Read Like a Writer! Using Amazing Picture Books
And Other Delicious Writings to Teach Your Students How to Write!
INFORMATIONAL SELECTIONS: explains - describes- informs
1. Written Anything Good Lately?- by Susan Allen
An ABC book with a different writing idea on each page; Post all of these ideas and any others the class
thinks of, then they will always have an "idea board" to choose from when it's writing time
2. Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau – by Jennifer Berne
A biography of his life - how his "wonders" turned into his mission in life; Help students find their topicask "What do YOU wonder about?" Read about it, write about it and wonder some more!
3. Noah Webster and His Words – by Jeri Chase Ferris
Another biography, this one with a great lead; Gather other biographies, read and compare the leads;
Why are some better than others? Rewrite the boring ones!
4. On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein – by Jennifer Berne
One more biography! This one with a great ending! Use familiar books and display only their endings;
Students match endings to books; What makes a good ending? Rewrite an ending making it better.
5. Clemente! – by William Perdomo
A biography about a person whose life is worth remembering. List people you think are worth
remembering; Write about one of them - what "voice" would fit that person? Use it as you write.
6. “Please Be Safe!” (sign)
Create a connection to the audience with voice; Notice signs for a week around town and in school then design a sign with an obvious voice designed for a specific audience; share signs; guess the voice
7. Older Than the Stars – by Karen C. Fox
A simple treatment of the big bang theory with strong verbs; review verbs - reread and point out the
verbs- list and discuss; which are most powerful? why? Write some sentences with strong verbs.
8. Eight Days Gone – by Linda McReynolds
A rhyming picture book about Apollo 11 and the first moon landing; Pick a topic and describe it factually
and poetically using words carefully to create meaning
9. Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives – by Lola M. Schaefer
A variety of sentences are used creatively - some "break the rules"; Choose another animal - find a
number fact about it - take a risk with sentences and turn your writing into a new page for this book.
10. Dear Deer: A Book of Homophones – by Gene Barretta
Homophones are used together in the same sentence while pictures help show word meanings; Choose
sets of homophones not in book, use in same sentence with pictures to help explain the word meanings.
11. Amelia’s Boredom Survival Guide: First Aid for Rainy Days…. – by Marissa Moss
Great for learning the skill of presentation; font looks handwritten & illustrations abound; Discuss what
catches your eye; write some new pages with readable fonts and pictures; fun to do in pairs!
12. “Kid-Friendly Fun, Rain or Shine!” (brochure) – by Susquehanna River Valley Visitor’s Bureau
A great example of creative text features with colorful headings; Using brochure as a model, students
work in groups to design a brochure about their town making it fun and easy to read.
NARRATIVE SELECTIONS: tells a story-entertains-teaches
1. Little Red Writing – by Joan Holub
Fun to read and lots to look at! A great mentor text for teaching your students how to write! Create
your own adjective path, conjunction glue, or adverb motto. (review these parts of speech first!)
2. Grandpa Green – by Lane Smith
Memoir of grandpa's life told through words and clever illustrations in the form of topiaries; Using
words and drawings (something besides topiaries!) that tell about your life journey so far.
3. Jangles: A Big Fish Story – by David Shannon
Focus on a specific topic - this story is about just one fish - it's not everything about all fish; Discuss how
to narrow a topic; choose a topic - narrow it down, then write only about the specific topic.
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Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt
A classic story that has a great, engaging lead! Project the prologue and read together; discuss sensory
images author used; then find some mundane beginnings (i.e."once upon a time") & make them better
Alex the Parrot: No Ordinary Bird – by Stephanie Spinner
A narrative nonfiction organized in short chapters with some interesting information about speaking
animals; write what else you'd like to know about this topic; develop the story further - add your idea
Dragons Love Tacos – by Adam Rubin
Author takes a risk by writing about throwing a party for dragons - story is not predictable but is lots of
fun to read! Discuss the surprises; write to the author and share your comments about his book.
The One and Only Ivan – by Katherine Applegate
A great Newbery winning book filled with strong verbs; Share any passage (there are many!) with
strong verbs; then in groups, change verbs to "to be" verbs; compare - which do you like better? why?
Three Hens and a Peacock – by Lester Laminack
Traditional sentences along with many creative ones make for a hilarious, fun-to-read story; Project the
pages, discuss the flow of the story with these varied sentences; write an extension to the story - Is that
an ostrich falling off the truck on the final page? Use a variety of sentences in your writing.
