2. Using Mentor Texts to help students develop writing skills

3. Mentor texts are pieces of literature that you can return to and reread for many different purposes. Mentor texts are to be studied and then imitated. Mentor texts help students make powerful connections to their own lives. Mentor texts help students take risks and try out new strategies. Mentor texts should be books that students can relate to and can read independently or with some support. What are Mentor Texts?

4. Picture books provide the models that will help students grow as writers. They stimulate creativity and create interest. They are rich in beautiful illustrations that add another layer to the text. They can be used to connect reading strategies to author’s craft. They contain multiple life lessons. They are culturally diverse. They demonstrate the importance of choosing words wisely. They are short enough to be shared entirely in one reading. Why Use Picture Books as Mentor Texts?

5. 1 st Grade Mentor Texts provide samples of: BeginningMiddleEnd CharactersSetting ProblemSolution Writing Letters Personal Narratives

6. Some Mentor Texts for Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes First Grade: Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin

7. Some Mentor Texts for Knuffle Bunny By Mo Willems Second Grade: Short Cut By Donald Crews

8. Some Mentor Texts for Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type by Betsy Lewin Third Grade: Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry

9. The Snowy Day By Ezra Jack Keats

10. Rewrite The Snowy Day retell plan into a “retell” of TheSnowyDay BEGINNING: Peter at home 1 2. 3. MIDDLE: Peter in the snow. 1. 2 3 4. END: Peter back at home 1. 2. 3.

11. Use the Home-Adventure-Home retell plan to write your own Home-Adventure-Home story.

12. Graphic Organizer Home-Adventure-Home Story Plan Home 1. 2. 3. Adventure 1. 2. 3. Home 1. 2. 3. Feeling Characters Main Minor Setting Home Adventure Home