Ah, Mercy Watson. I love her so. Not only because the stories are cute and funny and entertaining, but also because they are THE ABSOLUTE SECRET TO SUCCESSFUL SUBSTITUTE TEACHING. They're a better good behavior bribe than extra recess. They're a better good behavior bribe than candy. (Not that I've tried to bribe kids with extra recess or candy...ahem.) Offer to read a few chapters of Mercy Watson and kids from Kindergarten to third grade will act like perfect angels for an entire lesson.
The magic of Mercy Watson, I have discovered, also extends to writing. Slap a little Mercy-themed clipart on writing paper and--BAM!--all the kiddos are fighting over who gets to do writing first during Daily Five. It is like actual magic. It is like inviting a unicorn into your classroom.
Thus:
Mercy Watson Goes to School
This unit has a little bit of everything, in terms of first grade Common Core writing standards. It's got prediction pages, book reviews, adjective studies, and several scaffolded storytelling exercises. It's got a synonym selector, a quotation station, and a class debate.
Your kiddos will go nuts over Mercy. I promise.
You can find my unit for sale at
my TpT store. Enjoy!
-jake
