Signal words are one way that authors make the relationships between their ideas clear. Allow your learners the chance to investigate cause and effect in texts by identifying signal words. They locate and analyze cause-and-effect...

Scholars explore an expository text to answer questions about its structure.

Examine informational text with a three-page learning exercise that focuses on taking notes, identifying the main idea, and locating supporting details in order to form a summary paragraph. 

Explore non-fiction comprehension strategies with your class. They will visualize daily activities and label a 4 circle Venn diagram with related phrases. They must identify the overlapping sections as "main ideas," then complete a...

Grab any two topics, some index cards, and a couple of kids, and you're ready to compare and contrast! The resource provides instructions for this method and three graphic organizers in addition to or in place of the index cards.

How do you grow a goal from a dream to reality? You make a plan! After reading chapters two and three of Where the Red Fern Grows, learners map how Billy earns his dogs by completing an organizer in pairs and then discussing answers in...

The second lesson in a series from ReadWorks.org, this lesson continues to explore the difference between fiction and nonfiction texts. The lesson opens with the teacher reviewing a class Venn diagram started in the last lesson....

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...

Second graders read an informational text passage on animals, as well as a poem that incorporates rhyming words. Then, 2nd graders answer questions based on what they read. 

Students practice organizing their vocabulary words in an online organizer tool. For this vocabulary lesson, students read a text and take notes. Additionally, students organize their vocabulary words into an online "Alphabet Organizer"...

Encourage the development of proactive readers with this graphic organizer, which prompts pupils to identify words they do not recognize as they are reading a textbook or literary piece.

Sixth graders identify table and each of its parts, including cell, column, row, header, and formula bar. Students then explain how tables are used to store and organize information in database, organize and categorize information...

Point of view, purpose, and tone: three concepts readers of primary and secondary source materials must take into account when examining documents. Class members view a PowerPoint presentation and use the SOAPS strategy to identify an...

Here's a resource that deserves a place in your curriculum library, whether or not your school has adopted the Common Core. Designed for middle and high school language arts classes, the packet is packed with teaching tips, materials,...

Sixth graders identify information from texts by working in pairs using Wikki Stix or highlighting tape to locate, mark, and read items on preview checklist. Students then compare what they marked with what another pair marked.

Young readers explore informational texts as they read a text entitled Giant Pandas by Gail Gibbons. The teacher will begin by explaining that one characteristic of informational texts is that they teach the reader new information...

A solid comprehension strategy is used to aid learners in better understanding what they read. They are introduced to the way good readers ask questions while their reading to understand what's going on in a story. The class reads...

Factual books about animals are great for sparking interest in non-fiction text. Little ones will love learning about the foods animals eat as they practice identifying facts in a text. They chart the information they've learned by...

If you are in need of a lesson on identifying information in a non-fiction text, look no further. The class learns how to use a KWL chart to identify explicit information in the book, Frogs by Gail Gibbons. They fill out the KWL...

Students arrange illustrations in sequential order. In this text organization lesson, students access a webpage where they must follow the instructions to learn about the steps of pumpkin carving. Students then click and drag...

Address the literary elements in a piece of writing using these materials. The packet includes plenty of resources, and focuses mainly on theme, character, and point of view, with some materials for setting, symbolism, and author's...

Review the terms denotation, connotation, diction, and mood in paragraph writing. After defining the terms, middle schoolers practice writing examples of both connotation and denotation. They complete a connotation and denotation...

This lesson is so beneficial it makes any teacher's heart skip a beat! After readers identify words from Words by Heart, they break down unknown vocabulary with a handout detailing various prefixes and suffixes. Once they finish...

Examine the process of summarizing a piece of text using the book So You Want to Be a President? Kids review the definitions for main idea, topic sentences, superordinate terms, and supporting details. Next, they work in small...