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Spelling Relay
Looking for a way to review and practice spelling words that's fun and creative? Use this spelling relay activity for any grade level. Using three spelling lists, ranging in difficulty, teams of young spellers choose words from the lists...
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Making Up
Is there a more important skill to learn at school then conflict resolution? It's never too soon to begin teaching youngsters how to work through the inevitable conflicts they will have during their school years. This resource combines...
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Mountain Vista
Students participate in a role play activity in which they play an American pioneer moving west. During the role play, they select an occupation and a town to live in. In groups, they use a map to determine the best route to arrive to...
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Desert Drama
Students read both fiction and nonfiction books with desert themes. Then they write desert stories and reports, reviewing texts for information to include in writing. Students also design desert scenes with details and setting elements...
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Lesson Plan: How Coyote Came to Shuffle Off to Buffalo
Creative kids read, discuss, play-act, and sketch to examine the cultural significance of Old Man Coyote. They listen to several stories involving Coyote, analyze the Harry Fonseca painting Shuffle Off to Buffalo, and write Coyote...
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Patterns and Pentominoes
Learners solve pentomino puzzles. In this problem solving lesson, students discuss how pentomino puzzles play into the plot of Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett and practice solving a pentomino puzzle on their own. Learners will...
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Dancing Flamingos
Young scholars perform a number of activities that mimic flamingo actions and displays. The class discusses why animals behave in certain ways, and how behavioral adaptations help animals to survive.
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Broken-Heart Matching Game
Learners use this fun game to practice, reinforce, or apply a wide variety of skills around Valentine's Day. Each students receives half a heart with zig-zag cuts made of pink construction paper with a piece of information. Their job is...
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Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King, Jr.
Primary learners will embrace diversity and celebrate multiculturalism through these engaging activities. Which include reading the story Martin Luther King and singing the song "A Man Named King." They will also explore the concept of...
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Digging Up Dinosaurs
Students research dinosaurs using text, software, and Internet resources while role playing as paleontologists. They place the information from their research in databases and publish an illustrated page about their findings.
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Weather Maps and Prediction
Young meteorologists read basic weather maps by learning about the symbols that are associated with them. This two-day lesson has some excellent demonstrations and activities to get youngsters thinking about the weather in scientific...
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Theater: Create a Script
Figurative language is the focus in the book Teach Us, Amelia Bedelia. After reading Peggy Parish's book, class members dramatize idioms from the text, using dramatic strategies such as characterization, exaggeration, and improvisation....
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Door Panels and Details: Renaissance Revival/Aesthetic Cabinet
Students investigate the history of cabinetry and furniture, specifically the Renaissance period. In this art history lesson, students investigate photographs of the Renaissance Revival/Aesthetic Cabinet, and examine the small...
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Arbitrary Arrangements: Daniel Sprick's Release Your Plans
Students investigate abstract artists as storytellers. In this art analysis lesson, students observe the small details in the painting called "Release Your Plans" by Daniel Sprick. Students collaborate in groups to create their own...
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Bright Mice
Kindergarten through second graders explore the long i sound. In this phonics instructional activity, they read The Mother's Day Mice, sing "Farmer in the Dell," and play I Spy with long i in order to explore the target sound....
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Podcasting for Reading Fluency
Nothing helps you identify your reading fluency like hearing yourself read aloud! Increase reading fluency and expression by having young learners podcast a weekly high interest piece of literature. Assign a different star or featured...
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Creating Classroom Rules
Perfect for establishing classroom protocols, this activity gets even the youngest learners thinking about rules and their consequences. The instructional activity begins with a discussion and a reading of the poem Humpty Dumpty that...
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My School Job
Second graders discuss why classrooms have helpers to complete everyday tasks. In groups, they participate in a role-play activity in which they complete the assigned tasks. To end the lesson plan, they complete a worksheet in which they...
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The Landfill Loafers Meet the Wise Buys
Students discover recyclable materials and the proper disposal of those items through Internet research. Working in groups of four, they search the Internet for uses of recyclable materials. After research is complete, they participate...
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Just the Facts, Ma'am
Elementary learners identify the main elements of story structure and form questions to summarize their reading. They listen as the teacher reads a story and then write questions to determine (1) main characters, (2) setting, (3)...
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Nutrition and the Media: Cereal Box Consumerism
How many treats do you buy each week? Learners investigate diets and how the media tricks consumers into purchasing unhealthy snacks. They will investigate the designs and logos affiliated with cereal boxes and identify specific phrases...
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American Flag History
Young historians explore US culture by investigating the US flag. They will use their textbooks, prior knowledge, and sources provided by the teacher to research the history of the American flag. They will design and create a trading...
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Frisbee Baseball
Students keep track of the number of tosses it takes them to reach each base, and encourage team members and recognize their successes. To make this activity fit the level of older classes, measure distances and figure averages as you play!
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Money Math Match
Students hunt for the classmate who holds a bag of coins equal in value to theirs, study that different combinations of coins can represent the same amount of money and practice using coins to represent a set value in different ways.