The Mysteries of Harris Burdick Interactive Read – Aloud Activities

Item description

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 perspective, and
inspire them to use art and their imaginations to become creative writers.

This Resource Includes:

• Link to Slideshow of Images with Captions
• Art Appreciation – Students choose an image that caught their
  attention and reflect on how the image made them feel, what it reminded them of and what they imagined as they viewed it.
• Cause and Effect – Students examine the numbered images and
  create cause and effect statements for each picture.
• Tone and Mood in Art – Students identify the tone and mood in
  the pictures, choose words they think relate the best, and explain their
  thinking.
• 3 Questions – Students examine two pictures and write three
  thought-provoking questions for each one.
• Picture Comparison – Students compare the different elements
  of the two images and create a new caption for each picture.
• Strangely Ordinary – Students imagine a strange occurrence
  taking place in a typical setting and create an illustration of the event, add
  a picture caption, and include a hashtag.
• Found – Students answer questions regarding Mr. Burdick’s
  disappearance and draw a picture of him.
• Author and Illustrator Study – Students research further into
  the life of the author and illustrator, Chris Van Allsburg to learn more about
  his writing and artwork.
• Two Versions – Students write a short story based on the mood
  the picture evokes. Then, they will write a second short story, but in the
  opposite mood.
• Patterns in Pictures – Students view the image slideshow and
  record their observations for each image; look for patterns within their
  observations; create a new rule based on those observations; and explain what
  would happen if the rule was broken.
• Sensational Writing – Students describe the image using the
  senses listed on the page and write 4-5 sentences describing the image using
  adverbs and adjectives.
• Grammar Practice: Adverbs – The sentences included give
  students information that is shared in the letter in the preface of the book,
  The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. Students will complete the sentences with the
  adverbs listed. (Includes Answer Key)
• Grammar Practice: Adjectives – The sentences included give
  students information that is shared in the letter in the preface of the book,
  The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. Students will complete the sentences with the
  adjectives listed. (Includes Answer Key)
• Grammar Practice: Abstract Nouns – Students will connect and
  apply abstract nouns to images and explain their connections.
• Creative Writing Graphic Organizers – Students can use the
  graphic organizers for any of the included writing activities.
• Creative Writing: Image & Caption – Students will write a
  story to go with the picture on the handout and include the picture caption to
  any part of their story. Included are handouts for each of the 14 images
  featured in the book.
• Creative Writing: Missing Plot Elements – There are 3
  variations of this activity that can be used to differentiate based on student
  needs, as a gradual release model (I do, we do, you do), or each variation can
  be given as a separate assignment.
• Creative Writing Story Plot Maps (3 pages) – Students use the
  series of included pictures on the plot map as inspiration for writing their
  own story. There are 3 different versions included.
• Brainstorm Missing Plot Elements – Students will use the
  provided picture and caption included at the climax to inspire the rest of
  their story. There are 7 different versions included.
• Creative Writing Plot Brainstorm – Students will complete the
  plot map with cut and cut-and-paste and text.