Whether it's dark, delightful, or somber, set the mood with William Golding's Lord of the Flies. High-schoolers practice descriptive writing by creating the appropriate mood for an original scene, starring one of the book's main...

Learners listen carefully to a portion of the Poetry Out Loud CD. They focus on the tones the poet uses in his recitation of a poem. Then they map a poem of their own so that a classmate can read it using the tonal qualities intended...

Elementary schoolers read many tall tales. They create their own tall tale about a specific event of their choosing. They must act the part of the author. This well-designed lesson takes three class sessions to complete, and is...

Can your pupils change the world? Explore this question with Ben Harper's song "With My Own Two Hands" and John Mayer's "Waiting for the World to Change." After listening to the songs, they discuss the tools at their disposal for...

Three lesson plans are shown on this site, two of which pertain to Read 180. Start the year with the first lesson plan by having your learners create a brochure about themselves. In the computer lab, they find clip art and photos to make...

Students improve their reading and speaking skills. They experiment with language, tone of voice, body language as they write a play. They write a script to a play. They act out roles of the play.

High schoolers combine creativity with the rigor of careful editing by adding music to their story. It forces them to focus on how they communicate the meaning of their story to the listener.

Reader's Theater is a great way to build fluency, intonation, and dramatic flare. The class reads the theater piece, "The New Friends" paying attention to how they express emotion and feeling as they read. They discuss the use of plot,...

Students use several strategies in poetry to convey tone and speaker. In this language arts lesson, students read and build vocabulary as they gain a larger understanding of how to write poetry. Students then work in groups in order...

Fifth graders work together to make simple menus more interesting by adding descriptive words. This plan works well with the Six Traits of Writing as it covers the trait of word choice. This is a really fun way for students to practice...

Reading with expression excites listeners of any age. They will discuss different ways to change their reading expression as they listen to the teacher read Froggy Goes to the Doctor. Then in small groups, they'll practice reading...

Young learners explore what it means to be respectful. This resource includes a two page chart depicting rules for different settings at school such, as the cafeteria and the playground. What does following the rules look like? What does...

Eighth graders read letters of soldiers in the Civil War from the state of Maine. They create a soldier profile from the letters and draw what they believe the soldier looked like.

Are you looking for a way to bring writing into your history lesson - or history into your writing lesson? This cross-curricular activity is helpful and fun, no matter what class you're teaching! Using "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" by the...

Young scholars categorize studenT toys by intelligence types. They review toy safety and function and identify the appropriate play age of various toys. They read and evaluate studenT books and write one of their own.

In this lesson plan, PhotoStory 3, young scholars create a story board of an original poem through the use of PhotoStory 3 presentation. Students write a poem and use it to develop their storyboard. Young scholars publish and share...

Students explore geographic information. In this geography and technology lesson, students choose a county and answer related questions on a Webquest. Students create a word web and design a country brochure.

Learners brainstorm differences between dogs and cats. They discuss the elements that make a story effective and write a story with a beginning, middle and end in the voice of a cat or dog.

Students share observations on the nuances of meaning in face to face and online interactions with others. After reading an article, they identify the causes and effects of internet flaming. They create their own comic strips...

Little ones learn the tones mi, so, and la by singing an answer to a sung question. They play a name game to identify beat, then discuss songs with no beat. If there is time during this musical instruction activity, they dance about the...

Scholars read Maniac Magee and create epitaphs for each of the major characters using precise words reflecting the individual characters personality and nature. They will learn what an epitaph is and practice writing their own. They can...

Seventh graders examine the setting in pieces of fiction.  In this story analysis lesson plan, 7th graders investigate the setting in fictional stories and the importance it has.  Students discover new vocabulary terms applying...

Students analyze the language and characters in the Shakespeare play, Much Ado About Nothing. For this Shakespeare play lesson, students read section of the play and discuss the speech of Benedick and Claudio. Students record the speech...

Students create and perform a scene for play using a common fairy tale for the story line. They view and discuss a video on careers in stage and radio to identify the roles and responsibilities for each of their group members.