Determine the author's purpose in writing a memoir. Eighth graders work in groups  to elicit author's purpose in memoirs, taking care to note how subtle the message can be hidden throughout the work. This instructional activity is a...

Students review what author's purpose is by understanding that authors either persuade, inform, describe, or entertain with their story. In this language arts lesson, students bring in junk mail and in small groups discuss what the each...

Different types of text are written for very different reasons. Learners discuss the differences in writing to entertain, to inform, and to persuade their audiences. They work on identifying the author's purpose by reading and charting...

Here is a great lesson on recognizing events and themes in a story. Students read chapters from a chosen book and then fill out a graphic organizer to further explore the purpose of the chapter. They write the events, themes, author's...

Fourth graders research authors on the Web each month in based on the themes in their reading book. They create an author booklet which includes a picture and biographical information.

Albert Bierstadt's painting Wind River Country shows viewers how a reader progresses through a story. Your class studies the light and dark areas, how the eye moves across the painting, and what attracts the audience to the work, and...

Fifth graders use technology to research and collect data. They develop awareness and appreciation of authors and genres. They organize information for presentation.

Middle schoolers aren't too young to feel strongly about politics, social issues, consumer rights, or environmental problems. Demonstrate the first steps toward social change with a project about action-oriented writing. Eighth...

Students use unitedstreaming and Google Earth to investigate World War II and All Quiet on the Western Front. In this novel and technology lesson, students view a video about the novel using unitedstreaming video, visit the given...

A great way to connect social studies with language arts, a resource on Mary Henry's historical diary reinforces the concepts of primary and secondary sources. It comes with an easy-to-understand lesson plan, as well as the reference...

Women's voices are becoming more prominent in the world of literature, but for centuries, this wasn't the case. Young historians research a woman whose writings are considered to be lost, out of print, or forgotten. They develop an oral...

Have your class go on picture walks of different books, and identify them as either fiction or non fiction and why. Working in groups, kindergartners state whether the book tells information or comes from the author's imagination. Use...

While reading the book Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls, the class ties together the core reading objectives, which are making predictions, comprehending new information, reading for author's purpose, independence in reading,...

A well-designed lesson plan on the life cycle of the butterfly is here for you. In it, young scientists spend 45 minutes a day, for one school week, engaged in their study. They take nature walks, participate in activities in centers,...

A talkative old man? A naïve believer in Human Perfectibility? A Sage? Who is this guy, anyway? The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin launches a study of the way Franklin uses structure, style, and purpose, as well as different...

A lesson on photo analysis, compare and contrast, and an art project are here for the taking. Fourth graders analyze photographs of gas stations from now and from the past, focusing on how the cars and building designs are a form of art....

Create meaningful illustrations to accompany stories in a web-based art and literacy lesson focused on "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling. The class takes a virtual art safari with the Museum of Modern Art and then discusses how...

Double click that mouse because you just found an amazing lesson! This cross-curricular Ornithology lesson incorporates literature, writing, reading informational text, data collection, scientific inquiry, Internet research, art, and...

Here is a fine lesson plan on geology designed for high schoolers. Learners use rocks, fossils, and other geological clues to determine the geology of an area. Then, they make recommendations to a fictitious city council about the...

Students conduct interviews. In this interviewing activity, students read an interview of Pam Munoz Ryan to see where she got her ideas from in her story.  They interview someone and create a scrapbook to show details of the...

Seventh graders complete a unit of lessons on the American Revolution based on the novel, 'Johnny Tremain.' They define key vocabulary terms, develop a timeline, write a report on a colonial craft, make a colonial flag, and create a...

Eighth graders complete a unit of lessons on basic geometry concepts. They participate in a variety of activities, culminating in a project that involves publishing a booklet or a poster that presents the major geometry concepts from the...

Students brainstorm author's purpose, and use their imagination to draw pictures that illustrate what the purpose is. In this literature and writing lesson, student's use Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as a guide from which to work.

Students discover Native American culture by creating masks.  In this customs instructional activity, students create their own masks in class from plaster and paint.  Students perform a skit in front of their school showcasing...