I Have A Dream ... that after the lesson, all individuals master the reading, writing, researching, listening, and speaking skills the biography project helps them develop. Martin Luther King, Jr. serves as a topic example for a model...

Focusing on a specific inquiry and area of investigation, ninth graders continue their research projects and portfolios based on Temple Grandin's Animals in Translation and their questions. The activity guides readers through the...

Lesson ten in this unit for the book Bullfrogs at Magnolia Circle, prepares third graders to begin writing an informational paragraph about the adaptations of bullfrogs. First, young writers work either independently or in pairs to...

Context is key when it comes to historical research. Prior to field research, class members learn as much as they can about the site they are going to visit. Groups investigate and prepare presentations about the history of the site, the...

Young environmentalists learn how to craft a persuasive essay about an environmental issue they consider important. After studying the components of a persuasive essay and examining a student model, writers brainstorm possible topics and...

As part of their study of the US Presidential election process, class members research a presidential candidate's position on a specific topic or topics. Formatting their research as a pro/con question ("Should the Death Penalty Be...

Launch a discussion of the creative process with a short video that features the daily ritual of Slobodan Dan Paich, a San Francisco artist. Slobodan models his approach to tea painting and shares his reflections on the...

As part of a mid-unit assessment, scholars complete a research simulation about food deserts to mimic the research process. Afterward, they engage in a think-pair-share to discuss what they've learned throughout the unit.

Encourage your young citizens to make a difference. Using Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America as a starting point, class members watch documentaries, investigate issues, and then write letters to...

Most twenty-first century pupils don't know how to interpret cuneiform. Examining images of cuneiform and papyrus writing and using a chart and Venn diagram, young historians extrapolate what life may have been like for people who lived...

After researching an issue introduced in Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, writers develop an original thesis statement and craft an analytic essay using evidence collected in their research.

Ninth graders synthesize their inquiry paths, research process, and claim formulation with a writing assessment at the end of the unit. Learners write a one-page perspective about their conclusions from the research process and outcomes...

Ninth graders hone their research questions in a lesson plan focusing on accurate search engine techniques. Continuing a unit on inquiry-based learning based on Temple Grandin's Animals in Translation, the lesson plan guides learners...

Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.

After reading Elvira Woodruff's George Washington's Socks, young readers and writers embark upon writing their own historically based story, with a focus on developing ideas and details throughout the piece. In small groups, class...

Take the next step in the writing process with a lesson plan geared towards the completion of writing an evidence-based essay about a rule to live by, as Bud did in Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis. Pupils collaborate with their...

The perfect resource for a beginning journalism teacher or someone designing a journalism unit, this activity prompts students to write a newspaper article. It covers all aspects of the writing process, such as a guided warm-up...

Practice persuasive writing skills in this thorough lesson. After selecting issues and discovering viewpoints, middle schoolers write letters or brochures created to express the individual's perspective. The ideas are presented to the...

Now that learners have honed their inquiry-based projects down to their strongest few questions, they can conduct independent research. High schoolers pursue answers to their inquiries while assessing sources, establishing a research...

Part of being a strong researcher is knowing if you're headed in the right direction. Class members study their research frames formulated in the previous lessons of the unit and decide what parts of their inquiry paths need revision or...

A two-part lesson introduces learners to a six-step process for writing and presenting oral reports. Participants learn how to select, limit, and research a topic, how to organize their notes, draft and revise their reports, and practice...

Time to revise! Using a writing evaluation rubric, scholars participate in a peer editing process to provide feedback on each others' informative essays. Next, pupils begin revising their drafts based on the feedback they receive. 

Scholars scour thematically aligned texts to gather a bank of words they can use in an original acrostic poem. 

Students explore food. In this nutrition lesson, students investigate multiple facets of healthy eating and how the fast food industry impacts our society. They will participate in class discussions, read from their text-book, and watch...