Nonfiction Matters: Reading, Writing, and Research in Grades 3-8

Stephanie Harvey shows how students can read expository text, engage in research, and write authentic nonfiction that is captivating, visual, and full of voice. The inquiry projects she describes require in-depth learning: topic selection, question development, research exploration, reading for content, organization, synthesis, writing to convey meaning, and presenting findings—all skills that develop independent thinkers who know how to make decisions, solve problems, and apply their knowledge insightfully.

Full of practical suggestions to help you bring nonfiction into your curriculum, Nonfiction Matters:

• presents strategies for understanding expository text and conducting meaningful research;
• offers ideas for organizing and writing accurate, effective nonfiction from idea to finished presentation;
• advances the importance of teacher modeling and guided practice in instructional delivery;
• provides a list of inquiry tools and resources—both print and electronic;
• suggests ways to facilitate project-based learning and assess the projects as they develop;
• includes bibliographies of nonfiction children's books by subject and genre and lists of recommended magazines.

Why is nonfiction almost a guaranteed success? The key to teaching with nonfiction is passion, for children are passionate inquirers, and nonfiction fuels their curiosity and their demand for knowledge and understanding of the world.