Have you ever read Fiona’s Luck by Teresa Bateman? It is a wonderful read aloud to share with your students any time of year but especially around St. Patrick’s Day. Fiona’s Luck is a folktale set in Ireland. The land was rich and plentiful thanks to the luck of the leprechauns. But when the “big folk” arrived, the Leprechaun King decides they need to take all of the luck away. That causes the land to be barren, the crops to not grow, and the cows to stop producing milk. It isn’t long before a girl named Fiona comes up with a clever way to restore a little luck to the land.
One of the reasons that we love this book is because it isn’t your typical St. Patrick’s Day story. In fact, it can really be read any time of the year. It has a storyline that allows for great comprehension skills. Click HERE to check on Fiona’s Luck on Amazon.
First of all, let’s talk about comprehension. With Fiona’s Luck we focus on Folktales and Cause/Effect. Students learn the characteristics of a folktale and locate those elements in Fiona’s Luck. They are also given different events from the story and must identify the effect that those causes had. With all of these components, we include digital posters, anchor charts, interactive notebook entries, and printables.
Next, let’s look at how we can make a nonfiction book connection! There are so many lucky charms passed down from generation to generation across different cultures. Students learn about ten common lucky charms and how they came to be! Of course, we have a ladybug directed drawing that your students can complete after learning that swiping a ladybug off of their arm will cause them bad luck 😉
Now, you know we can’t forget about vocabulary! Students learn new, unfamiliar words and begin using them through games, activities, and independent work. We like to make the vocabulary activities practical but also interactive.
Last (but certainly not least), let’s talk about grammar! Fiona’s Luck has several wonderful examples of similes throughout the story. So, for grammar we decided that would be the perfect focus. Students can even create Shooting Star Similes.
You can check out Fiona’s Luck HERE. Hope you enjoy!
Hey, y’all! My name is Amy Lemons and I am passionate about providing students with both engaging and effective standards-based Math and ELA lessons.
Sample a day of Rooted in Reading with these lesson plans and activities for Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, and Grammar!
