The Read Aloud Classroom
A podcast to help elementary teachers incorporate more picture books into their school day by using read alouds across the curriculum.
Each week, I'll share picture book titles to guide you in your teaching. You'll find practical tips, innovative ideas, and a collection of handpicked picture books perfect for each subject.
Get ready to inspire, educate and empower your students with the captivating world of picture books. Happy reading!
The Read Aloud Classroom
48. Mentor Texts for Teaching Character Traits
Teaching character traits to your K-3 students can feel like trying to explain the invisible—how do you help little ones move beyond just retelling what happens in a story to truly understanding who the characters are on the inside? If you've ever struggled to make this abstract concept click for your students, this episode is exactly what you need! I'm sharing 10 incredible picture books that transform character trait discussions from confusing to engaging, giving you the mentor texts that make these invisible qualities visible and concrete for young learners.
In this episode, we'll explore amazing books like "Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon," "The Good Egg," "Ada Twist, Scientist," and more—each one carefully chosen because it shows character traits in action rather than just telling us about them. I'll share why each book works so well for character trait instruction, plus my biggest teaching tip that will set your students up for success before you even open the first book. Whether you're looking for books that show character growth, positive traits, or complex emotions, this collection will give you everything you need to help your students become confident character analysts who can support their thinking with text evidence.
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💙 50 Picture Books Every Classroom Needs (freebie!)
📚 Books in this Episode:
- Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon
- Giraffes Can’t Dance
- The Good Egg
- The Recess Queen
- Ada Twist, Scientist
- Amazing Grace
- The Most Magnificent Thing
- Chrysanthemum
- Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
- Not Norman
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Keep your teaching colorful,
Sara :)
The Colorful Apple
Full disclosure: Amazon links in my descriptions are usually affiliate links which means if you purchase through that link, I receive a very small percentage of the sale.