Wonder – by R.J. Palacio
An excellent read aloud for your upper elementary students with many varied sentence patterns; Use
example of internal dialogue from p. 62- "I'm not saying..."; Discuss how it adds natural rhythm and
flow; Rewrite Auggie's words with your own thoughts be thoughtful & respectful; vary your sentences
Mirror, Mirror: A Book of Reversal Verse – by Marilyn Singer
Unique picture book of fairy tales and poetry; classic tales are literally turned on their heads; Model
and do this writing together (it can be tricky!)- choose a fairy tale not in book and tell some part of the
tale in reversible verse, changing only capital letters and punctuation!
Exclamation Mark! – by Amy Rosenthal
A great way to discuss punctuation marks, especially the exclamation mark! Simple pictures make it fun
to share! Write your own version of this book from the point of view of the question mark or the period.
The Plot Chickens – by Mary Jane Auch
A fun way to follow the writing steps - various fonts are used throughout; write your own narrative
following main character, Henrietta's, steps while using a variety of fonts
Goodnight iPad: A Parody for the Next Generation: - by Ann Droyd
A parody of Goodnight Moon - everyone hooked on iPads will relate! Brainstorm the text features used
and compare to Goodnight Moon.
“THINK” (sign)
A funny example of why we need to think about white space! Small groups use word processor to
rewrite a passage with no spaces anywhere! Then discuss the importance of white space!
OPINION SELECTIONS: builds argument skills-based on facts (we'll call this ARGUMENT in middle school!)
1. Have I Got a Book for You! – by Melanie Watt
Writer uses a variety of arguments to convince us to buy this book; Tell about the different arguments;
discuss which are most sincere; then write your own reason why others should buy this book.
2. “Steep Hill Ahead” (sign)
Bike riders are alerted to a road hazard ahead; Discuss the big idea of this sign; keep others safe by
creating a sign without words; guess what your classmates' signs mean.
3. The Day the Crayons Quit – by Drew Daywalt
Each crayon voices his own opinion about why he is the best; Chart the crayons' reasons, then write
individual sequels using a color NOT in the text, telling why it should have been included (write in
crayon of course!)
4. The Perfect Pet – by Margie Palatini
Elizabeth really, really wants a pet - and her parents really, really do not! Perfect read for point of view!
Add more examples of possible pets, sharing both Elizabeth's and her parents' points of view.
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“Driving While Distracted” (political cartoon)
An opinion piece with ideas shown using pictures and just a few words; Think of an opinion you have
about something and design a political cartoon that shares your opinion with your classmates.
“Please Do Not…” (sign) – by Zoological Society of San Diego
A funny, but deadly serious sign from the zoo - leave the animals alone! Work in groups to write a
similar sign using strong verbs, telling zoo visitors to leave the plants alone!
All the Water in the World – by George Ella Lyon
An excellent book to read to discuss word choice; Highlight your favorite words and phrases; Discuss
the author's final message in writing, using striking words and phrases
Charlotte’s Web – by E.B. White
Opinions begin this classic story; words with layers of meaning convey the author's message; Read the
beginning together, then in small groups, discuss the different points of view, then make a list of words
that deepen the message (i.e weakling, runt..)What words would you use to make your message heard?
Each Kindness – by Jacqueline Woodson
Buy this book for your guidance counselor, but first read it to your class. A lesson in compassion told
through beautifully flowing sentences; Try a backwards exercise - take the longer (over 6 words)
sentences and rewrite in 5 words or less; read now with shorter sentences - what happens to the flow?
Outfoxed – by Mike Twohy
The author breaks the rules to create fluency - sentence fragments add to the fluency as duck slyly
convinces fox that he is a dog; List all the ways duck tries to convince fox that he's a dog; write a few
more sentences giving further examples of duck's evidence using your own ideas.
“Can You Read This?” – (passage)
As you can see every word is misspelled! Project the passage; students read with a partner and discuss
any difficulties they had; now discuss, "What is your opinion of the importance of spelling?"
Let’s Do Nothing – by Tony Fucile
A lesson in capital letters and how they emphasize a character's feelings; in groups, write your own
story called Let's Do Something using capital letters as needed for emphasis
It’s Hard to be a Verb – by Julia Cook
The title itself is the opinion! The main character, Louis, may be recognizable if you have any fidgety
students! Find and list all the verbs; review other parts of speech, write "It's Hard to be a Noun, or an
Adjective, or an Adverb....etc."
Hello! Hello! – by Matthew Cordell
Notice how the font changes when the little girl "escapes" everyone in her house who is ignoring her
because of technology and goes outside to play; discuss font choices, then write your opinions on
playing with technology or playing outside - use readable fonts in your final presentation.
*With many thanks to Ruth Culham and her newest book –
The Writing Thief: Using Mentor Texts to Teach the Craft of Writing
Presented by Christine Leo, [email protected], Reading Intervention Teacher
Southern Pines Elementary, Moore County Schools, NC