Literacy Bags Make Homework Fun!
Ranked #136 in Parenting & Kids, #5,360 overall
Literacy Bags by any other name are just as fun!
Book Bags. Home Bags, Book Buddies, Story Bags...
Literacy Bags are a fun way to help children share what they are learning with their families. Children take these literacy bags home, read the stories, do the activities with their families and then write about their experiences in the journal.
Soon you will have your students begging for the opportunity to take their homework home.
Photo Credit: Kids Comfort Pack!
from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
“Literacy Bags:
Homework kids beg to take home!”
Literacy Bags
Homework Activities
Each Literacy Bag includes a stuffed animal, a fiction book, a non-fiction book, a few suggested activities, and a journal to record your experiences and suggest other activities. It also includes a list of materials and directions to any games, a journal to record their activities and a letter to the parents.
When children return the bag to school they get to share their experience with the class. This makes homework fun for the whole family.
Each of the following links offer perspectives as to what constitutes a great literacy bag.
When children return the bag to school they get to share their experience with the class. This makes homework fun for the whole family.
Each of the following links offer perspectives as to what constitutes a great literacy bag.
Writing a Story by evelynsaenz
Shop for a greeting card with zazzle
- Sample Letter to Parents about Literacy Bags
- Dear First Grade Parents - Literacy Bags
- Have Journal...Will Travel: Promoting Family Involvement in Literacy
- Students take turns taking home a book bag that includes a stuffed toy, a book to read with their families, art supplies, a topic to discuss, and a journal to complete as a family. The students then return the bag the following day and share their entries with the class. After every student has taken the bag home, the journal is bound into a book for the classroom library. The teacher then selects a new topic and book to start a second rotation. The goal is to invite parents to join their children in these literacy activities.
- Reading Rockets : Family Literacy Bags: A School-to-Home Project
- Elements of a great literacy pack
* An engaging theme - one that will spark thinking, creativity, and observation skills
* Three or four theme-based books (fiction and nonfiction), selected at an appropriate reading level
* Related interactive activities, for example: puzzles, sorting/matching cards, dramatic play props, art supplies
* Letter to parents explaining the purpose of the literacy bags and a brief list of reading tips
* Parent response form (optional)
* Checklist of the contents to make returns to school easy
* Colorful, inexpensive backpack to store and transport everything. One with a clear plastic sleeve is perfect for slipping in a labeled drawing or photograph that illustrates the theme. - Organizing Literacy Bags
- Ms. Meacham Discusses how she uses tote bags, clothing racks, library cards and paint paddles to organize the literacy bags in her classroom.
Literacy Bag Contents
Suggested Contents for Each Literacy Bag:
Let's Read a Story Magnet by evelynsaenz
Get your own magnets on zazzle.com
Start with a book or theme the children love. Then include each of the following items:
A list of suggested FUN activities
-generally related to skills that have been taught more...2 points
I Didn't Do My Homework Because...
Homework Excuses
Teddy Doing His Homework
Phillipps,...
Buy at AllPosters.com
Why didn't you do your homework? Take Home Literacy Bags can change the excuses into pleas for the opportunity to take home the homework.
I was abducted by green-skinned, three-eyed, pig-snouted space aliens and they incinerated my homework with their death rays.
4 points
Our furnace broke and we had to burn it to keep ourselves from freezing.
2 points
Incredible Homework Excuses
Outlandish Homework Excuses
Homework is avoided because it is boring, time consuming and irrelevant to the lives of children. The key to getting kids to do homework is to offer homework options that invite children to expand on knowledge that they are interested in learning.
What excuses have your children used for not doing homework?
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It's in the Bag
A new idea - literacy bags tailored to different themes - turns into a multi-age, interdisciplinary project.
Photo Credit: Big Book Rack
Available on Amazon
It's in the Bag By Maribelle H. Betterton and Lynne C. Ensworth discusses one way that a group of teachers brought Literacy Bags to their school.
