Writing a paragraph from details found directly in a text is the central focus of this thorough and explicit lesson plan. Using the stories Nasreen's Secret School and Rain School, third graders are lead step-by-step...

Encourage your young writers to thoughtfully plan and organize their work. First, model how this is done and vocalize your thought process as you work. Next, create a class list of strategies that they can use during independent writing...

Elementary and middle schoolers research animal facts and use them in a fable. First, they pair-share to find animal traits to use in writing a fable. They then complete a prewriting worksheet. After going through the writing process,...

Review story elements with your class. They will use examples from a story to develop critical-thinking questions. Then they use a graphic organizer to describe the setting, character, and plot of the story, focusing on how they...

Use this lesson to focus on a compare and contrast writing structure in your middle school language arts class. Here, young writers compare and contrast two texts using graphic organizers. They use a double bubble format for their...

Character development, setting, and plot? Sounds like the makings of a good narrative story. Young authors read and analyze several narrative examples, and then they use what they know to pen an original composition. They work both in...

As the culminating activity in a unit study of science fiction, young writers demonstrate their understanding of the genre by producing their own graphic novel. After deciding on the main elements of their story, individuals use a comic...

Learners recognize flags as a symbol through writing and imagery. In this artifact lesson, students investigate Tibetan prayer flags and their significance. Learners create personal prayer flags and write about their life experience of...

High schoolers review writing process, prepare cluster maps, organize events of their lives on an outline, and utilize graphic organizers to write autobiographical essays.

Get your language arts class moving, build community, and strengthen writing skills with this kinesthetic activity. The class brainstorms interview questions from which each chooses three. Individuals then collect information about six...

Show a Powerpoint presentation about descriptive writing. Fourth graders brainstorm a list of writing topics and place them in graphic organizers. Then they write their own paragraphs describing topics of their choice and create...

Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.

Learners design book covers. In this graphic design lesson, students are introduced to designing book covers. Learners develop skills on how to promote their designs to clients. Students then create their own book covers.

Get the scoop with a fun, engaging newspaper project. After analyzing the parts of a newspaper, including the headline, subtitles, and pictures or images, young journalists get to work by writing their own stories in a newspaper article...

Second graders research their family history and how it connects them to the past. They identify their ancestors, graphically organize relatives in a family tree, and chart significant events in their lives on a timeline.

Compare and contrast two topics with your class. They will pick a topic of their choosing, create color-coded Venn diagram to visually organize their information, share diagrams with classmates, and write well-organized essay on...

Fifth graders write a paragraph titled "All About Me" in the computer lab after they have drawn graphic organizers to fill in background information about themselves and used a "10-Point Writing Checklist" to do peer editing.

Students discuss the essay, Kumara From the Farmer's Field and examine strategies for organizing facts for future reference. In this reading comprehension activity, students pretend they are advertising executives who must create a...

Fifth graders give a presentation about one of the explorers. In this explorers lesson, 5th graders research an explorer and give a presentation to the class. While students are presenting the others are taking notes on a graphic organizer.

Seventh graders embark in discovery of basic facts about an assigned continent and are asked to organize their information into categories. The Five Themes model is taught and students reshuffle their information appropriately.

Students explore American tall tales. In this tall tale instructional activity, students discover the six characteristics that are included in tall tales. Students survey their class to find each student's favorite tall tale character...

Middle schoolers create holiday story while working in cooperative learning groups, using Chris Van Allsburg's Polar Express as a writing prompt.

Students explore language arts by reading a classic children's story in class. In this story structure lesson, students read the Judith Viorst book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Students discuss the...

Students write their own version of "Peter and the Wolf". They explore the characters and the instruments that represent the characters. They use graphic organizing software to brainstorm ideas for characters and story lines for...