Hello, everyone! It's Andrea from Reading Toward the Stars!
Last weekend, I had the joy of presenting with my good friend and former author in Lit Land, Melissa from Don't Let the Teacher Stay Up Late on a topic that is near and dear to us. Many times we forget that older students can and will read pictures books. There are so many reasons for them, but I am going to highlight my top four.
So, why do big kids need picture books?
Picture books are great for so many comprehension skills for older students. The simple plots help students see beyond the words and dig into the comprehension skills. I love using them for everything from simple plot elements to the more intense making inferences. ReadWorks has a plethora of awesome comprehension lessons that use picture books, a geat starting point! Though you have to sign up to use it, it is completely free!
Picture books have a very rich vocabulary and are great for building that in so many ways. The book Baloney (Henry P.) by Jon Scieska has words from other languages the students must figure out as they are reading it. Many picture books help students learn new vocabulary through words and pictures. How aswesome is that!
Picture books are geat for helping students become better writers. The letter above was written by some fourth graders after reading Dear Mrs. LaRue by Mark Teague. The site Writing Fix has a ton of great writing mentor text lessons, and don't forget Read Write Think!
And finally!
Older students can be mesmerized by picture books. What you can't see is the flock of students who are up in the front of the room listening to their fourth grade teacher share on of her favorite books. Big kids love these books for so many reasons. Sometimes the picture books are actually meant for "big kids" too.
So, don't hold back! Read those pictures books with your older students! They won't forget it!
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