Looking for a fresh, funny, and light-hearted picture book to read aloud for Hispanic Heritage Month? Octopus Stew by Eric Velasquez is the perfect pick! This delightful tall tale, filled with humor and adventure, celebrates Latino culture and will have your students hooked from the very first page. This picture book companion is a complete supplemental resource for the book Octopus Stew, by Eric Velasquez. With 58 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more! This Resource Includes: Reader Response Questions (1 page) – short-answer response questions Story Elements Graphic Organizer (1 page) – Students will fill in each box with words and pictures to represent each story element. Character Traits Graphic Organizer (2 pages) - Students will analyze the boy and/or grandmother in the story by identifying their dialogue, thoughts, actions, and feelings. Character Trait Showcase (1 page) - Students will choose the most important character trait that describes each of the characters in the story. Then, for each character, they will give 1-2 examples of why they picked that trait. Character Summary (1 page) - Students will summarize a character of their choice, focusing on challenges, responses to challenges, flaws, positive characteristics, and completing a timeline of 5 events that showcase their character’s behavior. Retell the Story - BME (1 page) – Students will retell the beginning, middle, and end of the story Octopus Stew with text and illustrations. Create a Comic (1 pages) - Students will create or retell a favorite story as a comic, with speech bubbles, words, and illustrations. Story vs Author’s Note (1 page) - Students will compare and contrast the author’s note to the story using a graphic organizer. Book Review (1 page) – Students will rate and write a review for the book Octopus Stew. My Family Memory (2 pages) – Students will choose a family memory or story and write it as a fantasy story with illustrations. Long Research Project on Sharks or Octopuses (8 pages each) - Students will choose to research either sharks or octopuses. They will complete graphic organizers, answer questions, draw and label an illustration, record fun facts, define and illustrate new vocabulary, and complete a summary report. One-Page Research Project on Sharks or Octopuses (1 page each) - Students will choose to research either sharks or octopuses. They will complete a one-page report with facts regarding their animal’s habitat, features, diet, movement, and interesting facts.

This picture book companion is a complete supplemental resource for the book Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln, by Margarita Engle With 45 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more!

Searching for a captivating and meaningful read-aloud to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month? My Papi Has a Motorcycle by Isabel Quintero is an excellent choice! This delightful story highlights the warmth of family, the beauty of community, and the rich cultural heritage of a Latino neighborhood, all through the eyes of a young girl and her father. With 41 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more! This Resource Includes: Dream Board (1 page) - Students will fill out a dream board that includes question prompts with text and illustrations. Reader Response Questions (2 pages) – 11 short-answer questions My Bag is Packed (1 page) – Students will draw 4 gifts that they would choose to bring if they were leaving their country and moving to a new one. Then, they explain why they chose to bring those particular gifts. The Best Book (1 page) – Students will draw the cover of their favorite book and explain why it’s their favorite. Wait… There’s More! (1 page) – Students will create another page for the end of the book that includes a few sentences and colorful illustrations similar to those used in the story. Symbolism Activity (2 pages) – Students will analyze and identify various symbols and the use of symbolism in the book. This is a great activity to split the class into groups and have each group analyze a different symbol. Vocabulary Presentation (8 pages) - Present these pages to the class to teach the vocabulary words that students might be unfamiliar with. A definition and an image are included. Vocabulary Notes (4 pages) - Students can fill out these note pages as you show the vocabulary presentation. Vocabulary Crossword Puzzle (1 page + Answer Key) – Students will complete a crossword puzzle by matching words pulled from the story to their definitions. Students can use their note pages to help them. Characterization Graphic Organizers (3 pages) Author’s Note (2 pages) – A printable version of the author’s note titled “My Story” that is found at the end of the book. Students can use this to read independently before completing the included graphic organizer. Story vs Author’s Note (1 page) - Students will compare and contrast the Author’s note and the text using the graphic organizer.

This picture book companion is a complete supplemental resource for the book Dreamers, by Yuyi Morales. With 41 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more!

