Curated OER
Water: Narrative vs. Expository Texts
A reading of vignettes written by Peace Corps Volunteers serving in Lesotho and Madagascar launches a study of the difference between narrative and expository texts. As final products, young writers craft both a narrative and an...
Curated OER
Narrative vs. Expository Texts
Young scholars use examples of narrative and expository text to analyze and compare the two styles. Students read articles on life in Lesotho and Madagascar and use graphic organizers and discussion to compare them. Young scholars write...
Curated OER
Charlotte's Web
Fourth graders focus on fluency by reading the book Charlotte's Web. In this reading strategies lesson, 4th graders partner read, do guided reading, and independent reading to increase fluency. Students use Venn Diagrams, discuss cause...
Curated OER
Read All About it
Learners create and publish a newspaper that reflects and explains pioneer and medieval societies. They become newspaper writers for a specific time period. They adopt a holistic approach to exploring community life in medieval and...
Curated OER
Writing: Narrative, Expository, Persuasive, and Descriptive
If you are interested in having a basic framework for teaching expository, narrative, persuasive, and descriptive writing, this resource may help; however, you will have to find information on the different forms of writing to share with...
Curated OER
Writing Prompts for High School
Are you teaching a high school language arts class and stumped for writing topics? Five pages of writing prompts for all kinds of writing should help you out. Many of these prompts refer to texts that are not included in this resource,...
Curated OER
Discovering Saturn, The Real "Lord of the Rings"
Reading, writing, and rings! A lesson from NASA combines space science with authentic reading and writing tasks. Included in this lesson are pre-reading activities, four mini informational booklets on Saturn, a structured note-taking...
Curated OER
Exploring Regions of Our World
Examine how climate and landforms affect plants and animals that live in particular areas. Discover that these same factors affect peoples' homes, jobs, and recreational activities. Pupils research ecosystems and biomes, and then write...
Curated OER
Introducing Nonfiction
Students are introduced to nonfiction text. In this five esson unti, students explore nonfiction as a genre. They identify the components and text structure of text structure of nonfiction text. Students read a nonfiction passage and...
Curated OER
Synthesis of Information
Locating and synthesizing information is an essential part of the research process but can be overwhelming for many young writers. Eliminate some of the stress and confusion, this resource suggests, by separating these steps. To focus...
Curated OER
Is This a House for Hermit Crab?
First graders identify text that uses sequence or other logical order. They identify and interpret how different plants and animals inhabit different kinds of environments and have external features that help them thrive in different...
Curated OER
The Human Face of Flagstaff
Students make a brochure for Flagstaff, Arizona. In this geography instructional activity, students look at a map of Arizona and the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce sheet to find natural and human features of the city. They create a...
Curated OER
Kansas Symbols Bingo
Students play Kansas Symbols Bingo. In this Kansas history lesson, students review the 8 state symbols: buffalo, wheat, cottonwood tree, honeybee, meadowlark, salamander, sunflower, and turtle. Students then participate in a game of...
Curated OER
The Russian Revolution
Students complete a matching game based on geographic features of Russia and label a map with these features. In this geography and politics lesson, students identify resources and populations in Russia and complete a T-Chart on a video...
McGraw Hill
Science and Society: Access for All
Have your middle schoolers read through this outline about the Special Olympics program and then write a paragraph. This single-page assignment provides lines on which to write the expository paragraph. It makes good practice in writing...
Curated OER
When Nature Strikes: Natural Hazards Safety
Young scholars observe the impact of natural disasters on humans, and become aware of the dangers of environmental hazards such as flash floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes.
Curated OER
The Desert is Theirs: Adapting to Our Environment
Students determine how animals and people adapt to the desert environment. In this desert lesson, students review vocabulary about the desert and how humans have to make changes to accommodate their environments. They listen to and...
Curated OER
"You Decide" Companion Lesson
Students research capital punishment and discuss different views on the death penalty. They complete a web based activity and express how certain acts of terrorism can challenge people's views on the death penalty.
Curated OER
Research project
Eighth graders explore reference materials and then complete a research project. In this research project lesson plan, 8th graders choose the best reference source to use. Students learn to correctly site sources for their project....
ReadWriteThink
Scaffolding Methods for Research Paper Writing
Rome wasn't built in a day, but researchers can be with proper scaffolding. This writing unit has scholars write a research paper through scaffolding of various parts of the process. Learners begin with identifying a topic and crafting a...
Curated OER
The Princess's Point of View
Everyone wants to be part of a royal family. Let your pupils experience the privilege of royalty by rewriting the story The Frog Prince from the point of view of the princess. While the story line remains the same, perspective is bound...
Museum of Tolerance
The Role of Citizens in a Participatory Democracy
Groups research participatory democracies and compare the role and rights of citizens in ancient history with those in recent U.S. history. Guided by a series of questions, individuals compose a persuasive essay in which they discuss the...
Curated OER
Mountain Magic: Identifying the Basic Physical Characteristics of Mountains
Students read about and identify on maps the physical characteristics of mountains. In this mountains lesson plan, students also write about the characteristics using personification.
Curated OER
Leapin' Landmarks: Locating 10 Man-made Landmarks Around the World
Third graders label continents, oceans, and major mountain ranges on maps and use the maps to write an informational report about landmarks. In this landmarks lesson plan, 3rd graders write about 1 major landmark.