Let Your Thoughts Out of the Bag
Can Literacy Bags replace traditional homework?
Fetching blurbs now... please stand byNo! Literacy Bags are not structured enough.
misterjake says:
no, I don't think so. Tradition homework teaches the students whatever they needed to learn. If you want to do well on your next test or exam please be sure to check out my lens. Thanks.
Posted December 01, 2011
ElizabethJeanAllen says:
Kids need structure. I think a combination of the two would work best.
Posted September 25, 2009
shadowknight345 says:
NO WAY
literacy bags are not structured enough.
Posted September 09, 2009
kab says:
No. While I think they are great, if used as a replacement for homework, they can too easily be rushed through.
Posted March 07, 2008
Yes! Homework should be open ended, helping parents to connect with their children.
Evelyn_Saenz says:
Homework can entice children into practicing basic skills without their knowing it.
Posted September 09, 2009
Josh says:
i like this site
Posted September 09, 2009
fotolady49 says:
These are a great way to make learning and homework more fun and when learning is more fun, then children and parents will certainly be able to enjoy more productive and quality time together, a learning experience for both. I feel that being too structured can be counterproductive.
Posted November 17, 2008
Barkely says:
I love the idea, one could only hope... I think I hate homework almost as much as my son. I would love to see some innovative new ideas in the school.
Posted May 26, 2008
clouda9 says:
Great new way to kick show-and-tell up a notch! Interaction with our kids is the added bonus.
Posted March 01, 2008
Literacy Bags
All activities are designed for the child and parent to enjoy together.
Photo Credit: Rolling Frog Literacy Bag
Available on Amazon
The Literacy activities are designed for the student and parent to enjoy together. Parents are encouraged to read the books with their child, and do the activities. The classroom journal is for the parent and child to reflect on his/her experience with the book and activities. Parents are encouraged to help their child write or draw in these journals.
Collecting Adjectives Literacy Bag
This is a great idea for Valentine's Day!
Read the story The Boy Who Loved Words in class. Then invite them to take home this literacy bag and fill the pink rubber piggy bank with adjectives that they find when reading the B Book or anywhere else at home. They write the adjectives they find on pink heart shaped papers that fit into the piggy bank. Kids will love the magnet words and blocks which also have adjectives. When back in school we look for new adjectives and add them to the Adjective Word Wall.
Frog Literacy Bag
Stephen Joseph Backpack or Lunch Box
Available on Amazon
This is a great Literacy Bag to introduce to the children during the Frog Unit Study. I have older children come in and teach the children how to play the games in small groups. It makes the older children feel proud to be able to teach younger children and the children in my class love the attention of the older children, especially if it is an older sibling.
When the children know how to play the games, they love to take home this literacy bag to teach their family and friends the games and read the stories. What a wonderful way to practice all that they are learning in school!
Rhyming Literacy Bag
Photo Credit: Rhyming Cards
from Edspecially4U
1.Make a deck of rhyming cards to play Go Fish
Cards with pictures and words such as cat/hat, fish/dish, frog/log
2.Write a poem
Use colored pencils to highlight the rhyming words.
3.Ask a Grandparent to tell you a poem or sing a song from their childhood.
Record this poem or song onto a cassette tape to share at the listening center.
4.Fill in the Rhymes
Write a poem or song but leave the rhyming words blank. Put copies of it in a three ring binder. Children make up new rhymes and illustrations for the poem.
For more jumprope rhymes and games involving physical activity check out What Happened to Recess.
Rhyming Cards
Rhyming cards for Literacy Bags
Add rhyming cards to the literacy bag for lots of hands-on fun.
- Edspecially4U - Educational Resources
- Hands-On Teaching Resources
Thank you so much, Donna, for allowing my to link to your site. - Rhyming Picture Cards
- Printable Blackline Masters of Rhyming Picture Cards from ReadWriteThink
Pete Seeger Literacy Bag for Peace
Photo Credit: Pete Seeger
UC Berkeley, 1963
on Flickr, Creative Commons.
