Curated OER
Analyzing Speaker, Language, and Tone in the Writings of Benjamin Franklin
Students analyze writings by Benjamin Franklin. In this Benjamin Franklin lesson, students discover the pseudonyms under which Franklin used to write. Students compare and contrast 2 selections by Franklin.
Curated OER
Revolutions in Retrospect
Students analyze the social conditions of Victorian England and focus on the woman's place in Victorian society. In this Victorian England lesson, students read excerpts of Victorian writers and their take on the Industrial Revolution....
Curated OER
Individual Empowerment in the Face of Oppression
Sixth graders investigate non-violent ways of dealing with conflicts by performing short plays. In this philosophy instructional activity, 6th graders discuss how men can gain power in a non-violent manner similar to Gandhi's actions....
Curated OER
Best Part of Me
After listening to the story, The Best Part of Me, learners will identify a positive physical feature of themselves, and create a descriptive poem about their favorite feature. Photographs are taken, and a nice final draft of the poem is...
Curated OER
Beanie Friend Vacation Stories
Students write an adventure story about their vacation with a Beanie friend. They select a city, research its vacation possibilities and write about the places that they would like to visit.
Curated OER
Yakety-Yak
Do talk back! The transcript of one side of a telephone conversation launches a study of dialogue. Class members imagine the response of the speaker on the other side of the conversation and record these responses on the provided...
Curated OER
Habitats: Cactus Hotel
A reading of Brenda Z. Guiberson’s, Cactus Hotel, launches a study of animal habitats. Working with parent volunteers or teacher aides, groups travel outside the classroom to select a habitat, take digital pictures, and incorporate the...
Curated OER
Rhythm, Verse and Rhyme: COMPOSING A LIST POEM
Students are provided an opportunity for self-expression. They collaborate with a partner and compose a list poem. Students practice reading and writing skills. They explore lists and catalogues--both elements of poetry and practical...
Curated OER
Prepositions Song
Students memorize a list of prepositions and are encouraged to use them in their writing.
Curated OER
Dali & Desnos: Surrealism in Poetry and Art
High schoolers research the surrealism movement and its primary artists. Language is also analyzed, and students will create their own original poem utilizing surrealistic techniques.
Curated OER
When I Was Young in Brooklyn
Students identify various techniques used in memoirs. They reflect on similarities and differences betwee two authors. Students define the term memior. They write about various techiques they noticed the authors used. Students write...
Curated OER
Writing Connections: Link Writing to Pupils' Daily Lives
Engage your learners in writing a set of instructions that relates to their experiences.
Curated OER
The Rest Cure: Gender in Medicine and Literature
Read and discuss "The Yellow Wall-Paper" and the gender issues that the story brings up. Use articles from the time period to analyze, complete with specific discussion questions. After two days, scholars write an essay based on topics...
Curated OER
Nellie Bly's Newspaper Club: Introducing the Science of Writing
Students evaluate a video about Nellie Bly, a famous reporter from the 19th century. They consider what makes a high-interest news article, write an essay in pairs and present it a literary tea.
Curated OER
Rockin' Picture Books
Learners demonstrate their knowledge of the rock cycle by creating picture books.
Curated OER
Using Quotes as "Thought Shots"
Students explore how to use quotation marks in writing to add dialogue to a paper. In groups, students observe pictures and add quotations to them. Students follow rules of punctuation and capitalization as they proofread and edit each...
Curated OER
Friendly Letter
Students work with partner to look at and read pen pal letters. Students identify, highlight, and discuss five parts of friendly letter, including heading, salutation, body, closing, and signature, and write their own friendly letters.
Curated OER
Wednesday Surprise
Students practice writing surprise endings to their short stories. After listening to the beginning of a short story, students make predictions about the story's surprise ending. They write their own short story with a surprise ending...
Curated OER
Extremely Personal Narrative
Seventh graders practice the skill of writing a personal narrative. They bring in an object that is related to themselves. Then students discuss the importance of the items and then write a personal narrative about the objects. As an...
Curated OER
Mood
Students read the book "Tight Times." They discuss what they believe a mood is. Students write a list of moods the characters in the book feel. They tell reasons for the moods that were selected. Students discuss similar and different...
Curated OER
Five Elements of a Story
Here’s a graphic organizer that permits learners to chart the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution of a story. The PDF file can be customized to work with any narrataive.
Curated OER
Finding Science in An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
Students read excerpts from Annie Dillard's memoir, "An American Childhood," with the teacher. They experience opportunities to connect English, science, nature and art together from a new and unique perspective. This approach serves as...
Curated OER
Environmental Harmony
Learners use information from a variety of media to evaluate different artists' views on the human relationship to nature. From these sources, class discussion, and personal experience, students will synthesize a thoughtful,...
Curated OER
Poetry In Motion
Fourth graders read and analyze poetry and examine the process of writing poetry. They read and analyze the poem "From a Railway Carriage" by Robert Louis Stevenson, and answer comprehension questions. They identify the similes,...