This picture book companion is a complete supplemental resource for the book Paletero Man by Lucky Diaz. With 38 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more! Students will love the engaging and fun activities, and you will appreciate the time saved hunting for high-level resources to teach reading concepts that students frequently struggle with. The activities provided are designed to enable students to apply higher-level thinking skills, encourage them to provide text evidence to support their thinking, and challenge them to express their own thoughts and/or perspectives.

This picture book companion is a complete supplemental resource for the book Bone Soup, by Cambria Evans. With 43 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic abilities. Students will identify story elements, determine the theme, analyze characters, compare and contrast, make predictions, inferences, and connections, answer questions that require them to think within and beyond the text, and so much more!

This winter picture book companion is a perfect accompaniment to John Rocco’s book, Blizzard. It’s the ideal interactive read-aloud for winter or for educating your students about family, community, compassion, blizzards, and being prepared. Students will love the engaging and fun activities, and you will appreciate the time saved hunting for high-level resources to teach reading concepts that students frequently struggle with. With 34 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic ability. Students will investigate characters, identify story elements, determine the theme, sequence events from the story, practice writing Haiku poetry, explore and use new vocabulary, discover cause-and-effect relationships, explore plot elements, investigate imagery, and much more! The activities provided are designed to enable students to apply higher-level thinking skills, to encourage students to provide text evidence to support their thinking, and to challenge students to express their own thoughts and/or perspectives. This Resource Includes: See, Think, Wonder Story Elements Cause & Effect (ANSWER KEY included) Problem & Solution Character Inside & Out Character Traits - 2 differentiated versions included Character Perspective Character Summary Sequencing Plot Map Setting Influences the Plot Summarizing Making Connections Making Inferences Theme - 2 differentiated versions included Thematic Statements Visualizing Sensory Details Winter Imagery Reader Response Questions (ANSWER KEY included) Vocabulary Matching Cards Vocabulary Crossword Puzzle (ANSWER KEY included) Vocabulary Word Search Puzzle Blizzard ABCs Blizzard Bag Story vs Author’s Note Wait… There’s More! Book Review Design a Book Cover Haiku Poem Planning Sheet Haiku Poem Template Blizzard Research One Pager Need ideas for different ways you can implement these activities? Focus on different reading skills each day for targeted instruction and have students complete a corresponding printable to check for understanding. During centers, students can independently read the story again and complete an activity that reviews a previously taught concept. Work with students on a reading concept they struggle with during guided reading or strategy groups. Students work with a partner(s) or in literature circles to complete additional reading activities. This resource is for extension read-aloud activities only. The book is not included.

This picture book companion is the perfect supplemental resource for the book, She Made a Monster: How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein, by Lynn Fulton. It’s the perfect interactive read-aloud for a biography unit, an author study, Woman’s History Month, or even the days or weeks leading up to Halloween. Students will be intrigued as they learn how the tale of Frankenstein came to be and will love the engaging and fun activities. You will appreciate the time it saves you looking for high-level resources to teach reading and writing concepts that students often struggle with.

This picture book companion is a fantastic supplemental resource for the book The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, by Chris Van Allsburg. It’s the perfect interactive read-aloud for the days or weeks leading up to Halloween. Students will love the engaging and fun activities, and you will appreciate the time it saves you looking for high-level activities to teach reading, grammar, and writing concepts that students often struggle with. With 35 reading, writing, and grammar exercises to select from, this resource is ideal for personalizing instruction based on your student’s needs and academic capabilities. Students will practice adverbs, adjectives, and abstract nouns; identify story elements; determine tone and mood in images; apply the elements of plot to write creative stories; sequence events from their own creative writing; research the author; practice reading text and illustrations to gain a better understanding; and so much more! The included activities were designed to encourage students to use higher-level thinking skills, require students to provide evidence to support their thinking, challenge them to provide their own opinions and/or perspectives, and inspire them to use art and their imaginations to become creative writers.