By Marianna Monheim – Updated December 17, 2023
Pair high-interest passages with out-of-the-box activities
Choice in educational activities is not a trend, it’s an effective tool to boost student engagement! Using a choice board to get students excited about nonfiction text is one of the best ways for students to apply informational text strategies. Let’s take a look at how an informational text choice board can transform independent reading time!
Looking for a ready-made choice board? Head to my TPT store and grab the Winter Choice Board, featuring 8 nonfiction passages and activities!
Students are often interested in nonfiction topics, but not as much as nonfiction texts. What can we do to make informational text more exciting?
- Provide Choice – let students choose what they want to read about.
- Include an Engaging Task – rather than just read about polar bears, why not let students design an exhibit for them, using information found in the text? Applying the knowledge they’ve learned shows students the purpose of informational text.
Designing an Informational Text Choice Board
If you’re looking to create an informational text choice board for your classroom, the first step will be to think about topics your students are interested in and then find reading material on their reading level that supports these topics. Once you’ve found your text selections, it’s time to design the activities! Take into account the various learning styles and reading strategies you want your students to apply. Try to balance activities that will appeal to visual, auditory, tactile, or kinesthetic learners. This way, each student in your class will be able to choose an activity they will enjoy!
Choice Board Activities
There are an endless amount of options for activities when creating a choice board. Here are some that are popular with upper elementary students:
- Posters
- Brochures
- Songs
- Study Guides
- Maps
- Letter Writing
- Collages
- Games
- Physical Activities
- Debates
- Game Show Scripts
Don't Have Time to Create Your Own?
Love this idea but don’t have time to find passages or activities? Try one of the ready-made choice boards in my TPT store!
The 8 activities and paired passages were carefully created to appeal to upper elementary learners. Your students will have a blast managing a social media page, creating a Kindness Mug, or taking care of the class penguin, among other fun independent tasks!
