Timely Topics

Discover quick ideas to support literacy with featured themes each month.

The month of March is Women’s History Month, which commemorates and encourages the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of women in American History. Celebrate and learn about women all year round using TeachingBooks resources.

  • Include titles about women using these curated lists and awards:
  • Find additional ideas within our Women / Girls Collection and use filters such as curricular area, genre, and cultural experience to narrow results to just what you are looking for.

Explore three different levels of teaching ideas to use in your classrooms and learning environments!


Explore additional featured resources about amazing women past and present, or these for the International Day of Women and Girls in Science!

Ramadan begins March 10th

Ramadan is an important monthlong time of fasting, prayer, and reflection observed by Muslims across the globe.

  • Celebrate and learn about Ramadan with the titles and resources on these two lists:

  • Learn about the lunar cycle, Ramadan-related vocabulary words and more in this teacher guide for Night of the Moon.

  • Explore the principles and practices that make up the month of Ramadan with this lesson plan for Ramadan: The Holy Month of Fasting.

  • Share Ramadan coloring sheets and try the craft idea in this activity kit for Aliya’s Secret.

St. Patrick's Day – March 17th

St. Patrick’s Day observes of the death of the patron saint of Ireland and has become a festive celebration of Irish culture filled with parades, food, music, dancing, and the color green!

  • Share the video book trailer for The Great Leprechaun Chase with your students, then enjoy a jigsaw puzzle and complete a word search together!

  • Watch this complete video reading for The Night Before St. Patrick's Day. Ask students what they do for St. Patrick’s Day and explore together the meaning behind some traditions such as wearing green or eating certain food.

Holi – Monday, March 25th

Holi, also known as the festival of colors, is an ancient tradition and one of the most popular festivals in Hinduism.

  • Watch the complete video book reading for Festival of Colors, then take inspiration from these activities. Take your students on a nature walk to look at objects in nature that could be used to create different powders.

  • Make a colorful book cover jigsaw puzzle of Holi Hai!, then create a word search using the games on this resource page.

Cesar Chavez Day is March 31st

Cesar Chavez Day is a U.S. federal commemorative holiday that celebrates the birth and legacy of civil rights and labor movement activist Cesar Chavez.

  • Celebrate and learn more with titles and resources on this Legacy of Cesar Chavez list.

  • Explore questions and activities to learn about Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta using this lesson plan for Side by Side: The Story of Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez.

  • Listen to the Meet-the-Author Recording for Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez to hear a little about how Cesar Chavez became a fighter for justice. Harvest compound words, decipher quotation codes, and more with this lesson plan.

National Library Week 2024 is April 7th - 13th. Celebrate and learn about libraries with these resources!

Connections for Younger Readers

  • Share the book talk for Digging for Words, then try out the “drawing a story” activity or make cut-out bookmobile crafts from this activity kit.

  • Move and sing along to songs and make lion paper plate crafts using this lesson plan after watching the complete video reading of Library Lion.

  • Watch the complete video reading for Planting Stories, then make a puzzle or try doing the puppet activity found in this teaching guide.

  • Celebrate books completed with this Reading Chart from the series activity sheet for Biscuit Loves the Library.

  • Print out bookplates from this lesson plan inspired by Lola at the Library or have students create their own that they can put in books in their personal library.

  • Get to know your librarian, write a letter, color library scenes, and more using this activity kit for Dear Librarian.

  • Imagine together what suggestions the author might include in How to Read a Book just based on the title. Ask students where their favorite places to read are, and find other questions in this educators' guide. Use this activity guide to draw a character or moment from a favorite book.

  • Sing “The Library Doors” song with accompanying hand motions to the tune of “The Wheels on the Bus” using this lesson plan for The Library Doors.

  • Write verses about a library, real or imagined, using this Meet-the-Author Recording and excerpt for Please Bury Me in the Library as a model.

  • Discuss libraries with your students using tips from the lesson plan for The Librarian from the Black Lagoon. What do people find there? Why do they go there? How do libraries help the community? If you can, take your class to visit the library!

  • Explore Spanish vocabulary, share stories, and learn about libraries around the world with ideas in this lesson plan after watching the complete video reading for Waiting for the Biblioburro.

Connections for Older Readers

  • Invite your students to watch the complete video book reading for Hands Around the Library, then reflect on libraries in the digital age and their importance to communities, using guidance from this lesson plan. For further consideration, have your students research funding for public libraries in your area. Where does it come from and has it changed in the past ten years?

  • Take a virtual field trip with your students through the website for the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, after watching the video book trailer for Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library. Ask them why it is important to consider the relevance of Arturo Schomburg’s work and the impact it continues to make today. You can extend the conversation with this teachers' guide and by asking groups of students to present on something different they learned from their exploration of the website.

  • Watch the video book trailer and review the quick facts sheet for The Man Who Loved Libraries, then have students research libraries in their own communities. Ask them to find out how many there are and see if there is one close to their home. Explore the library websites, and if they don’t have one already, encourage them to visit the library and sign up for a library card!

  • In the book Richard Wright and the Library Card, Richard Wright’s world and opportunities were greatly increased thanks to a library card. Ask students, why do you think a library card could help make someone’s future better? Explore additional questions and activities in this lesson plan.

Eid al-Fitr takes place April 9 - 11, 2024

  • Watch the video book trailer for Once Upon an Eid: Stories of Hope and Joy by 15 Muslim Voices, then hear two of the authors introduce the text in this audiobook excerpt. Encourage your students to research Eid and identify some of its important elements or traditions.

  • Explore titles on this Celebrating Ramadan and Eid list.

  • Enjoy the complete video reading of The Eid Al-Adha Adventure and reflect on the importance of giving and generosity.

  • Find additional titles about Eid here and try making book cover jigsaw puzzles together.

  • Explore last month's page for resources and titles about Ramadan.

Passover is April 22 - 30, 2024

  • Learn about some Passover traditions and elements and what they mean from author Lesléa Newman then watch her read the story in this complete video book reading of Welcoming Elijah: A Passover Tale with a Tail.

  • Hear the story that Passover commemorates in this audiobook excerpt from Passover, Here I Come!, then build and share a word search of related vocabulary.

NEW! Poetry Tasting!

Plan a feast of fun, with our new Poetry Tasting at the Reading Diner activities!

Choose a level and a set to share with your readers. Readers sample the menu and then can rate and review their selections on the exit slip.

One-a-Day Activities

Need a bell-ringer activity? Looking for a quick way to add some poetry into your daily class work?

Try our One-a-Day Poetry Reflections! You do not need the books featured in hand. All you need is TeachingBooks! There are three levels to use!

Multi-Leveled Lessons

Explore titles that have lessons designed to scaffold instruction and build connections to text in differentiated classrooms.

More Ideas

See more teaching and activity ideas and ways to connect readers to books in last year’s Timely Topics post.