change in status is not unique in scientific history. Earth was once considered the center of the solar system. The Apatosaurus was originally named Brontosaurus.

After reading Pluto is Peeved with your class, challenge your students to research and write about scientific breakthroughs such as how Anton van Leeuwenhoek first saw tiny wiggling “animalcules” through a microscope in the 1670’s or how Louis Pasteur proved it was possible to kill germs through a heating process now known as pasteurization.  

Illustrations by Dave Roman

Scientists make observations and question everything—even ideas people have long considered to be facts. They spend years researching and collecting data. When new evidence is discovered, scientists present discoveries to the world, expanding our knowledge of the universe. Other topics your students can investigate include: The Fate of the Dinosaurs, The Center of the Solar System, The Discovery of Radium, Penicillin, or DNA, Plate Tectonics, and the New Horizons Space Mission. For a list of 11 Innovations That Changed the World see this list from The History Channel.

When research is completed, challenge your students to write a Reader’s Theater script in which one scientist describes his/her discovery to another person. Will the discovery be received with excitement or skepticism or confusion? Dialogues your students write could include spirited discussions.  

Reader’s Theater is a fun, interactive tool for developing oral reading skills and reading fluency. When your students have the opportunity to write their own scripts, it doubles the fun. In addition, a Reader’s Theater based on research can integrate science into the language arts curriculum.

For an example of a science-based Reader’s Theater, please visit my website and download a Reader’s Theater for Pluto is Peeved.

Enjoy!

Jacqueline Jules

Dressing Up for Special Occasions

by Jacqueline Jules

In my new title in the Sofia Martinez series, Sofia’s Party Shoes, Sofia is so excited about her new white shoes that she disobeys Mamá. Instead of keeping her party shoes clean and safe in their box, she wears them to her cousins’ house where they meet an unhappy accident. Sofia must face the consequences of her actions and wear the stained shoes to her friend Liliana’s quinceañera anyway. At first Sofia is grumpy, certain that she can’t have a good time.  But as the party progresses, she learns that fun does not require the perfect outfit.

Read Sofia’s Party Shoes and ask students to share a time when they got something new to wear for a special occasion. How did they feel? Did the new clothes stay perfect or did something happen?

Describe the special occasion. Was it a quinceañera, a wedding, or a Bar Mitzvah?  Did they look forward to attending? Or were they nervous?

Clothes can be a fun topic for young children to write about, especially dressing up for a special event. Kids might have funny stories about spills, lost ties, torn skirts, or wardrobe malfunctions.

What’s more, everyone has one item of clothing they love more than anything else in their closet. Do you remember when you got those pants or that cap? Does that T-shirt remind you of a special day with a grandparent or parent? How do you feel when you wear it? Do favorite clothes make you feel different? Why or why not?

Focusing on one special item of clothing will also give your students practice in description. What color is the dress? Can the color be compared to something else? For example, strawberry red or sky blue. Is the dress long or short? Scratchy or smooth?

When it comes to clothes, the possibilities for realistic writing are endless. Happy Writing!

www.jacquelinejules.com

Cooperative Learning with Brave Like My Brother

by Jacqueline Jules

As a teacher, I was thrilled to discover Brave Like My Brother by Marc Tyler Nobleman. This slim title will make a perfect read-aloud and writing model for the upper elementary classroom. Told entirely in letters, Brave Like My Brother depicts a touching relationship between two brothers writing to each other during World War II. Joe’s letters home to younger brother Charlie share a fascinating account of an American soldier’s life abroad. The portrayal of war is neither too sugar coated nor too frightening for upper elementary students. Charlie’s letters to Joe share his struggles with a bully at home in Cleveland. The book’s large font and 100 page text should make it attractive to reluctant readers. 

Letter writing is a wonderful vehicle for sharing information. After reading Brave Like My Brother, students could work in pairs, each one taking on the role of a person separated from a loved one by war or circumstance. The letters could involve research into either a historical era or geographic region. It could be an exciting cooperative project. Here are some suggestions.

