Category Archives: Reading Enrichment

L. Arts Mini Spark #56- Word Art

Create a piece of word art using the following website:  https://wordart.com/

Some ideas for your Word Art:

  • Type your name and your family members/friends’ names
  • Type the things you are thankful for
  • Type your favorites (food, music, color, artist, subject, etc.)
  • Type in the names of your favorite books/characters
  • Type in words associated with your favorite seasons

Suggestion…Create several different pieces of word art using the website and experiment with different shapes, fonts, colors, etc.

L. Arts Mini Spark #55 – Bio Poems

bio poem is a simple poem written about a person, and it follows a predictable pattern. Bio poems generally don’t rhyme, and they can be autobiographical (about another person) or biographical (about yourself).

Step 1: Decide who you want to research for your Bio Poem. Here are some options to get your brainstorming kick started.

  • American Presidents
  • African American Leaders
  • Influential Women
  • Favorite Athlete, Musician or Artist
  • Family Member or Friend
  • Yourself

Step 2: Research your selected person (or interview family member) so that you have content for your Bio Poem. Take notes!

Step 3: Read the sample Bio Poem below about Rosa Parks.

Step 4: Use the guide and template below to draft your own Bio Poem!

Optional: Draw or include a picture of your selected person.

L. Arts Mini Spark #54 – What’s cooking

What’s Cooking?

This mini spark has you cooking up something in the kitchen!

Please choose one of the following options:

  • Ask a grandparent, relative, parent(s), etc. for a family recipe.  Is it something you always have at a holiday gathering?  Something only prepared on a special occasion? Submit a family recipe along with an explanation of its significance to you/your family.
  • Make something in the kitchen and take a picture/video of the process and/or final product.  Make sure your creation has a name and that you provide the ingredients necessary to make your recipe.  Make sure to get an adult’s approval first before you start.

Share your project with your teacher.

Image Source: https://www.clipart.email/clipart/kid-chef-clipart-33460.html

L. Arts Mini Spark #53 – Character Quotes

For this spark, follow these simple steps…

Step 1:  Download Adobe Spark Post for Graphics from Manager.  Here’s a quick video tutorial on how to login.  You can also go to https://spark.adobe.com/sp/ on a computer.

Step 2:  Create a new project that includes a quote from a character in a book you’ve read or from a book you’re currently reading.  Be sure to add the title of the book and the author.

Step 3:  Download your project and share it with your teacher

L. Arts Mini Spark #52 – Thank You Notes

1 – Veteran’s Day is November 11th, visit this website to learn more about the history of Veterans Day

2 – Learn the basics of writing a thank you note!

Greeting. Don’t forget to make sure you’re using the correct form and spelling of the person’s name, as well as anyone else’s mentioned in the note.

  • Dear Aunt Sharon and Uncle Bob,

Express your thanks. Begin with the two most important words: Thank you.

  • Thank you so much for…
  • It made my day when I opened…
  • I’m so grateful you were there when…

Add specific details. Tell them how you plan to use or display their gift. It shows them that you really appreciate the thought that went into it. Even if it’s cold hard cash, describe how you’ll spend the stuff.

  • Here’s a picture of me with my new briefcase. I look so professional!
  • I can’t wait to use the birthday money you sent to decorate my dorm room.
  • The going-away party meant so much to me. Having all my friends and family in one place was something I’ll never forget.

Look ahead. Mention the next time you might see them, or just let them know you’re thinking of them.

  • We look forward to seeing you next month at Lucy’s party.

Restate your thanks. Add details to thank them in a different way.

  • Again, thank you for your generosity. I’m so excited about college. I’ll let you know all about it when I get settled.
  • We felt so blessed that you made the trip to be with us on our wedding day. We can’t wait to see you again soon!

End with your regards. “Sincerely” is a safe standby, but for closer relationships, you might choose a warmer option.

