Book Projects

Monthly Book Projects

2010-2011 school year

Each month students are assigned a book project in a particular genre (type of book). Students will bring home a Book Project Contract at the beginning of the month, but you can also check here for detailed directions and due dates.

Students choose their book project book at the first or second library visit of each month and have the remainder of the month to read the book and complete the project.

In the middle of each month, students will receive a detailed rubric for each book project choice detailing how to earn 4 out of 4 points in each grading category. There are usually 4 or 5 grading categories for each book project. The rubric details exactly what the student needs to do to earn high grades for his or her book project. A high degree of effort and creativity is expected.

Book projects are due on the last Tuesday of each month.

September: Adventure

This month's book project assignment is to read an adventure book and complete one of the project choices listed below.

Adventure books can be realistic fiction, or they can be non-fiction. Realistic fiction is a story made up by the author. These kind of stories have realistic, believable settings; characters similar to people you might know; believable problems, goals, or conflicts; a plot that might not end happily but is realistic; and will tell an exciting story. Non-fiction adventure stories will tell about a real adventure that actually happened to someone, either the author or someone he or she knows.

The librarian and your teacher will help yo find an exciting adventure book. You will be given time at school to read your book, but you will have to read at home, too.

Once you finish your book, choose one of these projects:

1. Write a letter to a friend telling about the book.
2. Make a shadow box for your book out of a shoebox - show your favorite scene.
3. Make a picture to show the most exciting scene from the book. Write a paragraph at the bottom telling why you made this picture.

Bring your completed book project to school on Tuesday, September 28, 2010.

October: Mystery

This month's book project assignment will be to read a mystery and complete one of the project choices listed below.

Mysteries are usually realistic fiction. Realistic fiction is a story made up by the author. These kinds of stores have realistic, believable settings; characters similar to people you might know; believable problems, goals, or conflicts; a plot that might not end happily but is realistic; and will tell about characters trying to solve a mystery.

The librarian and your teacher will help you choose a book. You will have class time to read, but you will also need to read at home.

1. Write a different ending for your book. It needs to be one or more pages long and will be scored on grammar and spelling.
2. Made models of the characters out of clay. Put them on display with the title of the book and a brief description of each character.
3. Design a new book jacket for your book. Make it so exciting that others will want to read the book.

Bring your completed project to school on or before October 26, 2010.

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November: Historical Fiction

This month's book project assignment will be to read an historical fiction book and complete one of the book project choices listed below:

Historical fiction is based on facts and is grounded in history. It is realistic and has believable diaglogue as well as accurate historical information. A good historical fiction book makes history come alive!

When you finish reading your book:

1. Using the internet, reference books, newspapers, magazines, or the encyclopedia, make a collection or scrapbook of articles about a real person, place, or thing in your historical fiction book. Use a 12x18 piece of paper or make a booklet in a report folder.
2. Dress up as one of the characters in your book and tell what role he/she played in the book. Use the first person point of view, pretending you really are that person when you talk).
3. Draw a picture of each character in the book. Write a paragraph describing each character. Remember to proofread your writing and have no errors.

Bring your completed project to school on or before Nov. 23, 2010.

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December

No project assigned

January: Science Fiction

This month's book project will be to read a science fiction book and complete one of the project choices listed below.

Science fiction is a special kind of fantasy story that is set in other worlds and deals with the future. These stories are based on known scientific facts but they explore technology of the future and raise questions. Science fiction is believable but has lots of imagination. It has futuristic settings; characters that may include humanlike animals, heroes or heroines with magical powers, or aliens; a problem, goal, or conflict, sometimes between good and evil; a plot that may include adventures of the characters or a heroic battle for the common good; a conclusion; a point of view or a narrator; and a style or tone that is special in some way.

The librarian and your teacher will help you find a science fiction book. You will be given time at school to read your book, but you will also have to read at home. Your teacher will ask you how you are enjoying your book and what page you are on. Save these directions!

Once you finish your book, choose a project from these choices:

1. Write a book reviewer's review of the book, telling what parts of the story you like and didn't like. (one or more pages, scored on grammar, spelling, and conventions)
2. Pick an exciting part of the book, practice reading it orally, and read it aloud to the class. It should be one or more pages long (about 2-4 minutes)
3. On a 12x18 sheet of paper, make a mural of your book, including three or more exciting scenes. Write a paragraph above or below each scene telling what is happening. Use proper grammar and spelling!

Bring your project to school on or before Tuesday, January 25, 2011.