Student 1: Write letters to a sister/brother/friend describing your life as you travel to a new country and build a new life.

Student 2: Describe your life at home in response to these letters.

Student 1: Write letters home to a sister/brother/friend while you are at summer camp or on a vacation.

Student 2: Describe your life back home in response to these letters.

Student 1: Write letters to a friend during a move to a state across the country.

Student 2: Respond to the letters with information on how things are going in your friend’s old city.

Student 1: Write letters to a parent/sister/brother who is away on business, deployed, or incarcerated.

Student 2: Respond to the letters, explaining your current life situation.

Student 1: Write letters to a grandparent asking what life was like for them and explaining what your life is like.

Student 2: Write letters answering your grandchild’s questions.

In an age, when most people communicate by email or text rather than speaking on the phone, the ability to express ourselves by means of a letter is more important than ever. A cooperative letter writing exercise will give your students practice in both writing and essential life skills.

www.jacquelinejules.com

HIC! HIC! Writing about the Hiccups

by Jacqueline Jules

Hiccups are funny! They happen to everyone! An experience everyone can relate to makes a great writing prompt for a personal narrative. It can also give your students an opportunity to write humor since hiccups often create a funny situation.

In my new book, Hector’s Hiccups, Sofia and her cousin, Hector plan to attend a movie with Abuela. They are all ready to go when they realize Hector has the hiccups. Abuela tries to cure Hector with a lemon and other remedies. Sofia tries to help by holding her breath with Hector. HIC! HIC! Now Sofia has the hiccups, too. Abuela suggests a change of plans and soon they are all dancing in the kitchen. Who says the hiccups can’t be fun?

After reading Hector’s Hiccups to your class, ask your students to describe a day when they experienced the hiccups. Ask them to consider the following questions to expand their narrative.

1.    Describe the time of day and what you were doing when the hiccups started.

2.    Did you change your plans or keep on with whatever you were doing?

3.    Did you get the hiccups in a place where you were supposed to be quiet?

4.    How long did your hiccups last?

5.    Were you embarrassed? Frustrated? Or did you laugh?   

6.    Did others try to help you?

7.    What is your favorite cure for hiccups?

8.    Did you learn something from the experience?

Happy Writing!

www.jacquelinejules.com

WRITER RADAR WITH JACK GANTOS

by Jacqueline Jules

In a new book, Writing Radar: Using Your Journal To Snoop Out and Craft Great Stories, Jack Gantos shares more than classic tips for writing a great beginning, middle, and end. He shares his own passion to become a published author. Do you have students who dream about seeing their own books on library shelves? If so, give them Writing Radar. Give them the opportunity to hear Gantos describe in emotional detail the moment he placed his hand in the exact spot where a fiction book written by an author named “Gantos” would be shelved.  

Fans of the Joey Pigza books will enjoy the story of how Gantos met the student who inspired the character of Joey at an author visit. Gantos has lectured in dozens of schools about the craft of writing. He shares those lessons in Writing Radar along with many short writing examples teachers could use as models in the classroom. Gantos uses anecdotes from his childhood to demonstrate how everyday experiences make excellent writing material. “The Cool-Air Chair” is a brief story of how Gantos liked to read with the refrigerator door open because it was the coolest place in his Florida home without air-conditioning. Examining how Gantos makes a fairly mundane activity into a very amusing story should help your students discover the stories in their own lives. The book is peppered with such stories and many chapters can stand alone as a read aloud, making Writing Radar a great text to use periodically throughout the year.

In a chapter called, “Breaking It Down,” Gantos provides a step-by-step guide to the elements of storytelling. Writing and reading teachers could use this as a model for studying character, setting, problem, action, etc.  

