Interactive Learning with Read.Write.Think
Alphabet Organizer: This would be a great tool to use to have students generate a list of topics that demonstrate their understanding of a recent topic of study. For example, at the end of a study on the human body, students can generate a list of words, from A-Z, that show what they have learned. For younger grades, you could also assign each child in class one letter of the alphabet and have them come up with a word/phrase that shows something they learned. Then they (or you) could type it into the tool and print out a class Alphabet Organizer.
Bio-Cube: After reading a story in the Houghton-Mifflin text or studying a historical person in science/social studies, students can create a bio-cube to show their knowledge of a character or real life person. They would have to identify their name, time period they lived in, where they lived, personal background, personality traits, why they were important, the biggest obtacle they faced, and an important quote that they are known for.
Flip Book: An excellent tool to have students use to take notes on the 6-Traits and what each one of them look like in a written response or to take notes on the different comprehension skills/strategies from the Houghton-Mifflin series. That way students can refer back to the flip book throughout the school year and add information to each page if new ideas are presented.
Literary Elements Map: This tool allows students to identify information for a character map, conflict map, resolution map, and setting map. This would be an excellent tool to use at the end of a selection in the reading textbook to have students demonstrate their comprehension of the story or to even have them complete for a monthly/quartley book report.
Timeline: As students track important movements in history, they can create timelines to support their learning, as well as possibly creating autobiographies about their own lives.
So, my question to you is this: If you have experience with ReadWriteThink.org, which student materials have you used with your students? If you are new to the site, what tool would you like to try implementing with your students?
