Curated OER
Responding Syllables: Reading and Music
Shell Silverstein’s “Sick” provides an opportunity for kids to demonstrate their understanding of syllables and phonemes. The class creates a list of descriptive words used in the poem that have more than one syllable, and brainstorm how...
Curated OER
Reading Comprehension: History of the Periodic Table
Although the article that launches this lesson is about the history of the Periodic Table, the objective is reading comprehension. Using the eight-page informational text, learners answer five comprehension questions and craft one essay....
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KWL Comprehension Strategy: Maus I and II
How much does your class know about World War II? Before reading Art Spiegelman's Maus I, lead your class in creating a KWL chart. Knowing the background and setting of the novel are extremely important in understanding this survivor's...
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Introduce Vocabulary: A Picture Book of Helen Keller (Adler)
The story of Helen Keller is a fascinating one for young scholars; use it to practice reading comprehension and new vocabulary as learners listen to you read David Adler's picture book (hint: this strategy can be applied to any book)....
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Introduce Vocabulary: Amigo (Baylor)
Amigo by Byrd Baylor gives learners a chance to practice with unknown words and context clues. Choose several vocabulary words to focus on as you read the picture book, or use the ones provided here (the book is in English despite the...
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Introduce Vocabulary: Cows Can't Fly (Milgrim)
Cows can't fly, can they? David Milgrim's whimsical story makes vocabulary fun! Although this strategy can be used with any text, using Cows Can't Fly will be a breeze with this outline. Pupils are ready to raise their hands when they...
Curated OER
In the Time of Butterflies: List-Group-Label
Use the list-group-label strategy to introduce your class to In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez. The teacher begins by writing a word on the board (dictatorship is suggested here), and then the kids write as many words as...
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A Clockwork Orange: Anticipation Guide and 4 Corners
Get your kids up and moving with this prereading activity for A Clockwork Orange! After your class completes the anticipation guide (included), they walk to the corner of the room that you've deemed for those who strong disagree,...