Some experiences are worth living again. At least, that is how government researchers feel about Brian's survival experience in the woods. The River is a sequel to Brian's adventures in Hatchet. Scholars read about the troubles...

Some say a dog is a man's best friend. However, in Rascal, it is not a dog that captures a boy's heart—but a raccoon. Scholars read about the boy and Rascal's adventures while they complete activities about the story. Activities include...

Middle schoolers read maps and artifacts for information indicating the existence of a trade network in Old Babylonia and beyond. They list goods imported to and exported from Babylonia. They indicate trading centers on a map of ancient...

Get your young scientists excited about geology through the study of dinosaur tracks! They will use their power of observation to learn how tracks are made and use critical thinking strategies to suggest a scenario in which they were...

Middle schoolers will paraphrase a resource without plagiarizing. Then rewrite after reading text. They then evaluate the site or reference they are using for accuracy. In the end, they complete a note-taking organizer.

After reading a case study, pupils will explore possible diagnoses, assessment, and treatment plans. Finding the definitions to medical vocabulary and sorting through patient history, they will begin to understand the process of...

Family and friendship are two very important themes of the historical fiction novel The Orphan of Ellis Island by Elvira Woodruff. From video clips and writing prompts to reader's theater and family interviews, this resource...

How did the environment and natural resources found on the Channel islands influence the culture of the Chumash? Archaeology meets technology in an activity designed for middle schoolers. After viewing West of The West's documentary Once...

Students discover words through text, audio and images that begin with the letter B.  For this letter B lesson, students download an ebook and navigate through an interactive reading activity. 

Students participate in a pre-reading activity which helps them see what it would be like to live in poverty. For this reading comprehension lesson, students make a list of items they take on a trip considering they have very...

Students practice using strategies to help them read. They participate in activities that help them sound out words and determining the main idea. They also examine good and bad reading habits.

Students grasp how to read from text and retain it. They use reading comprehension strategies specific to the Internet. They search for answers to questions related to the Civil War.

Get your writers ready to compose a constructed response essay in response to either an informational or fictional text. Pupils note down the big idea they wish to address as well as up to nine examples from the text that they wish to...

Identifying onomatopoeia is one thing; making an inference about the significance of the sound is more advanced. Young poets read a literary passage and identify the examples of onomatopoeia in each before naming the...

A social justice lesson focuses on the Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia which struck down laws that prohibited marriages between African Americans and white Americans. The lesson begins with class members examining a photograph of...

Students read a short selection about the Jr. Iditarod race. They use a webquest to analyze information from the reading and answer a series of questions. The questions focus on fact-finding and making inferences.

Identify literary elements in fiction. In this reading comprehension lesson plan, learners read the book Pigsty and record literary elements onto a graphic organizer. They specifically discuss the main characters and events in the text.

Students examine the case of a map making expedition. In groups, they read a case study on "The Lost Gorge" in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. They examine maps and determine where the error in the map-making occured to end...

A simple, yet poignant lesson gets teens reading ads for clinical trials and discussing the requirements for participation. At home, they peruse the newspaper to find current examples of similar advertisements. The purpose of this lesson...

Students exoplore the world of imaginary creatures (dragons, unicorns, etc.) They discuss the creature's special attributes and read stories about them. They create their own magical creatures in the form of puppets.

Young scholars listen to a teacher led lecture on jaguars, their habitats, and how they became endangered. Using a specified web site, they choose an endangered animal to research. After gathering information, students participate in...

The Cay has been criticized by groups such as the Council on Interracial Books for Children because of the way race is portrayed. Explore the argument against the book while taking the author's perspective into account. Class members...

Students participate in four different activities which reinforce an understanding of they way scientists think about the world. They make careful observations of two different pennies, write the procedure for making a peanut butter and...

Young scholars explore ocean creatures. In this crustacean lesson, students determine how Black Nerite snails and Sally Light-foot crabs have adapted to their ocean habitats. Young scholars complete diagrams and hypothesize about the...