Can animals think? Learners develop their thinking abilities by reading Linden's essay and constructing an evidence-based response. Complete with rubrics and exemplars to evaluate writing, the resource also has suggested pre-, during,...

It is impossible to know whether one has reached a goal without first knowing the goal. Help your sixth graders reach all the Common Core writing standards by giving them a checklist written in language they will understand. As you teach...

Search a variety of sources to create a multimedia or book project about Japan. Learners use the independent investigation method to plan and conduct research about Japan. They use the information they discover to create a computer book...

New ReviewHalloween is the topic of a writing lesson that challenges scholars to research the holiday and create an information product such as a brochure or oral report. A presentation activates prior knowledge in preparation for a small group...

A five-paragraph essay is the focus of a activity designed to boost writing skills. Learners warm-up their writing muscles with several sentences answering a prompt. A group writing activity includes a graphic organizer, paragraph...

Are dogs truly a man's best friend? Pupils read a newspaper column by John Grogan about the death of his dog, Marley. Next, they answer text-dependent questions and complete graphic organizers to examine Grogan's feelings about his dog....

Children in foster care face a lot of uncertainty in their lives. A guide for the novel One for the Murphys introduces a main character, Carley, who is thrust into the foster care system. Chapter-by-chapter questions cover key details in...

Learning how to express and justify a point of view is an essential skill. A helpful workbook guides scholars in crafting a constructed response essay. The comprehensive resource contains a variety of graphic organizers to help...

The Grapes of Wrath may be the most famous novel set during the Dust Bowl, but what other stories cover the same time? The unit focuses on the Karen Hesse novel Out of the Dust. Learners keep a timeline of the Dust Bowl, maintain a...

Rome wasn't built in a day, but researchers can be with proper scaffolding. This writing unit has scholars write a research paper through scaffolding of various parts of the process. Learners begin with identifying a topic and crafting a...

I Have A Dream ... that after the lesson, all individuals master the reading, writing, researching, listening, and speaking skills the biography project helps them develop. Martin Luther King, Jr. serves as a topic example for a model...

Take your class on the ride of their lives! Physical science scholars get an in-depth look at potential and kinetic energies in an amusement park-themed unit. Students research, design, and promote their own amusement parks, complete...

Create a sense of accountability among scholars with a lesson plan that focuses on making and keeping New Year's resolutions. Writers compose a five paragraph essay focused on three resolutions—promises to self improvement, to their...

Would your ideal science lab be filled with bubbling beakers and zapping Tesla coils? Or would it contain state-of-the-art computer technology and data analysis? Dream big with an innovative lesson that connects math and language arts...

Learners create a standing cube with four panels that display information on the North and South's economy, geography and climate, society, and means of transportation before the Civil War. Through discussion and reading informational...

Be sure to grab a copy of the Revolutionary Times! Scholars take a step back in time to report on topics as set in the revolutionary time period. Events include the ride of Paul Revere, the Battle of Saratoga, and more.

Turn scholars into news reporters whose assignment is to cover the goings on in Early America. Your job as editor is to help individuals select a topic and to guide them on their writing journey. Young journalists then draft their...

Accompany a novel study of Hatchet by Gary Paulson with a unit consisting of 16 lessons focused on physical and emotional survival. Reading the story along with a variety of informational texts, scholars compare and contrast reading...

Extra! Extra! Read all about leap year! Here, scholars write a newspaper article all about leap year/leap day from given facts including who, what, where, when, and why.

Students act globally by reducing, reusing, and recycling, but now they take it to the next level by upcycling. Middle school students design a proposal to eliminate waste by exploring the new material cycle and applying their knowledge...

"What is the theme of this story?" The very question can spark fear in the minds of readers and incinerate confidence. Here you will discover an exercise that shows how writers use the tools of setting, plot, conflict, and...

Science has never tasted so sweet! Engage young scholars in exploring the anatomy of the cell with a fun life science project. Choosing to focus on either plants or animals, students create edible cell models with a key that identifies...

Young scholars demonstrate their knowledge of geography with this fun, collaborative social studies project. Working in small groups, students develop their very own countries, writing descriptions of their physical location, social...

You don't have to travel far to learn about rocks, just step outside, pick up a stone, and begin investigating. After taking a class walk around the school grounds collecting rocks, young scientists practice their skills of observation...