fun fact lunchbox notes!

This New For Us Friday we’re sharing a new-f0r-us lunchbox note–fun fact lunchbox notes! LOVE these!!

A few weeks ago, Maddy, Owen, and Cora were totally into an article in the Kids Post about ear wax. Yes, ear wax. At breakfast. And the article promised more equally disgusting (but soooo interesting!) topics in the near future.

I could barely swallow my coffee as I read it, but what was strikingly clear to me was that when kids, even little guys, are interested in something, they’ll read it. They’ll want to learn more. They’ll ask smart questions and make incredible connections.

So I was completely overjoyed when my pal Kristen created these fun-fact lunchbox notes and sent them my way.

I was hoping that these strange, curious facts about animals and insects would spark my kiddos’ interest–get them interested in learning more about the world around them. Get them talking about bugs and birds and animals with each other and with their friends.

And they did. Score!

Fun Fact Lunchbox Notes: Seriously, I love these. And I’m betting your kiddos will, too.

Covering everything from slugs and their numerous noses (do you know how many they have??!) to what ants do when they wake up in the morning, to what a giraffe does with its (how long!!??) tongue, every little fact is fun and full of new-for-us information.

Maddy has said these are her most favorite lunchbox notes ever, and Owen agrees. Cora loves them because there’s one about a honeybee because right now she’s all about bees.

I love them because as I write a little ‘I love you’ note on at the end, I’m surprised and amazed at the randomness and strangeness of each fact. Talk about learning something new with every packed lunch!

Fun-fact lunchbox notes are just that–fun like whut and factual–

though I have to admit, some of the facts are pretty crazy!

Want the fun fact lunchbox notes? Add your email below, and they’ll end up in your inbox in NO time!

Some days, Maddy will tell me that she and her neighbors at lunch talked about her fun fact note all through lunch. I’m not sure I totally believe her, but I’d like to–and I’d pay big money to be a fly on the wall of that cafeteria to hear that conversation. . .

Either way, I’m over the moon that she’s thinking about these, and again, I’m grateful that Kristen sent them to us and gave us the ‘go’ to share them with teach mama readers. Thank you, my friend!!

As more and more rich and varied non-fiction is being created for emerging readers, the challenge for educators is no longer what texts to use but more how they can use non-fiction texts in primary grade classrooms (Palmer & Stewart, “Models for using nonfiction in the primary grades”, The Reading Teacher. February 2005).

The authors offer three models and methods to use non-fiction in classrooms: teacher directed instruction, scaffolded student investigation, and independent student investigation. I’m not going there at this point, with my kiddos, though I do find the ideas worthwhile.

My focus was more just sparking interest, getting kiddos familiar with non-fiction vs fiction texts. I think it’s little steps that parents can take, like reading a high-interest, catered-for-kids article in the newspaper or a fun-fact like these to get kids’ brains going, juices flowing, and (hopefully) asking for more.

If nothing else, what we do now with non-fiction will pave the way for a stronger understanding of expository texts for our kiddos as their literacy skills grow.

———————————————————————–

Cheers, and happy reading during this incredibly exciting journey!