I’m linking up with my friends at Collaboration Cuties to share about a fun Social Studies Mentor Text!
We have begun our Westward Expansion Unit in Social Studies! As I was planning out what I would need to cover in the next 22 school days before testing begins (EEK!!), I remembered this wonderful book! We were lucky enough to have the author, Laurie Myers, come visit us last year, which is when I first heard of her book, Lewis and Clark and Me.
This is a perfect example of historical fiction because there is SO MUCH that is based on the information provided in Lewis and Clark’s ACTUAL journals, but it’s much more fun to read because it’s from the point of view of Lewis’s dog, Seaman!
It is a chapter book, but it’s only 64 pages, so it would make a great read-aloud that could probably be finished in a week or two. Or of course, you could dive in deeper during reading with point of view, author’s purpose, personification… the list goes on and on! The kids get so excited about the adventure of the expedition told from Seaman’s eyes! They’ll want you to keep reading. :o)
Of course, before you read the book, the kids need to know a little background about the expedition, and I have just the thing if you also teach about it! :o)
I just uploaded this Reading Integration Unit to my TPT store. The passages were written by yours truly, and are quite the labor of love (these two passages took me HOURS to write!!) – I can’t wait for my kids to use them next week before we read Lewis and Clark and Me! I will print them so that two passages print on one page- this way, they can glue a half sheet into their notebook and write their reactions, responses, and questions around the outside. You could also copy them on the copier at 85%, then cut the extra white space off- I have found that this is the perfect size to glue into notebooks, too!
Happy Sunday! Enjoy the day! I am off to try to get some cleaning done… gotta get these sick germs outta here!