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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Word Association Poetry with Visual Thesaurus (or Not)

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young poets get inspiration and guidance for making word association poems with the Visual Thesaurus. Your class could complete this project with nothing more than a pencil and paper as well. A nice one-off for a substitute during your...
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Lesson Plan
Academy of American Poets

Teach This Poem: "When Fannie Lou Hamer Said" by Mahogany L. Browne

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
After watching an excerpt from a video of Fannie Lou Hamer's testimony before Congress, pupils do a close reading of Mahogany L. Browne's poem "When Fannie Lou Hamer Said," annotate words and phrases that draw their attention and list...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bringing Household Items to Life

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Use folk tales as inspiration for learning about and using personification in creative writing. Learners brainstorm together in order to practice personification before writing their own poems or paragraphs about a household object.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clicking Your Way to Poetry: Composing Word Association Poems with the Visual Thesaurus

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Use a Visual Thesaurus to compose word association poems. Discuss poetry and word association, create word maps, then practice creating poems based on playful word associations. A perfect way to celebrate "Poem in Your Pocket Day" (April...
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Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

10 Ideas for Teaching Black History Month

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
Celebrate Black History Month with the help of 10 ideas that delve deep into the history, major events, contributions, famous African Americans, and sheds light on how scholars today can take a proactive stance on current civil rights...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Native American Culture

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students research Native American culture. For this Native Americans lesson, students read the folk tale, The Strongest One and identify the natural resources in the poem. Students participate in a discussion of how Native Americans got...
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Study Guide
Reed Novel Studies

The Light in the Forest: Novel Study

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
"Make new friends but keep the old" is a wise saying. However, True Son, a main character in The Light in the Forest, struggles doing just that. Once living among the white people, he was taken into an Indian tribe for several years....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

African-American Heroes

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore websites about famous African-Americans. They work in pairs to decide on an African American who should be honored with a stamp. They write a letter recommending this person for a stamp including appropriate reason why...
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PPT
Curated OER

Out of the Dust: Background notes about the novel, The Great Depression, and The Dust Bowl

For Teachers 5th - 7th
If your class is reading the historical fiction novel, Out of the Dust, then you are in luck. Here are a few slides that will help you provide historical context for the book, as well as define main characters, setting, symbolism, and...
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Study Guide
Reed Novel Studies

One-Eyed Cat: Novel Study

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
The Great Depression was a devastating period in American history that lasted for an entire decade. Using an enlightening novel study, scholars uncover additional facts about the era. They also write quatrain poems focusing on themes...
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Lesson Plan
Carolina K-12

Group Project: Freedom Parade

For Students 5th Standards
Parades are a great way to celebrate. Get young historians into the festivities by asking them to create an informational float for a Freedom Parade. Picking a topic from the provided list or suggesting one of their own, class members...
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Study Guide
Reed Novel Studies

One Crazy Summer: Novel Study

For Teachers 4th - 7th Standards
Rita Williams-Garcia's One Crazy Summer describes three girls who go looking for their mother who ran out on them. Scholars complete a novel study guide with vocabulary exercises, character descriptions, and comprehension poems.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oh, Say, Can You See What the Star-Spangled Banner Means?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students research the historical inspiration for the lyrics of the "The Star Spangled Banner". They explore websites, read articles and analyze poetry in an examination of America's patriotic symbols and history.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Moving West

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students research the Westward Movement and struggles encountered by the pioneers as they moved from Nebraska, Westward along the Oregon Trail. In this Westward Expansion lesson, students read an Oregon Trail poem and visit 5 different...
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Study Guide
Reed Novel Studies

Fever 1793: Novel Study

For Teachers 5th - 7th Standards
There is no escaping fever in 1793. Mattie, a main character, soon learns that a disease outbreak has taken over much more than her hometown. Scholars discover how Mattie responds to her circumstances by learning new vocabulary and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Children's Literature Across the Curriculum Ideas-Duke Ellington

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Pupils read Duke Ellington by Andrea Davis Pinkney. They complete a variety of cross-curricular activities surrounding the life of the 20th century composer. Included are reading, art, math, science, writing, social studies, and library...
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Don't Fence Me In

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Ensure that your class has a well-rounded understanding of new inventions, in this case barbed wired. Class members, after researching the history and development of barbed wire, assess its impact on cattle and the development of the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Crackin' the Musical Code

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students decode musical notation and then synthesize and apply by notating their own musical composition. Students draw various rhythmic examples which are equal in time duration. They notate and count rhythmic patterns. Additional cross...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clara Barton

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Students explore the social change during the nineteenth sand early twentieth centuries. The founding of the American Red Cross by Clara Barton and the role it played in organizing help for those in need is examined in this lesson plan.
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Unit Plan
Curated OER

Halloween

For Teachers 5th - 11th
Students study the customs and superstitions of the Halloween holiday. They look at the origin of the Halloween, read poems, play games, and discuss readings such as Harry Potter and the works of Stephen King.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Steven Spielberg

For Students 4th - 8th
In this famous person instructional activity, students read a passage about Steven Spielberg and then complete a variety of in-class and homework activities to support comprehension, including partner interviews, spelling, cloze, synonym...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Walk the Sky Path

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders use maps of Florida. They locate places from a list on their map. Students use the places mentioned in the book, "To Walk the Sky Path," and locate them on the map. Students should have labeled a minimum of 10 places, and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sea Turtle

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students listen to a story about a sea turtle sanctuary. They participate in a discussion about the sea turtles. They analyze some of the hazards that can hurt sea turtles and brainstorm ways to help the problem. They write and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rap Music and Hip-Hop

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students explore rap and hip hop music. In this music and culture lesson, students experience the music of Will Smith in order to work on language and communication skills such as rhyming words, writing, and public speaking.