Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Introducing Communication Talent with "Casey at the Bat"

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Analyze the poem "Casey at the Bat." Your team of analysts will read the poem and complete a variety of activities, including describing how Casey looks and acts, describing how he feels before and after he strikes out, and sharing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hermeneutics: Teaching Students Author's Purpose

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Your developing literary critics discuss 'perspective' and discuss how the same occurence can be interpreted by two different people in two different ways. They read Ryszard Kapuscinski's untitled poem, infer meaning of the poem, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Presentations Come Alive!

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Partners create oral presentations about a short story or poem incorporating audiovisual aids. Then they make presentations to their classmates. Linked story map will help guide readers' organization of their presentation;...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mannerly Writing

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Writers draft paragraphs comparing and contrasting the author's viewpoint in two poems. They also discuss the differences between an informational text and a poem regarding manners. Rubric and assessment are provided.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Write Your Own Description

For Students 4th - 5th
For this writing worksheet, students learn about a poem by Gwendolyn Brooks titled "Skipper" which is about her goldfish. Students draw the water, life and objects in a fish bowl shape, then describe what people would see if they looked...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Runny Babbit

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Students are introduced to elements of poetry through the book Runny Babbit. In this poetry lesson, students learn about the newest Shel Silverstein book, then examine the poem's form, rhythm, and rhyme. Students look for other Shel...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Edward Lear, Limericks, and Nonsense: There Once Was?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore limericks. In this poetry writing lesson, students listen to and read a variety of poems written by Edward Lear. Students count syllables and identify meter by clapping as they read aloud. Students complete a limerick...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Edward Lear, Limericks, and Nonsense: There Once Was...

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students recognize poetic devices including rhyme, syllabification, and meter. They identify the characteristics of a nonsense poem and of a limerick. They write their own limericks.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Beatrix Potter and Alliteration

For Students 5th - 7th
In this creative writing instructional activity, students utilize a variety of strategies to creatively write alliterations, tongue twisters, similes and finally an acrostic poem.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students write poems and a narrative story.  For this writing lesson, students read stories and poems written by other students and read examples of haiku's and diamonte's.  Students write an acrostic poem and a diamonte...
Interactive
Curated OER

Hope

For Students 5th - 10th
In this poem activity, students read the poem Hope by Emily Dickinson and answer multiple choice questions and complete a word search. Students complete 2 activities.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Poetic Me

For Students 2nd - 6th
In this writing poetry worksheet, students discover what an acrostic poem is and how to write one. Students then compose acrostic poems about themselves.
Activity
App State

Brainstorming

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Get your young writers outside of the traditional essay writing mode with Free Write Friday. Free Write Friday encourages your class to use personal experiences or knowledge to write more creative pieces. Young writers could experiment...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Show You Care

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students construct a four-line poem to be used on the inside of a Valentine's Day card. They use a digital camera to show themselves to their "buddies" (local nursing home patients) who receive the cards on Valentine's Day.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing About Time: My Favorite Times

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Start by clicking on the icon that says, "Download the Activity." The format is much easier to read and understand here! Then, encourage your class to write about some of their favorite things through a three-paragraph essay. Examples...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making Magical Creatures Talk

For Teachers 4th - 5th Standards
Invite your young writers to take the reins with writing dialogue. Using two characters of their own creation, kids work with partners and then individually to write short conversations.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fabulous, Fractured Fables

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Elementary schoolers develop an awareness of the literary form known as the fable. They explore how authors write fables to pass along moral lessons. After reading and discussing many famous fables embedded in the plan, learners attempt...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Biopoem: Ender's Game

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Here's an activity designed to encourage character analysis. Readers craft a biopoem for a character in Orson Scott Cards' popular science fiction novel Ender's Game.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Onomatopoeia

For Teachers 5th - 7th
This mini-lesson on onomatopoeia introduces the device through a poem and definition. It culminates in drawing an element of nature with the sound associated with it written across the picture.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Discovering Japan Through Cooperative Research

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
Search a variety of sources to create a multimedia or book project about Japan. Learners use the independent investigation method to plan and conduct research about Japan. They use the information they discover to create a computer book...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Be Specific, Go West To The Pacific

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Fifth and sixth graders follow Lewis and Clark from St. Louis to the Pacific and back again. They read online journal entries made by Lewis and Clark to gather information. The official Lewis and Clark website is used by learners to...
Activity
Playbooks

Reader's Theater Exercise: The Night Before Christmas

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Yes, Virginia, there really is a reader's theater script for "The Night Before Christmas." The exercise is a great way to productively channel pre-holiday energy.
Activity
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Scholastic

Narrative Writing

For Teachers 5th - 9th Standards
If you're looking to start a unit based around narrative writing, make sure to consider this resource while you're planning. This book covers five topics: writing personal narratives, writing narratives about others, writing...
Worksheet
Curated OER

What Makes a Novel a Novel?

For Students 4th - 8th
As your authors prepare to write a hypothetical novel, they need all the inspiration they can find! Using a book they have already read (and enjoyed), learners complete a literary analysis by filling in eight short-answer...