Core Knowledge Foundation
Unit 7: The United States Constitution
Fourth graders delve into the United States Constitution in a unit designed to boost reading comprehension, grammar, and writing. During each lesson, scholars read through and discuss a new chapter and work with prefixes and verbs....
Curated OER
Picture the Process
Students read Chasing Vermeer and relate the book to the author . In this writing process lesson, students view Blue's Photo Album and see how the author writes and revises her work. Students discuss the process that all good writers...
Alabama Learning Exchange
"Batty" About Bats!! (Writing)
Young writers identify the characteristics of a bat and write an essay about bats. They construct a book about bats that includes information that they have learned through print materials and online resources.
Curated OER
Invent a Holiday
Who wouldn't want to create their own holiday? Use the 12 elements of a holiday to have learners of all ages create their own holiday. These days, it seems like we make any excuse for a holiday! Consider having some fun with your kids...
Smithsonian Institution
Art to Zoo: Life in the Promised Land: African-American Migrants in Northern Cities, 1916-1940
This is a fantastic resource designed for learners to envision what it was like for the three million African-Americans who migrated to urban industrial centers of the northern United States between 1910 and 1940. After reading a...
Curated OER
Who Wrote That?
Scholars creatively respond to writing prompts. They respond to writing prompts that reveal clues regarding their personalities and then use the prompts written in class to guess the prompts that belong to their classmates.
Curated OER
Change of Perspective
After reading an example of a Cultural Connection about a particular person, class members are asked to think about what this person might experience on a daily basis. They then craft a narrative from the subject’s point of view.
Curated OER
Build an Indoor Compost Bin
Students write an essay to describe the contents of a compost bin. In this composting lesson, students create a compost bin. Students examine soil for its contents and explains in an essay the impact of the soil on the environment.
Curated OER
Rainbow Writing
Students examine how to use a rainbow picture as a graphic organizer through the use of color-coding. They produce a writing piece using this graphic organizer. They expand their writing from simple paragraphs to multi-paragraph stories.
Curated OER
Expository Writing
Fourth graders create Inspirations webs with graphics, and write five paragraph essays.
Curated OER
Halloween Creative Writing Project
Students write a creative essay from a pumpkin's point of view. They role play that they are pumpkin in a patch and need to convince a visitor to the patch that they are the best choice for a Halloween pumpkin. They focus on using...
Curated OER
Active Voice vs. Passive Voice
Can your class tell the difference between passive and active writing? Use this lesson plan in your writing conventions unit. The lesson plan prompts middle schoolers to create essays, demonstrating understanding of an active versus...
Read Works
Writing Compare and Contrast Essays
Practice writing compare and contrast essays in your class by starting out with a Venn diagram. A sample that can be expanded upon is provided here. After your writers have completed the guided practice, have them write individual essays...
Curated OER
Learning Paragraph Structure Through Design
Students examine paragraph structure, the writing process, and then design a model for the process. In this writing skills lesson, students explore paragraphs using the SmartBoard. Students create a class T-chart about paragraph...
Curated OER
Somewhere in Time
In this language arts worksheet, students will write about traveling back in time. Students will use the prompt of a "time machine" when writing this short essay.
Curated OER
Harriet Tubman Integrated Unit
Young scholars organize facts about Harriet Tubman. In this writing lesson plan, students research Harriet Tubman, sort facts about her into two categories, and use the information they have found to write about her life in complete...
Curated OER
World War II: Internment in Hawaii
Learners examine world history by writing an essay in class. In this World War II lesson plan, students identify the attack on Pearl Harbor, the response from the U.S and the effect it had on Japanese-Americans. Learners define Japanese...
Curated OER
Follow the Drinking Gourd: Creative Writing
Pupils conduct Internet research to identify the conflicts and positions of slaves, slaveholders, and members of the Underground Railroad network in the time preceding the Civil War. Students write an essay about their findings written...
Curated OER
Writing Narration
Fourth graders write paragraphs. In this opening and closing paragraphs lesson, 4th graders complete a worksheet to develop interesting opening and closing paragraphs.
Curated OER
Water Uses and Children's Lives in East Africa
Students explore water usage around the world. In this "water" social studies lesson, students brainstorm ways in which water is used. Students visit the Water in Africa website to view pictures of water usage in Africa. Students...
Curated OER
Forced Potawatomi Migration
Fourth graders write about the forced Potawatomi migration. In this primary source lesson students are read journal entries from an emigrating party of Potawatomi Indians. Students reflect on the items the Indians might have taken with...
Curated OER
One Room Schoolhouse
Students study pictures and artifacts of the one-room schoolhouse. For this compare and contrast lesson,students list similarities and differences in schools of today and one-room schoolhouses. Then students use this analysis to write a...
Curated OER
Working on the Slant
Compare and contrast a major news story from various newspapers. How does the perspective change? Are certain things included in some of the stories and left out of others? Have pupils complete a graphic organizer to compare how...
EngageNY
Documenting Research: Sorting and Recording Information About the Wheelwright
Fourth graders practice using a graphic organizer to record their notes and answer text-dependent questions while supplying evidence of how they found their answer. They focus on a machine called the wheelright, which was commonly used...