Synthesizing-Thinking Strips

This week we used thinking strips to record our thinking as we were hearing/reading a story.  I started out by handing my friends a thinking strip (a sheet of 8 1/2x11 paper cut in half and taped together in the center and folded to make six boxes).  I told my friends that as I was reading they were to record the images or thoughts of the important ideas they thought would help them retell the story when the book was over.  We also talked about leaving the last box to record the big idea from the story in.  My hope was to link the practice we have been doing with retelling to inferring the big idea from the book.

I read the book The Magic Fish by Freya Littledale  

Take a peek at their thinking strips below.

After I finished reading the book, I had the kids get into pairs and retell the story using their thinking strips to guide their thinking.

Lastly we talked about the big idea/the take away/the lesson from this book.  
They recorded their thinking on their IPad.  (This was on the Scribble Press App.)

Lesson idea from Debbie Miller Workshop 4/2012