Finally, Gantos nudges the young writer to simply get moving—to write. In his most important writing tip, he says: “Don’t be that writer who waits all day for the perfect first sentence, or you will grow old while learning to hate yourself and writing.” Gantos cautions young writers not to expect creative thoughts to line up neatly “like a long string of dominoes standing on end and all the writer has to do is push the first one over.” He accurately describes the messy process of creating story while brimming with excitement for the craft. Writer Radar is an excellent resource for the classroom and all those who love writing.

www.jacquelinejules.com

Shopping Trip Stories

by Jacqueline Jules

While many students are reluctant to return to school after a too short summer break, most still love back-to-school shopping. Kids have fun choosing new backpacks, pencils, and notebooks.  In Shopping Trip Trouble,  seven-year-old Sofia Martinez goes school shopping with her two older sisters, Mamá, Tía Carmen, and her four cousins—Hector, Alonzo, Manuel, and baby Mariela. Everyone is excited to pick school supplies in their favorite colors. But when Sofia notices that four-year-old Manuel is missing, chaos ensues as the family races around the store searching to find him.

Read Shopping Trip Trouble out loud to your students and have fun discussing their own shopping trip adventures.

Suggested questions:

Were there too many choices of colors and sizes? Not enough? 

Did you have trouble choosing?

What are your favorite back-to-school items? Are there any you do not like?

Did you accidentally knock something over like Hector and Alonzo?

Did the family stay together? Or did a child wander off?

Have you ever heard an announcement over the loudspeaker calling for a lost child?

Is it more fun to go shopping in a large group? 

Or would you rather shop with one person?

What other elements of Shopping Trip Trouble mirrored your own shopping experience?

Use the discussion to help young writers remember and record details for their own writing. Afterwards, ask your students to do one or more of the following:

1.     Write a personal narrative of a family shopping trip.

2.     Create a fictional story in which a child was lost and found in a store.

3.     Write a poem about a specific school supply. (ie: pencil, notebook, backpack, ruler)

4.     Write a diary entry from the viewpoint of a school supply (ie: crayons, markers, notebook) waiting to be chosen by a shopping student. 

  www.jacquelinejules.com

Little by Little: How We Learn

by Jacqueline Jules

Many students become overwhelmed when trying to learn something new. For some, math is a challenge. Others stumble over a foreign language. And for many children, reading feels like an insurmountable mountain.

As a teacher, I was naturally drawn to the ancient story of Akiva, an illiterate shepherd who learned to read at age 40. Akiva thought he was too old to learn to read but his wife, Rachel, encouraged him. She insisted that nothing was beyond his abilities. Akiva doubted himself until he observed a phenomenon in nature. He noticed a hole in a rock and suddenly appreciated the process in which water erodes stone.

“Water is soft,” Akiva thought with amazement. “And yet drop by drop, it has managed to cut through this hard stone.”

Akiva made a connection to himself. “My mind is not harder than a rock! I can learn—just like water cuts through stone—a little bit each day.”

Read Drop by Drop: The Story of Rabbi Akiva with your students and discuss how Akiva approached his studies. He was patient with himself. He decided to master one small thing at a time.

Brainstorm other metaphors for slow but steady progress. Examples: baby steps, crawling before walking, seeds growing into plants, one stitch at a time, saving pennies in a piggybank, etc.

Ask your students to write a personal narrative describing a time when they struggled to learn something new. How did they approach the subject? What made the topic hard to learn? Can they describe their emotions? Did someone or something make the situation harder? Did someone or something make it easier?

Write a class poem about learning a skill slowly, one step at a time. You could use one of the metaphors brainstormed above such as baby steps or growing seeds or you could tie in the science curriculum. Scientific experiments must be undertaken one step at a time. Cooking recipes require one ingredient at a time. Few things are accomplished all at once. There are metaphors for learning everywhere. Happy Writing!

www.jacquelinejules.com

  

Dramatic Histories & The "Write" Stuff

by Jacqueline Jules

“If we can’t agree on anything, how can we stay one country?”

“But we could have even bigger problems, if we break apart.”

In my book, Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation, the students of the imaginary school of Forest Lake Elementary perform a play about the 1787 Constitutional Convention. It is a story which unfolds during a very hot summer in Philadelphia at Independence Hall. Fifty-Five delegates argued bitterly over representation in Congress and at one point, it looked like the convention would break apart. Benjamin Franklin called for prayer and it was said that George Washington looked as glum as he did during the dark days at Valley Forge. The stakes were high. The fledging country was on the brink of collapse. If the delegates had not come up with a compromise, America would not be the nation of fifty states it is today.