Learn about peace within yourself, amongst your friends and throughout the world. Learn the songs of peace and take that peace with you wherever you go.
Lots more teaching ideas about Peace can be found at Pete Seeger for Nobel Peace Prize.
Tooth Fairy Literacy Bag
Photo Credit: Tooth Fairy Journal
from Scribbles n' Dots
I always send a journal home with each Literacy Bag but some times I send home books to be completed that we share as each child brings one in and then place in the classroom library. Scribbles-n-Dots offers the great little journal in the picture above. Sometimes I make the journals shaped like teeth. I use dental floss to sew the pages together. I often relate teeth to my units on Alligators or Woodchucks
The Skunk Literacy Bag
It's all about the sense of smell...
The Skunk Literacy Bag is all about the sense of smell. I like to start sending it home after we have read The Adventures of Jimmy Skunk by Thornton Burgess.
1.Put on a blindfold. Have someone put something in front of your nose. Guess what it is by smell.
2.Put on a blindfold. Have someone put objects one at a time into your hands. Guess what it is by touch.
3.Put on a blindfold. In a very quiet room have someone make a noise. Point to where the person using only your ears.4.Have someone arrange a few objects in front of you. Put on a blindfold. Have the other person remove or move
Photo Credit: Boy with Skunk
used by permission.
5.Put on a blindfold. Have someone put different foods on your tongue. Try to guess what that food is using only taste.
6. There are also many was to use the sense of smell to teach math.
For more ideas related to Jimmy Skunk's neighbors check out Creatures of the Woodlands, Winsome Bluebird at Bluebirds: Classroom Meadow Theme, and Little Joe Otter at River Otters: Playful Friends of the Woodlands!.
Literacy Bag with a Sense of Smell
More ideas for the Skunk Literacy Bag
Thank you to CJoy for her suggestion of Stink Soup.
Skunk Literacy Bags
Lenses with Literacy Bag Ideas for Fall
The Cat Sat on the Mat Literacy Bag
This is a great way to share all that the children have been learning about CVC words with their parents. The Cat Sat on the Mat is a predictable book that children can quickly read after hearing it one or two times.
The Max Game in a cooperative game for 1-4 people who try to help the bird, chipmunk and mouse get to their homes before Max comes to get them.
Cat Literacy Bag Tote
Rhyming Words Literacy Bag
The Chicken Bag for the Chicken Literacy Bag
- Chicken Bag
- A bag for carrying your chicken and egg books, games and other literacy activities.
The Chicken Literacy Bag
Hens, Little Girl Gathering Eggs in Henhouse
Buy at AllPosters.com
These are some ideas for including in the Chicken Literacy Bag. Look for more ideas on the Bluebird and Purple Gallinule Lenses.
Just tuck the books, chicken and egg puppet into the Chicken Bag for the children to share their Oviparous knowledge with their families.
The Night Before Christmas Literacy Bag
This bag is sent home any time during the month of December. Also check out The Cajun Night Before Christmas on my Alligator Lens.
The Christmas Literacy Bag
A Special Literacy Bag for the Holiday Season
This is a literacy bag requested by my friends at the local Christian Charter School. Help your child learn the story of Jesus' birth in a fun, hands-on, creative way.
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub Literacy Bag
Rub-a-Dub-Dub, Three Men in a Tub
Buy at AllPosters.com
Read about the wonderful time King Bidgood has in the bathtub and then so some experiments. Play a game of connecting the water pipes and then give the king a bath.
Hundreds Literacy Bag
Kids 100 Days of School T-shirts and Gifts by school_teacher
See other 100 days Bags
When learning to count to 100 or when learning Skip Counting this Hundreds Literacy Bag is a favorite. The children love reading the stories with their parents and then explaining how to use the Hundreds Board to Skip Count or just to make number patterns more visible.
