If you are looking for ways to study genre in your upper elementary classroom, then you’ll want to download these FREE Reading Genre Review Slides and try out some of these new ideas for using them.
Teaching genre is important in upper elementary because it helps students see all the different kinds of literary options there are, and it allows them to more fully understand that different texts or books have different purposes.
The FREE Reading Genre Review Slides are great for getting started introducing the genre to students and helping them explore the differences of each genre in more depth.
Here are just a few of the ways you could study genre in your upper elementary class using these slides.
7 Ways to Study Genre using the FREE Reading Genre Slides
#1 | Review
One of the easiest ways to study genres using this resource is by using the slides to introduce/review the different genres and discuss each as a whole-group lesson.
#2 | Print as Posters
Print the slides out as posters to put around the room. Each slide is very colorful, with a variety of book covers on each. Use these to academically ‘decorate’ the room.
#3 | Matching Game
Print the slides twice and make a matching game with them. This is an easy and effective way for students to review.
Option: Make this matching game harder by asking students to answer a question about that genre before seeking out the match.
Example: Roberta flips over “Graphic Novel.” Her opponent, Ben, will read the card and ask her a question before continuing. (i.e. are graphic novels fiction or nonfiction or both?) If Roberta gets the answer correct, then she can try to find the second one. If not, the card will be flipped back over.
#4 | Jeopardy-style Game
Print 2 slides to a page and make a jeopardy game with each slide flipped upside down and attached to a whiteboard
- Write the point amounts on the back.
- Students choose one, and you pull it from the board and ask them a question. Provide students with the definition or types of books or both and see if they can identify the genre
When you’re done, brush up on your genre skills using this Genre Game Show!
#5 | Flipbook
Print 4 slides to a page and have students make a flipbook for note-taking and review. This is a simple way to condense the information into an easy resource students can use throughout the year.
#6 | Influence Artwork
Create artwork using the different genres as artistic themes.
Give each student one of the slides and tell them to create a picture or drawing that they feel represents the genre. After they’re done, students will share their work and why they made the choices they made.
As an option, you can also choose to have students share their work through video using a program like FlipGrid.
#7 | Book Sorting Activities
Place the printed slides/posters around the room where they are all easily visible. Then pull a bunch of different types of books from the library, and stack them up in piles around the room.
Assign a group of students to each pile, ask them to consider each book, and then sort the books into different genres.
After each group has sorted their stack of books, reassign each group to a genre, and ask them to go through the books that were placed in that genre and decide if their classmates made good decisions and why.
When you study genre in your upper elementary classroom using these FREE Reading Genre Review Slides, you have so many different opportunities for different activities, review games, and discussions.
For more details on how I teach genre, check out this blog post: How to Introduce Genre in 5 Days.
We also have some other genre activities in the store, including a Genre Game Show and a Genre Digital Review Game that students can play during stations or centers.
