Florida Center for Reading Research
Phonological Awareness - Phoneme Segmenting and Blending, Treasure Chest
Working in pairs, scholars use picture cards to practice segmenting words into phonemes and blending phonemes into words. When a peer answers correctly they place a penny in a treasure chest. Incorrect responses make the card go back in...
Growing Minds
Apple Exploration
Turn your classroom into a farmers' market! Reading Applesauce Season by Eden Ross Lipson or Monica Wellington’s Apple Farmer Annie, launches this investigation of apples, farmers' markets, and the people selling products. The class...
Curated OER
Pattern Block Barrier Game
Challenge your learners to give clear and concise directions in this shape-name practice activity. In partners, they place a dividing "wall" between them, with pattern blocks and a grid on each side. Partner A places one block at a time...
Curated OER
Narrow It Down
Ever played 20 Questions? A similar game helps young learners practice asking and answering yes-or-no questions. Spread out several objects, preferably all similar with slight variations (buttons or coins would work well). A leader...
Curated OER
Where We Live
Who has the most? Young learners practice charting data using familiar information. They help fill out a classroom chart by recording the number of people, pets, televisions, etc. in their home. Guiding questions help them investigate...
Primary Junction
Adding Tens
Build on your learners' confidence in quick addition as they discover strategies to add tens to two-digit numbers. After reviewing counting by 10's, they discuss tactics to add multiples of 10 to other numbers. They visualize how to...
Curated OER
Making Models of the Solar System
Students make several models of the solar system to learn the positions of the planets in the solar system as well as relative distances and sizes. Creation of these models will help them identify the planets by size, shape, color,...
Curated OER
Add and Subtract
Like the cubs in A Fair Bear to Share, your 2nd grade class will practice adding and subtracting double-digit numbers by grouping, regrouping, and sorting a collection of objects. This requires many resources, but it is well worth the...
American Library Association
Even and Odd Numbers: Lesson Plans and Sample Problems
If your youngsters are new to numbers, here are several interactive strategies to get them thinking about even and odd numbers. For example, they can count the number of desks, people, etc. in the room and determine if it is even or odd....
Curated OER
Community and Me
First and second graders view art work, have group and class discussions, listen to stories, write themes, make notes, conduct interviews, graph results, chart findings, and plan a career day. These ambitious lessons should lead your...
Curated OER
Mystery Jars
This is a twist on the old "guess how many jellybeans" game. Using estimation and math skills, learners participate in a fun "mystery jars" activity, trying to make educated guesses at how many objects are in two jars. The basic activity...
Curated OER
Couch Potato
Show your class that being active is more fun than being a couch potato! A fun tag game teachers learners about making healthy eating choices. Over 125,000 teachers have reviewed this activity, and many have written comments about how...
Curated OER
Read to Us!
Kids love being read to. Use these children's books and accompanying activities to engage young learners. Fun drawing print-outs and charts are included, and a variety of reading strategies are employed.
Curated OER
Guided Reading: Cold and Hot
Explore the text, Cold and Hot, with comprehension strategies for young readers. First, give them a purpose for reading: find out what the boy wore outside in the snow! Then have them use one-to-one matching and picture clues to...
Curated OER
Showing not telling writing
How do good writers exhibit emotion in their work without using an emotion word (angry, sad, happy, etc.)? This plan offers learners model texts that describe an emotion without using an emotion word. A well-formatted writing activity is...
Curated OER
Famous First Graders Unit
Class members become reporters, photographers, and movie producers to interview each other as they become "Famous First Graders." Learners work as a team to interview the famous person and then produce a short movie. They create...
Curated OER
Exciting Expressions
Elementary schoolers observe and demonstrate a variety of strategies for reading with expression. They listen to the teacher read A Fine, Fine School with and without expression and discuss the differences. Then in pairs, read the same...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Phonics lesson for -ew and -oo
First graders identify letters and sounds associated with -ew and -oo sounds. Each learner receives a stack of cards containing these sounds, and they must determine whether the word uses the -ew or the -oo sound. This could easily...
Curated OER
Collecting Data to Learn About the People Around You
Human graphs, anyone? Did you eat fruit today? What is your favorite costume? Have your K – 6 learners graph the responses. Early elementary grades may count and compare while upper grades compare responses of different groups or make...
Curated OER
Find The Hidden Message: Media Literacy in Primary Grades
Learners practice listening to and reading various types of media and text. In groups, learners use video, newspapers, magazines, and more to compare and contrast different types of information. They identify the differences between fact...
Curated OER
My Teacher Can Teach Anyone!
Begin the school year with enthusiasm using the book entitled My Teacher Can Teach Anyone! In this reading for meaning lesson, primary readers listen to the story and discuss what is happening and why the boy in the story might be...
Curated OER
Learning to Interview
An authentic and engaging way to practice literacy skills, this lesson calls for young language arts pupils to conduct interviews with classmates and family members. First, pupils watch as the teacher models the interview process with a...
Curated OER
Library Lesson Plan
Explain the differences between fiction and non-fiction and the characteristics of a biography. Learners analyze three pieces of literature on the same topic to determine which is fiction and which is non-fiction. In the end, relate the...
Curated OER
Order of Events
Read the book The Very Hungry Caterpillar and put the events of the story in order. Each event is written on a sentence strip and while the teacher reads, listeners can arrange the strips inthe correct order. After reading, reshuffle the...