#943. Book Reports

Reading/Writing, level: Elementary
Posted Sun Apr 4 11:27:03 PDT 1999 by Susan Werkheiser (swerky@epix.net).
Bushkill Elementary School, East Stroudsburg, PA USA
Materials Required: Novel, art supplies
Activity Time: 2 weeks for prep and 45 min. to present
Concepts Taught: Story Elements

When studying story elements, I've given my students the opportunity to "show what they know".
They choose a book to read for a book report. I often tell them that as they read, try to visualize
how a character or setting looks in their minds. When they are finished with the book, they write a summary
of the story and give a detailed opinion of the book. What they like the best, however, is they are allowed
to use art supplies to create a puppet of the main character or diorama of the setting. The projects
represent how they saw the character or setting in their mind. They may present their projects orally
for the rest of the students.