EngageNY
Taking Notes and Citing Quotes from Text: Gathering Information on our Rainforest Insects
In other words. Scholars practice using paraphrasing and quotes. They partner in pairs to write a paraphrase for an information text strip. Individuals then use their skills to paraphrase information from the text Fire Ants.
Pardee Home Museum
Geography of Alaska
A unit on the 49th state covers a variety of topics from the geography of Alaska to Native American myths. Academics work to analyze information found in primary source materials including old newspaper articles and artifacts. Young...
Newsela
Mexico: Art, Food and Culture
What can we pick up from the culture of others? Scholars learn much about people of Mexico by completing a close reading of articles about the country's culture. After completing the selection, readers carry out tasks, complete quizzes,...
All About Explorers
How Could They Be so Wrong?
If it's on the Internet, it must be true ... right? Introduce young Internet explorers to the importance of fact-checking through a fun web-based activity. Pairs work together to read and analyze biographies about world explorers, then...
Scholastic
The Flight of Amelia Earhart Teaching Guide
Amelia Earhart's accomplishments and strength of character extend beyond her status as one of the first female aviators in America. Elementary and middle schoolers learn about Earhart's early life and the historical context surrounding...
Curated OER
Dr. Seuss and Read Across America
What important facts about Dr. Seuss influenced the Read Across America movement...? This is the driving question of a research project that requires scholars to find information about Dr. Seuss' life and work. Class members write a...
Media Smarts
The Broadcast Project
As part of a unit on media studies, kids are asked to chart their viewing habits, observe the advertising that sponsors their favorite shows, and then to imagine what they would broadcast if given a block of airtime.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Document Analysis: The Mayflower Compact
Here's a great comprehension worksheet that models for young readers how to focus on short sections of a complicated text and then to create a summary of the entire document based on their understanding of the sections.
Student Handouts
The Five W's and How
Here is a great graphic organizer for ensuring that young researchers and writers cover all their bases when brainstorming a topic by considering the five W's (who, what, where, when, and why) and how.
Brockman Elementary School
Living History Timeline
As part of a living history research project, learners research a chosen historical figure that they will study and physically represent in a gallery walk. This resource includes a project description, letter to parents, rubric, and...
K12 Reader
The Greatest President
Who is the greatest US president? George Washington? Abraham Lincoln? FDR? Find out the opinions of your young historians with this cross-curricular writing prompt that engages them in researching the accomplishments of these influential...
K12 Reader
A Planet in the Solar System
Take young scientists on an exploration of the cosmos with this cross-curricular writing exercise. Tasked with producing an expository composition describing a planet of their choosing, students perform research and present their...
Union Elementary School District
Famous Dead People Project
Despite the slightly off-putting title, the instructions and activities detailed in these project guidelines for researching a noteworthy figure will serve as a fantastic supplement to your next famous person research assignment.
Curated OER
Biography Worksheet
The design of good graphic organizers indicate the relative importance of the information collected. This biography graphic organizer is a good one because the focus is more on events in the subject's life, the whys and whats, rather...
Everything Homeschooling
Biography Worksheet
Gathering information about a person is the easy part. Crafting an interesting biography is another thing altogether. The value in this information-collecting instructional activity is that writers are asked to move beyond the usual...
Curated OER
Thanksgiving Day
What state consumes the most turkey per person? Who sponsors the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City? Use the Thanksgiving holiday as an opportunity for learners to develop their research skills with this fun Internet...
Nicole Held
Disability Research
Learners engage in a disability awareness assignment where they research and identify a particular disability, and answer such questions as how the disability might affect the way one learns or what services are available for support.
123 Homeschool 4 Me
Christmas Around the World
Young travelers keep a travel journal as they tour the world and research the holiday traditions of over 30 countries. The directions packet for this journey includes an eBook filled with all the necessary templates, loads of links,...
US Mint
Rename That State!
As Shakespeare famously wrote, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," but can the same be said for a state? In this elementary geography lesson, students are assigned specific states to research using the information they find...
Curated OER
Elementary Keyboarding Activities
Listen to the sound of children's fingers flying across their keyboards as they perform these fun typing lessons. From creating alphabet books and multimedia presentations to researching presidents and writing class newsletters, numerous...
Curated OER
Greek Barbie or Action Figure
Young historians bring Greek mythology to the twenty-first century with this engaging research project. Hired to create a Barbie doll or action figure modeled after a Greek god or goddess, students gather the information necessary to...
Curated OER
SAMR Model: Search
Based on the SAMR model, use this rubric to find specific examples of how to consider your students' abilities to search and collect information using technology. The resource illustrates how learners evolve from using technology to...
Curated OER
Animal Adaptations
Young scientists explore the animal kingdom from the safety of the classroom with this short research project. After first choosing an animal, children use the Internet to discover where it lives, what it eats, and how it has adapted to...
Newseum
News Confusion: What Is News?
Use headlines to help your learners understand what news is. First, present a list of categories to your class. Then instruct small groups to play a game in which they sort headlines into the categories. Discuss the result and examine...