PamlaJJ's Learning Library

This unit features Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds in which Cam and her sidekick Eric witness the robbery of a jewelry store. When no one else seems able to identify the well-disguised thief, Cam steps in to solve the case. The book features 8 chapters, and I have provided a response sheet to go with each one. Each response sheet begins with a list of vocabulary words the teacher may wish to introduce before reading. Following them are two questions designed to help the reader

The correct use of a ruler to measure linear objects in both centimeters and inches is an important skill primary students need to learn. This activity gives students an opportunity to do just that. It could also be used to teach students how to measure the perimeter of an object.

The impact family budget decisions may have on a child is not often reflected in children�s literature. The Chalk Box Kid, written by Clyde Robert Bulla and published in 1987, is the exception to this rule. Written with the beginning chapter book reader in mind, this story of a boy who must accomodate himself to the realities of a move necesitated by his father�s job loss is a touching tribute to the resiliency of children. Forced to share his room with an out-of-work uncle, Grego

In my own humble opinion, learning sticks longer and stronger when it is introduced and reinforced in a fun and engaging way. I accomplish this by using games as often as possible. The game I offer in this download reinforces the vowel combinations that represent dipthong sounds, specifically ou, ow, oi, oy, and ew. The game is easy to understand and mimics most commercial games in the way that it’s played. I recommend students be introduced to the game in a large group. The game cards can be

This unit is designed to enhance reading comprehension skills including ordering events, literal recall of details, drawing conclusions, summarizing, recognizing character traits, and associating cause and effect. Ramona The Pest consists of eight chapters. Each chapter is accompanied by three pages. The first is a vocabulary introduction and prediction page. The vocabulary activities are varied. The new words and the information presented in previous chapters are used to make predictions of

This elementary level reading unit emphasizes reading comprehension skills such as recalling details, ordering events, comparing characters, and identifying story elements. Nate the Great is the young reader's version of the hard boiled detective in Raymond Chandler's novels for adults. Written in a tongue-in-cheek style by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and charmingly illustrated by Marc Simont, Nate the Great mysteries offer a cast of, well . . strange children led by a pancake loving detective a

Thank heavens for children's author Beverly Cleary! Without her, the world of children's literature wouldn't include Ramona Quimby and the series of books that feature her trials and tribulations as she grows up. Few writers can get inside the hearts and minds of their juvenile characters as clearly and with as much empathy as Mrs. Cleary. Readers of every age can identify with the conflicting emotions and eventual triumphs Ramona experiences as she begins first grade. This 41-page uni

Looking for an beginning of the year activity that will help your students get to know each other? Interested in building a positive classroom community? Need to learn your new students� names while getting a glimpse at how they will work together this year? Want to have some fun along with your students? My �Find-A-Friend� game will help you accomplish all of these goals. Students are encouraged to move amongst each other, asking and answering qu

Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday for many families, but would it be the same without the turkey and all the trimmings? That's the question the Tappletons must answer in this heartwarming tale. My accompanying literature unit emphasizes reading comprehension skills such as recalling details, ordering important events, and recognizing character traits. It also includes a writing lesson emphasizing the use of similes.

The title of this book says it all! In Catwings Return, author Ursula LeGuin reunites the four flying kittens she introduced in her original book Catwings. Their new adventures take them back to London where they meet a fifth sibling. Eager readers will find out what happens when the older kittens take her �under their wings�, so to speak. This second of the four books in the Catwings series contains five chapters. This unit provides one page of comprehension questions after each

Nate the Great is for young readers what the hard boiled detectives in Raymond Chandler's novels are to adults. Written in tongue-in-cheek style by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and charmingly illustrated by Marc Simont, the Nate the Great series of mysteries offers a cast of, well . . strange child characters led by a pancake loving detective and his dog, Sludge. In this story, Nate is called upon to find the grocery list lost by his friend Claude and along the way he eats some very fishy pan

Be Nice to Spiders by Margaret Bloy Graham is a work of fiction written for first through third grade reader that teaches children more about how spiders live than do many non-fiction texts. It would be a perfect addition to any spider-y thematic unit. When Billy leaves his pet spider Helen at the zoo, she teaches the zookeepers and the reader an important lesson about the job spiders do in keeping the world a more comfortable place in which to live.

John Midas, the main character in Patrick Catling's children's classic, The Chocolate Touch, has never heard the axiom "All things in moderation". He is a chocoholic of the first magnitude who is given the gift of "the chocolate touch". It doesn't take John long to learn the same lesson King Midas did - too much of a good thing isn't such a good thing after all! This unit begins with a prediction worksheet that the reader can revisit periodically to make adjustments. Every chapter is followed

This literature unit is designed to increase reading comprehension and vocabulary building skills. Worksheets are designed to aid discussions whether in a literature circle or one-to-one reading conference. This literature unit is designed for students in the third through 8th grades. It consists of 15 pages, the first twelve of which correspond to the book�s 12 chapters. Each of these worksheets introduces that chapter�s new vocabulary in context, and students are encouraged to r

This is an elementary literature unit designed to increase reading comprehension for second through fourth graders. Students will summarize chapters, order main events, recall details, and define character traits in the process of completing it. Ramona Quimby, Age 8, written by Beverly Cleary is one in an endearing series of books that chronicle the middle-class adventures of the Quimby family. A third grader in this installment of the family's saga, Ramona goes through several experiences fam

Every book in The Magic Treehouse series by Mary Pope Osborne is a combination of fantasy and non-fiction. Jack and Annie, the intrepid brother and sister team who are the main characters in every story, are magically transported to interesting historical places and events. Once there, they learn facts about their destination while trying to complete the tasks assigned them by Morgan, the magical librarian of Camelot. In Midnight on the Moon, the children search for a fourth magical object star

This unit emphasizes emergent reading skills including prediction, vocabulary development, story mapping, character comparisons, and recalling and ordering events. Every primary teacher knows Tacky, the scrappily individualistic penguin brought to life by author Helen Lester and illustrator Lynn Munsinger. This literature unit accompanies the first book in the series, Tacky the Penguin. It begins with a prediction page the student is asked to return to after reading to judge their its re

Cam Jansen is a junior detective created by author David Adler. Equipped with a photographic memory, she stars in a series of mysteries written for the confident 2nd through 4th grade reader. These early chapter books place our heroine in believably perilous situations that hold the interest of the student. This literature unit begins by introducing children to the concept of photographic memory. They are given a chance to see how many fruits they can recall after examining a picture of them f

This literature unit enhances reading comprehension skills including recalling details, making inferences, ordering events, recognizing character traits, and drawing conclusions. Is Horrible Harry really horrible? This is the question young readers will grapple with as they enjoy this and rest of the books in the Horrible Harry series written by Suzy Kline. The four chapters in Horrible Harry and the Ant Invasion give the reader a balanced look at this character, and give him or her the opportu

Cam Jansen is one of my favorite characters in children�s literature for many reasons. First, she�s a girl and can serve as a gutsy, creative, and intelligent role model for young female readers. She has a photographic memory, a character trait that makes her a dynamite detective. Last, but not least, she�s successful at solving problems in an adult world, an accomplishment many of her readers would like to emulate. For these reasons, and many more, Cam Jansen is an inspiri