Eric Carle Inspired Stories & Art

In our Author Study of Eric Carle, students became authors and illustrators inspired by the "Picture Writer". My teammate Christi Eldredge and I worked together to teach this unit to both of our classes. We read a selection of Eric Carle books and discussed what characteristics make his work unique. Christi worked with the students to brainstorm an idea for a story using the framework of "The Very ____ ____". The students wrote rough drafts and did peer editing before completing their final drafts. In my room, the students used a variety of painting techniques learned from Eric Carle in his biographical video, "Picture Writer". They first painted papers and then cut shapes to make the animal featured in their story. The stories and illustrations make a beautiful addition to our "art gallery" in the hallway outside our rooms. The kids have really enjoyed sharing their writing and artwork with their peers.

Outta This World!

In our study of the Solar System, we made "Planet Books" to organize our notes and thoughts about each planet. The kids used books, articles, websites, and United Streaming (non-fiction) videos to compile facts about the solar system.

The students decorated the covers of the books and made foldables to go inside for each planet.

We are fascinated by outer space and have been eager to learn new information! I have a feeling this unit will last a long time, due to the kids' interest in the solar system!

Author's Purpose

Have you ever wondered why an author decided to publish a piece of writing? We did! We clipped articles from the Fort Worth Star Telegram and sorted them according to the author's purpose for writing.

Students read their selected article and then made a mini-presentation to the class, giving a short summary and the author's purpose for writing it.

We learned that there are many reasons why an author may publish a piece of writing, but most can be grouped into one of four categories: to inform, to entertain, to explain, or to persuade.


As an extension of this activity, the students became persuasive authors and wrote a piece about whether or not homework should be assigned during the TAKS week. I was astounded not only at their writing skills, but also at their creativity! My three favorite reasons why we should NOT have homework:

1. We may be cranky because we've lost sleep (up late doing homework!)

2. We may become disinterested in school work (because we've practiced so much at home, of course) and become more talkative and less "workative".

3. Homework uses lots of paper, which kills trees. We don't want to aid in destroying the rainforests, now do we?

***It was a tough decision, but I ended up being persuaded to pitch the homework in the trash (well, recycle bin) for the week. Great job authors!