• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Having Fun First

Helping you to creatively reach all your unique learners

Subscribe

  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Shop
    • Shop Website
    • Teachers Pay Teachers
    • Amazon Storefront
  • FREEBIE
  • Curriculum
  • Contact

on June 9, 2022 · Leave a Comment

Dinosaur Reading Comprehension

Hey there friends,

Did you know that National Dinosaur Day is celebrated not once but twice a year?! I know you are just as surprised as I was. May 15th and June 1st are both official days to celebrate and learn about these amazing creatures and I’m sharing with you several fiction and nonfiction dinosaur reading comprehension activities and a free nonfiction reading passage that are sure to be dino-mite in your classroom.

dinosaur reading comprehension nonfiction unit

Nonfiction Dinosaur Reading Comprehension

A few years back I remember digging through my nonfiction book collection and activities bins looking for a fun center to feature during our literacy block. I love offering research as a center choice so I flipped through the different themes and saw a classic… dinosaurs. I thought to myself, “Are kids even into dinosaurs anymore?” I decided to break out my significant collection of nonfiction dinosaur books, dinosaur-themed paper, my favorite report wheel templates, and a few other themed materials. After school I got the center put together and I was extremely curious to see how it would pan out the next day.

Students hadn’t even finished unpacking their backpacks when kids started checking out the latest center on display. They were genuinely excited and so was I. I had to make a schedule and expanded the center into another area because so many nuggets wanted to research dinosaurs. I was seriously surprised at the interest.
As the week went on, the hype did not die down, so as any teacher would, I decided to expand on the theme and capitalize on the engagement. I had created dinosaur materials a few years earlier for another class of students and I knew it was time to revamp and develop some additions.
I may have gone overboard as I typically do, adding to nonfiction passages, creating a fossil science experiment, report templates, a craft, and more.

nonfiction dinosaur reading comprehension passages
dinosaur fossil activity
dinosaur report template

I even made digital dinosaur reading comprehension activities to help me mentor and support more learners, which also turned out to be great resources during distance learning as well.

digital dinosaur reading comprehension bundle
digital nonfiction dinosaur reading comprehension passages
digital dinosaur report templates

There is a nonfiction passage and diagram along with comprehension questions for each of the 8 dinosaurs featured in both the print and digital versions. Students will read about the apatosaurus, oviraptor, stegosaurus, tyrannosaurus rex, spinosaurus, triceratops, pterodactyl, and the parasaurolophus.
After reading these passages, along with any additional informational text or digital resources you provide, students can create their very own informational writing reports. I provide a plethora of graphic organizers and writing templates to accommodate all levels of writers.
If you own any of my other nonfiction resources you know that I also like to add extensions to other curriculum areas whenever possible. For example, for math, I created graphing activities and math center activities that focus on doubles, 10’s partners, story problems, etc… which are also morning work or fun homework options.

dinosaur reading comprehension extension activities

If you are looking for fast finishers or just fun extension activities for your dinosaur or prehistoric studies you will enjoy the ABC order, word searches, dinosaur sorts, and website extensions to further your students’ learning.
Lastly, I also included creative extensions such as diorama materials, and an exciting making fossils science experiment that I know your students will love, mine definitely did.

dinosaur diagrams

These activities are included in my Nonfiction Dinosaur Unit or in Google Classroom format with my Digital Dinosaur Activities Bundle. The 8 individual digital dinosaur reading comprehension units are available separately as well:

  • Apatosaurus
  • Oviraptor
  • Stegosaurus
  • Tyrannosaurus Rex
  • Spinosaurus
  • Triceratops
  • Pterodactyl
  • Parasaurolophus

To give you a chance to dig deeper into these dinosaur reading comprehension activities, I’m sharing with you a digital Triceratops freebie!

dinosaur reading comprehension freebie

Dinosaur Guided Reading

It’s fun to mix in some fiction dinosaur reading, too! Check out these dinosaur-themed guided reading units focusing on the strategy of main idea and supporting details for both fiction and nonfiction text.
Here are my top 5 mentor texts and guided reading resources about dinosaurs and prehistoric themed fun. There’s a mix here of fiction and nonfiction that can be used to teach main idea and supporting details:

#1: Dinosaur Lady

dinosaur lady reading comprehension activities

#2 Dinosaurs! (new edition)

Dinosaurs! new edition by gail gibbons reading comprehension activities

#3 We Will Rock Our Classmates

We Will Rock Our Classmates reading activities

#4 Tyrone O’Saurus Dreams

Tyrone O'Saurus Dreams reading activities

#5 Can I Have a Stegosaurus, Mom? Can I? Please?!