Do you have some favorite books or activities to add to the Skip Counting Literacy Bag?
More ideas to include in the Hundreds Literacy Bag
Lobster Literacy Bag
I Love Lobsters by tshirtshirts
Make your own bag at zazzle.com
Cuddle with the stuffed lobster while you read about lobsters and put together a lobster puzzle.
When we did the Lobster Unit Study I made a Lobster Literacy Bag with a couple of lobster books, a stuffed lobster and a few lobster games.
I added Lima Bean Lobsters that the children had used as math manipulatives. (See Skip Counting with the Lobster Quadrille.) The children love teaching their parents the math games that we play during math center time.
More Lobster Literacy Bag Activities
Lobster Literacy Bag
This is a delightful read aloud book all about lobsters that would be wonderful to add to a Literacy Bag about lobsters. Children of all ages would love to listen to how lobsters are studied and learn about how they live their lives. Add a stuffed lobster and a few other activities and this will be a bag of homework that your children will be begging to take home.
Beaver Literacy Bag Books and Activities
Items you may want to include in your Beaver Literacy Bag
Children will love sharing the information that they have learned in class about beavers. With the Beaver Literacy Bag they can share stories, facts, activities and even use a microscope to look at pond water.
The Beaver Literacy Bag
Literacy Bags are better than Homework
- Beaver Bags, Beaver Fur Bags
Made from a real beaver skin, the Deluxe Beaver Bag with face and fringe has an adjustable 16" (40.5 cm) shoulder strap. The bag measures 8" x 8" (20 cm x 20 cm).
Not only can this bag hold the books and activities for the Beaver Literacy Bag, it also becomes an activity in itself. Children can examine the fur of a real beaver.- Literacy - Early Childhood Literacy Resources at Kellogg Community College
Book: Little Beaver and The Echo, Amy MacDonald
Summary: The story about how Little Beaver discovers friendship on his search for happiness.
Activity: Lace-up Canoe
Materials: 2 canoe shapes from tag board or a brown grocery bag with holes punched around the lower edge, yarn for lacing.
Steps: Cut out 2 canoe shapes from tag board or brown bag Punch holes around the lower edge Using the yarn lace-up the canoe
Beaver Literacy Bags
Beaver Unit Study
More Beaver Literacy Bag Ideas
Hickory Dickory Dock Literacy Bag
Homework for Telling Time
Children love to take home the Hickory Dickory Dock Literacy Bag and show their families all that they have learned about telling time.
Lenses related to the Hickory Dickory Dock Literacy Bag
Literacy Bags Bring Young and Old Together
More L:iteracy Bag Ideas!
Photo Credit: Heping with Homework
on Flickr, Creative Commons.
The idea of literacy bags has taken off and now there are more and more companies offering premade literacy bags. I have found that sometimes community organizations are willing to donate money to buy some of these bags when presented with the informations about how fun and educational they can be.
NOTE: When visiting the local Nursing Home we take literacy bags along to share with our elderly friends.
Reading the stories together will help to open up communication and possibly be the start of a new friendship.
- Weather Literacy Homework Bag
- Weather Literacy Homework Bag-When you purchase a filled bag you receive: a literature selection on weather 25 thematic stickers and 25 student awards a sample parent letter explaining the homework bag a color journal cover and reproducible student j
Canvas Literacy Bags
Just add books and activities!
A Literacy Bag by any other name...
Literacy Bags are known by many different names.
There are many different names for literacy bags. Some teachers call them discovery bags. In some classrooms they are called buddy bags. In other classrooms they may be called reading bags. The different names for literacy bags may reflect a different emphasis in the reason for offering literacy bags or may just be a difference is the terminology used in a particular school district. Some literacy bags are also offered in libraries and their name may reflect that use.
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Literacy Bags in the News!
- Bedtime Stories program
- With the award of a $1,000 grant from Thomaston Savings Bank, Ms. Demers was able buy literacy bags.
