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Reading Comprehension Strategy Ideas
Students participate in pre-reading activities, journal keeping, vocabulary lists and other reading comprehension boosters. These activities can be applied to many genres.
National First Ladies' Library
Pandemics: The Swine Flu of 1918
Students study pandemics through the investigational research of the 1918 swine flu. They apply the information by choosing a current virus and role-playing a member of the Centers of Disease Control (CDC).
Scholastic
Midnight Magic Discussion Guide
This discussion guide accompanies the fiction book Midnight Magic written by Avi, enforces story elements, inferences, and theme/plot. Have the class work on it over time, it will engage even your reluctant readers.
Curated OER
iRock
Students explore, listen to and analyze songs that helped define rock and roll music. They read and discuss the article, "They're All Oldies, Dad Included." Research on contemporary artists is conducted and then the students choose who...
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Writing with Writers
Students identify unique characteristics of different writing genres such as biography, folktales and mysteries. They create original piece of writing using the writing process and then post their original writing online. They think...
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Making the Old New Again
How does a new version of a Shakespearean play change in the adaptation process? Use this New York Times' Learning Network lesson to consider texts that have been produced in different media. Middle schoolers examine the latest...
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Identifying Setting: Expository Writing
Your class can take turns describing a well know location or setting without giving its name, and the rest of the class can try to identify the location, based on the details given. They chart the elements that helped in the...
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Gettysburg: The Civil War's Costliest Battle
Students research the Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg. In this Gettysburg lesson, students analyze journals and letters written by the Gettysburg soldiers. Students define Civil War soldier vocabulary words. Students compare and...
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Persuasive Writing: Creating Book Reviews
By reading and analyzing examples of persuasive text, students can get a better idea of how to form their own essays.
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Fiction vs. Nonfiction
Young scholars explore fiction and nonfiction writing. They identify the elements of fiction in a short story and identify the criteria necessary in a nonfiction piece. Students distinguish the author's purpose in an expository text,...
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It's a Mystery to Me
Young scholars read a variety of mysteries to improve their reading and comprehension skills. Using a worksheet, they define and practice using new vocabulary. In groups, they read stories from Poe and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and write...
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Haiku
Sixth graders study Haiku. In this Haiku lesson, 6th graders explore the history of the poetry form. Students also examine the structure the Japanese poetry as they read examples. Students write their one Haiku.
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Comparing Works By The Same Author: Venn Diagram
A Venn diagram is a great tool. Middle schoolers research specific authors from different time periods, cultures, and genres. In groups, they create a Venn Diagram in order to compare and contrast two pieces of literature by the same...
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Myths, Folktales, & Fairy Tales
Srtudents explore the folktale and folklore genres as well as the world of myths. They read myths and folktales to increase knowledge of world cultures and traditions and follow the writing process to create writing in different genres.
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Duking It Out
Learners read and discuss 'Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra: Mixing Treasures by Duke Ellington and Edvard Grieg,' exploring how jazz transformed European music and the influence jazz has had on modern music. They write musical reviews.
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Show Me the Story
Young scholars examine the elements of a story, read a review of Chris Rock's new sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris" and create original sitcom episodes based on their own lives.
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Right About Now… and Then
Students discuss significant figures in music history and read an article about the Smithsonian's Hip-Hop exhibit. In groups, they develop and curate an exhibition of hip-hop music and history using artifacts that represent relevant...
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All Mixed Up
Students explore the emergence of bootlegs, also known as 'mash-ups' (the combination of two songs into one), on the Internet. By researching the musical origins of songs and creating and performing their own bootlegs, students gain a...
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The New Fant-"Asia": Contrasting Animated and Live-Action Filmmaking
Learners consider different stories and story-telling techniques of animated and live-action filmmaking, write proposals for animated films, and storyboard individual scenes.
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Joltin' Joe Has Left and Gone Away
Students assess admirable qualities in entertainers. They discuss Joe DiMaggio's obituary, focusing on his accomplishments and place in American society. They research and create their own descriptive biographies of athletes and...
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Recalling History by Pulling Strings
Learners investigate the role and nature of story-telling as it preserves history and culture and discuss how puppetry serves as an effective method of presentation. They create basic outlines for puppet shows that relay important...
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Pioneering Children on the Move
Students inquire about life for pioneer children. In this pioneer period instructional activity, students analyze photographs of children, make information foldables, and create a covered wagon that was typical of the ones of the past....
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Louisiana's Legendary Musicians
Students identify and interpret what legendary traditional musicians of Louisiana that allows them to hear new genres of traditional music. They also identify what it means to be a legendary artist and read, write, and create a project...
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Mystery Writing Lesson Plans
Introduce your class to the genre of mystery. Included is a vocabulary list, a rubric, and a sample mystery story called "Lethal Lesson." There are very limited directions on what to do with these resources, so you will need to plan some...