Curated OER
Writing to Focus Reading and to Imagine Researching
Students examine several elements that would cue them into a newspaper article about community change without reading the main copy text. They discuss the details and write notes about the article. They first skim and then thoroughly...
Curated OER
A Creative Presentation
Bring writing to life with this lesson plan in which elementary and middle schoolers create a display of the imagery they identify in a series of Gary Paulsen books. They read the suggested materials, identify imagery and descriptive...
Curated OER
Comparing Themes Across Texts
Read various texts to compare the themes across each text. Learners write a journal entry describing the most beautiful scenery they've seen and use a map of the United States to locate the Sequoia National Park and Muir Woods. They then...
EngageNY
Summarizing Complex Ideas: Comparing the Original UDHR and the "Plain Language" Version
The eighth lesson plan in this series continues the focus on vocabulary and increasing young readers' awareness of academic language. Pairs of learners participate in a short vocabulary review activity called Interactive Words in which...
Curated OER
Laurence Yep's Dragonwings
Students read independently the novel, "Dragonwings," by Laurence Yep and make connections between a text and the world. They summarize, paraphrase, analyze and evaluate skimming and scanning techniques when reading a novel. Each student...
Curated OER
Mississippi River
Students study scanning and skimming techniques. In this research skills activity, students use the research techniques on print literature about the Mississippi River. Students prepare book talks on the literature they read.
Curated OER
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Fourth graders read and take quizzes over the book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Curated OER
Laurence Yep's, Dragonwings
Students discuss vocabulary words and compare definitions. They read chapters 6-9 of the novel, Dragonwings, and discuss point of view, and complete a plot diagram. Then they review the four types of conflict and identify the conflicts...
University of North Carolina
Reorganizing Drafts
Poor organization often destroys an otherwise good paper. After writing a first draft, individuals consider the organization of ideas, a topic discussed in the 16th handout in the 24-part Writing the Paper series. The resource covers...
University of North Carolina
Writing Anxiety
Oh, the dreaded writer's block! As part of a larger paper-writing series, an invaluable resource discusses obstacles and stresses writers face. Individuals learn to identify feelings associated with anxiety, as well as strategies for...
Curated OER
A Creative Presentation
Students read chapter books by Gary Paulsen. In groups, they identify imagery presented in the book. Students locate 10 quotes, categorize each quote into one of the five senses, and then organize it and create a display of their three...
Curated OER
Cause and Effect
Students identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task that...
Curated OER
Historical Background of Nightjohn Lesson Plan
Eighth graders use first-hand slave narratives that show conditions of slavery. They paste text into Appleworks and publish with a picture clipped from web sites. They create a group account of life during slavery to prepare for reading...
Curated OER
International Space Station
Pupils read and complete language arts activities about the International Space Station. In this International Space Station lesson plan, students read about the space station, and complete language arts activities that include...
Curated OER
Teaching Imagery with Gary Paulsen
Students read excerpts from memoirs written by Gary Paulsen as examples of how to write a narrative piece. They identify figurative language used and then they write a memoir of their own that contains imagery and figurative language.
Curated OER
World War II: Japanese-American Internment
Fifth graders read "The Bracelet" by Yoshiko Uchida and use it as a catalyst to discuss the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. They debate the morality of the internment, create Venn diagrams and chart important events...
University of North Carolina
Blogs
The blogosphere may be overwhelmed with content, but there's still room for unique points of view. Creating a blog that stands out, however, is the bigger challenge. A handout on blogs, part of a series of handouts on specific writing...
Curated OER
Dragonwings
Middle schoolers engage in a lesson that is concerned with the literature study of Dragonwings. They write about the story from the perspective of a reader that is well informed towards the last chapters. Students also find target...
Curated OER
A Biography of Amir Khan
In this literature learning exercise, students read a biography about Amir Khan, a middleweight boxer who won an Olympic bronze in Athens. They identify whether each statement is true or false. Then, students look at his career and...
Curated OER
Using Information Resources: Lesson 7
Teacher reads aloud to the students the material that is printed in boldface type inside the boxes. Information in regular type inside the boxes and all
information outside the boxes should not be read to the students. Possible
student...
Curated OER
Novel Topics Research Unit
Seventh graders use a variety of research tools to locate information about a topic that is included in a novel that they are reading. They work with a partner to research the topic, record bibliographic information, and to complete a...
Curated OER
Evaluating an Olympic Sport
Students research the political context of the Winter Olympics in general and within certain countries in particular. They read authentic, published articles on the topic from the Internet and add this information to the spreadsheet as...
Curated OER
How the Environment Affects Our Health
Ninth graders explore how the environment affects health. In this infectious disease lesson, 9th graders investigate what environmental situations cause infections diseases. Students study the symptoms, treatments, prevention, and...
Curated OER
Dragonwings: Evaluate Chapters 10-12
As your class finishes the novel Dragonwings, use these culminating projects. A vocabulary list is given for chapters eleven and twelve and either an epitaph or letter activity concludes the book. The final project consists of creating a...