Animal+Organizer


 * Strategy Name**:Animal Organizer


 * Strategy Description**: To help my students organize their facts for informational writing, this online organizer asks all the right questions~!


 * Description/Name of the class in which you used the strategy**: I have used this with whole class first grade and small group guided reading groups.


 * Rationale**: This is another way for my students to visually organize their ideas for writing content area paragraphs. It will allow them to understand what needs to be told about their animal and give them an easy avenue to organize it.


 * Procedure**:
 * Students will choose an animal they wish to write about. I will give them time to read books and view United Streaming Videos about their chosen animals (see video resource writing strategy).
 * I will then have them use the graphic organizer program from []
 * I will conference with the children on their organizer, and we will refer back to it throughout their writing process.


 * Potential Issues:**
 * Students may rely to heavily on the organizer, and not be able to expand their writing past it.
 * This organizer is very structured, some students may not need this much guidance! Use it as a class, and then for future writing, keep it as an option the students may choose to use.


 * Diverse Learners:**
 * My visual learners will love having an organizer that lays out the order for their paragraphs. It makes writing much less overwhelming!
 * The website allows for the students to choose from animal facts, babies, habitats, and iteractions. This will give my students the opportunity to choose which aspects they would like to choose to discuss. Each topic addresses it differently, allowing the transition to be easy for them!


 * Implementation Suggestions:**
 * For younger students, be sure to show how to use the organizer when writing. They can't simply take it word for word from the organizer!
 * Older students will need more avenues for research, and should be required to choose more than one of the topics for organization.
 * Resources:**
 * Hamner, D. November, 2007. //Investigating Animals: Using non-fiction for inquiry based researched.// Retrieved April 16, 2005, from  []
 * [|www.unitedstreaming.com]