Explore African literature and artwork in a multicultural literacy and art lesson. Begin with a read aloud of Tiger and the Big Wind: A Tale from Africa, and afterward, have kids retell the main events in the story. They identify and...

How did the ancient people of Egypt preserve their dead so well that their bodies are still recognizable today? Learn the painstakingly complex process they used for preservation. Young scholars read and summarize a narrative detailing...

Discover Oklahoma's first farmers. Read about 14 different agriculture workers and their contribution to Oklahoma's farming. After reading, have your class complete several activities such as researching an agriculturist, writing a...

Work on narrative writing with this lesson, in which middle schoolers analyze the characters from a selected piece of literature and write narrative diary pieces as the character. They work to understand the point of view of the...

A comprehensive and immersive series of lessons that examines various aspects of story development leads learners into writing a narrative of their own. Writers develop an understanding of the writing process as they use the learning...

Youngsters write and construct their own autobiographies based on The Hundred Penny Box by Sharon Bell Mathis. They engage in pre-writing steps, narrative writing, and peer editing. This is the second part of a two-part project lesson.

Teach your class about milk while practicing informational text reading skills. The resource includes a short text to read, accompanying questions and vocabulary, a vocabulary exercise, a sequence exercise, and a reading comprehension...

Follow any story and record each step on the graphic organizer provided here. There are lines to record the title, author, and illustrator, boxes where pupils can fill in character and setting, and six boxes in which learners can note...

Picture books provide the impetus for a study of how authors make plots seem real and characters interesting. After reading several books, class members list the techniques the authors used to enliven their stories and then craft their...

And...action! Turn your middle schoolers into filmmakers with this writing and visual arts lesson. After reading Monster by Walter Dean Myers, they create a viewfinder using an empty toilet paper roll to make a storyboard for their...

Who is Mo Willems? Explore the author with your class. Learners read books written by Willems, compare and contrast the characters therein, and make predictions about what will happen. Finish off this author study by having small groups...

Your readers study first and third person point of view and then rewrite classic tales. Richly detailed, the six-part plan provides considerations for beginning, proficient, and advanced learners. Included are suggestions for...

Work on identifying text structure with this thorough instructional activity. After studying a diagram depicting six different text structures (compare/contrast, spatial, chronological, problem and solution, cause and effect, and order...

This PowerPoint highlights the steps one should follow to craft an organized essay. It addresses the purpose, audience, and format, and briefly touches on prewriting and organizing. This presentation is designed to review the very basic...

While reading the book Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls, the class ties together the core reading objectives, which are making predictions, comprehending new information, reading for author's purpose, independence in reading, and...

How has the African American population changed over the years? Learners use charts, statistical data, and maps to see how populations in African American communities have changed since the 1860s. Activity modifications are included to...

Having a firm grasp on organization can help young authors write with purpose. Using this resource, they list the components of a narrative which include an introduction, body, and strong conclusion. They discuss how to implement these...

Begin the lesson by modeling how to connect two sentences with a transition word. After doing five examples together, have learners work together to correctly edit a list of sentences provided. Finally, learners look back at their past...

Use formatting to organize an explanatory essay after comparing and contrasting expository and narrative genres. Young writers explore expository writing by employing prewriting techniques and graphic organizers to plan an essay. This is...

Are we really all that different from people in the past? First, learners of all ages write an autobiographical poem. Then, they research the lives of historical figures. They use the same format that they used to write their own poem to...

What are the six traits of writing anyway? Young writers focus on ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, and conventions to assess additions to their writing portfolio. They will create and add to a writing portfolio...

Practice sequencing events using Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's narrative poem about the famous revolutionary hero. Learners read Revere's own account of the event, and compare/contrast the two texts using a t-chart. Finally, they imagine...

Introduce your middle schoolers to the lives of past Native Americans. First, learners work together to put photographs in a sequence. Then, using their sequence, they create stories to share with the whole class. No matter how old your...

Investigate life along the Old Spanish Trail! They visit websites and identify the history and environment. They create journals, dramatic enactments, and maps to discover the role individuals played in society. They also explore the...