It’s finally starting to feel and look like fall outside. It’s about time! This time of year I just want to throw on a hoodie and cozy up by a campfire. There just isn’t a better time of year to transform the classroom into a camping theme – complete with a tent, camping chairs, a “campfire” and s’mores! “Camp Read-A-Lot” was the perfect way to introduce my class to a few new fiction genres. I like to do this project early in the year because it really sets the stage for learning about book genres all year long.
The “campout” consists of 4 stations: fables, fairy tales, poems and realistic fiction. I was lucky enough to have a parent volunteers to help with each station. The kids wear their comfy pajamas and bring sleeping bags or blankets so they are snuggly all day long.
FABLES
Obviously, this is a class favorite. Who wouldn’t love hangin’ out in a tent in the middle of their classroom? At this station, the kids read various fables. They learn about the characters and discuss the moral of the stories. They each make their own flipbook to take notes as they learn.
REALISTIC FICTION
This is such an important station because we do a lot with realistic fiction in 2nd grade. I set the mood with a crackling campfire next to the carpet. You can find hours of campfire videos on Youtube. First, the group reads Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Then, they discuss why the story is realistic fiction. Finally, they write their own realistic fiction camping stories.
FAIRY TALES
This station is typically the loudest because it’s filled with laughter! First, the group learns about the elements of fairy tales. Then, they work together to write a fairy tale themed Madlib. The final story always turns out super funny and leaves the group in stitches!
POETRY
This station might not look all that exciting, but the kids still love it. Why? Because this is where they get their treat! This year I filled baggies with the S’mores flavor of Goldfish. It has little fish shaped graham crackers, chocolates and marshmallows. Besides the yummy snack, they also do a little learning here. They read poetry together and then write their very own s’mores themed poem to take home!
The stations typically take about 15-20 minutes each. I’ve spend the rest of the day completing camping themed math stations or doing a read-a-thon making sure students read from each of the new genres. This year we invited 1st graders to our room to buddy read and “camp” with us for a while.
And another successful “Camp Read-A-Lot” is complete! It’s such an easy and engaging day of learning. If you’d like to try this out, you can find my camping materials FREE here.
Happy camping!