Curated OER
Writer's Toolbox
Present the class with a slide show that will give them a great head start in writing expository and narrative texts. The information is highlighted for easy note taking, well organized, and presented in a kid-friendly manner. It...
Curated OER
Moving to the Five Paragraph Narrative Essay
Your class just completed a graphic organizer as a prewriting strategy, but how do they take what they've recorded on their sheet and turn it into a five-paragraph essay? Help your novice writers with this 23-slide PowerPoint. An example...
Penguin Books
The Curriculum Guide for The Secret Hum of a Daisy by Tracy Holczer
The death of a parent can turn a child's world upside down. A curriculum guide for The Secret Hum of a Daisy explores defining moments in the main character's life, including the loss of her mother. Chapter-by-chapter discussion...
Curated OER
Writing a Character Sketch
Combining descriptive and expository writing skills, middle schoolers create a character sketch about someone they know well. They use a graphic organizer to help them discuss a model character sketch and organize/write one of their own....
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Order My Steps
Students organize and sequence their writing ideas using different graphic organizers. They use the ideas to write a story that takes place over two days.
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The Six Traits of Writing
Targeted toward parents, the slides included here could be adapted for classroom use or shown at Back-to-School Night. The focus of the presentation is Six Trait Writing: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, and...
Curated OER
Doodle Bug Family Web
Students discuss families, what makes up a family, and things families do. They create a web diagram to organize information about their families.
Curated OER
Plot/Story Problem/Resolution
Students analyze the plot, problem, and resolution of a story. In this story analysis lesson, students read stories and fill out graphic organizers about the plot, story problems, and resolution.
Learning Station
Researching and Writing a Biography
In this literature and writing graphic organizer worksheet, students choose a famous person to research. They fill in important facts that are described in the graphic organizer which start with the birth and childhood to the adulthood...
Curated OER
Maniac Magee Comprehension Questions
Supplement your Maniac Magee lesson plans with a packet of student materials. Included here is a variety of questions about the text. Pupils complete multiple choice and short-answer questions and choose from a variety of extension...
Curated OER
Specialized Structures and Environments
Fifth graders explore biology by completing an Internet activity in class. For this adaptation lesson, 5th graders identify several organisms and mammals that fight for their existence through slow changes to their anatomy over the...
Curated OER
News Broadcasts
Learners create a news broadcast after studying example broadcasts about disaster relief organizations. In this broadcast news lesson, students research disaster relief organizations and then write a news broadcast related to a disaster....
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Martin Luther King Jr. and Nonviolence
Using the book, Martin's Big Words, learners will discover the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Vocabulary is identified throughout the story by using several his famous protest speeches as examples. Class discussions on racism, during...
Curated OER
Flutter Farm
Students create their own butterfly garden and follow a participation plan to ensure that everyone will have a hand in the garden. In this gardening lesson plan, 5th graders log their progress with their garden by taking photos, and...
Curated OER
Peanut Butter Broccoli
Fifth graders explore food production by viewing DNA presentations. For this genetic engineering lesson, 5th graders discuss the foods they typically eat at home and how many common foods are engineered in a way that can produce a bigger...
Curated OER
Vermicomposting
Fifth graders explore agriculture by viewing compost related presentations. In this worm and soil instructional activity, 5th graders identify the relationship between good soil and the worms who inhabit it by reading assigned text in...
Curated OER
Be a Celebrity and Share Your Life with Us
Sixth graders discuss their likes, dislikes, hobbies, goals, and special events in their lives. They write a five paragraph autobiography focusing on style, transitions, and details. This is well-suited for either explanatory or...
Curated OER
Pen Pals
Fifth graders become pen pals from other countries and research their countries for information that help with their writing. This information is then sent to another student who is also portraying someone from another country.
Curated OER
Front Page News
Students collect and analyze the front pages of various newspapers and perform research on the Titantic tragedy. They choose a name for their newspaper, a headline, gather photographs, and write a front page article. Using computer...
Curated OER
The Plant Bartering System
Fifth graders explore plant characteristics by viewing a flower and seed presentation. In this environmental adaptation lesson, 5th graders identify specific traits plants have in order to allow them to grow in different climates whether...
Curated OER
Martin Luther King Jr. and Nonviolence
Young scholars explore a local seat of government to examine ways to make changes in their communities. In this local government activity, students read about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his nonviolent protests. Young scholars read...
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The LEAGUE: Learning to Give Lesson 3
Students reflect on giving to people in their community. In this philanthropy lesson, students think about an elderly person in their neighborhood or community who has done something to make that community more beautiful. Students...
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Let Your Voice Be Heard
Students explore new ways to communicate through technology by utilizing an internet program. In this reading comprehension lesson, students utilize the website voicethread.com to share their thoughts and notes about reading assignments...
Curated OER
Healthful Eating
Students read a story about how cartoon characters are partially to blame for American's obesity problem, and answer vocabulary and comprehension questions about it. In this healthful eating lesson plan, students respond to literature by...