Groundhog gets a say- Freebie

I don't have much time to post tonight because I have a sick little girl again (tis the season I guess) but I wanted to share a quick activity that you can grab for free and do quickly this week! And even more exciting, I am linking up with Rebecca for her Fabulous Freebie linky! (Click the image below to be taken to her post for more awesome February freebies)

Our skill this week is fact and opinion and I knew Groundhog Day was coming so I wanted to do something with that. I looked up books and decided on Groundhog Gets a Say. It is a really cute book about a groundhog trying to convince a squirrel and crow that he is pretty cool. It is filled with facts and opinions. While I was reading the book to the students, we pointed out different examples of facts and opinions.

The next step we did in preparation for a writing activity that I got from Stephanie at Sparkling in Third Grade.  (I highly suggest you look at this activity because it is REALLY cute.) We made a t-chart of reasons why we would want the groundhog to see his shadow (and have 6 more weeks of winter) and why we might not want him to see his shadow (and have spring come early). We did this to give the kids ideas of reasons to include in their writing later in the week. (Sorry I don't have a picture of this because I was about to leave for the day and just wanted to make sure we finished the lesson.)

The original plan was to do this next step today, but since I had to leave early, I saved it for tomorrow (so again, no pics yet..sorry!). Students are going to get into three groups. One group will work with me and sort the statements, one group will do the same activity without me, and one group will just get the blank sheet and write their own facts and opinions (this is my group that needs more of a challenge).

Sorry these pictures are sideways, I am on the wrong computer to edit them.

If you are looking for something fun for Groundhog Day, fact and opinion, or both, stop by and pick up this freebie! Enjoy!