For this ninth lesson plan in a larger beginning-of-the-year unit, close reading skills are used independently to find the gist of the story That Book Woman. Rereading for important details is the targeted skill to unlock a deeper...

It's time to discover what your classes have learned! The final lesson in the 25-part module is an assessment that covers the Pythagorean Theorem. Application of the theorem includes distance between points, the volume of...

Students measure an assortment of items using metric measurements. In this measurement lesson, students measure using length, mass, and volume units of measurement. They convert between units. Students learn a mnemonic to assist in...

In many places in the world, people go to great lengths to get books to read. This beginning-of-the-year activity uses pictures of people reading in extraordinary situations to stimulate effective listening and speaking using the...

Third graders answer text-dependent questions of the story Nasreen's Secret School both independently and then collaboratively through using the carousel of questions strategy. This plan is the seventh instructional activity in a...

This writing pre-assessment has minimal instruction but maximum support and encouragement. It begins with a review of the book, Rain School, through a think-pair-share and small group discussion. The discussion...

Third graders continue to practice the close reading skills of capturing the gist and reading again for important details in the sixth lesson in a larger unit. This is a great beginning-of-the-year unit for establishing visible thinking...

This is a skills-based assessment that asks test takers to use textual evidence to determine the main idea of an excerpt from an informational text as well as respond to text-dependent questions. The assessment is the middle point...

Expose your class to Waiting for the Biblioburro, narrative nonfiction that will act as the bridge between ficiton and informational texts to come. Class members do a close reading of the text, looking at excerpts instead of the whole...

Show your class how to read a map and decipher all of the markings and features. Start out by connecting maps to their homework from the night before and their current reading, in this case That Book Woman, and a related informational...

Students explore the concept of making ice cream. In this ice cream lesson, students convert an ice cream recipe from metric units to English units. Students then make ice cream from the recipe they converted.

This second lesson plan in a larger unit is perfect for the beginning of the year because it explicitly teaches 3rd graders how to use close reading skills by identifying unfamiliar words, figuring out the gist, and defining...

Sixth graders convert English to Metric units.  In this converting English to Metric units instructional activity, 6th graders convert a cookie recipe in English units to Metric units.  Students write a letter to a pen pal in...

The incredibly shrinking meter—decimeters to centimeters, to millimeters, and now to nanometers! Learners may have a difficult time visualizing particles on a nanoscale. Help them see a little clearer using a well-designed lesson...

Chart your way to an understanding of nanoscale. Using a Google map, learners estimate a radius around their location of 1,000 and 1,000,000 meters. Predicting what 1,000,000,000 meters would look like takes them off the charts!...

Students explore the language of the Civil War time period. In this Civil War lesson, students work in groups to research the meanings of Civil War slang.

Allow your class to figure out what they will be studying through an inquiry-based anticipatory set that involves analysis of mystery documents and practice with making inferences. The lesson plan document includes a detailed description...

Take a look at the topic of violence as seen in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird. Discuss together the values that Atticus holds and brainstorm ways to combat violence in a similar manner to what he portrays in the novel. Get your...

It's always nice to hear from friends. Your budding mathematicians read letters from pen pals and convert customary measurements into metric units and vice versa. They also write letters to an imaginary pen pal using metric units.

Students think critically about artistic freedom and evaluate the aims and effectiveness of censorship and education. They begin an investigation of the ongoing controversy surrounding Mel Gibson's "The Passion of Christ" by reading "New...

Learners use conversion factors to solve problems. In this algebra lesson, students convert between Metric and English Units. They measure different objects and using both systems in their units.

Eighth graders biew each volume container and discuss where they have seen them in their home, and how they have seen them used. They explore the different names of volume sizes and their equivalents towards one another. Students...

Young readers describe objects by using describing words. After reviewing the five senses, they use their senses to gain information about an object. Then as homework, they write three descriptive words about a mystery object and place...

Learners gather knowledge about various roles of students in different cultures and eras. Learners research their choice of eras and create a personal artwork to express the tone of the selected era.