The conflicts and compromises of the Constitutional Convention provide a wealth of material for theatrical performance. For a short version of Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation, please check out the Reader’s Theater available at this link.

American history is filled with dramatic moments suitable for reader’s theater. And online resources at The National Archives offer primary documents for your students to research and write their own dramatic sketches. Here are some writing ideas with corresponding links.

Idea # 1: The National Archives has a copy of Eleanor Roosevelt’s famous resignation from the Daughters of the American Revolution over their refusal to hold a concert with Marian Anderson at Constitution Hall. A letter in response from the DAR is also available at this link along with information about the historic concert on Easter Sunday in 1939 when Marian Anderson sang to a crowd of 75,000 people at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.  After examining these primary documents, students could write a radio play with characters playing the part of Mrs. Roosevelt, the DAR president, and Marian Anderson. Reactions from the press and the public could be included.

Idea #2: Transcripts of the Lunar Orbit of Apollo 8 in 1968 are also available online at The National Archives . Students could write an interview with the astronauts describing what they saw and how they felt based on these eyewitness documents.

Idea #3: Susan B. Anthony surprised the registrar in Rochester, New York when she showed up demanding to vote in the 1872 presidential election. The National Archives has primary documents of the hearing which took place after her arrest. Students could re-enact Susan B. Anthony’s historic arrest based on those transcripts.

The Library of Congress also has wonderful resources for primary research. Creating a dramatic sketch based on historical documents is an exciting way to combine research and writing skills.

https://www.archivesfoundation.org/event/write-stuff/

A great opportunity for enhancing those skills will be available at a free literary festival called THE “WRITE” STUFF which will take place at The National Archives this summer on July 7 and 8, 2017. 

On July 7^th, students  will have the opportunity to hear a panel of nonfiction authors including John Hendrix, Syl Sobel, Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Tonya Bolden, and myself. Afterwards, students can choose a hands-on workshop with an author of their choice. Information to register is available here.

On July 8, there will be a family literacy, writing, and research festival with featured authors and illustrators including Marty Rhodes Figley, Diane Kidd, Janet Macreery and others. 

Take advantage of these programming and online resources. Enrich your summer with nonfiction writing and research! 

Time Capsules & Letter Writing

by Jacqueline Jules

In Abuela’s Special Letters, the irrepressible Sofia Martinez decides that her whole family, including her cousins and grandmother, should make a time capsule.

 “Why?” Sofia’s youngest cousin asks.

“So we can have fun in the future by looking at our past,” Sofia explains.

Time capsules are a creative way for young writers to capture the present and dream about the future. Read Abuela’s Secret Letters from the Sofia Martinez series with your students. Discuss how each child in the story wrote a one word description of themselves. Sofia called herself “curious.” What word would your students choose to describe themselves and why?    

Ask your students to create a personal time capsule. This could be an end-of-the-year activity in which students reflect on the school year coming to a close and what they hope next year will bring. Time capsules are also a great way to start off in September with students writing down their predictions for the school year. Either way, ask you students to include answers to all or some of the following:

Favorite activity

Favorite food, song, color, TV show, game, etc.

Favorite School Subject

Favorite School Memory

Favorite Family Memory

Hopes for the Future

Three Personal Items & Why They Represent Who I Am Right Now

The Best Thing That Happened This Year

The Worst Thing That Happened This Year

What Makes Me Laugh

What Makes Me Cry

Places I Hope to See One Day

Time capsules can also be used to add writing to your social studies curriculum. Can your class make a time capsule for a historical figure like Benjamin Franklin or George Washington Carver? Could they make a time capsule for the Jamestown colony or Plymouth Rock? Time capsules provide many opportunities for imaginative learning and writing. No time capsule is complete without letters explaining the purpose of the objects included and other background information. Time capsules are also a great discussion starter for why it is important to preserve history. Your students could do research on time capsules and report on their findings. What did city officials bury in the cornerstone of important buildings? Do you agree with their choices? What items would you choose to represent your city?

