It wouldn't be September without a little Johnny Appleseed.

Every year I like to spend a few days on this American Pioneer, Johnny Appleseed.  He is a historical figure that the students LOVE to learn about. I think it's because he walks such a fine line somewhere between one of America's pioneers and the tooth fairy.  We read both the biography of John Chapman and the Tall Tales of Johnny Appleseed and I know all the kids want to believe that he really does sleep with bears and wrestle giant fish.
Last year we focused on Johnny Appleseed, the story teller. We wrote some tall tales of our own. This was a lot of fun and you can read all about it by clicking here. 
This year I'm focusing on Johnny Appleseed but exploring the true history behind him.  I have a great set of biographies that are at the perfect reading level for second grade. I ordered them from Scholastic a couple of years ago and they have been so useful (especially later in the year when we write cereal box biography reports).  

Here is our set of biographies.  There are six of each so I will do the reading part of this activity in guided reading groups.

After reading the biography the students complete these four pages. The first page is where the students draw a picture of our dear old Johnny.  The next three pages is where they answer, who?what? and where? There is just enough space for two or three sentence answers which is all I think many of the newly second graders can handle this early in the year.  

You can download my Johnny Appleseed Stand Up Writing Project by visiting my TpT Store.

What are some of your fun Johnny Appleseed activities? I would love to hear in the comments below :)

Should we make something new for Back To School Night?

Every year it seems I tend to do similar things for back to school night to spruce up the classroom. This year, Back To School Night is less than a week after school begins so time is not plentiful for large, elaborate (yet beautiful) crafts.
No problem! I came up with this little three dimensional writing craft that will add a little liveliness to the student's desks for when the parents make their visit. Instead of having the students draw a picture of themselves I am going to glue down a photo of them. This will also be helpful to the parents when they walk in to find their child's desk.  All they have to do is look for his/her picture.

It is a perfect start of the school year activity as well because it helps kids focus on a goal they have and some of their favorite things about being in school.  Plus, 3D anything is a bonus!!

I know that sometimes at the beginning of the school year, students are on all different levels of learning so I also included unlined schoolhouses for students to draw pictures instead of writing.  

Whenever we do any writing projects in the beginning of the year, I always brainstorm words we might need and write them on the board. To help out the little writers a bit, I included a "words you might need" list right on the page.  

You can visit my Teachers Pay Teachers store and download one to use in your classroom. 

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