A brief guide to engaging students in narrative writing by having them program robots to act out their stories.

A story with all action and not enough reflection sounds childish and lacks depth. But a story that is all reflective thoughts and emotions can bore a reader and run the risk of not teling a story at all. Today’s mini move will help us think about the see-sawing effect of balancing actions with thoughts and emotions so that our story has the perfect amount of both!

According to Navajo tradition, this is a winter tale. Coyote stories should only be told in the winter time. This Navajo story booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

According to Goshute tradition, Coyote tales should only be told during the winter time. Traditional Goshute elders are botanists. They use many herbs and plants from the area for food, medicine, and spiritual healing. This Goshute story booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

The Honeeshgish, or fire poker, is sacred to traditional Navajo. They believe that the Holy People blessed it and gave it to the Diné to use in their fireplaces, their homes, and their ceremonies. This Navajo booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

Tookwee’nup, legends, are Paiute stories told during the winter months. They are mythical, often humorous, and they contain a moral. Tookwee’nup teach Paiute children why things are like they are. The stories give spiritual instruction and expose the children to human characteristics that we all possess. This Paiute booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

To the Shoshone, the elders are their teachers, and the words of the elders are important truths for them. The elders have lived long lives, and their stories guide and protect the Shoshone. This Shoshone booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

The Ute Mountain Ute people live in southeastern Utah and southwestern Colorado, near the base of Wisuv Káruv, or Sleeping Ute Mountain. The Ute Mountain Ute tribal headquarters are located at Towaoc, Colorado. The Ute Mountain Ute Sun Dance is held there every year on Sleeping Ute Mountain. This Ute Mountain Ute booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The original set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This version of the book has been updated to accommodate using a projector or smart board with pages appearing in order.

To the Navajo, the owl is a bearer of bad news. When an owl appears, it may be a warning that something terrible is about to happen. When a traditional Navajo sees an owl, he prays for intervention, protection, and guidance. This Navajo booklet is part of the Native American Indian Literacy Project storybook series for the six main Utah Tribal Nations. The project was led by Shirlee A. Silversmith, American Indian education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. There are five stories per Tribe, with a total of 30 booklets, plus an ABC book. The set of Indian Tribal stories may be utilized by elementary classroom teachers to (1) develop an understanding and appreciation of Native American culture and societal contributions (2) provide a genre of text for the application of reading strategies, and (3) facilitate the mastery of various Utah Core Content Curriculum objectives. The Native American Indian Literacy Project was made possible by funds from the Utah State Office of Education (USOE). It is a joint effort of the USOE and San Juan School District Media Center.
The full set has 30 booklets, measuring 5.5” x 8.5” each, and illustrated by tribal members. The booklets were formatted to be printed and assembled. This means that they do not read well when using a projector or smart board because the pages will appear out of order. If a teacher did want to use the books in an electronic format, they would be best off screenshotting the pages and arranging them in a slide presentation.

Students will pick out the main theme for the book and discuss the elements used to make up the story. They will use the iPad App Story Creator to illustrate and write their own story. They will be learning how to take a paper illustration and put it into a digital story and add their own text. This can be adapted to 4-6 grades.

This Nearpod lesson focuses on creating simple sentences by identifying nouns, verbs, and fragments. This can be delivered as a Live lesson or a student-paced lesson. The format may include either synchronous or asynchronous instruction. The author of this lesson is Danielle Macias. The background images in the Nearpod lesson were created by Slides Go:  English vocabulary workshop presentation. Slidesgo. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2023, from https://slidesgo.com/theme/english-vocabulary-workshop#search-Education&position-5&results-4638 

In this lesson, students practice a way to communicate without words by using a glyph. They create a name card using information about themselves. Students also interpret glyphs made by others.

Capitalize Dates and Names of People
In this lesson, students rewrite sentences correctly by capitalizing dates and people

Learn how to add details to make the setting of your stories come alive in this Story Pirates video from Camp TV. By using words to describe how a place looks, sounds, feels, smells, and even tastes you can make your writing more compelling.

Practice how to show, not tell, with similes in this Story Pirates video from Camp TV. Get ready to get creative and use your imagination!

Sherry and Justin from Story Pirates show you how to keep a reader on the edge of their seat in this clip about suspense in this video from Camp TV. They explain all the steps to make a story where the reader has to know what happens next and share their own mysterious and exciting examples.

In this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, students learn that transitional fossils provide scientists with evidence to establish how major animal groups are related to one another.