Can I Have a Stegosaurus, Mom?  reading activities

Click on the book title links above to check out these books in my Amazon store. (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.) Click on the images above to view my guided reading resources to go along with each text including book talk questions, home connection materials, crafts, and so much more. All 5 can also be purchased together with my Guided Reading with a Purpose Dino Bundle. If you aren’t already familiar with my curriculum resources you can read more about my Guided Reading with a Purpose curriculum and learn how to make the most of your guided reading time.

I hope these dino activities help you bring excitement to nonfiction reading and research in your classroom, and, as always, feel free to reach out with questions, comments, or just to connect!

Kacie Brown Having Fun First signature

Filed Under: Curriculum, digital learning, FREEBIE, guided reading, Writing Tagged With: dinosaur, Guided Reading with a Purpose, main idea and details, nonfiction, Nonfiction Unit

Previous Post: « Compare and Contrast Reading Passages from Fairy Tales
Next Post: Taking Care of the Earth: 5 Text to World Connections Books and Activities »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Shop the Site

Visit the Shop


Shop Featured Materials + Resources

Shop Amazon

Subscribe

Sign up to gain access to valuable free resources, encouraging tips and sale alerts.

Find it Fast

Read by Category

Popular Posts

Meaningful End of the Year Gifts for Students
6 Activities for STEM and Reading Comprehension
Simple Steps on How to Implement STEM in Your Classroom
Resources for Planning a Beach Field Trip
Space Reading Comprehension Activities
5 Reading Comprehension Activities for Context Clues
Dinosaur Reading Comprehension
Travel Vacation Journal for Students
Guided Reading Program: Guided Reading With A Purpose!
Back to School Activities for 2nd Grade {with FREEBIES}

Grab My Button

Grab My Button

Subscribe

Sign up to gain access to valuable free resources, encouraging tips and sale alerts.

Footer

Latest on Facebook

Latest on Instagram

⚡⚡Comprehension materials for learning about e ⚡⚡Comprehension materials for learning about extreme weather!⚡⚡⁣
⁣
These wild weather Guided Reading with a Purpose units are designed to help students learn about storms while also helping them understand cause and effect.⁣
⁣
Click the link in my bio to see more from this Wild Weather Bundle including droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes, & floods! ⛈⁣
⁣
Individual units are also available for purchase on my website.
✈💼What do you send along with your students w ✈💼What do you send along with your students when they miss school for a trip?💼✈⁣
⁣
I created this Student Travel Journal that is easy for students to complete when they are missing class but also fun for them to document their trip.  It's great to have them share it with the class once they return! ⁣
⁣
I've also printed this and used it with my own nuggets on trips.  We usually journal at the end of the day before bed. We also love getting to look through the fun postcards, tickets, or stickers from different activities to include in the artifact section. 📸⁣
⁣
I wrote a blog post about this Travel Journal - click the link in my bio to read more!
2nd Grade daily math practice without the prep wor 2nd Grade daily math practice without the prep work! 🙌⁣
⁣
Simply download the Google Slides and do the math together as a class or send it to students digitally.  You can also print the slides as daily math practice sheets! 😍⁣
⁣
This June Daily Math Practice set includes 22 colorful Google Slides plus printable black & white PDF files that are all aligned to 2nd Grade Math Standards.⁣
⁣
This resource is linked in my bio and available on TpT!⁣
⁣
#2ndgrade #secondgrade #secondgradeteacher #iteachsecondgrade #2ndgradeteacher #2ndgrademath #secondgrademath #iteachsecond #iteach2nd #homeschoolsecondgrade #googleclassroom
Brown over here just living his best life. We boug Brown over here just living his best life. We bought a 1987 VW Vanagon last week for more crazy adventures. He might not ever stop smiling. 😆 

#vwvanagon
It's never too early to start building lifelong he It's never too early to start building lifelong healthy habits! 🌱⁣
⁣
Use this daily Health & Wellness Challenge Journal to inspire kindness, healthy habits, and reflection with daily journal prompts that can be printed or shared digitally. ⁣
⁣
Get your June Health & Wellness Challenge Journal today.  Link in bio!
Check out these digital dinosaur reading and resea Check out these digital dinosaur reading and research materials!⁣
⁣
This Digital Dino Bundle includes 8 nonfiction reading passages and informative report writing materials plus...⁣
🦖label me diagrams⁣
🦖comprehension activities⁣
🦖links to additional online research & enrichment⁣
🦖fun BONUS materials⁣
⁣
This resource is linked in my bio and available on TpT!

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Latest on Pinterest

Copyright © 2023 · BRANDING + WEBSITE DESIGN BY LAUGH EAT LEARN