Pirates ahoy! Readers go on an adventure using a novel study for Treasure Island as they research and write about a modern-day pirate story. Additionally, scholars practice writing similes and alliteration before answering comprehension...

Practice using the Turn the Question Around (TQA) method to answer reading comprehension questions based on short narrative paragraphs. Instructions and materials are included for direct, guided, and independent instruction. Responses...

solid, liquid, and gas. The three different forms of water are the subject of the article used to assess reading comprehension. After reading the article, kids respond to a series of comprehension questions based on the text.

Everyone wants to feel like they belong. James, in James and the Giant Peach, finds a feeling of belonging in a very odd place—inside a peach! Scholars read the story of James and the Peach and work through vocabulary, language, and...

Introduce your class to fairy tales with this instructional activity. After reading the fractured fairy tale, "The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig," third, fourth, and fifth graders write a personal narrative as a response to the...

Create a commercial for a favorite book and broadcast this pitch on the Sly Book Channel! Learners practice retelling, summarizing, comparing/contrasting, and evaluation skills as they prepare their scripts. The approved scripts are then...

Foreshadowing, flashbacks, and imaginary places are the three topics of focus in this two-lesson packet written especially for the book, Bridge to Terabithia. Each lesson also comes with worksheets and activities to support student...

A lot of secrecy shrouded the creation of the atomic bomb. Readers uncover some of that secrecy using an educator's guide for the novel The Green Glass Sea. Three weeks of lesson plans feature discussion questions and reading...

Inspired by magazine photos, your young writers hone word choices to create a meaningful haiku. Charged with brainstorming 100 words associated with a photo of their choosing, they whittle their list to the top 10%, make three sentences...

Looking for a way to review and practice spelling words that's fun and creative? Use this spelling relay activity for any grade level. Using three spelling lists, ranging in difficulty, teams of young spellers choose words from the lists...

Find the main idea in an informational text with a versatile lesson. Three levels of differentiation help you implement the strategy in any age or class level, based on the ability and objectives of your learners.

In fifth grade, young mathematicians extend their understanding of fractions to multiplying them together. Give them a worksheet that has them do exactly that. Class members solve five fraction multiplication problems, including one with...

The world is a big place—discover it! A series of challenge activities designed to accompany Theme 4: Person to Person encourages learners to explore the world around them. Project-based activities promote research and writing skills in...

Pupils examine similarities and differences between cultures. They'll see that literature, reading, and story telling is something all cultures have in common. They should construct Venn diagrams to help them compare and contrast the...

Use a traffic light to model a very basic paragraph plan. The Go, or topic sentence, is written in green and expresses an opinion about the topic. Information that supports the opinion of the Go sentence is written in yellow and the...

Create a class anthology with your young writers. In this personal narrative instructional activity, each writer reflects on actions and events from their own lives and chronicles them in a three-part written sequence. They create a...

"If you could un-invent something what would it be?" "What are you more comfortable with—routine or spontaneity?" Here's a packet of one-a-day writing prompts. Although designed for fifth graders, the topics are appropriate for any grade...

Bring history to life through literature. The first in a series of three challenge activities designed to accompany Theme 5: One Land, Many Trails does just that through unique projects connected to historical fiction and nonfiction...

Young writers use technology and other media to research information on a chosen topic. They explore countries where keypals and e-mail friends are located. Using their writing skills, they correspond with their e-mail friend and...

Students experience several different tone colors in the song and also add layers of color to their copy of "The Owl" to compare and contrast how an artist would create the element of color.

It's a known secret that English can be a difficult language to learn, and homophones don't make it any easier. Help your young readers tackle these tricky words with this simple fill-in-the blank exercise in which...

Character analysis becomes easy with a 24-page packet packed with mini-lessons, graphic organizers, and activities. A must-have for your curriculum library.

Students examine storytelling in a cross curricular unit. Language arts, social studies, science and math are all incorporated in this project as well as technology through the use of Hyperstudio.

Should the excavation of what is believed to be the cave of the Lone Woman of San Nicholas Island be allowed to continue? As a practice exercise designed to prepare pupils for a timed writing exam, individuals read two Los Angeles...