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Comprehending the Comics
Students discuss and examine the comic strip section in newspapers. They compare and contrast themselves and others with the comic strip characters. With partners, they select a comic strip and complete a student activity sheet.
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Counteracting Media Stereotyping
Discuss media stereotypes with your emerging consumers. They view a television program to identify gender bias. After discussing the clip as a class, each learner writes a story showing more equitable roles. Or consider having them...
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Printing and Publishing
Explore African literature and artwork in a multicultural literacy and art lesson. Begin with a read aloud of Tiger and the Big Wind: A Tale from Africa, and afterward, have kids retell the main events in the story. They...
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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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Parts of a Story
Learners read a short fiction book and demostrate comprehension by identifying the main characters, setting, conflict, theme, and summarizing the main points. They organize the information in Inspiration and create a powerpoint to show...
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The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush
Third graders complete activities for the book The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush, by Tomie dePaola. In this literature lesson plan, the students read the story and summarize the main events. They look for story elements focusing on the...
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Introduction to Little House Books
Third graders identify the main characters in the Ingalls family and describe the relationships between the characters. They locate the setting of the book on a map of the Upper Mid- West. Students understand that the books are set in...
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Moby Dick Puppetry
Such an ambitious lesson plan! Third graders with special needs listen to an audio recording of the novel, Moby Dick. They stop often to discuss each of the main characters and analyze their actions in the story. They then make puppets...
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The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle: KWHL
After completing the 11th chapter of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi, take part in a KWHL chart driven by the question,When is it appropriate and admirable to defy authority? Focusing on codes of conduct,...
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Story Elements
Third graders identify story elements. In this story elements lesson, 3rd graders look at main idea, characters, point of view, theme and setting. They create a five paneled comic strip from a book.
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Story Pyramid
Students read tall tales to identify story elements. In this story elements instructional activity, students read about Johnny Appleseed and Pecos Bill and use graphic organizers to record information. Students read in small groups,...
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Sarah Plain and Tall- Lesson 5
Students read a chapter in a book. In this character comparison lesson, students predict what will happen in chapter 5 of Sarah Plain and Tall, learn new vocabulary words, read and discuss chapter 5 and draw the first words of...
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The Main Man
Students explore visualizing stories by completing a graphic organizer. In this reading strategy lesson, students read the story Pecos Bill by Steven Kellog and identify the setting, main characters and their interpretations. Students...
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"Zigzag"
Second and third graders explore point of view and read and discuss the book "Zigzag." They listen to the story "The Five Blind Men and the Elephant" and discuss point of view, identify the point of view of the main character Zigzag, and...
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The Cat Came Back
Learners are read the story "The Cat Came Back". Using Spanish, they communicate the context of the story with each other. They practice using new vocabulary, identifying main characters and putting the events into order. They use the...
EngageNY
Close Reading of Nasreen's Secret School: How Do People Access Books in Afghanistan?
Third graders continue to practice the close reading skills of capturing the gist and reading again for important details in the sixth lesson in a larger unit. This is a great beginning-of-the-year unit for establishing visible thinking...
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Can We Switch Genders of Story Characters?
Students read and review the main elements of a story. In this language arts lesson, students predict what the story read to them would have been like if the genders of the characters had been different. Students write a new...
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Arthur and His Pals
Arthur, the main character in Marc Brown’s books, is the star of this lesson. Pairs of researchers select one character from the Arthur series and use the internet to access Brown’s web site and learn more about their chosen character....
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A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
In this story structure lesson, students read the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and identify the characters, setting and main themes of the book. They answer a list of study questions about the book.
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Pay it Forward
Students explore the basic concept of micro-financing. For this economics/literacy lesson, students listen to One Hen by Katie Smith, in which a small loan changes the life of the main character. Students employ comprehension strategies...
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Art Lesson: Doll Making
Learners read and discuss the main characters and supporting characters in the African folktale, "Tiger and the Big Wind." They highlight the physical features of the animal that makes them unique and transfers those same qualities to...
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Map Making
Learners examine a variety of strategies to identify the structure of a story. They listen to the book Where the Wild Things Are and, as a class, complete a story element chart. Students independently read a passage from Charlotte's...
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Story Creation Magic: Character, Setting, Plot
Students review the terms plot, setting, and characters and examine how all of these elements are needed to make a story. They are given parts of stories and they try to identify all of those parts of the story.
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Sam and the Lucky Money
Third graders read the story "Sam and the Lucky Money". Individually, they identify new key terms from the story. In groups, they examine the setting and discuss how it relates to the plots and characters. To end the lesson, they read...