  • With love,
  • Many thanks,
  • Yours truly,

Sourcehttps://ideas.hallmark.com/articles/thank-you-ideas/how-to-write-a-thank-you-note/

3 – Use the template above (or make your own) to write a thank you note to a Veteran. If you do not personally know a veteran, you can write a general thank you to all Veterans.

Spelling Bee Practice

Make sure you know how to pronounce all of the words from this list. You can use the internet to help you with this. Type in the word and the word “pronounce” and it will pop up for you.

Now learn the spelling of each word

     #1 Start with the first five words.
       #2 Whisper spell each one 5 times.
       #3 Now practice spelling one word one at a time.
                Look at one word quickly then close your eyes and spell the word.                  Open your eyes and check your spelling from the list.
        #4 Keep practicing until you can spell all 5 correctly.
         #5 Repeat with the next 5 on the list.
Find practice words. Look through the choices and find the list that is right for you
grade 3  grade 4   grade 5   grade 6   grade 7  grade 8
Choose 10 words from the grade level that suits you.  Create a study guide. and study. When you are ready, have a teacher, parent, or peer give you a spelling test over the 10 words you choose. Submit your results and the study guide to your teacher or EY coordinator.
Happy Spelling!

L. Arts Mini Spark #50 – Report Writing

The purpose of news report writing is to inform an audience. A report is a story that is currently happening or that just happened. Writing a news report is easy if you report on the subject clearly and write in a style that is clear, concise, and active. One should gather answers to the 5 W’s and H questions while writing about an event or something that happened.

1 – Watch this video about the basics of writing a news report.

2 – Complete the following activities and email a photo of each to your EY Coordinator.

3 – Visit, Scholastic Kids Press. Select an article and identify the 5 W’s in the story.

L. Arts Mini Spark #49 – Descriptive Writing

The primary purpose of descriptive writing is to describe a person, place or thing in such a way that a picture is formed in the reader’s mind. Capturing an event through descriptive writing involves paying close attention to the details by using all of your five senses.

Watch this TedEd Video.

In the video, the narrator describes the characteristics of descriptive writing and gives several examples. To review . .

1. Good descriptive writing includes many vivid sensory details that paint a picture and appeals to all of the reader’s senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste when appropriate. Descriptive writing may also paint pictures of the feelings the person, place or thing invokes in the writer.

2. Good descriptive writing often makes use of figurative language such as analogies, similes and metaphors to help paint the picture in the reader’s mind.

3. Good descriptive writing uses precise language. General adjectives, nouns, and passive verbs do not have a place in good descriptive writing. Use specific adjectives and nouns and strong action verbs to give life to the picture you are painting in the reader’s mind.

4. Good descriptive writing is organized. Some ways to organize descriptive writing include: chronological (time), spatial (location), and order of importance. When describing a person, you might begin with a physical description, followed by how that person thinks, feels and acts.

Give it a try! For the following sentences, rewrite it using rich descriptive languages. Keep the five senses in mind. You can use the following and rewrite each OR use one as a prompt and write a descriptive paragraph or story story.

  • Sight – The girls went to the city park.
  • Sound/Hearing – We went to the stadium to watch our favorite team.
  • Smell – The waitress brought our food to the table.
  • Taste – My grandma made us cookies.
  • Touch – I walked to school this morning not knowing they had called a snow day.

L. Arts Mini-Spark #48: Literary Device (Flashbacks)

When it comes to writing, you always want to be learning more. Why? Because the more you know, the better your writing will be. There’s are many literary devices writers can use (watch for future posts), but do not try to use every single literary device in a single piece. For this mini-spark, we will focus on Flashbacks.

Flashbacks in literature are when the narrator goes back in time for a specific scene or chapter in order to give more context for the story. Oftentimes, we see flashbacks in books where the past greatly impacts the present or as a way to start a story off on an interesting note.

Watch this clip for Ratatouille where food critic, Anton Ego flashes back to his childhood.

Think about what Anton Ego experienced while having a flashback. Have you ever tasted or smelled something and experienced a flashback. Tell us about it in the comments!