Curated OER
Writing a Letter
Here are three well-thought-out tasks intended to build good note taking and letter writing skills. The class reads three short letters, determines who wrote them (based on context) and takes notes as a pre-writing activity. They...
Curated OER
Letter of Complaint
Learners analyze this letter of complaint to the city council by answering nine short-answer questions. They examine author's purpose, word choice, claims, rhetorical questions, and general observations. There is a focus on constructive...
Curated OER
Personal Information
Can your learners fill out an envelope with their personal information? Give them some great practice using this template, which learners will enjoy because it's all about them! First, they write their name and address on an image of an...
Curated OER
Creative Convincing
Young writers will love examining Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type for examples of good persuasive writing. Generally, when we write persuasive pieces, there are common words we use. Encourage your writers to...
Curated OER
Giving Thanks for Food and Farms
Sarah Stewart’s The Gardener and Food from Farms by Nancy Dickmann display the importance of community farms. After reading these short picture books, class members draw connections between farms and the food we eat each day. As a...
Curated OER
Sequence, Predict, Infer: Pink and Say
Practice sequencing with your 2nd graders via Patricia Polacco's Civil War book Pink and Say. Begin with a blindfold and a bag of mystery items. Connect their use of clues to identify what they can't see with the skill of making...
Curated OER
Let Me Tell You About My State
State reports can be a lot of fun, especially when the learners get to choose the state they study. This research and writing-focused social studies lesson engages learners in collecting information, essay structure, research, and...
Curated OER
Writing a Friendly Letter
Elementary schoolers write a friendly letter. In this letter writing lesson interrogative and declarative sentences in their friendly letter. The students write to an intended audience.
Media Smarts
Television Broadcast Ratings
Explore the relationships between programming, advertising, and the ensuing rating wars. Help develop the media smarts of your pupils through this examination of advertisers for popular shows. Although the included Sweep Chart features...
Curated OER
Valentine's Day: Love Letters
Oh the joys of love! As a special Valentine's Day assignment, budding authors research the life of one of the most romantic poets, Keats. They read the letter, "To Fanny Brawne, 13 October 1819," then compose a love letter of their own....
Media Smarts
Marketing to Teens: Talking Back
Teach your class to talk back in a constructive and respectful way. This focuses in particular on talking back to the media and to advertisers when they have concerns. Learners participate in a brainstorm and then compose letters or...
Curated OER
Skill Building for Educational and Vocational Advancement
Over ten weeks, 8th graders refine their visions of future careers, develop skills needed to write resumes and business letters, and learn to make a strong impression at interviews. Three specific activities are included, but mostly the...
Curated OER
Pen Pals
Students collect bird count data at their sites, and share and compare the data collected from two different schoolyards using computer technology.
Curated OER
Letter Writing Chart
This is a nicely-constructed letter writing worksheet in which learners use a chart to brainstorm the content for an apology letter to a friend. They fill in the chart and then write the apology letter. This brainstorming process would...
Curated OER
I Hate to Complain but your Cheese Stinks
Students read and discuss the "fractured" fairy tale "The Stinky Cheese Man". They imagine that they are in the fairy tale and write a letter of complaint concerning the Cheese Man and how he stinks up the town.
Curated OER
Up For Renewal
Want to know more about China's energy resources? Scholars will explore renewable resources implemented in China's energy plan. The will discover various types of renewable energy sources and discover how China is taping into these types...
Curated OER
"I Never Knew That!"
Incorporating To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, narrative writing, and friendly letters, this lesson is ideal for any number of units in your classroom. First, read chapter 10 of the novel, noting Scout and Jem's reactions to their...
Curated OER
Writing a Letter of Complaint
Here is a very useful presentation on persuasive letter writing that's packed with great information. Learners discover when this type of letter is appropriate to write, then are shown a series of steps that would lead to a letter that...
Curated OER
Using a Computer to Write a Letter- Nouns- Vocabulary Skills
This nicely-done computer based letter writing activity has learners fill in each blank with a noun from the word bank. There are 20 sentences. They complete instructions for writing a letter using the computer, and use words such as...
Curated OER
Writing a Personal Letter Using the Short Story "Eleven"
Challenge your class to connect to the text of "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros with this activity, which prompts them to write a personal letter from the main character's point of view. The story, prompt, and letter template are all included...
Curated OER
Parts of a Friendly Letter
Join December's "Write to a Friend" campaign by introducing the parts of a friendly letter with this presentation. This 10-slide PowerPoint lists and describes the heading, greeting, body, closing, and signature of a letter. Tip: After...
Curated OER
Running Out of Time: Letter to a Character
Once your learners have a firm handle on the characters in Running Out of Time, invite them to write letters to chosen characters about the events of the novel. Pupils then share with others who wrote to the same character.
Art Institute of Chicago
Send a Postcard
Using Claude Monet's On the Bank of the Seine as inspiration, young artists create their own postcards. During the lesson plan, learners discuss the techniques used in Monet's painting, as well as the woman in the painting, and...
Wordpress
Access (1st Year) Pen Pal Format
Help young writers make a good first impression on their pen pals with this personal letter template. Including sentence frames and word banks, this resource supports children as they learn to write personal descriptions using complete...