Literacy bags are theme based bags intended to encourage reading and learning. The grant made it possible to put a literacy bag in every K-2 classroom at John Trumbull Primary School. There is also an additional plan to incorporate bags into monthly reading events, so the bags will be available for the entire community to use and learn from.
Teaching with Literacy Bags
The book Literacy Bags
has dozens of ideas for organizing thematic mini-units from A-Z.Each letter of the alphabet is presented as a mini-unit designed to give children practice with fundamental language, math, science, social studies, writing, and thinking skills.
Developmentally appropriate games and activities, as well as books, props, snacks, and other items that relate to the theme, are stored bags or backpacks.
The bags provide an easy way to manage the materials and for children to take home to share with their families.
Discovery Packs
Another name for Literacy Bags
Discovery Packs are the kind of homework that children beg to take home:
Using Discovery Packs in place of some of regular homework saves you valuable time and helps eliminate boring worksheets and dittos, by replacing them with meaningful, learner-centered activities.
I Love to Read Tote Bag by myhmdesigns
More Canvas Bags
Using Discovery Packs in place of some of regular homework saves you valuable time and helps eliminate boring worksheets and dittos, by replacing them with meaningful, learner-centered activities.
- Discovery Packs from KinderKorner
- This page has all the information about the Discovery Packs program developed by Victoria Smith, including her $1000 grant application and the handouts from the inservice training she presented at the 1999 Math, Science, and Technology Conference at California State University, Bakersfield.
- Story Bags - A Link in the Reading Chain - Associated Content
- Story bags are a way for parents and teachers to improve young children's oral language development and encourage creativity.
Literacy Bags on eBay
Literacy Bags make homework fun!
A Walk in the Woods
Take a walk in the woods with your literacy bag:
Hiking, Camping, Trekking, Climbing Outdoors! by GreenNeighbor
Create a canvas bag from Zazzle
A Walk in the Woods is a directory of articles about the forest and the animals that live there. There are articles about hiking, camping and exploring the woodlands.
As you hike through the woods, look for a cozy spot to explore your literacy bag. What would you include in your Walk in the Woods Literacy bag? Which stuffed animal would most represent the woodlands for your literacy bag?
Whitefoot the Wood Mouse is inviting you to join him for a Walk in the Woods. If you are a member of Squidoo you may join this group by writing a lens about the woods. Consider adding a literacy bag to your lens. The exposure that your lens gets by joining will boost your lens rank and add to the number of web pages linking back to your page. If you are not yet a member of Squidoo you can still come over and read about those who are. Add the ideas you discover there to your Walk in the Woods Literacy Bag. Create your own Squidoo Lens. Come take A Walk in the Woods.
Themed Unit Studies with Literacy Bag Ideas
Themed Literacy Bags to Accompany Unit Studies
Each of the following unit studies has an accompanying literacy bag. Read about life in the 1780's. Discover the first day of spring with the woodchucks. Explore the arctic tundra with the lemmings. Learn about frogs down by the frog pond. Slip and slide with the river otters. Literacy Bags are an integral part of each of these unit studies. Make homework fun with literacy bags that are related to the theme your class is studying.
Ideas for Literacy Bags
Story Bags and Unit Studies
When you are looking for more ideas for your literacy bags check out my newest lenses. They are filled with hands-on ideas that will adapt easily to Literacy Bag activities.
How are Others Using Literacy Bags?
- Literacy Bags - Ideas for Teaching, Resources for Lesson Plans, and Activities for Unit Planning
- A collection of ideas to use when putting together literacy bags for you classroom.
- Literacy Bags: Make-And-Take Mini ...
- Literacy Bags gives you dozens of ways to organize 26 thematic mini-units from A-Z in fabulous "packages" that children just cannot wait to handle!
