[margeb214]

Does anyone have any ideas to use with this great book?

[eeg324]

I had my kids use the format to write letters to next years group of students (like a friendly warning). My kids could either choose "The Important Thing about 5th Grade" or "The Important Thing About Mrs._________". I hung it up as a bulletin board for the following year.

[bajohns4]

Last year I had the kids make a class book. I made a standard template for them. The top half of the page was blank and the bottom part said something like, "The important thing about ____(name)__________ is ______________, ___________________, and ________________. But the most important thing about ____(name)__ is ___________________. (It matched the format of the book - I don't have it with me right now). The kids filled in their name and the things that were important about them. Then, they illustrated the most important thing about them on the top half of the page. I bound it and kept it in my classroom library - they LOVED reading it.

[margeb214]

If you come across the template may I please have a copy. I can't wait to use this book.

[stretchberry]

imafive posted this a couple of days ago. It has some printables for The Important Book.

http://www.mrssnodgrass.com/index.ph...ysteachers.htm

This post has one too.
http://www.proteacher.net/discussion...0&postcount=23

[TeacherCarrie]

I have done the same as bajohns in the past. They picked any object they wanted to (except the objects already mentioned in the book) and filled in the template I typed up. Then, they published their page and we put it together in a class book.

[StephR]

I used the book as an openning day activity this year. We read the book, then brainstormed things that would constitute a "successful student". The students then chose the one quality they believed to be the most important thing a successful student would do. The other entries in their brainstorming (we used a Circle Map) became the other parts of the Important Book page they were making. For example, if they said that the most important thing that a successful student does is pay attention to the teacher, they would start off the page:

The important thing about a successful student is that she pays attention to the teacher.
It is true that she comes to school on time.
She tries her best in all she does, knows all of the school rules and is respectful of the teacher.
A successful student makes sure she is prepared with all of her materials.
But the important thing about a successful student is that she pays attention to the teacher.

The things in the underline are the filled in words the kids did. The non-underlined are the sentence frame I gave them.

[cjn]

I have used this as a farewell gift for a student teacher. Each child wrote a page about her, then I bound the pages and the class presented the book to her. She was touched by their ideas.

[MissLisa1]

CJN - What an awesome idea! I am stealing that one from you for sure. What a precious idea.

You got me thinking now ... I think this year I will use it secretary's week to do a book for her

[smithf1]

I have used this wonderful book in many ways already listed in previous replies. One way no one mentioned is yo use the pattern is to review a particular topic at the end of a unit.

For example, energy. "The important thing about energy is it helps us to do work." The students then must write 3-4 sentences about the topic and end with repeating their first sentence.

[CO teach]

I used this book as a mini-research project. (Very mini.) In groups, the students used math encyclopedias and resources to learn about the different properties of 3D shapes (# of faces, edges, etc.) They used what they learned from their quick research to create a page of the Important Book. I bound it together to keep in the classroom. They also illustrated their pages with the 3D shape they learned about.

I LOVE the secretary's day idea! I will definitely be using that!

I am using it in my Geometry classroom with vocabulary.

"The most important thing about a line is that it's straight. It goes on to infinity in both directions and contains and infinite number of points. The line lies in a plane and all the points on the line also lie on the same plane. But the most important thing about a line is that it's straight."