Transcript Navigating Nonfiction PowerPoint Presentation

Navigating Non-Fiction
Maria Muhlbauer – Library Media Specialist
Amy Schaper – Sixth Grade Teacher
Pioneer Middle School –Yorkshire, NY
The Project
 A school-wide unit of study incorporating:
 Non-Fiction Immersion Activities
 Research Skills
 Writing a Non-Fiction Book
 Family and Community Celebration
Non-Fiction Immersion Activities
Fifth Grade Non-Fiction Scavenger Hunt
 Collaborative (partner) activity
 Mini lessons from teacher and librarian about text features
and the parts of non-fiction books
 Used high interest books about
outer space
Sixth - Eighth Grade Non-Fiction Refreshers
 E-Books were used to provide a brief mini lesson about the
parts of a non-fiction book and text features
 wegivebooks.org
Speedbooking
 Students are given 30 seconds to visit with a non-fiction book
in the library (repeat process as time allows)
 At the end of the activity, students had a listing of non-fiction
books that they may like to read
The Research Process
The Research Process
 Students school-wide created their own non-fiction books
 5th and 6th grade students used books and databases for their
research
 7th and 8th grade students used books, databases, and websites
for their research
Book Research
Database Research
Database Research
Database Research
Website
Research
Website
Research
Website
Research
Grade 6 Nonfiction Project
The Gist…Why Nonfiction?
60% of the reading on our state test is
nonfiction.
Opportunity to collaborate with LMC.
Students need to be well versed in all types of
expository and informational text.
This unit of study introduced students to a
variety of informational text and structures.
The Reading Skills Highlighted in
Nonfiction Unit
Determining Importance
Finding Main Idea
Summarizing
Synthesis
Reader’s Workshop
Text Structure
Mentor text included…
Descriptive-Explanatory
Problem/Solution
Cause/Effect
Compare/Contrast
Sequence
Reading Work- Text Structure
The Writing Skills Highlighted in
Nonfiction Unit
Mentor text included…
Text Structure
Text Features
Author's Style
Author’s Purpose
Nonfiction Book Project
Pick a topic and research.
Research helped guide chapter
selection.
Text structure was descriptive.
Encouraged the use of text features.
The Writing Process
1. Begins in the
notebook – flash
drafting, trying
out strategies.
2. Moves to drafting
– zooming in and
stretching out.
3. Revision is next.
4. Editing
5. Publishing
CELEBRATION!
What went well?
 Students were extremely proud of their work!
 The opportunity to show their books to their families and the
community was a huge motivator
 Research skills remained consistent across grade levels, built
on skills learned in previous years
 Circulation of nonfiction books increased dramatically
Drawbacks
 Having the entire school researching at the same time led to a
shortage of the more popular nonfiction books
 TIME ISSUES!
 Difficult for one librarian to cover all classes in the given
timeframe
 Many research lessons were taught in a large group setting,
which isn’t the best teaching strategy for this type of project
Thank you!
 Maria Muhlbauer
[email protected]
(716) 492-9383
www.pioneerschools.org
Click on Middle School LMC under the “Libraries” menu
 Amy Schaper
[email protected]