- Google Book Search
Obtaining Grants for Literacy Bags
Take Home Literacy Bags Grants
- Literacy Grants for Take Home Literacy Bags
- Information on literacy grants, literary grants, teacher grants and take home literacy bag grants for teachers. Grant proposal ideas along with applications and links to sites offering literacy grants.
Look Who's Talking about Literacy Bags
Literacy Bags is in the Stone Soup Internet Directory
Thank you to the Four Wheelers for having included the Literacy Bags in their directory. This directory has now been passed on to Stone Soup Homeschooling.
- Unit Studies: Stone Soup Homeschool Network - Stone Soup Homeschool Network
- A free Unit Study Database, featuring unit studies on nearly every subject!
What do you put in your Literacy Bags. Which ideas intriged you?
Photo Credit: Playin Shogun board game
on Wikimedia Commons
Please let my know by leaving a comment here. Tell me about your favorite animal or teaching idea. Don't forget the stars at the top and if you lensroll this page or add it to your favorites please send me an email.
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Mistel
Jan 25, 2012 @ 7:56 am | delete
- cool idea, I can see how this could motivate children to learn! :)
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debnet
Dec 3, 2011 @ 2:11 pm | delete
- Super idea to keep children interested and helping them to learn at the same time. I use Little Beaver And The Echo sometimes when teaching friendship skills. Lovely lens and blessed by a Squid Angel ;)
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redleafloans
Nov 17, 2011 @ 3:50 pm | delete
- Great lens! Keep it up!...:)
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lasertek
May 7, 2011 @ 6:49 pm | delete
- Very informative and great looking lens. Awesome job!
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LoKackl
Mar 25, 2011 @ 1:07 pm | delete
- Any child offered a more creative way to learn will likely jump at the opportunity. Just like Squidoo, "stars at the top" of any project is my favorite encouragement token. As usual, Evelyn, your page is fantastic! It came up in "Explore related pages" on my new (and much overdue) lensography that attempt to harness some lenses without an obvious niche. Before I got through, I found one! Fun way to learn what I've been doing! ;-)
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KarenTBTEN
Oct 6, 2010 @ 2:50 pm | delete
- Stopping back in to give this fun and informative lens a SquidAngel blessing.
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jaktraks
Oct 1, 2010 @ 3:34 pm | delete
- First time I've heard of Literacy Bags (I don't have children) but I love the idea. I can think of ways to use them with my therapy clients.
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LauraSchofield
Jun 12, 2010 @ 10:52 am | delete
- I love this idea and have included it as a featured lens on my new back-to-school planning lens at http://www.squidoo.com/back-to-school-planning . This is something I'm going to get all 4 of my kids on this year. Thanks!
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aesta1
Mar 28, 2010 @ 1:40 am | delete
- This literacy bag is great for adults in literacy classes. This will not only encourage them but ensure that their materials are well organized.
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aesta1
Mar 28, 2010 @ 1:40 am | delete
- This literacy bag is great for adults in literacy classes. This will not only encourage them but ensure that their materials are well organized.
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KarenTBTEN
Mar 23, 2010 @ 1:00 am | delete
- Literacy bags are good for all, but are especially great for children who don't have access to a lot of books and games.
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Evelyn_Saenz
Mar 23, 2010 @ 4:23 am | delete
- You are so right. I have seen Literacy Bags available in Libraries as well as in classrooms.
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ElizabethJeanAllen
Dec 11, 2009 @ 4:43 pm | delete
- I bring my homework home in a bag but it's not much fun. I need a new/fun bag.
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Evelyn_Saenz
Dec 11, 2009 @ 5:39 pm | delete
- Are you able to find ways to make homework fun in high school?
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Maria Santiago
Nov 4, 2009 @ 11:08 pm | delete
- The sites storybookbags.net and storytotebags.com are good. the creator seems committed to creating a quality product. I think they are for individual gifts.
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My passion is teaching and finding ways to teach children in fun, hands-on, creative ways. The unit studies I make on Squidoo reflect my view that learning... more »
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Lessons that include Literacy Bags