And once students have finished their time capsules, they will enjoy decorating them. Creative learning is so much fun!

www.jacquelinejules.com

Ready for Inspiration? Try Balloons Lit. Journal

by Jacqueline Jules

I was first introduced to Balloons Lit. Journal in 2015 when I saw a call for submissions for Issue 2. Investigating further, I was pleased to find a beautifully designed online magazine of writing and art. This rich resource is appropriate for a wide audience and features authors from all over the world, including student writers. As an educator myself, I am immediately drawn to how this magazine could be a boost to classroom instruction. The first selection, “The Best Poem You’ll Ever Read” is followed by a challenge to the reader to write his or her own poem.

So many pieces in this issue would make excellent classroom writing prompts. “Message from a Stone Buddha to Izzy and Benjamin” is a delightfully clever letter from a garden statue. Using this piece as a model, classroom teachers could ask students to write their own letter to a person from an inanimate object.

An inspirational short fiction, “From Chopin’s Memoirs” could spark meaningful discussions of how to get through hard times. The imagery in this story is profound—reminding us that we must use all the keys of a piano, both black and white, “to play a beautiful tune.”

        

“Untitled” by thirteen-year-old Ava Caudle lyrically compares a blank canvas to “a symphony yet to be played,” capturing the emotional sphere of every young person contemplating the future. The inclusion of student authors alongside adult writers makes Balloons Lit. Journal  an especially unique publication. And if one did not read the bylines carefully, the reader might not be able to identify work created by young people rather than adults. All the selections are thoughtful and finely tuned.

The dynamic artwork in this issue is not to be missed—particularly Alexandra Bowman’s oil on canvas “Pomegranate” and Sam McCready’s acrylic on paper, “Evening Trees.” I can see using these images as prompts in both writing and art classrooms.

Like previous issues of Balloons Lit. Journal, Issue 5 is a visual and textual cornucopia. Every reader will find something to love. Check out this magazine, available online.  Take the time to enjoy it from cover to cover. You will be uplifted by the variety and depth of the material included. And like the last piece in this issue, “Take the Time to Dream,” you will be tempted “to lose yourself in clouds and sky” where your own creativity will soar.

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Comparison Poem--One Minute Till Bedtime

by Jacqueline Jules

How do you inspire students to write beautiful poetry? Share beautiful poetry in your classroom! A wonderful new resource is One Minute Till Bedtime selected by former Children’s Poet Laureate Kenn Nesbitt. This extensive collection features new poems from Jane Yolen, Jon Scieszka, Nikki Grimes, Jack Prelutsky, Lemony Snicket, Mary Ann Hoberman, Eileen Spinelli, and dozens of other well-known children’s authors. Each poem is a minute in length, perfect for a quick transitional moment before lining up for lunch, dismissal, or specials. It’s also perfect for calming a class down to begin social studies or math. Dreamy illustrations by Christoph Niemann will invite young readers to cuddle up with this book in a corner. If you are looking for poetry to add to your classroom library, this should be on your wish list.

For the writing workshop, One Minute Till Bedtime provides a wide selection of poems on various topics to use as models. You will find poems on virtually any subject of interest to your students. Family relationships, school, home, food—it can all be found in this 164 page compendium of rhyme, rhythm, and figurative language. Particularly notable are poems on the seasons, which could tie in to the science curriculum. Poems on animals also abound. My contribution to this collection is a poem called “Pigeon.” 

Illustration by Christoph Niemann
from One Minute Till Bedtime

Read this poem to your students and discuss how the poem compares pigeons to other birds. Challenge them  to write their own comparison poem. How does a flamingo compare to a penguin? How does a frog compare to a toad? This activity requires some science related research to compare two animals. Integrating language arts with science expands critical thinking skills and creativity!

Happy researching and writing!

www.jacquelinejules.com