Get ready to read! These exciting activities help students build skills in reading comprehension, creative writing, and critical thinking. Give your students instructions for each activity, and watch as they get excited about reading! Grab a selection of joke books, reference books, and maybe a picture of a book or two. Then read the different types of texts to figure out why the author wrote the book!
1. P.I.E. Chart
Before you start your author’s purpose lessons, plan a review with students. Go over categories of purpose: Persuade, Inform, and Entertain. Then have them fill in which genres of literature go under each category. Make miniature versions for a handy graphic organizer.
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2. Author’s Purpose Printable Worksheet
This printable author’s purpose worksheet is perfect for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-grade students. Have your students read the book covers and color each according to the author’s reason for writing the book!
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3. Author’s Purpose Game
A great interactive author’s purpose activity! After your kids have picked their piece, spin the spinner and determine why the author wrote their short story. If they guess right, they get to move ahead. If they’re wrong, they go back to the number of spaces they spun.
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4. Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Start the week off with this easy activity. Choose a book from your classroom library. After reading a passage, have students complete the exercises. The worksheet is a chance for students to demonstrate their comprehension of the passage.
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5. Scavenger Hunt
A fun and interactive activity for students of all ages! Send your kids on a scavenger hunt at your local library to find books fitting each category. This great alternative to worksheets makes learning active and exciting!
Learn more: Use My Mind Save Your Time
6. Not “As Easy as P.I.E.”
This activity is a harder task for students. To create this graphic organizer, students begin by deciding the author’s purpose. They then have to uncover the author’s thesis ideas and supporting evidence. This type of writing assignment is great for middle school students.
Learn more: Cultivating Critical Readers
7. Author’s Purpose Recipe Card
Perfect for small-group learning! Have your students read aloud texts of different genres. Then have them write down the details listed on the recipe. Follow the instructions closely. Finish by “cooking up” the main ideas to discover the reasons authors wrote their books.
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8. Task Cards
This task card set is the perfect introduction to the topic of the author’s purpose. Read the description on each card. Then have your students choose the correct category for each one. Turn it into a partner vs. partner game for even more fun!
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9. Digital Task Cards
If you’re teaching digitally, this resource is for you. These task cards make quizzing simple, easy, and fun! As students take the quiz, they receive detailed information to help plan their next lessons. Have students use the examples on task cards to create their own!
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10. Anchor Chart
Help your students remember the key points of an author’s purpose with this poster. It clearly outlines the author’s and reader’s jobs. Have students create their own mini anchor charts to refer to throughout the year. An awesome addition to your classroom writing center!
Learn more: The Classroom Key
11. Color By Code
Kids love coloring and finding hidden messages! This printable worksheet combines both for a fun author’s purpose activity. Do the first few together. Then have your students pair off and complete the rest by themselves. Have learners come back together afterward to discuss their decisions.
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12. The Checklist
Give your students a selection of reading passages for this activity. As they read the passages, have them complete the checklist to find out why the author wrote what they did. Ask older students to write an analytical paragraph for each passage explaining their choice.
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13. Easy As P.I.E. Song
This is perfect for younger elementary students. Make up a tune and teach your kids the lyrics. Sing it at the beginning of each lesson about the author’s purpose to make sure they remember. Ask them to pick a book for each stanza and hold it up when they sing it!
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14. P.I.E. Plates
These easy-to-create anchor charts are perfect for students of all ages. Grab a paper plate and divide it into sections. Label each section with each type of author’s purpose and its characteristics. Pin book titles to each category throughout the year!
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15. Flip Book
Write book titles on pieces of construction paper. Create the outer cover for each flip book of P.I.E. Have your kids sort and glue the books into the correct categories. Add a new page for every book your kids read during the year!
Learn more: Upper Elementary Snapshots
16. Start at the Beginning
Ask your kids about their writing. Why do they write? Make a list of their reasons and the types of writing they do. Then sort each one into a corresponding author’s purpose category.
Learn more: Use My Mind Save Your Time
17. Purpose Puzzle
Entertain your puzzle lovers with this activity! Cut and laminate the pieces for each author’s purpose. Help your students put the correct pieces together. Add more categories, details, and descriptions to challenge older students.
Learn more: Teach Starter
18. Upper-Level Student Worksheet
Integrate this worksheet into your older students’ author’s purpose activities. The comprehensive worksheet has students provide evidence for their choice about the author’s motivations. A great way to start reading reflection activities!
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19. Sort Books
A simple way for kids to visualize the author’s purpose is to sort the books themselves! Grab a stack of books or a scholastic book magazine. Then place each book in the correct category. Divide the books into two piles and make it a race!
Learn more: Upper Elementary Snapshots
20. Multiple Choice Questions
Start your students off with this easy exercise. Read the short passages provided and then have them decide the author’s intent for writing. The additional questions are a great way to test their reading comprehension skills.
Learn more: Unmisravle
21. Sentence Writing Game
Create task cards containing different people, places, and things. Mix them up and place them face down. Then have your kids spin the spinner and pick up a card. Have everyone write a sentence using the topic and image! The funniest sentence wins a prize!
Learn more: Teach Starter
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