I WON!! and a Visualizing Activity :)

Ok, first I won the giveaway from Fun in 4B!! I can't believe it. This is my first giveaway win, and I am walking on cloud 9! It was definitely a needed pick-me-up after the crazy week I had last week. Plus, everyone is gloriously enjoying their spring break ... and I just get Friday off. So, think of me while you're lounging in whatever relaxing place you've decided to spend your free time!

Anyway, last week I was working on visualizing with my kiddos. They are great at using the strategy with fiction text, but I wanted to take it to the next level and show them how to visualize with nonfiction.
I began by asking the kids if they knew anything about dinosaurs, especially the T-Rex. Most kids knew basic facts, so I asked them if they knew how large the tooth of a T-Rex is. I got all kinds of answers from 1 inch - 20 inches. I read them a passage from an article that explain that the tooth of a T-Rex is about the size of a banana. I posed the question, "Does this help you visualize better?" Here is the picture I drew on the board to show them what that fact made me visualize:

Check out my AMAZING artistic ability ... lol! 

Then I had my kiddos read about different animals in a book called The Unhuggables. 

The book is published by the National Wildlife Federation and is full of interesting articles about "unhuggable" animals/insects. My kids LOVED reading these high interest articles. I just picked a few and split them into groups. They read about the octopus, alligator, cockroach, black bear, and vampire bat. Here are some of their drawings: 

 The article about cockroaches explained how cockroaches can live anywhere in the world. So, here is a visual of cockroaches cover the world ... ew! 

The article on the Octopus explained how the tentacle can taste bitter, sweet, and sour.

My favorite picture, which of course I don't have a picture of is of the octopus. The article explained that when the octopus bites the crab, it turns its flesh to liquid. One of my boys drew a picture of the octopus drinking up the crab with a straw! I just thought it was so creative.

Here is the form I used for them to draw their picture: 

I'd love to hear how you get your students to visualize what they read!