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February: Biography

This month's book project is to read a biography and complete one of the project choices listed below.

Biography is a kind of nonfiction that deals with the history of someone's life. Autobiographies are written by a person about his or her own life; biographies are written by writers who research and read about their subjects in order to write about someone else's life. Biography contains realistic and believable dialogue and accurate factual information. The setting is authentic; the characters are real people; the problems in the story are believable; the story tells the importance of the person's life; the biography has a point of view or narrator; and it has a tone or style that is special in some way. Biographies teach you about other times, places, and people.

Once you finish reading your book, choose from one of these choices:

1. Write a letter to the author telling him or her what you thought about the book, or ask the author questions. For extra credit, if you can find the address and provided the author is still living, send the letter after you read it to the class. Use proper grammar and spelling!
2. Make a collage about your book and/or the person's life. Use magazine pictures, construction paper, fabric, or other material's on a 12x18 sheet of paper.
3. Make paper dolls complete with clothes the famous person would have worn.

Bring your completed project to school on Feb. 22, 2011. You will be telling the class about your famous person and showing us your project.

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March: Sports

This month's project assignment will be to read a book about a sport and complete one of the projects listed below. You need to choose an informational book about a sport or a realistic fiction book in which the story revolves around the characters playing a sport.

Once you finish reading the book, choose a project listed below:

1. If you chose a realistic fiction book, write about your book as if you were one of the characters and were writing in your diary. Use proper grammar and spelling. Refer to specific events in the book as you write at least 5 entries.

2. For either realistic fiction or an informational, non-fiction book about your sport, write a one or more page report about the history of your sport. Read your report to the class. Use proper grammar and spelling for your report.

3. Make up a board game that has the same theme as your sport. Try out the game with other students and then teach it to the class. You can use dice, spinner, markers, etc from other board games you have at home.

4. Draw a diagram of the field, court, or other place this sport is played and label the parts with vocabulary for that sport. For example, for baseball you'd label the pitching mound, dug out, etc. Teach the class at least 10 vocab words for this sport.

Bring your project to school on March 29, 2011.

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April: Animals

This month's book project assignment will be to read a book about an animal and complete one of the project choices listed below.

You need to choose an informational book about an animal or a book about animals in general. The librarian and your teacher will help you find a book. You will have time at school to read your book, but you will also have to read at home. Once you finish your book, please choose one of these projects:

1. Write ten questions to quiz the class about your animal. Write down the answers, too. Use proper grammar and spelling.

2. Make a poster teaching people about your animal and how to care of it. Use a 12x18 sheet of paper. Use proper grammar and spelling.

3. Make a mobile about your animal with five or more parts hanging from it. (A hanger works well). You should include facts about the animal with pictures of the animal, and how to care for it.

Bring your completed project to school on April 26, 2011, and be prepared to tell us all about this animal!

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May:
A Place I'd Like to Visit

This is the final book project of the school year.

This month's book project assignment will be to read a book about a place you'd like to visit and complete one of the project choices listed below. You need to choose an informational book about a place, such as a national park, a famous city, a landmark, etc. It should be a place in which you are interested, or better yet, a place your family is really going to visit this summer. The librarian and your teacher will help you find a book about a place. You will be given time at school to read your book, but you will also have to read at home. Your teacher will ask you how you are enjoying your book and what page you are on.

Once you have finished your book, choose a project from these choices:

1. Plan an itinerary for a visit to this place. Include a daily schedule that starts at your house, tells how you would travel to this place, what you would do each day you are there, and how and when you would go back home. Describe the activities or sights you would see each day on your trip. Your itinerary needs to be at least 2 pages long and it should be written or neatly typed and contain no errors. It should contain specific details about the place, such as admission fees, times of day, etc.

2. Make a map on a 12x18 sheet of paper. Draw a detailed map including at least 10 things you would see or do at this place. Your map should be neatly designed, colored, and labeled and have no errors.

3. Research the history of this place. Write a 2 page report on the development of this place, including any people, natural events, historical significance, etc. important in its history. Your report should be neatly typed or written and contain no errors.

4. Pretend you are visiting this place and have bought 6 postcards. Draw and color the 6 postcards, each one showing a different scene of something at this place. On the back, just like a real postcard, write a 5-7 sentence paragraph describing the scene and pretend you are sending this postcard to a friend. Your sentences need to be neat and have no errors. Make your postcards look just like real postcards, but design and draw them yourself!

This project is due May 24, 2011.